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ARTICLE KEYDIY Do-it-yourself. Visas are easy to get on your own. $ Pay somebody. Save time and frustration by hiring some expert help. AUSTRALIA (DIY) The easiest and cheapest method is applying online for an Electronic Travel Authority, a stampless visa ($17, eta.immi.gov.au). After completing a form that requires your passport details and a credit card, you can be approved in 30 seconds. You can also apply for an ETA in person at the embassy for free. Securing a visa by regular mail from the Washington, D.C., embassy is possible (austemb.org), but it costs $70 and takes two weeks. If you want help The Australian government doesn't charge for visas arranged through expediters or travel agents, so all you'll have to pay is the company's fee. (PassportVisasExpress.com charges $20 for two-day processing.) Qantas agents can get you an electronic visa within 15 minutes for $25. Tour operators often handle visas, and some charge for the service. Newmans South Pacific Vacations will deduct its $25 processing fee if you take care of the visa yourself. BRAZIL ($) Visas cost $100, and it's worth it to hire a specialist (see below). Travel Document Systems' three- to seven-day service is $45; PassportVisasExpress.com charges $59 for seven-day processing. Brazil tacks on a $10 surcharge for visas handled by third parties. To save money The rules for doing your own paperwork depend on where you live (brasilemb.org). To get a visa from the consulates in San Francisco or New York, you must apply in person or pay an extra $10 if a third party appears for you. In San Francisco, visas are typically processed in five business days and can be sent to you via a U.S. Postal Service prepaid envelope, so bring one with you. In New York, visas are usually ready in 24 hours but must be picked up by someone. If you live near Chicago or D.C., you can apply by mail to those consulates. There's a $10 handling fee; allow at least three weeks. Most Brazilian consulates only accept U.S.P.S. money orders. And if you apply by mail, most require you to use U.S.P.S. Express Mail. CHINA ($) Specialists charge $45-$55 on top of the $100 consular fee (up from $50 as of August 1) to get you a visa in about four days. If you book a package, the operator will take care of your application for $20-$30, shipping included. To save money Apply in person or send a third party to the embassy in D.C., or the consulates in Chicago, Houston, L.A., New York City, or San Francisco (china-embassy.org). There's no option to apply by mail, but visas will be mailed back to you if you supply a prepaid envelope. You should allow at least four business days for regular processing, or add an extra $30 for same-day service. Cashier's checks, money orders, and cash are OK. EGYPT (DIY) U.S. passport holders can pay $15 for a visa at the Cairo airport. Stop by the visa-payment booth before getting in line for immigration and customs. To apply in advance You can apply by mail to an Egyptian consulate; allow a week or more for processing (egyptembassy.net). You can also go to the New York consulate and get a visa that day; the San Francisco one needs at least 24 hours for processing. Some consul­ates only take money orders and certified or cashier's checks. A visa specialist can get a visa in three days starting at $45. To save time Travelers with Foreign Independent Tours and Misr Travel can pay an extra $20-$25 to have a staffer meet them at the Cairo airport with a prepaid visa sticker. That way, they can go directly to immigration. INDIA (DIY) Beware the 15-day transit visa: It only costs $30, but the countdown begins the moment the consulate stamps the visa. Instead, opt for the $60, six-month tourist visa. If you're booking your trip through a tour operator or travel agent, ask them to deal with the visa. Many will do it for free--all you have to pay is the fee (with a cashier's or certified check or a money order) and fill out the forms, which they can help with. The process takes about a week. Getting a visa from a consulate yourself via mail also takes about a week. To save time Apply before 12:30 P.M. at any of the five consulates in the U.S. (indianembassy.org), and you can get a visa that afternoon. Cash, money orders, and certified or cashier's checks only. If you want help Compare expediters' prices. PassportVisasExpress.com charges $59 (seven days), while Zierer Visa Service asks $55 (10 days). KENYA (DIY) Get a visa for $50 (U.S. cash only) at the airport upon arrival. Forms are available at the airport. To apply in advance If you're mailing your paperwork, allow at least seven days--and up to 16 days from May through August. It's possible to get a visa within a day if you apply in person and pay a $10 rush fee at the consulates in New York and L.A. or the embassy in D.C. (kenyaembassy.com). Cashier's checks and money orders only. If you want help Expediters charge from $39 for seven-day processing, and $55 or so for four-day service. RUSSIA ($) Beyond the $100 fee, tourist visas require proof of a Russia-based sponsor (often a tour operator). Expect to pay $45-$55 for assistance if your trip is booked through the operator, and more if you arranged your trip some other way. Alternately, Travel Document Systems charges $45 for 10-day processing. If you need a visa sooner, the fees go up, and the consulate tacks on charges: $50 for three- to five-day processing, $100 for next-day service, or $200 if you require same-day turnaround. To save money You still need to show that you have a sponsor--a hotel in Russia will do. Your hotel should have the standard tourist confirmation document that you need to submit with your applications. You'll need a confirmation document for each place you stay. Apply in person or by mail through a consulate, and be sure to include a prepaid return envelope; payment must be through cashier's check or money order (russianembassy.org). You should allow 6 to 10 business days for processing. TURKEY (DIY) Pay $20 at the Istanbul airport visa booth before going to immigration. To apply in advance Visas processed by mail cost $9 more and can take three weeks (turkishembassy.org). Consulates accept money orders and cashier's checks by mail, and cash in person. You used to be able to apply online for $29, but the service is down and no one knows when it'll be operating again. If you want help PassportVisasExpress.com charges $39 for two-day service. VIETNAM (DIY) The prices and policies vary by consulate, and you need not apply via your regional office (vietnamembassy-usa.org). The San Francisco consulate charges $45 for three-day processing and $65 for next-day service. Others ask more--four-day service from New York, for example, is $105. For D.C., include a prepaid U.S.P.S. Express Mail envelope. If you want help PassportVisasExpress.com charges $89 for four-day service; Travel Document Systems charges $45 (7 to 10 days). There's also the somewhat complicated option of asking a travel agent or tour operator to get an approval letter from the immigration department in Hanoi. Through Sinhcafe Travel, for example, you pay $30, get your letter in a week or so, and then bring the letter and $25 more to the airport.

Tim Cigelske was a baggage handler for a major airline in Milwaukee from 2005 to 2007. $7.50 an hour Baggage handling is boring and strenuous. The pay is terrible ($7.50 an hour) and the hours are worse (shifts begin at 4 A.M.). But off the clock, we can fly for free if there's an open seat on our airline or its partner carriers. I flew free--a few times in first class--to Cabo San Lucas, Orlando, Costa Rica, San Francisco, Denver, and Seattle. The downside is that airline employees are the first to get left behind if a flight is full, so travel plans can get screwed up: I had to spend a night under the Phoenix airport's fluorescent lights. Still, we all took advantage of the perk; otherwise it was tough to justify flinging luggage when the windchill was 15 below zero. I tried to fly at least once a month. I heard of handlers who flew to Philly just for a cheesesteak. Rookie fliers A baggage handler can tell when it's spring break or a holiday without looking at a calendar. That's when the bags bulk up because inexperienced travelers overpack (and get slapped with fees for bags over 50 pounds). I'd rather work a flight filled with hard-core bowlers checking their balls en route to Reno than a trip headed to the Caribbean. How much stuff do you need for the beach? Luggage left behind Check in at least 30 minutes before the flight. Any later than that and your bag will probably miss the plane. Sympathetic ticket agents sometimes call and ask us to swing back and pick up late bags, so you might want to beg them for help. Most times, bags are delayed or lost for other reasons. Depending on the airport, luggage is sorted by the three-letterdestination code, flight number, or both. (The ticket agent usually tears off bag tags from old trips, but it can't hurt to rip them off yourself to avoid confusion.) There was one day when a delayed flight meant that we had two departures at the same time to the same city, and I loaded an entire cart of bags onto the wrong plane. Another day, we loaded so many bags of golf clubs bound for Myrtle Beach that the plane ran out of storage and we had to hold 10 bags. And sometimes there's no explanation: Miscommunication is easy when everyone's wearing hearing protection and shouting over jet engines. No special treatment Pristine new bags don't stay that way for long inside a cargo bin, so buy luggage that's durable, not fancy. But don't go the cheapskate route: An overstuffed duffel bag held together with duct tape is a mess waiting to happen. Baggage handlers can cram a Boeing 737 with 150 bags in under 30 minutes. Factor in even higher loads for bigger planes, and multiply that by several incoming and outgoing flights a day. Do you really think anyone's bag is going to receive special treatment? Back pain In nearly two years I probably hauled 250,000 bags. If it weren't for that job, I wouldn't have traveled to half the places I did, but I'm glad I quit. My chiropractor says my back problems are likely related to the job--and I'm only 25 years old. While I miss the free flights, I'm pretty sick of airports. For my next vacation I might just go as far as I can pedal on my bike. But if I do fly, you can be sure I'll try to bring only a carry-on.

New snorkel kits from U.S. Divers come with fins that are 40 percent smaller than typical flippers, yet still give a powerful kick. Sold with a nylon bag that holds the mask, snorkel, and fins, they're easy to pack and cheaper than renting for a week--and with your own set, there are no worries about putting your face and feet where dozens of travelers have been before you (available at llbean.com, $59).

Boutique hotels--meaning smaller properties with distinctive personalities--became popular because they weren't chains with cookie-cutter rooms. Now major hotel companies are creating what they consider boutique brands. InterContinental already has eight Hotel Indigo locations in North America; guests will find a core list of menu items at hotel restaurants, but there will also be surprises like in-room murals, and decor and music that change throughout the year. Hyatt recently introduced the Hyatt Place brand; there are 60 locations in the U.S. Starwood has two new brands slated for 2008: Aloft, with lounges meant to serve as neighborhood hangouts, and Element, which has barbecues and apartment-like rooms that'll appeal to extended-stay travelers. Marriott is partnering with boutique-hotel entrepreneur Ian Schrager and plans to launch a yet-to-be-named line of 100 hip properties over the next decade.