CHRISTOPHER ELLIOTT

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Ski resorts gear programs toward kids

Rebecca Klein’s kids were ski novices when they checked in at Vermont’s Smugglers' Notch resort for a weeklong stay recently. They didn’t stay that way for long.

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Now arriving: the golden age of air travel

Ask anyone who flew before 1978 about the golden age of air travel, and they probably won’t hesitate to tell you about the glories of pre-deregulation flying.

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Traveling over the holidays? Prepare for the worst

Traveling during the Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year’s season can be a frustrating, patience-testing, character-building experience, but there is one thing it isn’t: predictable.

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Resorts release flurry of apps for 2010 ski season

Before he downloaded an iPhone app called Cyclemeter two months ago, Donald McNeill had only a vague idea of where he’d skied on any given day.

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Scans, pat-downs and the future of airport security

The pre-Thanksgiving standoff between the Transportation Security Administration and some airline passengers over the federal agency’s new screening techniques has left many industry observers wondering: What’s next?

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Travelers join the surveillance fray

"Don't touch my junk" became a protest anthem against intrusive airport security screenings thanks to John Tyner's now-famous pre-Thanksgiving encounter with TSA agents in San Diego.

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Road work may slow your holiday road trip

There’s good news and bad news for motorists this holiday season.

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Disney turns to guests to promote theme parks

In one video, a little boy dances during a parade at Disney’s Magic Kingdom. In another, a young girl dressed as a princess embraces her father. And in a third, two women explore Cinderella Castle.

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Staying safe on the high seas

The debut of two brand-new new cruise ships — Cunard’s new Queen Elizabeth earlier this month and Royal Caribbean’s massive 16-deck Allure of the Seas in December — coincides with the beginning of “wave period,” a time of year when most people book their cruise vacations.

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Are travelers overloaded by social media?

Mary Gallagher recently received an e-mail from the Metropolitan Tucson Convention & Visitors Bureau offering “hot deals.” But there was a catch: In order to receive them, she had to follow Tucson’s tourist authority on Twitter and friend it on Facebook.

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Hotel guest: Valet-parked car taken on joyride

Remember the movie "Ferris Bueller's Day Off," where a valet takes a 1961 Ferrari 250 GT out for a joyride? Brandi Mahoney claims it happened to her when she stayed at the Embassy Suites Portland in downtown Portland, Ore., recently.

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Repeat vacations can be far from boring

When Kathy Potvin told her grandson she was considering breaking a tradition of visiting Ocean Park, Maine, last summer, the 7-year-old protested.

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Value or amenities? What travelers want

Free drinks. Room upgrades. Better restaurants. That’s what the travel industry thinks you want from your next travel experience.

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Need a vacation? Try North Korea or Chernobyl

The border between Iran and Iraq may seem like a strange place for a vacation — specifically, to go hiking — but after , one of three American hikers held for more than 13 months in Iran, the whole world knows it happens.

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Autumn a great time to fall into a vacation deal

It’s that time of year again.

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How to get your travel company to have a heart

Sarah Andrus was flying from Philadelphia to Phoenix on US Airways when she accidentally left her jacket underneath the seat in front of her. "The jacket was a gift from a friend and unique," recalled Andrus, a director for an Olean, N.Y.-based manufacturing company. "I called the airline with low expectations of recovering my jacket, but I thought I'd give it a try."

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Be careful at the car rental counter

Be nice to your car rental agent. Otherwise you could end up like Hank Jeffries.

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7 clauses to beware of in your cruise contract

If you ever want to feel confused, outraged and powerless all at the same time, just read your cruise line’s ticket contract.

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5 ways travelers have lost their manners

They’re loud. They smell bad. And their clothes would make Mr. Blackwell blush.

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Plane angry: Air travel at a breaking point

When JetBlue flight attendant Steven Slater dramatically walked off the job — jumped actually — he became a poster boy for all that’s wrong with air travel today.

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Complaints that fail: 5 e-mails to avoid

What kind of a complainer are you?

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5 ways hotel workers get revenge on guests

If you think your hotel clerk is out to get you, you might be right.

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Short trips, bargain hunting the new normal

When Roger Bell takes a vacation, he normally flies to a national park or visits friends up north for two weeks. But like many Americans, Bell, a Woodstock, Ga.-based technical writer, lost his job in 2009. And that changed the way he vacations -- maybe permanently.

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Traveling this fall? Prices set for downward spiral

Tired of high hotel rates and airfares this summer? Just wait. Travel prices may be about to go into a tailspin — again.

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Squeeze a 'yes' out of your travel company

This isn’t a political column, but when I heard the next president of the United States, Sarah Palin, announce she belongs to the party of “no” — actually, make that the party of “hell no” — I thought for a moment she was talking about the travel industry.

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