photo: Elliott P.

By Jim Ferri

Like most travelers, I hate it when credit card companies charge me foreign transaction fees. It's really aggravating to come home and find hidden charges posted on my credit card bill.

Today these fees average 3%, which may not see like a lot for that $50 lunch but can quickly add up over the course of a two-week jaunt around Europe. In addition, the dollar is now at a three-year low (the euro is now worth about $1.50), which makes cutting other costs, especial all those annoying fees, even more important for many.

There are several ways in which you can save money and protect yourself from getting ripped off when using your credit card overseas.

First and foremost, of course, is to avoid those hidden foreign-transaction fees altogether by having a card that doesn't charge any. Several card issuers have now waived their foreign-transaction fees including Capital One, American Express (only with its Platinum and Centurion Cards) and various Chase-issued cards including the Hyatt Credit Card, Priority Club Select Visa Card, Chase Sapphire Preferred Card, British Airways Visa Signature Card and Ritz-Carlton Rewards Credit Card, the latter just launched less than two weeks ago. Citi has also gotten into the act with its ThankYou Premier Card.

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By Kim Watkins

Today I defied death in the rainforest.  

Well, maybe I should give you a little background first.

 You know how we all have at least one vivid memory from our childhood -- maybe it's your 8th birthday or sitting on your grandfather's lap to watch a movie or something like that? Mine is of my father trying to "cure" me of my fear of heights. And since I inherited this fear from him, I realize now he was probably using me as an excuse to help himself, as well.

When I was about ten years old he took me to Windows on the World near the top of the World Trade Center. The elevator was fast, and I could feel my knees buckling on the way up. As I stepped out onto the 106th floor I must have looked like a newborn colt struggling to stand for the first time. You don't need a vivid imagination to have that picture painted.

To relieve me of my acrophobia he walked me over to the window, and we both pressed our noses against it. There I was shaking like a leaf, leaving a huge nose smudge as ant-sized people scurried about 100+ floors below.

It didn't cure me of anything, but it did leave me with..(photo: Kim Watkins) 

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The road trip is one of North America's grand traditions -- a chance to travel and see things from ground level, very often at a greatly reduced cost.
But what holds many of us back from jumping behind the wheel are the "are we there yet?" blues that some still associate with family vacations from the past.
Here are five tips from 50 Plus to make your road trip a fantastic experience.  (photo: Bowen)  

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Having cruised Europe's oceanside ports -- the Mediterranean, the Baltic, the British Isles -- I felt like I'd earned a good birds-eye view and a tremendous perspective. I'd spent days in London and Paris, Athens and Helsinki.  

I'd cruised a lot, says Cruise Critic, so in some cases I was lucky enough to revisit enchanted places, including Edinburgh, Istanbul, Lisbon and Seville.

But what I was missing -- and didn't realize how much -- was the rest of Europe! That's because cruise ships, by and large, stick only to the "same old, same old" coastal routes. (photo: Ralph Grizzle)

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Blessed with lavish scenery and luscious wines, the Napa Valley is the kind of place you could spend days exploring.   

But, says Associated Press, it's compact enough that even if you only have an afternoon, you can still get a taste of wine country. (photo: Jim Ferri) 

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museums in California, it's one of the best railroad museums in the world. Even those who have no interest in trains find it fascinating.  

You can climb aboard huge steam engines, wander through dining cars from another era, look at the "golden spike" and other memorabilia. You'll be mesmerized for hours.

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