How to behave in a Paris restaurant

Ever dreamed of visiting Down Under? Australia is a steal for U.S. travelers this fall—for three reasons. • Airfares have plunged because of new competition from low cost carriers. The low prices will last for a while. "International fares will still need some time before any increases take place," Qantas CEO Alan Joyce said this week, "given the heavy discounting and oversupply, particularly on transpacific routes to North America." One of the main competitors is new entrant Virgin Australia. Roundtrip flights between L.A. and Sydney start at $800 per person. • The value of the U.S. dollar against Australia's currency is 11 percent stronger than in July 2008, meaning your buying power is much, much stronger than it is in Europe, Japan, or many other parts of the world. (Today, one U.S. dollar buys about 1.15 AUD.) • The ongoing recession has depressed tourism from Australia's typical visitors, especially Japan. So hotels and tour operators are dishing discounts of about 20 to 30 percent to lure customers, as the New York Times has reported. A case in point: Australia's Northern Territory, 5 Nights, $987: Explore the wilds of the Northern Territory, including a swim in a rock pool, stays at remote cattle bush camps, and guided hikes of about six miles a day. Book by Feb. 10. To find out more about the airfare bargains, we spoke with Rick Seaney co-founder of the clever airline ticket comparison website FareCompare.com… "Prices were in free fall from late fall last year and have been firming up since a bottom in June. The prices in the spring and last fall were the cheapest I have seen in 5 years of closely tracking airfare trends. They have firmed up lately but are still pretty good compared to the past half decade." Good news! New Zealand may be next! "The cost of flights between New Zealand and the U.S. could drop by up to 40 percent after V Australia and Dubai's Emirates announced a trans-Tasman code share agreement yesterday," reports New Zealand's Business Day. MORE Go on sale, dammit! (Why Hawaii's airfares defy gravity) What's new in Sydney? In October, the new month-long Crave Sydney festival debuts, with island-hopping ferry tours and free dance lessons, among other attractions. Should there be a law against 3-hour tarmac delays? (110+ comments)

Headed to Vegas and looking for show tickets? Try Tix4Tonight, a discounted ticket service that works a lot like New York City's TKTS. Tix4Tonight, with six locations in Vegas, sells same-day tickets to more than 70 shows, at up to half off regular prices. The show list is posted each morning at 9:30 a.m., with sales beginning at 10. Get there early; the lines can be painfully long. But as the expression goes, good things come to those who wait: Tix4Tonight has tickets to popular shows, such as the Cirque du Soleil's Mystère and Fab Four Live, a Beatles tribute show. Check out the website's Sneak Peek to get an idea of what's on offer before you go—the list of available shows changes daily. For example, just today Tix4Tonight had 50 percent off tickets to Fab Four Live. The booths have been around since 2002 and are so popular that a seventh location is being introduced at the end of this month in the Casino Royale Casino & Hotel, which is close to the Mirage, the Venetian, and Harrah's on The Strip. In addition to show tickets, you can get discount tee times at local golf courses and discounts for meals at local restaurants. There's also a $2 off coupon that's downloadable (it'll save you a pesky service charge).

There will be fewer flights this fall than in any season since late 2001, reports the AP. The airlines have been trimming flights, and they haven't finished. American, United, and Delta plan to cancel even more service. What does this mean for you? It means that, despite the recession, planes will usually be full. And if the economy does strengthen a bit, it means that airfares aren't going to get any cheaper by the holidays. As the WSJ's travel editor Scott McCartney puts it, "Buying early means you typically pay a high price (higher than you would during non-holiday periods) and buying closer to the holidays usually means you pay even higher prices." You can book in confidence if you rely on money-back, price tracking websites to "watch your back." As I recently reported in this month's Budget Travel: Most fliers don't know that major U.S. airlines have policies that qualify you for a refund if the fare goes down after you book. Of course, they don't tell you when your fare changes—and who actually keeps track of these things?—so travelers rarely see the money. Enter Yapta. Two years ago, the site introduced its free airfare-tracking service, which e-mails you the moment your fare dips. For $15, Yapta will file the pesky money-back paperwork with your airline. Last summer, Orbitz got in on the business, with its Price Assurance program. If another Orbitz customer books the exact same flight in the same fare class for less than what you paid, you automatically get a check for the difference (up to $250 per ticket). No paperwork required. So don't hesitate to book your tickets now. If the price drops later, you can get some money back in most cases. Another tip: Do your shopping for tickets during the middle of the week, when travel websites often charge lower prices for the same flights than they do on weekends, when they know more people are visiting their websites.

Last Friday we posted an item, "A reader proposes smart new routes for river cruises." Clarence Moore suggested several great new routes for European river cruises, "plugging gaps" in the existing coverage by the top companies. Other readers chimed in with their own comments. Carol, for instance, asked for help finding a cruise covering Ukraine, the Black Sea, and Istanbul. Well, we have good news. A representative from Viking River Cruises has written in with a helpful response. Thank you, Joost Ouendag, VP Product Marketing at Viking River Cruises. As the person in charge of developing new product for Viking River Cruises, I would very much like to second your request for more, more, more! Having said that, here is what we have found, as far as European rivers are concerned: one of our competitors a few years ago tried sailing the Wisla in Poland. there is a lot of historical interest along that river, so it seemed appropriate. However, the river turned out to be barely navigable during the best of times—if my memory serves me well, only two or three cruises could take place as planned. The venture was abandoned after that one season. The Oder north of Berlin does get some river cruise traffic, but the ships have to be relatively small, and the demand is limited, just as it is on the lower Elbe and the waterways of Northern Holland. To my knowledge, only one European company services these regions. A few years ago a number of companies sailed on the Po river, but the water levels in that river proved a major challenge in operating an entire season. Subsequently, all of these operators were forced to pull out. On the Iberian peninsula, only the Douro river is large and deep enough for river cruise vessels. There are a few operators that offer cruises on this river that drains northern Portugal. To Carol: Viking River Cruises does offer a cruise in the Ukraine, from Kiev to Odessa or vice versa. Check out our website. Finally, to Clarence Moore: some parts of Europe are only now finding the economic benefits river cruising can bring. Infrastructure is constantly being improved and new opportunities present themselves. Rest assured that wherever we find a river that can sustain an exciting, dependable and rewarding cruise experience, you will find us there! EARLIER Viking and other river cruise companies introduce new ships