Sunrise on Board Air Tran

 It's time for Travel Tip Thursday.  When you take an early morning flight...don't go sleep as soon as you get on the plane.  If you do.........you'll miss this.

 Don't pack your camera where you can't get to it.  I keep my small point and shoot nothing fancy camera in my purse, in my purse under the seat so I knab it quickly.

Not pictures you could put in a contest, but was happy not much of a reflection.  Held the camera close to the window, took the first picture with the flash, the other 2 without the flash.    This sunrise was taken out the window of my Air Tran flight heading from Columbus to Atlanta on my way to Aruba.  Do pop back in for photo's and information about Aruba, one of my favorite places to travel.

Pop in Often, remember Menu Mondays for dining tips, Traveling Tips on Thursday, and any day for vacation destinations.

Weighing Your Luggage

 This is an absolute must when you travel by plane.  How much does your luggage weigh?  And if it weighs too much...how much extra is it going to cost you?  Why worry about that.  How many times have you seen people scrambling at the ticket counter....holding up the line while they pull stuff out of their suitcases to get beneath the 50 pounds.

This portable, light weight scale has a handle you hold, a hook you put through the handle of your suitcase so it's easy to see how much your luggage weighs.  Take it with you, pack it.  Why?  I know everyone thinks well if it was ok at home...it will be ok on the return.............not so.  Why?  Dirty close weigh more then clean close and you bought souvenirs, and you don't know how much your little gifts for the neighbor watching your house or pets weighs.

People can use the home scale to weigh themselves, then get back on with their suitcase and weigh again, subtract their weight to determine how much the luggage weighs; but........that's not always accurate and it's not all that easy.  I've seen people tell the folks at the ticket counter, I weigh it at home...blah blah blah.  Plus, you can't do that for the return trip.  Well, maybe where you're staying has a work out room and you can pack your suitcase, take it to the gym area and repeat the process there.........but really, talk about a nuisance.

Prices vary for portable luggage scales, this one was under $15.00, though some digital ones may be closer to $20.00, still it's money well spent.  I've seen a price tag of $25.00-$125.00 for luggage weighing over 50 pounds depending on the airlines and whether it's the first or 2nd bag or domestic or international travel.........so go buy the portable scale and use it.  You'll be glad you did.  I like to have at least 5-8 pounds of wiggle room so I know I won't have trouble.

Pop in Often, remember Menu Mondays for dining tips, Traveling Tips on Thursday, and any day for vacation destinations.

Time Share Travel Tip

When you travel and stay in a hotel, a condo, and or a timeshare (even if you're not the owner), keep the container/ insert that generally comes with your room keys. Often a location map of the resort is included. If you plan to return to this location, it's advantageous to remember the lay of the land...so to speak. Additionally, it's helpful when you try to remember whether you liked or disliked the room location. Where you on a top floor, was the view pleasant? Do you have children and if so, were you near the children's play/pool area? If you liked where you were, you'll know what to ask for with your room assignment on return. If you didn't, you'll have the lay out of the resort to make a selection from. It's hard to trust your memory if you travel often and sometimes your personal pictures simply don't show this type of information.

Call you resort/hotel about 3-4 days before your arrival and make your requests. You generally can't make your requests too far ahead because they may not know what will be available. If you need an early check in because of your flight times, this is also a good time to do that. While you never get a 100% guarantee, it's been my experience most resorts are willing to do what they can to work with you on your request and or special needs.

Group Travel

Group travel has both pluses and minuses. You need to actually think about it before you sign on to a group travel excursions.

Are you a scheduled person? If so, group travel can make you nuts. It's hard to get multiple people ready to go at a specific time and to agree when and where to go.

Are you flexible? If you're flexible group travel may be a breeze for you. If you have one thing in mind and do the opposite you need to ask yourself ahead of time if that will be ok with you. Will it disrupt you and cause you irritation?

Are the folks you plan to travel with like minded? Do they like to do the same sort of things? If not, you could have a problem. If group 1 is active and wants to get up early to exercise; and group 2 wants to sleep in, get up leisurely and take the day as it comes without things being pre-arranged or scheduled. You might have conflicts. Will the early birds be quiet, are they content to do their own thing and leave you be?

Group Travel can save you money. But, it can also actually increase the costs. Are you all sharing equally in the cost of a condo vs each of you paying for your own hotel room? If you're paying for your own hotel room, you need not all have the same accommodations. Example ocean view generally costs more than side or street view. Are you eating out or eating in? If you're eating out, the choice of restaurant can up the cost of your trip. Likewise if you're eating in, are you sharing the costs? Does everyone like to eat the same thing?

Are you a person that likes things neat? If so, going on vacation sharing a house or condo with people who aren't can be an irritant to you. Example: You have a beautiful condo and every night people leave their shoes everywhere, their drink glasses on end tables, personal care items like sun tan lotion on the table. Access your situation, what you like, what your travel partners are likely to be like and decide if ground rules need to discussed before the trip.

If you're at a house or condo and are eating in. Who's doing the cooking, the cleaning up? Are you going to get stuck with it all the time? Is it being shared. Really a good idea to discuss this before hand.

Do you want to do some things by yourself, or with your spouse and not necessarily everything with the group? If so, discuss it before hand. People can get their feelings hurt if they expect all activities to be group activities and you want some time alone.

What time do you like to eat dinner? If you're a 5 o'clock person but traveling with people like myself who like to eat at 7 ish, you have a potential problem.

There is no right, or wrong way to go about this. We all have our routines. The important thing is to discuss things ahead of time.

Here's 2 of the biggest area's that can be a source for discord in a group. Pets and smoking. Pet people tend to think everyone should love their pets they way they do. If you're not a pet person, you probably don't want to travel with people who are or want to bring their pets. Time tables can be an issue here, when and where to stop. Where to eat, what to do with the dog in the car etc. Smoking, if you're a non smoker, chances are you don't want smoke in your hotel room, condo, or beach house. If you have people in the group who are smokers, discuss ahead of time how that's to be handled. Is there a reasonable place outside for them to smoke?

Organize yourself, think about what you want out of vacation, and by all means discuss things BEFORE hand that will give everyone the best possible means of having a wonderful vacation.

Securing your House when you Travel

While you travel, be it for business or pleasure you don't want to have worries about your house/apt. or condo while you're away. Take a few precautions to safe guard your home. Naturally everyone thinks to close the windows, and lock the doors; but there's more to be done. Always let one or two people in family and in your neighborhood know when and where you're traveling so they can keep an eye on the house.

Always stop the mail and the newspapers. Door hangers are more difficult to stop, so do have a neighbor check the house. Nothing sends more of a signal you're not home then to have a pile of mail, newspapers, and or door hangers advertising that fact by being piled up in your absence. You can stop you mail easily by doing it on line.

Have several automatic lights set to go off and on while you're away in various parts of the house. Set those times to match your normal routine. If you typically go to bed around 11, leaving lights on in the middle of the night is a sure signal to anyone that might wish to enter that you're not home. Leave your window blinds up so your neighbors can see if something is wrong inside the house.

Make sure at least one neighbor has keys to your house should they're be any problems.

Turn off the water. It's not uncommon for a leak to happen in hoses' and you don't want to come home to a flood. Or due to cold temperatures have a pipe burst.

Turn your automatic garage door opener off. You don't want people to play with your combination and or another opening and be able to work yours. Turning the electric to it completely off is double security.

Don't take out your trash can, as it will sit there the whole time your gone....another big flag you're not home.

If it's winter, make arrangements for someone to shovel your drive and walk if it snows; and or to drive their car in and out of your drive leaving tracks....it looks like you've been there then. Likewise with tracks on the walk.

Laundry, Prepping for Travel

Laundry, something we all do all the time. Something you can't get away from no matter how hard you try. It's like the EverReady Bunny, it's just keep going and going. lol

You do laundry all 4 seasons of the year, you do it before after and sometimes during your travels. So, what's so important we need to talk about it here in this post? Laundry is a part of prepping for your travels. Make you life easy, make less work. As you do your laundry a week before departing for an adventure; set aside items you plan to pack and don't wear them. Lay them out on an extra bed (cover them if you have fur babies in the house that won't leave them alone). In the course of a normal week most of us do laundry multiple times. If you do this with all your laundry for the week, you'll have very little you actually need to get out of the closet or draws to get ready to pack. AND best of all, you won't have to do a last minute laundry because something you want isn't clean and ready.

There other benefit is, you have the opportunity to review things without feeling rushed about what to pack. You can see what might work or not, what might need a button sewn on etc. AND by keeping up with the laundry you're not pressed the minute you get home. It's also a good idea to launder, iron and have ready the outfit you'll need for your first day back at work before you go. If you're delayed getting home; you'll have what you need and not need to do laundry in the wee hours of morning to have something to wear to work; in fact.........you won't even have to unpack right then....you'll have what you need for your first day back.

Make your life simpler, plan ahead with this simple plan. It's saved us a couple of times. Getting stuck at the airport or even when driving due to weather and not making it back in town as scheduled doesn't have to stress you out, if you're ready.

Carry on Bags for Traveling

You give thought when you pack suitcases and duffel bags for plane or car travel; but do you give the same thought to your all important carry on bag? Do you pack a carry on bag even if you're traveling by car? I do, and consider it a must for pleasant, organized, and efficient travel. What will you need at finger tips? How heavy will it be (more important if you're packing for a carry on for plane travel), will it go through security safely?

The items I put in my carry bag regardless of whether I'm traveling by car or traveling by plane are:
My Camera
My GPS
A water bottle
My yarn

If I'm traveling by plane I add a pair of footies, and sometimes a book.

I have lots of canvas bags and use them constantly; but for carry on they must have a zipper and an extra pocket. The extra pocket is where I put my boarding pass, and my footies. I like the little footies for standing and walking through the security line. Not about to walk on that floor or carpet where thousands of people have; many with dirty feet. Boarding pass is something you want to be able to grab quickly, and not have to root in backpack, purse, or brief case/ laptop case for.

Pack LIGHT! I put my yarn, the needles or hooks I need for that item, and pattern if I'm using one in a zip lock bag sealed inside the carry on. Keeps it neat, clean, organized, and dry. Water bottles can leak, and have condensation which can be a problem. Likewise my GPS and or book would be in a sealed zip lock bag. I always use the freezer zip locks, as they're heavier and hold up far better than the regular ones. Additionally, if security needs to look through your carry on, they don't make a mess of everything. They can see right away what everything is.

I always have the camera in a small padded camera bag for protection again inside the carry on. Ladies this is for you, leave enough room in your carry on bag to put your purse inside it and still be able to zip it shut. The carry on bag should have shoulder straps so you can comfortable carry it. The bag needs to small enough to shove under the seat in front of you. If you count on being able to put it in the above compartments, it's not then at your finger tips. It's not convenient and you have to jump and down constantly to get what you need. Not only is that a nuisance to you, but it's a HUGE annoyance to your fellow travelers, and sometimes it's not possible. Sometimes with rough air travel you're not permitted to get up; and sometimes due to people carrying on too much your carry bag is no where near you. Again, that defeats the purpose. PARENTS should pay particular attention to this. You probably need items for your children, you need it to be organized, you need it to be at finger tips.

Can you count the number of times you've seen a harried traveler not being able to find something they need? The mother with a huge heavy purse flapping open as she bangs her way down the aisle. People who need help lifting their carry on bag because it's too heavy for them to lift. Bags that end up needing to be checked because their too big, they don't fit under the seat and the room above is gone? People with multiple plastic bags losing items as they go? Take time, think about what you need and pack it neatly. When you throw something together, you risk breaking it, losing it, and causing travel delays.

Always toss in a couple of extra zip lock bags in your carry on bag, and your suitcase. They are always useable.

Getting the most out of your Cell Phone and GPS when Traveling

Cell phones, we all them and use them daily; but they're not much good to you when you travel if you leave home without them being fully charged! How many of you have tried to reach a friend or family member for an urgent purpose while they were on vacation and not been able to reach them. People toss the phone in their pockets and purses without checking to make sure it is FULLY charged. Yes, I know most of us don't need to charge the phone daily; you might not reach your destination as planned (due to unforeseen delays) in order to plug in. You might reach your destination during a storm and electrical outage. No electric leaves you no ability to plug in and recharge.

• Fully charge your cell phone and your bluetooth before you leave home
• If traveling by car, use your bluetooth it's far safer than reaching for your cell phone
• Pack your charger for both your cell phone and your bluetooth in your carry on bag if you're traveling by plane. That way, if you're delayed you'll have necessary plugs and hopefully have the ability to plug in, if necessary
• Pack your car charger for your cell phone. If you're traveling by car this is a MUST. It can charge while your touring around and it doesn't rely on being near an electrical outlet. If you're traveling by plane, it's handy if you're going to rent a car as well.
• Add phone numbers to your hotels BEFORE you leave home. You don't want fumble around looking for a phone number should you need to alter your reservations. If you need directions to their locations you have the number at your finger tips.

The cell phone really is more then an entertainment piece, it is truly a tool--a safety tool at that. Add your emergency contacts to your cell phone BEFORE you hit the road.
GPS....love mine, and use it all the time. I feel safer having one. You can use them to find your way from point A to point B, certainly. You can also use it to find where to get gas, where to get food near where you are.

• Make sure your GPS is FULLY charged before you leave home
• Make your car charger. You can use it in your personal care or your rental
• Add the names, phone numbers, and addresses of your hotels, airports and wherever you know you'll be traveling ahead of time.
• Don't leave your GPS visible in your car. Put it in your purse, carry on type bag, out of site perhaps in the glove box. Leaving this visible in the car is an invitation to theft.

Remember, a GPS may not be aware of detours or new roads. Though there are GPS's that give you the updates; it's my experience it's not the model most of us have.

Pack a Flashlight

Pack a flashlight or two. I always, always, always pack a flash light. If I'm traveling by car I pack a flashlight. If I'm traveling by plane, I always pack a flashlight. Going for a quick wk-end or a nice long vacation, yep I pack a flashlight in either case.
WHY?

1. Electric can go off anywhere, anytime. After all it goes off at home, right? Why wouldn't it go off due to a storm or electrical problem when you're traveling?
2. Hotel rooms are dark, which is really nice when you're trying to get some sleep; but when you wake up in different places all the time can you see your way to bathroom in the middle of night? Not normally. Thus the little flashlight on the right in above picture is something always packed in my ditty bag for all trips, long or short. It's always placed on my bedside nightstand in hotel rooms. It always get's used!
3. The flashlight on the left is a new item we've gotten really hooked on. You do not need batteries! Batteries are heavy. Regular batteries are expensive, always have to be replaced and are not at all environmentally friendly. If you use (and we do 99.9% of the time), rechargeable batteries, then you need to be sure and pack the recharger. This flashlights run by being cranked up. See the handle? You crank it a few times, then snap it back down and you have light. We've tested it out. We cranked about 40 times and it ran all night. It's small, lightweight, easy to use and the light has 2 levels--regular and bright. So, it really is one that you can see with.
4. If traveling by car, hubby usually has a large heavy duty flashlight in the car. This is a safety must! If you're on the road at night and have a problem, you really do need to see what you're doing. Maybe you need to change a flat, hard to do without a good flashlight.

Sometimes we're caught off guard and things happen one doesn't expect, with truly with a little bit of forethought and planning you can be prepared for almost anything. Being prepared, being organized can make your trips so much more enjoyable. Being organized, being safe and planning ahead can make what could be a bad situation nothing more then a little bump in the road.

When and Where are you Traveling?

Once you finalize all your travel plans type up a complete travel itinerary and email or print to pass along to at least one other person besides those in your travel party. When are you leaving, where are you staying, phone numbers for contact at the hotel as well as your cell phone numbers. If you're flying include flight times along with the name of the airlines and your ETA. It's always a good idea for someone else to know your whereabouts. People have gotten lax and and or lazy and don't do this as much as they used to. They think as long as they have a cell phone, they're ok and anyone could reach them. However, what if your lose your cell phone, or it get's stolen, or the battery runs out, or you find you're not getting good cell coverage and there's an emergency? People need a way to contact you, and you need a way to contact them. Be smart include name, dates, addresses, and phone numbers.

Think of the sad situations we all hear about on the news where someone doesn't make it to their destination. People try, but can't reach them by cell phone. Police can't look for them if someone doesn't know where they were suppose to be, or when.

Maybe you keep everything in your laptop; but someone takes it and then you've got no way to check confirmation numbers. Maybe you keep notes in your purse or wallet and that gets stolen or lost or forgotten. Be prepared, have a back up. If you pass along your complete itinerary to someone else you're covered.

Are you renting a car, include the name of the company. This too can help in the case of an emergency, an accident etc. If you're driving your own car, include the color, make, and license plate number on your complete itinerary.

Not saying something will happen, or that you need to be paranoid; but a little caution is in order when you travel. Things do happen, usually when we're least prepared. Take an extra 5 minutes and pass along your complete travel itinerary. Something so simple can be a life safer later.

My brother was out of town on business when our mother had emergency surgery. We didn't know if she'd make it through the night and contacting him wasn't easy. When you travel, be safe, be prepared. You'll have fewer people worried about you, and you'll have a better stress free time.

Break ins can Ruin your Travels

Don't let this happen to you! Broken car window, that's a rock in the backseat. That's the rock they used to break the car window. Yes they got my purse, my ID's, my glasses. This happened because my purse was in the car. How many times have you left your purse, your camera, your GPS in the car? I'm betting far too many times. I NEVER do now. Thankfully I wasn't out of town on vacation when this did happen. When I travel, I'm actually more on alert. If you leave items in your car (you often can't carry everything), make sure they are not visible. More importantly, lock them up BEFORE you get where you're going. It does no good to get out of the car, walk to the back and lock it (purse, DVD player, GPS etc.) up as people watch you do it. That's about what happened here. When you plan not to carry your purse, or camera bag etc, put them out of site before hand. Take your car keys with you, you chap stick...whatever items you plan to put in your pocket, then lock and or hide your purse and other valuables.

Having nothing visible that's tempting someone to break in will help protect you, your car, and your valuables.

I did have my car keys, and my cell phone in my pocket. Don't be unsafe, don't get stranded. Always have your items locked, or hidden or better yet with you! I down size my purse and therefore it's light enough to carry with me now at all times. I always have my cell phone even when I stop briefly to go potty at a rest stop. Do NOT leave things in the car, it really only takes a short while to have a mishap. Protect yourself, your family, and your valuables. Think ahead, pack well. Enjoy your travels.

**A bit of a side note here, do you have the name and phone number of your insurance agent in your cell phone? If not, you should. Do you have the number to call to stop your credit cards in your purse or cell phone? If not, you should. When this happened to me, I called hubby who immediately canceled the charge cards and call the agent. In this regard, I was lucky.**

Packing Thursday Traveling Tip

Packing, it's been my experience that regardless of where you go, most people over pack. Ask yourself several questions.

1. ..What am I going to be doing (what type of clothes are needed to accomplish this)
2. ..How long am I going to be there
3. ..What's the weather like
4. ..Are there laundry facilities there?

Answering those questions will truly help you.
Example...what am I going to be doing? Going to the beach, you're going to be walking and laying on the beach. What do you need? Sunscreen and bathing suit, and not much more. So, if you're in a hotel where you will eat out every meal, you need clothes for that. Is it fancy? Probably not, most beach places are pretty casual. Shorts, or summer skirts and tops are probably all that's needed. If you're in a condo and will be doing you own cooking, are you going to "dress for dinner"?
How long am I going to be there? Going for a week, you need maybe 2 skirts for evening with different tops, and maybe 2 pair of shorts for variety. A couple of suits so one can be drying while you've got the other one on. What's the weather like? Probably a beach trip is hot (though I took one that wasn't) Sweater sets are great, sleeveless for when it's hot, and a matching sweater if it cools down at night or you get cold in A.C. while dining out. Are there laundry facilities? If so, you can pack lighter and do a laundry mid week.

My suggestion is to lay out what you think you need on the bed, look it over; match sure colors blend so you can mix and match. If not make changes. Then when you satisfied, remove 1 full outfit and hang it back up in your closest. Think back, how many times have you come home and said I didn't need this or that while unpacking?

Pack a slightly larger suitcase then you need for your clothes, you'll have room them for purchases you make while gone. Be they gifts for friends and family or your personal souvenirs. Toss in a bag or two like these. These happen to be what I use grocery shopping, but one or two of these gives you a bag to separate things in your suitcase for the return trip, something to put your beach towel, sunscreen etc. if you're going to the beach or spending time at the hotel pool.

If you're flying, be sure and weigh your suitcase at home. Give yourself room to grow heavier so you're not charged for a heavy bag. Another good purpose of those bags above. You could use one for your carry on if you're over weight. How will you know if you're overweight at the hotel? Does your hotel have a workout room? Most do, so do condo's at resorts. There are scales in a work out room. Weight your bag the night before departure. Don't be caught off guard.

**Still having issues with formatting. Can anyone figure out why the numbers and or dots don't work here when I post on blogger? I see both when I type in draft form, I see both in preview form, I see neither when post is published. The same situation with the few times I've tried to use a linky. No numbers appear???

A Picture's Worth a Thousand Words!

We've all heard the saying "A Picture's Worth a Thousand Words", so regardless of the size or style of camera you use Don't Leave Home without It!

Is your camera fully charged? Do you have extra batteries and or a battery charger packed so you don't miss a special picture or memory because you're batteries are kaput? Do you have an usb plug if you need that for your computer, or an extra memory disc or stick?

Where are you packing your camera? Personally I like the camera in my purse or in my carry on bag even if I'm not flying. Why? You want it close at hand in case there's a photo opportunity before you reach your destination and get unpacked. Batteries add a fair amount of weight which can be a problem if you're flying. Two suggestions, use rechargeable batteries instead of lots of batteries to carry and throw away. Have one set charged and in your camera, a 2nd set charged and packed. When you remove the first set from your camera to put in the charger you still have the 2nd set ready to go. Or, if you use the throw away batteries; have one set in your camera and buy others as soon as you reach your destination instead of buying them at home and packing them. Yes, I know in most vacation resort locations you'll pay more for the batteries; but not as much as paying for a heavy bag.

I much prefer to be green and use my rechargeable style batteries.

Make sure you have your camera strap, either one for around your neck or one for your hand....and USE IT! Don't fall victim to a camera being dropped because you have a strap and don't use it, or didn't bother to put it on the camera when you purchased it.

When photographing your memories, enjoy yourself. Don't spend lots of time arranging people to get the "perfect" shot. It annoys everyone involved. Just take a picture and keep moving. I've heard people say (particularly those with a camera that needs lots of adjustments etc.) that taking photo's is time consuming, and adds stress to the vacation. Don't let it be, click and move on. Don't spent valuable time you could be exploring making sure everyone in your picture is standing in the exact location. Saving memories and sharing the fun is what you're trying to accomplish.
Read all Thursday Traveling Tips Here

Traveling Alert

Not the best of pictures I know; but I took this photo through the glass window 6 stories up after I climbed all the stairs. I was a bit out of breath, so probably moved, add that to the reflection from the glass and well.........what you see is what you get.

Ok, the important part and the reason for my posting this is. What do you wear when sleeping in a hotel room? Do you have something to cover up with near by? Early morning, we'd not yet had a cup of coffee; though we each had one in hand we were sipping when the extremely loud fire alarm went off. I sleep in a t-shirt; but was cold and had put on a fleece and lounge type pants. I could go outside in what I was wearing. Hubby was similarly clad. He did quickly put his jeans on before we walked down the stairs though. I took time enough to grab my purse and cell phone and away we went. Should have seen the barefoot folks in jammies stumbling around. No one was awake, not really anyway. Though getting all that blood flowing as we walked to the ground floor to exit surely helped.

This isn't the first time we've had to exist a hotel for a fire and or fire alarm. Last time it wasn't daylight; it really was in the middle of the night. Luckily it was warm weather and we all were out in the parking lot for some time while the fire department took care of things. That was many years back, when our daughter was young. Waking up a young one quickly, getting something on not a easy task.

It's important to be organized folks, even when you're suppose to be relaxing and on vacation. Before you go to bed at night, know where your purse-wallet, cell phone, and shoes are. Have a quick put on something at your finger tips. You really never know what might happen, and you want to be able to quickly get yourself and loved ones to safety without fumbling around or going outside without sufficient clothing on. And you really do need to put on shoes, yes even you teenagers (who were the bulk of those we saw stumbling around barefooted). If there really is a fire, you don't want to burn your feet. If there really is a fire you don't want to step on glass that's a reality if firemen have busted through a window or something to get in.

In both situations we were all were safe. The first time there was a fire in a trash can from a cigarette not properly extinguished which caused the smoke detectors to go off. Took them awhile to find it too, as they searched floor to floor. I'm happy now that most hotels are smoke free so this is probably less of a issue. Though I know people do cheat and still smoke in places they aren't suppose to. This last time I believe there was a problem in the kitchen area as they were preparing breakfast.

Remember you can not take the elevator when there's an alarm. You must use the stairway. Do you take a minute to see where the stairs are when you're in a hotel? If you've not done that in the past, PLEASE make it a point to do that here forward in your travels.

Once the fire department gives the all clear you can return to your rooms, but we still had to use the stairs so we got some extra exercise that day. Think how crowded the elevator is going to be when the all clear is given. If you have the ability to walk, please do and leave the elevator for those less physically capable. It takes some time to transport everyone back in large hotels.

So my travel alert and tip for you all:

1. Be organized, have shoes and essentials at finger tips
2. Know where the stairs are