We have decided to stay a bit closer to home this year - lots of family stuff going on. We decided to go back to Yellowstone and the Grand Tetons because: 1) we love it there 2) tons of animals to see 3) great scenery 4) easy to drive there in a little over one day. We were originally thinking of going to the eastern US to tour Civil War sites but nature and wildlife won the toss.
Next year we plan to visit Switzerland. Mike will retire next year so we need to go while we still have money haha - Switzerland is expensive! I'm currently working on our itinerary and will book our airfare as soon as the dates become available.
I'm not sure I've ever mentioned this, but I always buy trip insurance for our international trips. I like knowing that if we get hurt, our medical expenses will be covered and even evacuation back to the US if necessary. It also covers things like lost luggage, hotel rooms if we had to cancel in an emergency, tour reservations, etc.- anything that was canceled that was beyond our control.
I also always opt for all the additional insurance on our rental cars. I like knowing I can turn it in and walk away without having the nasty surprise of a charge for (supposed) damage on my credit card the next month. The travel pages and forums are full of folks who didn't get the extra insurance and thought that the insurance coverage included in their credit card would be enough. They find out that you need an itemized bill for your credit card insurance and you may never get one from the rental company, especially one that has an itemized statement about the repair charges. Then you're stuck being 5,000 miles away, thirty days after you get home, and trying to contact someone who speaks English and can actually help you try to get an itemized bill. No thanks, I will happily pay the extra for the full insurance through the rental company. We have used Europcar several times and been happy with the car and the ease of the turn-in process. They're also considerably cheaper than Hertz.
Sorry - that was my soapbox moment of the day.
