Unsure what to do this weekend? Let me plan it for you.

Don't take me too seriously. I can hardly handle navigating my own weekends, and I'd break under the pressure if even one or two readers asked me for help. But I do have an idea, which I found on a fellow writer's blog, Atlanta On the Cheap, just to give credit where credit is due. And it's a web site that any WalletPop reader living in Atlanta should know about.

But I digress. This Saturday is Museum Day, sponsored by Smithsonian Magazine and the esteemed Smithsonian Museum, arguably the greatest museum ever and a must-see anytime you visit Washington, D.C.

Hedging fuel costs sounds confusing, but it's nothing new. Some airlines, like the budget model Southwest, have managed to claim a profit in no small part because their masters were clever enough to buy most of its fuel when it was still sensibly priced. That can work out really well if gas prices go up, because those smart airlines will still be paying an older, lower price. Some experts think Southwest has saved $3.5 billion by doing this since the late '90s.

United Airlines, which has a management as sharp as a box of hammers and aging seating about as soft, thought it could imitate Southwest by getting into the hedging game, too. But, whoops! Timing is everything. It got in way too late, as the market prepared to peak. Prices went down. And right now it's paying almost $13 more a barrel than oil is actually worth, which could rack up as much as $544 million in boneheaded, unnecessary losses.

It's a lot like the guy down the street who bought his house a year ago for $400,000, only to find in this self-correcting market that it's now worth about $250,000, which everyone in the neighborhood knew was a more realistic price all along. He intended to flip it, but now he's got to live in it. Of course, if gas prices go back up a bit, United's loss may be mitigated slightly.

Historically, the Philippines has been known for its beautiful beaches, World War II history, extremely friendly citizens (they celebrate the Fourth of July under the guise of "Filipino/American Friendship Day), and Imelda Marcos' extensive shoe collection. Recently, however, it gained a new distinction: it is now home to the most expensive pizzas in the world.

The Heigh family, of Alberta, Canada, was instrumental in helping the Philippines reach this achievement. While traveling there in late August, the Heighs became homesick for good, old American cuisine and decided to visit Pizza Hut. Over the course of two visits, they bought a pair of pizzas, enjoyed their cheese and greasy dough fix, and gave the leftovers to beggars. Unfortunately, their restaurant processed the transaction in dollars, not Filipino pesos, which means that the two pizzas came to a total of over $2,500. MasterCard immediately froze their account and began investigating the charges.

Now, three weeks after the original transaction, the Heighs still haven't been able to get one of the charges reversed. This exchange has cost them a great deal of time and forced them to cancel a side trip that they had planned on making. As Shannon Heigh notes in her blog, when traveling abroad, make sure that stores accept "international credit cards." If you don't, you just might get your pizza with a big side order of misery!

Bruce Watson is a freelance writer, blogger, and all-around cheapskate. He swears that he will never complain about Totonno's $20 pies again.

Despite the economic crunch and indicators that business travel was slowing, Orbitz for Business reported today in its quarterly report that almost two thirds of business travelers are traveling as much or more than they have in past years, an increase over last quarter. The survey also picked up on an interesting trend in business travel that shows three fourths of businessmen and women mixing business and pleasure while traveling for work.

The survey found that close to 75% of business travelers have extended their trips to accommodate a vacation when traveling for work. In response to a separate question, over 40% of business travelers have taken someone with them on the trip without extending their stay. These numbers aren't surprising to me since this is how my wife and I have had almost every vacation since our honeymoon.

I started a new job just before we got married and between adjusting to life outside a dorm room and paying student loans we didn't have much cash left over for travel. Thankfully my first working year took me to West Virginia, Chicago and South Carolina for conferences and training. My wife accompanied me on two of these trips and our only out of pocket costs were for her meals, which let us do some cheap sightseeing and catching up with friends.

Well, here's a cool idea. I can't believe the federal government thought of it and actually made it happen.

For Americans who travel a lot across borders by land or sea, say to Canada, Mexico, or on Caribbean cruises, the State Department is now issuing zippy little Passport Cards, which are sized for wallets and contain the mandated (and controversial) RFID chip that makes crossing borders much breezier.

Makes sense to me. Booklet-size passports are vestiges of an earlier age, back when we traveled with steamer trunks and dollar notes were as big as hankies. Passports are also easy to lose, partly because they don't fit in wallets and partly because crooks can easily spot them. Having a high-level federal I.D. in your wallet at all times can also be mighty handy. Bouncers and postal clerks may quibble over accepting that gym membership card, but it's hard to argue with a passport.

According to the U.S. Department of State, you use the same supporting I.D. documentation for apply for a passport card as you do for a traditional passport, which means once you've got one, you're vetted, and you can use it to apply for a booklet passport later on if you want. You can even apply for both the booklet and the card at the same time without having to pay an extra execution fee or send more photos (just two will do the trick for both).

Need to get away and you're short on cash? Is the idea of a "staycation" less than thrilling?

How about a volunteer vacation?

You can hit exotic and remote locales in Indonesia, Africa and South America by going on a volunteer vacation where you'll also be doing good for others. ABCNews.com reports on the new trend.

There are all kinds of organizations that can hook you up with volunteer gigs working with kids, refugees, construction projects, economic co-ops and teaching. In some cases, you'll pay a fee to get started and for airfare to and from the destination but participants say it can be well-worth it for what many deem as life-changing experiences. In the case of Wildnerness Volunteers, a group that matches people with opportunities at national parks, the the cost is just $259.

Here are some organizations and their Websites to check out the opportunities: Ambassadors for Children, Wilderness Volunteers, ProWorld and Cross Cultural Solutions.

So in order to get away, why not consider giving back? It might be more satisfying than a beach-bum vacation and less expensive too. And who knows, you might find another career direction.

Airlines have had a rough go of it lately, what with skyrocketing fuel costs and fewer passengers traveling. Most airlines have already raised fares to the max that the market will allow, but they're still going deeper in debt, so they have to find ways to cut costs wherever they can.

This means charging for everything that used to be free -- checked luggage, meals, snacks, even blankets and pillows -- but it also means taking steps to reduce fuel consumption. That's why Air Canada's regional carrier, Jazz, has removed life vests from all its planes to save weight and fuel. At approximately one pound apiece, this takes about 50 pounds off each plane.

Defending the safety of their flights, Jazz reminds passengers that all seat cushions double as flotation devices, and all the carrier's planes fly within 50 miles of shore, never crossing the ocean.

I just wonder -- is 50 pounds per flight worth the PR headache?

Yes, it's just Labor Day and you might still be looking for last-minute deals to get away right now. But Orbitz is encouraging you to think ahead and start planning for other busy travel holidays, like Thanksgiving and even the winter holidays. With savings up to 40%, the travel discounter has all kinds of deals available, from 35% off a package to Los Angeles to a third night free in Jackson Hole. Winter deals include cruises and ski packages, and special New Year's rates are available in New York, Miami and San Diego, to name a few places.

Even though summer isn't over yet, for those of you who travel over Thanksgiving, it is already time to start thinking about booking your flights.

Thanksgiving is one of the busiest flying times of the year and this year there are going to be a lot fewer flights available. In an effort to save on costs and in hopes of being able to raise prices, airlines are cutting back on the number of flights they offer. American airlines is shrinking its flight capacity in its main US markets by up to 12% in the Fall and United by up to 16.5%. (Southwest just announced it would cut 200 flights, or about 6%, but not till January, 2009).

Travelers in certain markets will find the cuts much more severe than those percentages imply. If you are used to taking a direct flight, from, let's say, Albany to Chicago on the Tuesday before Thanksgiving, you will have half the amount of flights to choose from -- four this year, down from eight last year, according to a report from USA Today. From Boston to Chicago there are three fewer flights, from San Diego there are two fewer flights, and from Pittsburgh there are six fewer direct flights on that route that day.

Just because you have checked out of your hotel doesn't mean that you've finished paying for your stay.

CNN reports that many hotels are adding on charges after guests have checked out, for anything from breakfasts to minibar and snack items. An industry source confirmed that 75% of these charges are related to the minibar, which is chock-full of routine, but tempting, items...all priced twice to three times what they'd cost at the gas station on the corner.

Unfortunately, if the anecdotes around the web are to be believed, more than a few travelers are being hit with charges for items they didn't even use, in part due to the use of high tech sensors that can bill you as soon as you grab a pack of peanuts. Even if you were just seeing how many calories they had!

While many people will see this as another corporate entity trying to steal from the consumer on a massive scale, it seems that abuse of late billing is the work of a few bad apples or a breakdown in command. The article points out that the number of late billings has doubled in the past year, which sounds extraordinary, but if you do the math, it has only changed from one in 200, to one in 100 bills being changed after checkout. This makes sense to me, since the number if things for which you can be charged appears to have quadrupled in the last year.

Whenever I travel I do my best to avoid any chance for late billing by bringing along a small snack or stopping at a convenience store on my way to the hotel. Not only do I pay less, I have a better selection. I also opt to skip the express checkout. That way I can easily dispute a charge while the stay is fresh in my mind...and where I can make a scene in the lobby if they try to charge me for a Snickers bar and Pay Per View I didn't order. Even with all of these precautions, it is still a good idea to check for any odd charges after any hotel stay.

Except you get screwed. When you show up at the airport, bags in hand, Ryanair, one of Europe's largest low-cost airlines, tells you nope, sorry, can't fly because of how you booked. You should have booked at our own website, it says. Take it up with the people who sold you the ticket.

Last week, that's what in store for some 3,500 passengers who booked on Ryanair, despite the fact they hold paid reservations. That's roughly the equivalent of about 27 full planeloads. And more rejections are coming, because as of Aug. 26, the cancellations become a matter of daily policy.

Now I get it.

Travel agents. Maybe travel web sites have seemingly made them obsolete to a large portion of the public, but I just returned from a four-day summer vacation, having used my first travel agent, and now I'm a convert.

I'm not an expert on the topic, and obviously my one great experience isn't going to be replicated across the world with every other vacation, so consider this travel commentary and not hard-nosed reporting. I'm not imploring every person who travels to ditch Expedia and Travelocity or the lesser-known but well-regarded Kayak.com and never darken their doorsteps again. In the landscape of travel planning, they have their place, of course, but I'm convinced that travel agents do, too. Still.

You hear all the time about extra fees for snacks, blankets, additional luggage, but you hear about it so much, that it's easy to tune out and forget -- the airlines aren't kidding.

My wife packed our suitcase for our recent trip from the Indianapolis airport to Fort Lauderdale, Florida, and she had done a masterful job cramming every item we believed we needed for our vacation into one piece of luggage and one simple carry-on. However, I can't blame her for what any experienced traveler can already guess happened. After all, she was nice enough to do the packing, and I lugged the luggage to our car. I had a fleeting thought that maybe it was too heavy, but then like a wisp of smoke, my worry was gone, replaced, I suppose, by something more substantial.

I'd like to think my mind was on the ongoing crisis in Darfur or the new one between Russia and Georgia, but if I were truthful, I probably suddenly wondered if our airline would be serving any snacks, or I began thinking about the rerun of Law & Order that I had watched the night before.

So we get to the checkout counter at the airport, and we learn that our piece of luggage is overweight. I don't remember how overweight. I just remember hearing the words, "That'll be an extra ninety-eight dollars, sir."

So did you hear the one about the young British idealist, the one who subscribes to the Freeconomy movement, which says the world would be much better off if we didn't spend money and just shared stuff with each other? Well, this guy, Mark Boyle, decided he would walk all the way from England to India without bringing any cash or credit cards. He said he'd simply rely on the kindness of strangers to prove it can be done and to drum up supporters for the Freeconomy Community. He chronicled his journey on a blog. Of course, the press was notified, too.

Seems possible, right? Except four weeks into his trek, barely on the other side of the English Channel, he quit, claiming he couldn't get enough food or sleep. The French, he complained, wrote him off because they thought he was a "freeloading backpacker."

There's some things about this story that make me skeptical, such as:

Just when will fliers rebel against all the cost-cutting at the airlines? Probably never. We will just keep taking the charges in stride. If anything is going to make us stop flying, it is that costs are going up and people just don't have the money to travel as much these days.

Today's news about Northwest adding up to an $80 surcharge on flights is bad news, but has become pretty typical these days. The bigger headline may be what US Airways is trying to do, as reported by the New York Times: charge for coffee and other beverages. The hidden lead here is that the fee was originally announced June 12 and did not cause too much of a fuss, even though it marks the first time a major airline has stooped to these cost-cutting depths. It is only surfacing now because the union that represents flight attendants is complaining about it.

Even the company seems a little skeptical that they'll be able to pull it off. Officials are apparently telling flight attendants that they can be liberal in applying the new charges, meaning that if anyone complains, they can just placate them with a free drink.

I can imagine how those conversations will go: