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Before You Go

 

Best Travel Websites

Below are lists of the "Best" travel websites as determined by various newspapaers, etc.

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Helpful Information

  • Fodor's Focus on Photography
    "How to Take Travel Pictures Like a Pro." With the assistance of author and photographer Jeff Wignall, Fodor's has put together an invaluable guide to shooting great travel pictures: Nearly 100 easy-to-follow tips, with accompanying photos, covering every aspect of travel photography.
  • Transportation Security Authority (TSA)
    This is the TSA's comprehensive travel guide for the flying public: "Here you will find everything you need to know about new airport security measures. You will discover a list of timesaving tips, information on assistance for special needs, the latest list of prohibited and permitted items, and other information that will help guide you smoothly through the security process." Check here before you fly.
    • 3-1-1
      3 ounce bottle or less (by volume) ; 1 quart-sized, clear, plastic, zip-top bag; 1 bag per passenger placed in screening bin.
      These are the regulations for bringing consmetic items in your carryon.
  • Travel Insider
    Offers articles on issues of concern to travelers, like cell phones in foreign countries, noise reducing headphones for plane trips, etc.
  • Washington Post: The In-Flight Nap: It's Not Just the Stuff of Dreams
    Experts offer ideas on how to get sleep on the plane.
  • World Citizen's Guide
    The World Citizens Guide was put together by students for students to use when going abroad in a project by the Businesses for Diplomatic Action, Inc. (BDA). The BDA works to improve the image of Americans abroad by educating American tourists, students and companies, encouraging them to be less loud and arrogant and more receptive and understanding of other cultures.
  • World Electric Guide
    A guide to some important issues when deciding to use your electrical appliances in another country.
  • World Wide Metric
    A site featuring measurement conversion tables
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Emergencies

  • US Department of State: Travel & Business
    Includes links to Travel Warnings and Consular Information Sheets amd Emergency Services to U.S. Citizens Abroad (if your passport is lost, information on health, sending money in an emergency, etc.).
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Customs and Taxes

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Health

See Insurance for travel health insurance for individuals.

  • Centers for Disease Control: Traveler's Health
    Check here for the latest outbreaks of disease before you travel to an exotic destination. Contains the Blue Sheet (disease infected countries), the Yellow Book (Health Information for International Travel in PDF format), and the Green Sheet (sanitary inspections of cruise ships). What vaccinations are necessary, what precautions should be taken, recent outbreaks of disease. This is a great site because it will give you all the health precautions and innoculations you should take for that region.
  • HealthMap
    A web application by two staffers at the Children's Hospital Informatics Program in Boston that plots disease outbreaks on a world map using information from ProMed Mail, World Health Organization, EuroSurveillance and Google news.
  • Pan American Health Organization: Core Country Health Profiles
    Profiles of health in all the countries of the Americas, including Mexico and the Caribbean.
  • Plane truth: Does air travel make you sick?
    A May 4, 2009 Boston Globe article by Carolyn Y. Johnson about people's fear of catching diseases from fellow passengers on airplane flights.
  • Travel Health Online
    Information on diseases and conditions of concern to travelers. Pulled together by Shoreland. Requires free registration.
  • World Health Organization
    Check out their pages for information on diseases that may be a concern in developing countries. Disease Outbreaks are listed in the right hand column.
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Insurance

  • AIG Travel Guard
    AIG Travel Guard is one of the industry's leading providers of travel insurance plans
  • CreditCards.com: Compare credit cards' rental car insurance policies
    "Most major credit cards come with a rental car loss and damage insurance plan. If you get in an accident while driving a rental, your auto insurance policy will likely pay most of the damage, but your credit card company provides secondary coverage. It covers whatever your primary auto insurance doesn't, paying whatever is left and going toward your deductible." This article reviews coverage by American Express, Discover, MasterCard and Visa. (November 17, 2008)
  • insure.com: Travel
    Travel insurance comparison site.
  • MEDEX Assist
    Medical assistance services abroad.
  • International SOS
    Global medical assistance.
  • Wallach & Company
    Insurance for health care abroad and also for foreign nationals in the US.
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Money/Currency

  • MasterCard/Cirrus ATM Locator
    With over 900,000 ATMs in over 120 countries, you're never far from a MasterCard®, Maestro® or Cirrus® ATM.
  • Visa ATM Locator
    Offering global access at more than 457,000 Visa/PLUS ATMs in 120 countries. How to use your ATM card at locations around the world. Search by continent, country, and then input the exact address of your hotel or location.
  • General Services Administration (GSA)
    Under Travel Resources you will find the US Per Diem Rates. The General Services Administration, Office of Government-wide Policy, Office of Transportation and Personal Property, Travel and Transportation Management Policy Division, establishes the maximum CONUS per diem rates for Federal traveler customers, reviewed annually. Search by city or state for per diem rates for lodging/meals in the United States.
  • OANDA
    FXConverter (Foreign Exchange Currency Converter) is a multi-lingual Currency Converter with up to date exchange rates provided from leading market data contributors and is filtered for validity.
  • US Department of State: Foreign Per Diem Rates
    Maximum rates of per diem allowances for travel in foreign areas are established by the Secretary of State and apply to all U.S. Government employees and contractors.
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Online Forums for Travellers

  • Arthur Frommer's Community
    Connect with other Frommers.com members through their active reader Forums, share your travel photos in their Photos section, and read blogs from Frommer's book editors and guidebook founder Arthur Frommer.
  • STA Travelers
    This is a new online travel community designed specifically to educate, inspire and connect student travellers from STA (a student travel association).
  • Trip Advisor
    Read and post travel reviews for hotels, vacations, resorts.
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Parking

  • Airport Discount Parking
    Search for a U.S. airport and the dates you'll be gone to receive a coupon for discount parking.
  • Airport Parking Reservations
    Search for a U.S. airport and travel dates to compare parking and accommodations/parking options.
  • Park Sleep Fly
    Get free parking when you fly when you stay a night at an airport hotel at the beginning or end of your trip.
 

Passports and Visas

(including travel advisories)
  • US State Department
    Here you will find information on how and where to apply for passports (includes a passport application that can be downloaded); How to Get Your Passport in a Hurry, Applying for Your U.S. Passport the Easy Way, Foreign Entry Requirements (whether passports and/or visas are required for a specific country). It also contains Travel Warnings & Consular Information Sheets. Travel Warnings recommend that Americans avoid travel to a certain country, Consular Information Sheets are available for every country of the world. They include such information as location of the U.S. Embassy or Consulate in the subject country, unusual immigration practices, health conditions, minor political disturbances, currency and entry regulations, crime and security information, and drug penalties.
  • Embassy.org: Embassies
    Links to embassy websites in Washington DC. For visa requirements in foreign countries, check their embassy.
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Phone Calls

  • Cell Phone Info
    An explanation of the various types available.
  • Cellular Abroad
    This is a commercial site for renting cell phones abroad. It can give you an idea of the rates and possibilities using GSM mobile phones and SIM cards.
  • How to Call Abroad
    Instructions on what country codes to use and how to call from the U.S. to another country, from another country to the U.S., or between two foreign countries.
  • Skype
    A free software program that allows users to make telephone calls over the Internet, including calls to and from foreign countries.
  • Travel Insider
    Includes articles on using cell phones internationally.
  • Washington Post: Make the Right Call: Sorting Through Your Phone Choices When Overseas
    An article by Roy Furchgott from Sunday, February 4, 2007, explaining how to use your own or obtain a cell phone that works overseas.
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Time and Weather

  • CNN Weather
    Includes world and US weather forecasts.
  • New York Times: Weather
    Input the name of a city (national or international) to add it to your list of favorites.
  • World Time Server
    Get the current time for your destination so you can calculate the time difference (useful when phoning or expecting an email response).
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Translators (for web pages)

Have you found a web page in a foreign language that you would like to have translated? Here are some website that try to do just that.

  • Babel Fish Translation
    You can either input foreign text or a foreign url. English, Chinese, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish.
  • Google Language Tools
    On this page ou can search for a term on pages from a particular country or in a particular language. You can also input the url of a page in another language and have Google translate it. The results, although not great, are interesting! It apparently uses the same translation system as the older Babel Fish (see above).
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Travel Gear / Traveling Light

Most of the sites below are commercial sites that want to sell you gear but they allow you to see what is available since much of this is not carried by regular department stores. Some of them also offer packing tips.

  • Washington Post: The Packing Issue
    A November 5, 2006, article on how to and how not to pack. Additional tips can be found in the Washington Post Travel Reference section.
  • Eagle Creek
    Manufacturer of useful bags, suitcases, pack-it system, and travel accessories. Also includes travel tips such as The Art of the Carry-On or "How to Pack 50 lbs into a 20 lb Bag".
  • eBags.com
    An online retailer of luggage and travel accessories from major manufacturers.
  • Ex Officio
    Travel and adventure clothing, such as climate control vented shirts; moisture wicking, fast-drying clothes that provide UV protection; stain-resistant and now even bug repellant clothing.
  • LeTravelStore.com
    Eagle Creek travel gear, luggage, backpacks
  • Magellan's Travel Supplies
    Online ordering of footwear, clothing, appliances, maps and books, and more.
  • OneBag.com
    The art and science of travelling light. This sites tells you what to take, what to take it in, and how to pack it. There is a resource section of suppliers, a bibliography, and a page of related links.
  • Packing Light
    Find out how to pack a 22" Carry-on bag for weeks of easy, care-free travel; from Holloway Travel Outfitters, Sacramento, CA. Follow their 6 steps for packing a suitcase, and their 4 steps for packing a suit under "Travel Info Depot".
  • TravelSmith
    At this "premier purveyor of performance travel gear" you can find, in addition to quality travel-resilient clothes, packing lists for a variety of travel scenarios.