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MiamiHerald.com: Travel

• Changing lanes
  Hip bowling alleys cater to cosmo travelers with cocktails, sushi and lounge sounds.
• Miami's smart new hotels
  So what'll it be? The place with the six infinity-edge swimming pools or the one with the bathroom chandelier that doubles as a shower head? You've gotta hand it to Miami. What other city would double down on conspicuous consumption in these perilous times?
• What's new aboard all those new ships
  The economy may be sailing slowly these days, but that hasn't stopped South Florida's cruise lines, which are introducing a half-dozen new ships here this fall.
• Travel Troubleshooter
  Advocate Christopher Elliott reviews problems, reveals solutions
• Share your photos
  
• Postcards From the U.S.A.
  Marjie Lambert visits California
• South Florida flyers' guide
  Direct flights make escapes a breeze
• For Writers
  If you want to be a travel writer, here's where to start.
• For PR Pros
  Contact us with your travel news
• Tourism Offices
  Going somewhere? Get tourist information for your destination.
• Online Booking Guide
  How to book online -- and get the best savings!
• Travel Tools
  Handy links for traveler information.
• Packing Light
  With airline fees going sky-high, packing light pays.
• What's happening New Year's Eve
  nhed NEW YEAR'S EVE WHAT'S DROPPING Everyone knows about the ball that gets dropped on New Year's Eve in Times Square. Maybe you've even heard about the 800-pound peach that gets dropped in Atlanta at midnight on Dec. 31.
• Changing lanes: Hip bowling alleys cater to cosmo travelers
  The world of boutique bowling unfolds here in the midst of an in-town hipster district, wedged between a noveau Northern Italian restaurant and a big-box chain store.
• Before you go on vacation, take a trip to the doctor
  Borneo or Mount Sinai Hospital? An unfortunate choice -- but an easy decision. So instead of spending a recent Monday morning as I'd planned, stuffing my suitcase with zip-off hiking pants and leech socks, I snoozed restlessly on a sofa in Mount Sinai's Abess Waiting Room. Soon, a surgeon I'd never met -- The Husband had made the choice -- would deliver the news that would determine much about our future.
• Iconic Sydney pie van celebrates 70 years
  Where to go for lunch on a sunny spring day in Sydney? Why, the same place you'd go on a cloudy day, or your birthday, or even after late-night clubbing.
• More eco-friendly travel can be child's play
  I hate to be a nag, especially on vacation. The kids hate when I nag them about getting up early or posing for next year's holiday card. But now I've got new motivation to nag, and I don't think my environmentally conscious gang will complain about -- traveling greener.
• 'Bama bests: What not to miss on the Gulf Coast
  If you want to experience the South in all its drawl-y, deep-fried glory, go north to Alabama. Proudly honky-tonk but increasingly sleek thanks to posh new condo developments, Alabama's Gulf Coast is the place to go for a hit of Southern Exposure.
• Europe's Untours now offers New York experience
  For 33 years, the company known as Untours has sent thoughtful, spirited Americans to enjoy vacations in Europe that involve the use of apartment accommodations. For two weeks or more, you live like a European, enjoying your flat, shopping at the local groceries and preparing your own meals -- all in close contact with European neighbors -- and thus you enjoy the opposite of a tour, an ''untour.'' Although an Untours representative resides nearby and is available to help you out of scrapes, you otherwise...
• 2009 will be the year of the travel deal
  The value of the U.S. dollar is surging, gas prices are at their lowest levels in four years, and hotel rates are softening. If you can afford a vacation, 2009 will be ''the year of travel deals,'' predicts Genevieve Shaw Brown, senior editor of Travelocity.
• Ski vacation was all downhill
  Q: I have an issue I'm hoping you can help me with. I made a reservation at Snowbird Resort in Utah last year for a five-night stay over Christmas break. Unfortunately, we missed our flight, so I rescheduled for the first week in March.
• Linger on a porch swing in Apalachicola
  Apalachicola is a place to linger. Linger on a porch swing at the turn-of-the-century Gibson Inn, reading a book or chatting with friends. Linger on the deck of Verandas Bistro -- recipient of Wine Spectator's Award of Excellence for the past three years -- eating a dish brimming with local seafood as a saxophonist plays. Linger at the Orman House while park Ranger Mike Kinnett rattles off the history of Apalachicola like a native, telling tales of its heyday as a booming cotton port in the mid-1800s...
• Carnival fourth-quarter profit rises 4 percent
  Carnival, the world's largest cruise operator, reported a better-than-expected 4 percent increase in fourth-quarter earnings Thursday, but lowered its 2009 outlook as consumers put off booking vacations for next year.
• What's new aboard all those new ships
  The economy may be sailing slowly these days, but that hasn't stopped South Florida's cruise lines, which are introducing a half-dozen new ships here this fall.
• No tux? No problem
  Casual-dress men, take heart: When you sail the seven seas, you can now leave that tux at home. Instead of a ''formal'' night, Carnival Cruise Lines now offers a ''cruise elegant'' evening. Other lines offer casual-dining alternatives for those who don't want to change out of their shorts. Still other lines have tossed the dress-up concept into the ocean.
• Simply elegant aboard line's next big star
  Celebrity's new ship, Solstice, is as simple, and as sophisticated, as walking barefoot in the park. Literally. One of the hallmarks of the first in Celebrity's new series of ships is a broad carpet of genuine grass, developed over a half-dozen years to withstand the salt and wind that go with sea voyages. And while it may seem like a gimmick -- will vacationers able to pay premium prices this year really hang out in the grass? -- the Lawn Club, as it's been dubbed, is a tangible symbol of the kind...
• Fun ship atmosphere has passengers tickled pink
  Marie Gable, a Fort Lauderdale retiree, has sailed on nearly every cruise line. Carnival, she says, is her favorite. ''It's more fun,'' she said, sailing recently on Carnival's new 113,000-plus ton superliner, Carnival Splendor. ``I like the food, and they seem to get a younger group of people. The ships are gaudy, and I love gaudy.''
• New ship puts new twist on Dutch treat
  Holland America is a cruise line steeped in 125 years of tradition. But don't think its ships are stuck in the past. Its new Eurodam -- recently arrived in South Florida for winter cruises -- features honey-colored woods and a bright ambience. Still, the rich paneling, earth-tone colors, tasteful furnishings and Dutch art give the ship a traditionally elegant feel -- at l