I no longer felt the need to just retire to the room as soon as I got back to my hotel!

I wasn’t done with my Marriott experience yet. Flying out of Houston’s George Bush Intercontinental airport (Terminal E), I got to experience Courtyard Marriott’s new Airport Lobby Zone. What they are doing is giving business travelers their new Lobby experience in the middle of a busy terminal. Comfortable seating and a few outlets let me recharge (my body and my laptop) before flying out. Outside of Houston, the Airport Lobby Zones are also in Phoenix and Baltimore through December .

To celebrate the Courtyard Lobby redesign and the Airport Lobby Zones, Marriott is giving away two free nights to any continental U.S. Courtyard! This contest is open just to Smart Women Travelers and our blog (Pearls of Travel Wisdom) readers, and it’s really easy to enter.

1. Post a comment below and tell us what you look for most in a hotel lobby.
2. “Like” Smart Women Traveler’s on Facebook. (now optional, see below)

That’s it! The contest ends on December 9th, 2011 at 11:59 P.M. Eastern, and the winner will be contacted by email shortly. (UPDATE: A slight change to the rules. You must post a comment to be eligible, but now “Like”ing Smart Women Traveler’s on Facebook is optional. If you “Like” us on Facebook, you are now entered for a second chance to win)

Courtyard by Marriott has offered these nights for the contest. They’ve invited me back for a complimentary stay, as well. Maybe I’ll see you in the lobby!

(UPDATE: We have a winner! Congratulations to Kyle. He likes good coffee and people watching, and will soon be enjoying two free nights at a Courtyard by Marriott of his choice.)

To receive a free copy of our ebook, 70 Secrets to Safe Travel — Because Your Life Can Change in a Heartbeat, and for more travel savvy info to help you travel smarter, safer and with more enjoyment, visit SmartWomenTravelers.com and PearlsofTravelWisdom.com. Watch for my new book, Business Travel Success – How to Reduce Stress, Be More Productive and Travel with Confidence, being published by Morgan James in 2011.

When I go into a luggage store and ask to see their left-handed luggage, they look at me like I’m nuts, but I’m very serious. When I explain that I’m looking for a rollaboard that has its side handle on the left-side of the bag, then they almost get it but still wonder why I care about where the handle is.

Why do I care? When lifting my rollaboard into the plane’s overhead bin, I pick up the handle with my right hand but it’s my left-hand that steadies the bag and steers it into place. Using the opposite hands, my right just isn’t strong enough. If someone is already sitting in the seat below the overhead bin that I’m trying to use, they’re at risk of meeting the business end of my suitcase. I have doubts sometimes (no, I haven’t dropped my bag on anyone yet), but with my left-handed bag I never have an issue getting my bag up in the overhead bin easily.

And here’s a crazy confession, blasphemous to my fellow road warriors who never check a bag; when I do need to use my right-handed rollaboard, which has an extension panel that I sometimes need for longer trips, I would rather check my bag than deal with the unsteady bag-raising on the plane. My road warrior-ness would be severely questioned if my fellow flyers saw this unsteadiness!

Here’s my dilemma: I have a Delta Million-Miler gift to choose and I really would like to select the tweed Hartmann carry-on but the handle is on the right side. I could choose the Tiffany jewelry but I’d rather have a new bag (what kind of female am I to pass up jewelry??). So I remain undecided since the handle isn’t to my preference.

Travelers I’ve asked said they never thought about this before. We all have our travel quirks and this one is mine. Am I the only one who cares what side of a rollaboard the handle is on?

Leaves your thoughts below. Perhaps a luggage manufacturer or two will pick up on the idea to offer a line of luggage specifically made for us lefties!

1. Enjoy more of each city or town that I visit, including more local restaurants, more local places of interest and learn more of their customs
2. Talk with more people about their travel interests
3. Be bolder in the foods that I order.  Ask restauranteurs to surprise me with local favorites
4. Talk to more people to learn more about where they are from and their cultures
5. Pack even more compact and smarter than I already do, especially my cosmetic bag
6. Take videos and more photos of where I am visiting and with whom I am meeting
7. Make time to add an extra day to a conference or business trip so that I can relax and enjoy the local scene
8. Limit my business travel to two or three weeks each month vs. the current four weeks
9. Finally invest in a book reader instead of lugging around books in my laptop tote
10. Have more fun!

In addition, I have a few more resolutions on where I’d like to go and with whom:

• Sail on two cruises … at least one to Antarctica or South America
• Finally get to Sedona (my husband and I are going over Valentine’s Day weekend)
• Enjoy a family vacation with our kids and my mom…Panama Canal or Costa Rica is under discussion
• Join my sister and many of our family members in Las Vegas for her big birthday bash
• Get to Finland to visit my girlfriend Katya.

This is my big list.  What’s on your list for 2010?  Perhaps travel more or less?  Visit new countries? What about business travel? Any travel gadgets you’re looking to get?  Share your 2010 travel wish-list at bit.ly/2010Trvl. Results will be posted here soon.

I sat next to a guy in first class last week and he never did turn off his phone. He set it to airplane mode instead, telling me that studies have shown that cell phones cause no interference for the pilots and their systems. Is this the time to be disputing studies, right before the all-important take-off? Personally, I’d rather not cause any unnecessary risk to the flight, whether real or not, so my phone is always off. (My husband will tell you that I always follow the rules and I get upset with him if his bag is not fully underneath his seat.)

This obsession about not wanting to turn off cell phones isn’t funny … it could possibly cause havoc with the plane’s electronics (I’d love to get some pilot feedback here!).

What’s really comical to watch is how fast people grab their cell phones the very second the wheels hit the ground. People that seemed asleep the entire flight suddenly jump to action and lunge for their phones. Others who were deep in conversation with the person beside them stop mid-sentence to hit the power button. Within seconds, heads are all down staring at the all-important emails that came in while in-flight.

And we’re not happy with just checking emails once the flight lands. We continue this obsession on the bus heading to the car rental station. Jump on the bus, drop your bag, sit down, tune in. Bus stops, grab your bag, hustle to the next point. No conversation, no looking at the people on the bus … just staring into our phones. This is where I find our obsession most comical, especially when I look through the entire bus and see the majority of people all glued to their little screens.

The humor stops when I’m driving on the highway next to someone who’s texting with both hands while trying to keep control of the steering wheel at 80mph. I get as far away from the texter as possible, as fast as possible.

And where am I at in all this connected-craziness, you ask? I do check my email upon boarding my flight. Then I turn off my phone, forcing myself to disconnect from both the phone and from the non-stop mind chatter. I probably have a few feelings of withdrawal as I shut down (but I do totally shut down my phone!). Upon landing, I do turn on my phone, though usually I’m not in too much of a scurry to see who wrote or called me. And on the rental car bus, I just love watching all the rest of you in your heads-down position, smiling all the way to our destination in wonderment of our obsession!

Enjoy this holiday season and have fun in your travels! 

For the next two weeks, my luggage and laptop tote are taking a break.  As much as I enjoy travel, both for work and for fun, I especially love being home.  It’s all the more special because I haven’t seen a two-week period at home in a very long time . . . it’s been more than two years.  I’m looking forward to sleeping in, cooking healthy meals (ok, maybe they all won't be healthy!), enjoying great wine, walking our dog and spending lots of time with my husband and our family.       

I hope you have wonderful days with your family and friends over the holidays and that your luggage also gets a rest from all work-related travel.  The time will come soon enough in January when we start collecting a new year’s worth of air miles and hotel points all over again. 

Happy Holidays to all!  Let us know what travel-related gifts you receive under the tree!

“What one thing would you like to say to
our frequent travelers that would help them
enjoy their journeys more?”

His answer was immediate.  He said his most valuable words of wisdom are “Patience is a Virtue.”  He said that when there are flight delays, cancellations, etc., it is not the fault of the crew. The crew is doing everything they can to depart and arrive on schedule.  They also want to get to their destination, whether it be home or their hotel, just as much as we do.  Getting angry or upset with the crew only makes the journey worse for everyone.  He also said that the rush to get on and off the plane also causes the stress level of everyone to go up, and no one is going to be getting off the plane before the jetway gets opened anyway! 

I agree with him completely.  In the past couple of years, I’ve taken on the attitude of patience and gratitude, and I’ve found my journeys to be more enjoyable than ever, and also virtually stress-free!  I always have an iPod full of music and audiobooks to listen to, as well as a book to read and work to do, and an energy bar in case I’m hungry, so I have been able to successfully get through any flight delays with ease.  I’ve always made it to where I’m going, albeit every once in awhile a few hours late, or a day late . . . but I’ve always gotten to my destination.  I am so much more relaxed about traveling, and never allow myself to get in the complaining mode with fellow-travelers.  Even better, my stomach isn’t all tensed up and a major stress-line across my forehead is virtually gone (a bonus health and beauty tip unknowingly slipped into the conversation!)

On your next journey, heed this pilot’s words of wisdom. Let us know what positive differences you experience in your travels.  I’m sure you’ll help improve the day of the flight crew as well! 

Enjoy your journey!

It’s hard to believe that I’ve been flying around the world for that long.  And actually, Continental was not the first airline I flew.  I started with United about 22 years ago when I lived a few miles from O’Hare in Chicago.  Just a few things have changed in the past 22 years

• The Transportation Security Administration did not exist.
• I carried on full-size containers of shampoo, hairspray and toothpaste.
• I wore my shoes and jacket through security.
• I did not have to remove my laptop from my bag.  Laptops didn’t exist yet! 
• Cell phones did not have to be turned off in-flight, as they did not exist yet either!
• I never left home without my AT&T calling card. 
• I traveled with my own hair dryer as it was common for hotels to not provide them.  I even had (actually still have) a portable iron for hotels that didn’t have these either. 
• I brought rollers for my hair (long gone are the days of daily one-hour hair routines!)
• I packed enough clothes and shoes for twice as many days as I needed (and my bag usually got labeled with a ‘Heavy’ tag).
• I could arrive at the airport 15 minutes before my flight and get my bag checked in time.
• I could buy an airline ticket with just my first initial, last name so the ticket looked genderless.  If I couldn’t make the trip, a co-worker would use my ticket.
• Paper tickets were used for all flights and came from a travel agent or an airline ticket office. 
• Bags were checked for free and airline change fees were very low. 
• Back-to-back tickets were commonly used to get lower fares and meet the Saturday-overnight stay requirement.

While the new rules are a lot more restrictive than my early travel years, I’ve gotten a whole lot smarter in the areas that I can control.  See smartwomentravelers.com/pack-n-go for articles on today’s pack-and-go lifestyle.  Even with all of the new travel rules, most things have changed for the better.   

And speaking of things getting better, I’m going to pour a glass of California Red and sit and wonder how the years have flown by so fast . . .

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