Travel Tips

This document provides the legal and policy guidelines for CBP officers and agents involved in the border search of information.

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U.S. Customs and Border Protection Policy Regarding Border Search of Information

Part 2 of the riveting story….. So, I find myself in a deserted airport in New York City at 1:30 in the morning.

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Travel Nightmares Continued

Here is the random story of my travel nightmare for those who care to read it. I am on my way to Africa for two purposes.

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Travel Nightmares

Airlines charge you for every little thing in order to make up for rising fuel costs, including the amount and overall weight of your luggage. Here are five (5) packing tips that can save you money and headaches as you travel by air.

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Avoid Air Travel Nightmares – 5 Tips For Packing Light

US Customs inspections give travelers few rights. If inspections detain you so long that you miss a connection, you have no recourse—although most airlines will book you on the next flight at no extra charge. If Cus­toms damages personal items, you can report it … but Customs has no obligation to pay. Rights that you do have: A pat-down search of your person requires a supervisor’s approval, two officers must be present at the search and you cannot be searched by someone of the opposite sex.

Don’t use traveler’s checks for major expenses when you are traveling abroad.

Rea­son: Airlines, car-rental companies, hotels and many merchants and restaurants will give you a very unfavorable exchange rate.

Strategy: Pay these charges by credit card—the charge-card company will get you a much better ex­change rate. Use your traveler’s checks as a source of cash for walking-around expenses after changing them at a bank or travel-service office, again to get the best possible rate.

Stiff competition among issuers means many good deals right now. Thomas Cook charges no commission if checks are bought and cashed in any of its 72 US or 1,500 for­eign outlets. And 65% of all American Express checks are offered without fees through local banks and major organizations.

Source: Your credit-card company. This traveler-assistance program will help you arrange for eyeglasses or medication, or pro­vide names of reputable local physicians and medical facilities free of charge.
Other services: Locating an interpreter, relaying an urgent message or delivering emergency cash, arranging transportation to a US hospital and handling the booking of trips or relatives who fly in to help.

Nonrefundable airline tickets are refund­able under certain circumstances. All the major airlines will refund such a ticket if you show you couldn’t use it because of an unex­pected emergency. Examples: Death or serious illness of a family member is an excuse excepted by all airlines. South West will accept a change of military orders, and Continental will accept a military or civilian job reassignment. American and United will accept jury duty and subpoenas. And all airlines will consider unique individual circumstances.

There are hundreds of budget guides that tell you how to cut costs on trips. Many of these books contain low-cost travel tips, but they don’t give you the ultimate scoop on no-cost travel. Instead of traveling cheap, you could be traveling free—from transportation by air–or sea—or lodgings, meals and enter­tainment. Most free travel requires no special skills, credentials or contacts. And it can be just as luxurious—and often more pleasur­able—than the most expensive paid vacation. Complimentary Cruises:
Cruise lines generally offer free passage to anyone who recruits 10 to 15 paying passen­gers. (Many airlines offer similar deals.) If you can’t lure that many customers, you can get a prorated reduction on your fare.
You can also cruise free as an expert in a pertinent subject. Historians, anthropologists, naturalists and ornithologists are in especially high demand. Your job on the cruise would be to present a series of lectures and be avail­able for informal questioning. It helps to have a PhD (or at least a master’s) and to have pub­lished articles on the subject, but an affable personality and a willingness to share your knowledge with others can stretch your cre­dentials. After your first cruise in this capacity, a good reference will ease the way at other lines.
Free cruises are available to doctors and nurses who are willing to be on 24-hour call (here a salary is an added inducement) … to athletic directors and coaches who can help organize recreational activities… to musicians and entertainers who are willing to perform—to cosmetologists who can barter their ser­vices for a ride.
There is also a strong demand for “hosts”—distinguished single gentlemen who are usu­ally 55 years old and up. They serve by dining and dancing with the many unattached older women taking these vacation cruises. Besides free room and board, hosts are encouraged to make use of an unlimited bar tab available to them and their new female friends.
Free foreign tours:
Enlist enough people and get a whole trip—long or short—free. Some travel agen­cies recruit teachers, who receive a free trip if they bring six students. With 12 students, the teacher’s spouse also travels free.
The same deal is available to anyone who is willing to organize a special-interest tour. An auto-racing fan might lead a group to Le Mans … an opera aficionado might arrange a trip to Milan and La Scala. Similar trips focus on photography, architecture, theater, music, golf or wine tasting. The group leader sets the itinerary, chooses lodgings and arranges for trips.