Play these mind games for a better vacation

Green Day frontman Billie Joe Armstrong was kicked off a Southwest Airlines flight from Oakland last week because he was wearing saggy pants. A flight attendant reportedly asked the alt rock singer, 39, to pull up his trousers. He refused. Armstrong tweeted "Just got kicked off a Southwest flight because my pants sagged too low! What the f---? No joke!" He was allowed to board the next flight to Burbank, and Southwest has since apologized. if (WIDGETBOX) WIDGETBOX.renderWidget('4579cee7-95d3-4a4e-94a4-397ca7a31d39');Get the Poll Creator Pro widget and many other great free widgets at Widgetbox! Not seeing a widget? (More info) But why would the Southwest flight attendant think it was her right to comment on a rock star's dress? Because Southwest's Contract of Carriage, listed on the carrier's website, includes a dress code. In its passenger rules, the carrier states it can refuse to transport "Persons whose conduct is or has been known to be disorderly, abusive, offensive, threatening, intimidating, violent, or whose clothing is lewd, obscene, or patently offensive." Armstrong is not the first to be kicked off a Southwest flight based on dress. Southwest also famously booted a college student who worked as a Hooters waitress in 2007, reportedly because her skirt was too short and tank top too revealing. She was allowed to stay on the flight when she readjusted her clothing. While there was a time when carriers required those in First Class to dress up, most airlines have relaxed those standards. Except, two years ago a top executive of Best Buy was denied a First Class seat on a United Airlines flight, reportedly because his Puma tracksuit was deemed too casual for the front of the plane. Like Green Day's Armstrong, a University of New Mexico football player was kicked off a US Airways flight in June for wearing low-riding pants. In the case of Deshon Marman, he was arrested when he allegedly resisted. The charges didn't stick. US Airways' passenger contract, like that of Southwest, makes for an interesting read, stating that those who are "barefoot, or otherwise inappropriately clothed, unless required for medical reasons" can be denied boarding. But the whole concept of proper clothing is subjective. US Airways had no problem with allowing an older man dressed in skimpy women's lingerie to fly last June. A surprised fellow passenger on the Fort Lauderdale to Phoenix flight snapped a photo. American Airlines is among other carriers clearly stating in its rules it can refuse transport to a passenger "clothed in a manner that would cause discomfort or offence to other passengers." We welcome your comments on airline dress codes. More from Budget Travel: The Ultimate Packing Guide Airline Dress: A Flight Attendant's Perspective A Flight Attendant Sounds Off

A new study does the math on the value of points for major travel loyalty programs. Long story short: You'll be especially happy if you've been amassing points with Starwood or Southwest. NextAdvisor, a site that specializes in analyzing and comparing consumer products, recently took a close look at the value of travel reward points. To figure out a monetary value for points, NextAdvisor rounded up what travelers would have to pay out of pocket for various hotel stays and flights, and then compared to those prices to the number of points required for redemption to grant the traveler those same hotel stays or flights free of charge. Not all travel companies are represented (InterContinental Priority Club anybody?). But based on the eight brands in the mix -- American, Continental, Delta, Hilton, Marriott, Southwest, Starwood, United -- the awards for most valuable points go to Starwood Preferred Guest (for hotel points) and Southwest Rapid Rewards (for airline points). Accoring to NextAdvisor's math, when points are redeemed for hotel stays, each Starwood loyalty point is worth $0.021 (a little more than two pennies), which soundly beats Hilton (value of $0.005 per point) and Marriott ($0.008). In terms of flights, Southwest's points are most valuable ($0.017 per point), with United coming in second ($0.011). What's the point about all of these point values? The takeaway is that some points are much more valuable, and therefore much more worthy of piling up, than others. MORE FROM BUDGET TRAVEL: Get discounted travel by buying gift cards Are you more loyal to hotel rewards or frequent flier programs? The Breakdown on 8 Membership Programs

I have a distinct memory of the moment when, after moving from the West Coast to the East Coast for college, I heard someone say something about “Or-e-gone"—and then continue on with their story as if they hadn't just invented a 51st state. Never in my life had I heard the place pronounced in any way except "Or-ih-gun" (rhyming with Morgan). I'd soon discover that this was a matter of debate on this side of the country. Maybe I shouldn't have rushed to judgment—it didn't take long before I was schooled on the correct way to say "Worcester," (woos-ter, for the uninitiated). We all know that picking up a foreign language can be tough, but sometimes, even mastering the name of a place you're visiting can be a challenge. From countries (the Maldives, Qatar, Papua New Guinea) to cities and towns (Beijing, Gloucester, Cairns), and even streets (New Yorkers will scoff at tourists looking for Hue-ston Street rather than How-ston Street, for example), it seems that for every place there is to visit, there are two or three ways to butcher its name. We've started a list of places with hotly debated or commonly botched pronunciations below—do us Budget Travelers a favor and chime in: is there a country, city, or town with a name you hear mispronounced more often than not? How about a place whose name you’re stumped on? Beijing, China – Americans usually pronounce the name of the Chinese capital city something like beige·ing, but the correct pronunciation is in fact bay·jing. Cairns, Australia – this one is hotly debated, but a representative from Australia's Local Tourism Network, which represents the city, assures us that the correct pronunciation is can. (same goes for Cannes, France). Edinburgh, Scotland – ed·in·burr·ah, or ed·in·bra, in the local style. Gloucester, England – glos·ter. Also goes for the city of the same name in Mass. Iraq – let's clear this one up once and for all. ir·ock (not eye·rack). The Maldives – mall·deeves Papua New Guinea – pa·pew·a noo gi·nee, with emphasis on the first syllable in Papua. Qatar – kah·tar, with emphasis on the second syllable. ">This report from NPR breaks down the controversy over the pronunciation. For the record, the U.S. Embassy of Qatar is still using this pronunciation. São Paulo, Brazil – sa·ow pow·low Spokane, Wash. – spo·can (not spo·cane) Versailles, KY – ver·sails (on the other hand, Versailles, France is pronounced ver·sigh; best not to confuse the two). Wilkes-Barre, Penn. – wilkes ber·ry or wilkes bear (not wilkes bar). The city even has a ">web page dedicated to the pronunciation and history of the name. MORE FROM BUDGET TRAVEL: What’s your biggest language gaffe? The tackiest tourist photos on the web 10 Coolest Small Towns in America 2011

Did you know you can buy secondhand gift cards to enjoy discounts on plane tickets and hotel reservations? More than $20 billion worth of gift cards are expected to be given this year in the US for Christmas, Hanukkah, and other celebrations. Some people will even give the gift of travel with cards good toward purchases from airlines, online travel agencies, and hotel chains. Case in point: You could buy a $50 gift card from Travelocity and give it to a traveler you love. But your gift recipient might not have any trips coming up any time soon, and they might be afraid they'll lose or forget about their gift cards before their expiration date. So these travelers who don't want their cards auction them or trade them off on auction sites like eBay, GiftCardGranny, CardAvenue, and similar auction sites. Exhibit A: Earlier this evening, someone was auctioning off on eBay a $100 Travelocity gift card, with a starting bid of $65. If you snagged it at that price, you'd be saving 35 percent off the face value, and you could apply the card's balance toward the cost of any upcoming purchase. While that example is great, I've typically found more modest savings of about 5 or 6 percent once bidding takes place. Finding these gift card deals is easy. Sign up for e-mail alerts from GiftCardGranny.com, a site that consolidates gift card auction sales on eBay and other sites. The site will alert you when a gift card relevant to your preferred airline becomes available. ("New gift card available from American Airlines. Click over for details.") A search on GiftCardGranny this evening turned up dozen cards from American Airlines for sale. But inventory varies by the day. MORE FROM BUDGET TRAVEL: Ads on Boarding Passes: Are Airlines Sharing Your Info? How Do You Use a Cell Phone Boarding Pass at the Metal Detector? We Want to Know Your Airport Secrets!