Reprinted with permission from the US magazine Arthur Frommer's Budget Travel $15.40 at newsagents

The 100 Most Important Addresses in Travel

These 100 vital travel addresses (phone numbers and websites, too) are a checklist, we think, for improving the convenience, comfort, and price of every kind of trip. They can be folded into a booklet tiny enough to remain in your wallet or purse for the year to come, and they will be replaced in this magazine by an updated version just 12 months from now. Our warmest best wishes . . . may the road rise up to meet you, may the wind be at your back, and may your flight leave on time!

Trip Planning & Preparation

  1. For the names of qualified, English-speaking physicians overseas, contact the International Association for Medical Assistance to Travelers (I.A.M.A.T.) at 417 Center St. Lewiston, NY 14092, 716/754-4883.
  2. To learn whether you need inoculations or vaccinations for travel to a particular country, call 877/394-8747 or log on to www.cdc.gov/travel.
  3. To learn whether you need a passport and/or visa for travel to a particular country, call 800/741-7874 or log on to http://travel.state.gov/passport_services.html.
  4. To learn whether a country is safe to visit, phone 202/647-5225 or log on to http://travel.state.gov/travel_warnings.html.
  5. For information on applying for a U.S. passport, phone 900/225-5674 or 888/362-8668 (you'll be charged in either case) or log on to http://travel.state.gov/passport_services.html (for free).
  6. To learn the exchange rate for the currency of a country you plan to visit, phone 800/287-7362, access www.us.thomascook.com, or log on to www.xe.net/ucc.
  7. For an upcoming forecast of weather at your destination (local or foreign), access www.weather.com (free), call 900/WEATHER (and pay 95 a minute), or log on to www.accuweather.com. For average month-by-month weather information, access www.worldclimate.com.
  8. To buy Eurail passes or country rail passes for traveling within Europe, call Rail Europe at 877/456-RAIL.
  9. To obtain driving directions for your next road trip, access www.mapquest.com or www.mapblast.com.
  10. To enter a program designed to overcome the fear of flying, phone 612/726-7733 or log on to www.nwa.com/services/bustrav/wings.shtml.
  11. To obtain overnight delivery of a small amount of foreign currency for use upon arrival, contact Chase Manhattan Bank's Currency To Go at 888/CHASE84.
  12. To learn the rudiments of up to 70 languages spoken around the world, access www.travlang.com.
  13. To learn whether an airline of a developing nation complies with international safety standards, phone the International Airline Passengers Association at 972/404-9980.
  14. For travel insurance covering trip cancellation or interruption, luggage loss, and other such mishaps, contact Access America at 800/284-8300, www.accessamerica.com, TravelGuard at 877/216-4885, www.travelguard.com, or Universal Travel Protections at 800/211-8952, www.utravelpro.com.
  15. For emergency medical evacuation insurance, contact MedJet Assistance at 800/9-MED-JET.
  16. For travel products and travel clothing of every kind, consult Magellan's Travelers' Catalog, 800/962-4943 or www.magellans.com.
  17. For hundreds of opportunities to study and live abroad, contact the Institute of International Education, 809 United Nations Plaza, New York, NY 10017-3580, 212/883-8200, www.iiepassport.org.
  18. To receive free (Internet-only) links to tourism offices, contact the Travel Industry of America at www.tia.org.

Low-Cost Air Fares

  1. For the lowest-priced domestic air tickets in all of America, to virtually every major city or area, check with Southwest Airlines at 800/435-9792 or www.southwest.com.
  2. For the possibility that other cut-rate carriers may have the cheapest fare to your destination, check with Air Tran at 800/247-8726, www.airtran.com; ATA at 800/435-9282, www.ata.com; Spirit Airlines at 800/772-7117, www.spiritair.com; JetBlue Airways at 800/538-2583, www.jetblue.com; Vanguard Airlines at 800/826-4827, www.flyvanguard.com; Sun Country Airlines, 800/359-6786, www.suncountryairlines.com; Frontier Airlines, 800/432-1359, www.frontierairlines.com; MetroJet, 800/428-4322, www.flymetrojet.com; or ProAir, 800/939-9551.

Low-Cost Air Fares (by Phone)

  1. To obtain heavily discounted fares on flights within the United States, contact Cheap Tickets, Inc. at 800/377-1000; 800/FLY-CHEAP, or Travel Bargains at 800/AIR-FARE.
  2. To obtain heavily discounted fares on transatlantic flights, contact Travac at 800/TRAV-800 or www.thetravelsite.com.
  3. To obtain heavily discounted rates on flights to Asia or the South Pacific, contact Ticketplanet at 800/799-8888 or www.ticketplanet.com.
  4. To obtain transatlantic air tickets for as little as $169 each way in high season, on dates and to destinations chosen by the ticket company, contact Airhitch at 888/247-4482 or www.4cheapair.com.
  5. For cheap, around-the-world air trips, contact Air Treks at 800/350-0612 or www.airtreks.com, or Ticketplanet (#23).

Low-Cost Air Fares (via the Internet)

  1. For the carriers' lowest-priced published fares (nondiscount variety), www.travelocity.com, www.expedia.com, or www.orbitz.com.
  2. To place a bid for air tickets at the lowest possible price, www.hotwire.com or www.priceline.com.
  3. For a list of last-minute air fare specials on a variety of airlines delivered to you by e-mail, log on to www.smarterliving.com.
  4. For information on discount tickets for flights from cities outside the United States (like Bangkok to New Delhi), log on to www.tiss.com.

For Low-Cost Specialty Air Tickets

  1. For discounted air fares to Japan, contact Japan Budget Travel International at 877/246-5284 or Creative Marketing Management at 800/458-6663.
  2. For discounted air fares to India, contact Festival of Asia at 800/533-9953 or Hari World Travel at 888/889-2968.
  3. For discounted air fares to Africa, contact Premier Travel at 800/545-1910 or Magical Holidays at 800/228-2208.
  4. For discounted air fares to Latin America, contact Pino Welcome Travel at 212/682-5400 or 800/247-6578, Escape Tours at 800/252-0775, Intervac, Inc. at 800/401-5827, or Solar Tours at 800/388-7652.
  5. For discounted air fares to Israel, contact Tzell Travel at 212/944-2121 (ext. 622).
  6. For discounted air fares to Ireland, contact Celtic Travel at 800/423-5842 or Ireland/UK Consolidators at 212/661-1999.
  7. For discounted air fares to China, contact Far Eastern Travel at 800/275-3384.

For Low-Cost Cruises

  1. To obtain sharply discounted rates for cruises, contact Cruises Only at 800/545-7447 or www.cruiseworldwide.com, The Cruise Line, Inc. at 800/777-0707, GalaxSea Cruises at 800/923-SHIP or www.funcruises.com, Spur-of-the-Moment Cruises at 800/343-1991, Cruise Value Center at 800/231-SHIP or www.cruisevalue.com.
  2. To enjoy the least-expensive cruises in travel today, contact Regal Cruises at 800/270-7245 or access www.regalcruises.com.
  3. For general information on every aspect of cruising, phone the Cruise Line International Association at 212/921-4711 or access www.cruising.org.

For Low-Cost Lodgings

  1. To obtain U.S. hotel rooms at discounted rates, contact: Hotel Reservations Network at 800/964-6835 or www.hoteldiscount.com; Quikbook at 800/789-9887 or www.quikbook.com; Travelscape at 888/335-0101 or www.travelscape.com.
  2. For hotel discounters specializing in single-city locations, contact Central Reservations Service (800/548-3311) for Orlando or Miami, San Francisco Reservations (800/677-1500) for San Francisco, Las Vegas Travel (800/449-4698) for Las Vegas, and Express Reservations (800/356-1123) for Los Angeles and New York.
  3. To obtain moderately priced apartments for stays of a week or longer in London or Rome, contact Barclay International Group at 800/845-6636 or 516/759-5100; for the same in Paris, call Chez Vous at 415/331-2535.
  4. For discounted rates on hotel rooms in London, contact the Hotel Directory, Ltd. at 011-44-181/770-0123 or www.thehoteldirectory.co.uk.
  5. For discounted rates on hotel rooms in Paris, contact Hotels Marketing Services at 011-33-1/42-60-33-73 or www.hms-voyages.com.
  6. To secure an international youth hostel card (for travelers of all ages) entitling you to stay cheaply at rudimentary but usually adequate dormitory lodgings all over the world, contact Hostelling International-American Youth Hostels, 733 15th St. NW, Suite 840, Washington, D.C. 20005, 202/783-6161, www.hiayh.org.
  7. For low-cost B&Bs in New York City (primarily Manhattan), call Urban Ventures (212/594-5650, www.nyurbanventures.com), A Hospitality Company (212/965-1102, www.hospitalitycompany.com), City Lights Bed & Breakfast Ltd. (212/737-7049), Manhattan Lodgings (212/677-7616), or the Bed and Breakfast Bureau (212/645-4555).
  8. To rent a French gte (bungalow), contact The French Experience, Inc. 370 Lexington Ave. New York, NY 10017, 212/986-1115, or log on to www.gites-de-france.fr.
  9. To rent a motor home, contact Cruise America at 800/327-7799 or www.cruiseamerica.org.

For Low-Cost Vacations in General

  1. To enjoy an inexpensive volunteer vacation while keeping America's hiking trails well-maintained, contact Sierra Club Outing Department, 85 Second St. San Francisco, CA, 94105-3441, 415/977-5500, www.sierraclub.org.
  2. For the best-priced air-hotel packages to most of Central America, call Capricorn Leisure Corporation at 800/426-6544.
  3. To obtain an International Student Identity Card or International Teacher Identity Card entitling you to significant discounts on museum and theater admissions, use of low-cost student restaurants, and other valuable student-related benefits (available to teachers, too), call Council Travel at 800/226-8624.
  4. To obtain at least a 5 percent discount (and often more) on any travel product you purchase--air fare, cruise, car rental, tour package--call the nation's leading rebator, Pennsylvania Travel of Paoli, PA, at 877/251-2078.
  5. For low-cost travel on passenger-carrying freighters, contact Freighter World Cruises at 800/531-7774, or TravLTips at 800/872-8584.
  6. To make long-term car rentals in Europe at advantageous rates, contact Auto-France at 800/572-9655 or Renault Eurodrive at 800/221-1052.
  7. For low-cost adventure tours throughout the world, contact Adventure Center, 1311 63rd St. Suite 200, Emeryville, CA 94608, 800/227-8747, www.adventurecenter.com.
  8. For pet-friendly properties and guidance on traveling with pets, access www.petfriendlytravel.com, www.travelpets.com, or www.petswelcome.com.
  9. For people-to-people travel: free homestays with thousands of families in every major city in the world, contact Servas, 11 John St. Room 407, New York, NY 10038, 212/267-0252, www.usservas.org.
  10. For low-priced, high-quality walking- and special-interest tours primarily in Britain, contact HF Holidays, Imperial House, Edgware Rd. London, NW9 5AL, United Kingdom, 011-44-20/8905-9558, www.hfholidays.co.uk.
  11. For practically everything pertaining to student travel--from work abroad and study abroad to rail passes and discounted air fares (the last two apply to nonstudents, too), try Council Travel, 205 E. 42nd St. New York, NY 10017, 800/2-COUNCIL, www.counciltravel.com.
  12. For economical packages to Africa (including the best-priced African safaris), contact Magical Holidays, 501 Madison Ave. New York, NY 10022, 800/228-2208.

Travel Needs for Special People

  1. For information on travel opportunities for the handicapped, contact the Society for the Advancement of Travelers with Handicaps at 212/447-7284, www.sath.org or Access-Able Travel Source, P.O. Box 1796, Wheat Ridge, CO 80034, 303/232-2979, www.access-able.com.
  2. For moderately priced adventure tours on which disabled persons participate equally with able-bodied ones, call Wilderness Inquiry at 800/728-0719, www.wildernessinquiry.org.
  3. For information on worldwide adventures for women over 30, contact AdventureWomen, at 15033 Kelly Canyon Road, Bozeman, MT 59715, 800/804-8686 or 406/587-3883.
  4. To find a travel companion for your next trip, contact Travel Companion Exchange, Box 833, Amityville, NY 11701-0833, 800/392-1256 or 631/454-0880.

Dot-Com Advice for Travel

  1. For fishing enthusiasts seeking new vacation destinations, log on to www.fishsearch.com.
  2. For appraisals of more than 100 U.S. tennis resorts, log on to www.tennisresortsonline.com.
  3. For descriptions of 2,000 ski resorts around the world, log on to www.goski.com.
  4. To access hundreds of travel items sold on an auction basis, log on to Skyauction at www.skyauction.com.
  5. To obtain travel information on every kind of open-air vacation, go to www.gorp.com.
  6. For a comprehensive listing of bicycle tours and bicycle rallies across America, log on to America By Bicycle at www.abbike.com.
  7. For information on every aspect of honeymoon travel, access www.theknot.com.

"Alternative" Nonstandard Travel

  1. For information on America's leading "personal growth" resort, pursuing every kind of New Age theory, contact the Omega Institute, 150 Lake Dr. Rhinebeck, NY 12572, 845/266-4444.
  2. For information on visits to utopian communities pursuing cooperative rather than competitive policies, write or phone the Twin Oaks Community, Louisa, VA 23093, 540/894-5126.
  3. For information on residential yoga vacation centers (East Coast), contact Sivananda Yoga Center, 243 W. 24th St. New York, NY 10011, 212/255-4560.
  4. For a residential yoga vacation center on the West Coast, contact The White Lotus Foundation, 2500 San Marcos Pass, Santa Barbara, CA 93105, 805/964-1944.
  5. For information on political tours within the United States and abroad, contact Global Exchange, 2017 Mission St. #303, San Francisco, CA 94110, 415/255-7296.
  6. For America's most extensive series of residential folk dance programs, contact the Country Dance and Song Society at P.O. Box 338, Haydenville, MA 01039-0338, 413/268-7426.
  7. For highly intellectual tours of historic areas in the Mediterranean and Middle East, contact Swan Hellenic Tours at 877/219-4239 or 631/858-1270.
  8. For information on 500 religious retreats (primarily Roman Catholic), contact Retreats International, P.O. Box 1067, Notre Dame, IN 46556, 219/631-5320.
  9. For information on 150 Methodist religious retreats, contact North American Retreat Directors Association, Olmsted Manor, Ludlow, PA 16333, 814/945-6512.
  10. To work on an Israeli kibbutz, write Kibbutz Program Center, 633 3rd Ave. 21st floor, New York, NY 10017 or call 212/318-6130 or 800/247-7852.
  11. For summer work camps maintained for young travelers, contact Volunteers for Peace International Workcamps (VFP), 1034 Tiffany Road, Belmont, VT 05730, 802/259-2759.
  12. For working vacations in low-income "host" communities around the world, contact Global Volunteers, 375 East Little Canada Rd. St. Paul, MN 55117, 800/487-1074.
  13. For long-term homestays abroad for student-age travelers, at modest cost, contact World Learning in Brattleboro, VT, at 802/257-7751.

Outdoor Vacations

  1. For volunteer vacations preserving hiking trails in the state and national parks, contact the American Hiking Society, P.O. Box 20160, Washington, D.C. 20041-2160, 301/565-6704, ext. 206, or www.americanhiking.org.
  2. For information on inexpensive wilderness camping tours, contact Sierra Club Outing Department, 85 2nd St. 2nd floor, San Francisco, California 94105, 415/977-5522, www.sierraclub.org/outings.

Miscellaneous Travel Needs

  1. To find an Internet cafe anywhere in the world, log on to www.cybercaptive.com.
  2. To learn how to be a tour escort (and thus travel for free), check out the International Guide Academy in Denver, Colorado, at 303/530-3420, www.igaonline.com, or International Tour Management Institute, 625 Market St. Suite 810, San Francisco, CA 94105, 415/957-9489, www.itmitourtraining.com.
  3. For health spas around the world, contact Spa-Finders at 91 Fifth Ave. 6th floor, New York, NY 10003, 212/924-6800 or 800/255-7727, www.spafinders.com.
  4. For information on gay-friendly destinations, facilities in those destinations, and gay tour operators, contact IGLTA at 800/448-8550 or www.iglta.org.
  5. To charter a sailing ship in any of numerous locations, contact The Moorings, 19345 U.S. 19 N. 4th floor, Clearwater, FL 33764, 727/535-1446.
  6. To pursue adult summer courses at Cornell University, contact Cornell's Adult University, 626 Thurston Ave. Ithaca, NY 14850, 607/255-6260.
  7. To pursue adult summer courses at Oxford University, write for information to: Department of Continuing Education, 1 Wellington Sq. Oxford OX1 2JA, England, call 011-44-1865/270-360, or fax 011-44-1865/270-309.
  8. For thick books of valuable discount coupons for hotels, meals, attractions, and shops ($28 for individual cities, $59.95 for nationwide) in destinations all across America, phone 800/445-4137 or access www.entertainment.com.
  9. To pursue opportunities as an air courier, flying at nominal cost to numerous destinations, contact VEX Wholesale Express (888/VEX-MOVE), Now Voyager (212/431-1616), Jupiter Air (310/670-1197), Air Facility (718/712-1769), International Association of Air Travel Couriers (561/582-8320), or Air Courier Association (800/822-0888).
  10. For assistance in obtaining visas for visits to countries requiring them, contact Visa Services Inc. 1519 Connecticut Ave. NW, Washington, DC 20036, 800/222-8472.
  11. To learn about volunteer opportunities for various archaeological "digs" in locations both at home and abroad, contact the Archaeological Institute of America, at Boston University, 656 Beacon St. Boston, MA 02215-2006, 617/353-9361 or www.archaeological.org.
  12. To learn about tax-deductible trips for people of all ages agreeing to assist university science researchers, contact Earthwatch Institute, 3 Clock Tower Pl. Suite 100, Box 75, Maynard, MA 01754, 978/461-0081.
  13. To volunteer in the construction of low-cost housing, receiving room and board, contact Habitat for Humanity, 121 Habitat St. Americus, GA 31709, 800/HABITAT or 912/924-6935.
  14. For a vast body of information on scores of other travel opportunities, access www.frommers.com, and click on the headings in the vertical bar to the left of the main menu.

Simon Townsend's comment: Although expensive at $15.40 per issue (six a year) "Arthur Frommer's Budget Travel" is so jam-packed with USEABLE information, that I heartily recommend you buy at least one issue. Or look it up at www.frommers.com