Outdoor summer theater across the country

How about a walk around a city led by a local who knows all the hidden wonders, free of charge? That's the premise behind Global Greeter Network, which believes the best way to get to know a city is to get to know a local. It's active in more than twenty cities across the globe and is now continuing its freebie visits in Moscow, one of Global Greeter's newest iterations. From Argentina to Australia and Houston to Marseilles, greeters show visitors the "other" side to their city, filled with hidden alleyways and lesser-known landmarks. They aren't professional tour guides, rather enthusiastic volunteers who love their city and apply, interview, and then go through orientation if selected to become a greeter. The first Greeter site was New York's Big Apple Greeter in 1992, which sought to rid travelers of the pre-set NYC itinerary and script, and instead supply them with informal visits of New York through the eyes of actual New Yorkers. Meaning, skip the Empire State Building, ditch the Statue of Liberty, and head to Chinatown, Brooklyn Heights, Greenwich Village, or Harlem. Big Apple Greeter then joined forces with the Chicago, Houston, Fairbanks, and Toronto sites to create the Global Greeter Network in 2005. And now, Moscow Greeter leaves out the Kremlin and St. Basil's Cathedral and takes visitors to markets, hidden courtyards, and even hospitals and schools. All visitors need to do is fill out a request form at least two weeks prior to the desired tour date and stay in Moscow for at least two days. Visitors list the places they want to visit, as well as their preferred language, and are put into groups with no more than six people. The local greeters—who are usually foreign language students or retired teachers or professors—then take visitors on a walking tour lasting two to four hours, depending on what the visitors want to see and do. The tour can only be used once per stay while in Moscow. All Global Greeter sites are free of charge, while some are non-profits and greatly appreciate donations (like Big Apple Greeter) and others are a part the regional tourism office (like Chicago). To see if there is one near you, click here, or Google "Global Greeter" and your city. Does a free-of-charge walking visit with a local interest you? Tell us below. MORE FROM BUDGET TRAVEL Tours led by the homeless One guy, one bicycle, one cross country tour Strike a (yoga) pose in Times Square

Flashing lights, honking horns, tourist throngs, and...inner peace? If there were ever a place to test your yogic focus, it's Times Square. On June 21, the Times Square Alliance will sponsor its annual yoga event, celebrating the summer solstice by creating space in the heart of NYC for sun salutations and downward dogs. Yogis of all levels can register by going to the website and signing up for one of three yoga sessions taking place throughout the day. Each class lasts between 75 and 90 minutes and is totally free. You'll receive an email with your ticket—just print it out and bring it to the event (and don't forget your mat!). Then, tune in to your breath, take in the cityscape, and enjoy. SEE MORE FROM BUDGET TRAVEL: Times Square Like a Local 5 Airport Innovations Worth Praising One-Tank Escapes for Seven Cities

A handful of airports worldwide are trying out ways to make travelers happier. Here's a round-up of innovations that sound promising: Wireless check-in At some Australian airports, Qantas is testing high-tech frequent-flier cards loaded with RFID (radio-frequency identification) chips. At check-in, you tap your Qantas Club Card to a sensor and the airline's computers will text your phone with the gate number. Your card acts as your boarding pass. Machines at the gate scan your card, making for an entirely paperless process. Checking luggage with Qantas? Use the reusable plastic tag with a wireless chip inside (which the airline sent you with your frequent flier card), hook it around your luggage handle, and check the bag yourself. The smart luggage tag talks to sensors throughout the bagging process to enable workers to track where it is, like FedEx does with packages. Qantas's site has more details on the program, which has been in testing since November at domestic terminals at airports in Sydney and three other cities. Lock-your-phone charging stations Sometimes it's the simple things that count. About 60 Hudson News bookshops at airports nationwide will soon introduce charging stations, to help you recharge your phones for free. But it can take up to half an hour to recharge some phones. So these kiosks help travelers in an especially sensible way, allowing users to lock up their device using a personal code, similar to how safes work in many hotel rooms. While your phone is juicing up, you're free to wander around the airport. Real-time customer service Sometimes at the airport, a problems crops up and you can't seem to find a responsible person to help. Maybe you can't find the nearest pay phone or a pharmacy, or you're not sure when the terminal coffee shop opens, or you're upset at the lack of trash cans in the gate area. To better address such problems, London's Gatwick airport has placed signs all around its terminals inviting passengers to give its customer service staff feedback via Twitter 24 hours a day via @gatwick_airport, increasing the chance of real-time responses to complaints and concerns. A recent tweet: "@frgraphics Sorry there's no free wifi at the moment. We're working on it though. http://bit.ly/ilfLbz" Subway-side check-in By end of summer, passengers heading to India's Delhi airport by subway will be able to drop checked luggage at one of four train stations and forget about their bags until they land at their destinations. Kiosks will enable many fliers to print their boarding passes and check their bags for flights on Air India, Jet Airways, and Kingfisher, reports Ryan Ghee of Future Travel Experience. Elsewhere in the world, many passengers can check bags at London's Paddington station (for Heathrow flights), Vienna's Wien Mitte station, Moscow's Kievsky Station, and Hong Kong Station. Authentic stores and food courts Tokyo's Haneda International Airport, which opened in October 2010, has a departure hall that is far better than most, creating a sense of place. At "Edo Market," builders have simulated an early 1900s Tokyo street using traditional materials and decor. The street is lined with shops such as the century-old stationer Itoya and the 50-year old Kaneko Optical Shop. Even better, instead of Starbucks and McDonald's, restaurants serve up high-quality Japanese food. MORE FROM BUDGET TRAVEL Luggage tags that "talk" Radio-tagging luggage at Heathrow 5 ways to keep your cords tidy and organized in your bag Follow @budgettravel

Have you ever wondered what it was like to sail the seven seas, pillage for gold doublooms and hunt for buried treasure? Pirate lore has captured the imagination of both children and adults for centuries, often a popular subject of literature and film. A number of pirate museums along the east coast of the United States—as well as one in the Bahamas—offer guests a rare opportunity to see the treasures left behind by the real pirates of the Caribbean. Just in time for International Talk Like A Pirate Day (Sept. 19th!), here are three of our favorite pirate museums. Visitors to New Providence Island in the Bahamas can get an idea of what pirate life was like during the "Golden Age of Piracy" by checking out the Pirates of Nassau Museum, where guests are welcomed by a pirate re-enactor and can view a number of wax figurines depicting what life was like onboard famous ships like Blackbeard's Queen Anne's Revenge. Walk through models of a replica of Blackbeard's ship and a number of old glass bottles, coins and other artifacts left by pirates on Nassau's shores make the trip interesting for pirate lovers and landlubbers alike. As a display in the museum states: "It was said that when a pirate slept he did not dream that he had died and gone to heaven but instead, that he had returned to New Providence." Pirates of Nassau is open from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. from Monday to Saturday and from 9 a.m. to 12 p.m. on Sunday, with tickets priced at $12 for adults and $6 for children ages 4-17. Formerly known as The Pirate Soul Museum in Key West, the entire collection was moved to St. Augustine, reopening in December of 2010 as the St. Augustine Pirate and Treasure Museum. Home to one of the largest collections of authentic pirate artifacts in the world, the museum features one of only two original Jolly Roger flags in existence, Captain Thomas Tew's treasure chest, an official journal of Captain Kidd's final voyage, and one of the world's oldest wanted posters from the 1696 search for Captain Henry Every. The museum is open from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. daily and discounted tickets are available online for $11.99 for adults and $5.99 for children ages 5-12. Did you know there were pirates as high up as New England? The New England Pirate Museum in Salem, Massachusetts, features exhibits starring Captain Kidd, Blackbeard, Captain Sam Bellamy and other pirates who frequented Boston's gold coast. Visitors can take a 20-30 minute guided tour of authentic pirate artifacts, a pirate ship replica and even troll an 80 ft deep cave for treasure. The museum opens every day at 10 a.m. and the last tour is given at 5 p.m. Tickets are $9 for adults, while children ages 4-13 get in for $7 and seniors over 65 pay $8. We want to know: Have you ever visited a Pirate Museum in your travels? Tell us about it below!