Niche travel
Despite most appearances, American culture is anything but monolithic, and nowhere is this clearer than in our travel preferences; after all, one man's Six Flags is another's Indian ashram. The travel industry is figuring this out, and has begun to offer a travel package for every perspective.

Green Travel: With 2007 predicted to be the warmest year in history, I see this as the year that green travel becomes less of a trend-watcher's pet and more of a real force. Travelers will be renting hybrid cars, picking eco-friendly destinations and choosing zero-impact packages. At the fringes of the trend, travelers will even be checking up on "green" ratings for their hotels and airlines.

Connoisseur Travel: Connoisseurship has become a new hobby for many Americans; the perfect and most obvious example is the explosion of wine tourism over the past 10 years. Instead of lounging for days in beach chairs, these "connoisseur travelers" would prefer to spend their vacation days trainspotting their chosen enthusiasm, whether it be wine, jewelry, artwork, historical artifacts, antiques, food, language, architecture, you name it. Destinations and tours that fit the bill will continue to grow in popularity.

Europe Gets "Bigger": The decimation of the dollar against the euro may dampen U.S. travelers' enthusiasm for the old standbys of France, the U.K., Germany, and the like; better choices may be Spain and Portugal, where prices have not quite kept pace with their more northern neighbors. More to the point, however,   Eastern Europe should come on strong, as stalwart European travelers will start thinking about visiting Croatia, the Czech Replubic, Poland, Istanbul, even Albania. Hotels and tourist amenities are simply less expensive at many of these locations, and the alluring mix of the old and new that brings many travelers back to Europe time and again is in no short supply.

Niche Services: As airlines bail out on more and more of the services once considered routine, from the elimination of meals to stricter luggage allowances (not to mention more lost bags) and the emergence of "bare fares" that promise you a seat and little more, expect nimble entrepreneurial outfits offering niche services to step into the breach. For example: online check-in is now becoming competitive as travelers wait by their computers for the 24-hour window to open so they can get the best seats and boarding priority. Enter BroadFirst.com and CheckinSooner.com. BoardFirst.com secures an "A" group Southwest boarding pass for you automatically at the 24-hour mark, while CheckinSooner.com is doing the same for several airlines. Similarly, expect a boom in luggage courier services, pet transport and more over the next several months.

Security and passports
Finally, expect security concerns to remain an issue in 2007, and don't miss the impending changes in passport requirements — and we do mean impending, as these kick in on January 23, just two weeks from now.

Security: On security, one hopes the Transportation Security Administration learned something from the "now liquids are banned, now they're not ... or maybe they are, we dunno ..." debacle in 2006, but that doesn't mean that it will all be smooth sailing and sensible policies in 2007. For the latest on what to expect at the airport, check out Know Before You Go: Airport Security Q&A.

Passports: If you don't have a passport, you're going to need one, and you're going to need it soon. Though many travelers once boarded planes and headed to Canada, Mexico, Panama, Bermuda or parts of the Caribbean with only a U.S. driver's license, things have changed; come January 23 of this year, you may be able to fly into those countries without a passport, but you won't get back without one. In just two weeks, you will need a passport to return to the United States by plane, and as early as January 2008 you may need one to get back in by land or sea as well.

If you do not have a valid passport now, I recommend you get one posthaste; these regulations seem so far to have gone unnoticed by the general public, but once folks figure out that they're not getting home from a quick drive to Tijuana or Niagara Falls without a passport, there will be a rush on passport services like we have never seen. Learn more and start your application in our Passport Center.

The Independent Traveler is an interactive traveler's exchange and comprehensive online travel guide for a community of travelers who enjoy the fun of planning their own trips and the adventure of independent travel. You can access our wealth of travel resources and great bargains here at www.independenttraveler.com, or at www.bargainbox.com.

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