Cash in those bank rewards travel points!

Rather than blog about the latest airline news or innovation in rental cars (which is what I normally do), I thought I'd put out a little plug instead. We're currently soliciting nominations from readers for our annual "Coolest Small Towns" package in the magazine, and I want you to contribute! Click on this link, and tell us about a cool small town that you think deserves recognition, whether it's for its thriving art scene, eclectic mix of residents, or fantastic local restaurants. We definitely want places with an edge to them—so don’t go for quaint. And the towns MUST have a population under 10,000. Besides that, anything goes. I recently visited a couple of towns we included in this package over the past couple of years, Catskill and Hudson, both of which are in New York's Hudson valley. While Hudson is thriving—it has restaurants that can rival those in New York City—I was saddened to see that Catskill isn't doing that well. Perhaps it's the economy—it's tough for out-of-the-way towns to prosper when nobody's spending money. Catskill is a dreamy little place—the architecture is fantastic, and the few antique and crafts shops on Main Street are well worth a visit if you happen to be in the area. (You can visit Catskill and Hudson the same day; they're across the river from each other.) Maybe getting your small town in our magazine will help boost its economy at a critical time—so fill out this online form! (Please, don't post a comment below on this blog, but instead click on this online form.)

File this one under "Crazy-But-True." Alaskans young and old will jump into the icy waters off Seward this Saturday, all to raise money for the American Cancer Society. The 24th annual Polar Bear Jump Off is what it sounds like: Participants don crazy costumes (princesses, penguins, Scooby Doo characters, etc.) and leap into Resurrection Bay, which will be roughly 35 degrees Fahrenheit. "Seventy-five percent of the jumpers are returning and have participated five or more times," says Polar Bear Marilyn, the organizer. Related activities include frozen turkey bowling. The turkeys are in place of the ball, not the pins. Strikes win prizes. There's also a karaoke contest, a quilt show, and a costume contest. Get the full schedule at sewardak.org. Seward is about three hours south of Anchorage. Saturday's forecast is calling for snow showers and a high of 23 degrees. But we're pretty sure that won't stop the plunge-takers. Seward Waterfront Park. Watching the jump is free; some activities cost a nominal fee ($4 to $7). MORE Watch a YouTube video of the Jump Off Get more info on Seward at the Chamber of Commerce For more travel blogs, go to alltop.com

Last Sunday the New York Times came out with its 44 Places to See in 2009. It's an entertaining list—though not as good as ours— but it also got us a little worried. Last year, about this time, the good folks at the Times came up with a full 53 places to visit, which incidentally included the Hamptons of Germany and a point on the Axis of Evil. (Did you go to either? Shoulda gone.) But 2009's it-list has just 44 places, and that represents a 17% decline. Assuming that this rate of decline holds, and I have no idea why it wouldn't, there will be fewer than a dozen places worth visiting by 2016. That means a whole lot of people trying to check into the same hotel, palace, or yurt, depending on where we're all headed. Yet another reason to hop on a plane today.