Traveling

Skis To Your Door

Ski season in the U.S. is already more than halfway over, but at many resorts there’s still snow into April. If you’re traveling to ski and 1) don’t want to drag your gear through airports, hotels, and shuttle busses, or 2) you’re fed up with cheap, poorly-tuned rental gear, consider a ski-delivery service. These companies bring high-end demo gear right to your door. Two companies serving a variety of western resorts are Black Tie Ski Rentals and Ski Butlers. Several smaller companies operate at individual resorts.

Travelling Light & Shopping
Anyone who’s flown in the last couple of years knows the increasing hassles of weight and size limits for both carry-ons and checked luggage. Not to mention dragging all your stuff through multiple airports; nor the chance that your luggage will be “mishandled” (lost, delayed, damaged, or in Nairobi). So we have a radical suggestion for certain types of trips: Buy your clothing, cosmetics, personal items and the like at your destination.
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Do Not Use TracFone
In our original research for the How To Travel America book and website, we recommended TracFone as a solution for short-term U.S. cell phone service. After still another terrible customer-service experience with TracFone, we do not recommend TracFone. We will continue to research possible options, and post updated information about cell phone options as soon as we can confidently recommend a quality provider.

Telephone Area Codes
We found a great interactive map showing all U.S. area codes. There are so many different area codes in America, sometimes it's difficult to know where you're calling. There is also an area code map for Canada here.

Credit Cards
The fraud departments of credit-card companies are getting even more diligent. Be sure to call your credit-card issuer(s) a week before you travel and tell them you'll be travelling out of the country.