The race is on to find the next "Coolest Small Town" in the U.S.

TripAdvisor, the giant of user reviews, keeps inventing ways to wring value from its supersize community. The site first moved into the world of airfare meta-search in 2009, but today it announced a feature that helps it stand out from the pack: This being TripAdvisor, you now get to see how other travelers have rated the airline on eight measures, such as baggage handling, check-in experience, punctuality, and seat comfort. Users can give ratings (but not full reviews yet) by logging in through Facebook or their own TripAdvisor account. A fees estimator is also another first-of-its-kind perk. Search for flights on TripAdvisor, and you'll see results that account for fees for checking one bag—letting you see the total price up-front in the results. Click on the price including a bag fee to refine the results further. Tell the site how many bags each passenger is checking and whether any passenger has status in a frequent flyer program that might waive fees. The results will be re-calculated to your exact situation. TripAdvisor is clearly continuing to innovate. No wonder the site was awarded a Budget Travel Reader's Choice Award (favorite site for hotel reviews) and an Budget Travel Extra Mile Award in 2010. What will be next? Prominently displayed user reviews of airports and entertainment? Reviews and ratings of rental car services? We're eager to find out. MORE FROM BUDGET TRAVEL 5 best travel sites More airports consider ditching TSA 17 free-admission days at national parks this year

Mark your calendar: Entrance fees are being waived at all national parks on 17 days in 2011. The National Parks Service recently announced the lineup for this year's fee-free days. They are: January 15-17 (Martin Luther King, Jr. Birthday weekend) April 16-24 (National Park Week) June 21 (First day of summer) September 24 (Public Lands Day) November 11-13 (Veterans Day weekend) For the past couple of summers, national parks have been free on certain weekends, but based on the park service's calendar for 2011, park goers only get a warm-weather freebie on the first day of summer, June 21. In previous years, free-admission summertime weekends were announced only a few months in advance, so we'll let you know if things change and more fee-free days are added. Right now is a great time to start planning a trip that'll take advantage of free admission during National Parks Week. That takes place in April, which, as Budget Travel has suggested before, is a wonderful time to visit Death Valley, Joshua Tree, and Saguaro national parks, among others. MORE FROM BUDGET TRAVEL: Ask Trip Coach: National Parks National Parks (Minus the Crowds) National Parks: Beat the Crowds in January and February

Some of the the country's largest airports are thinking about hiring private firms to replace the Transportation Security Administration's front-line screeners. Sixteen airports, including San Francisco and Kansas City, have switched since 2002, says The Washington Post. Charlotte, N.C., Minneapolis-St. Paul, and Dulles Airport in Washington, D.C., are all considering converting to private contractors, says MSNBC. With private screeners, the security line moves the same way it does when TSA employees handle the process. Passengers take off their shoes, and they are just as likely to face the same pat-downs or full-body scanners as before. The private security firms themselves are vetted by TSA administrators, and their front-line screeners work under TSA rules. Republican Rep. John Mica of Florida, the new chairman of the House Transportation Committee, recently contacted about 200 airports to ask them to switch, reports NPR. Congressman Mica explained his reasoning in a recent editorial: TSA has grown from 16,500 screeners to an army approaching 67,000 personnel.... Rather than operate a huge screening force and human-resources operation, TSA must refocus and direct its mission to develop and implement the best security protocols and procedures. TSA officials respond that the agency is allowed to fire underperforming workers on the spot, in an exception to ordinary rules for federal employees. So there is no advantage on that score to hiring private contractors. Plus, no one has also shown that the government would save money by outsourcing the TSA's screening work to private contractors. TSA Chief John Pistole told ABC News that undercover tests have shown too many weapons getting through airport security. He said that is partly why, last November, he ordered screenings to be beefed up with enhanced pat-downs and full-body scanning machines that can see beneath a traveler's clothing. Even if airports switch to private screening, these enhanced procedures won't go away. What do you think? Should airports fire TSA screeners and hire private contractors? MORE FROM BUDGET TRAVEL How to speed through security 8 outrageous tales of bizarre behavior at security Security: Can new technology read a flier's mind?

Contributing editor Sean O'Neill will be answering your travel questions today, Tuesday, from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. ET, in a live chat. Follow Budget Travel's Twitter profile @budgettravel to ask your questions or share your own travel tips. If you can't make the chat, tune in next week—same time, same station. If you're savvy enough about Twitter to know what a hashtag is, you may prefer to follow the conversation via #TravelTuesday. MORE FROM BUDGET TRAVEL Ask Trip Coach: Farmstays Ask Trip Coach: Ocean Cruising Ask Trip Coach: House Swapping