Bring toilet paper and hand warmers

Day-of events
If you were lucky enough to snag one of the 240,000 free tickets for the swearing-in ceremony handed out by a congressional delegate, you’ll get directions on how and when to pick up those tickets in person before the event. Don’t forget your photo identification.

And don’t assume that having a ticket means you can just mosey over to Capitol grounds anytime you choose. Security will be extra tight, so ticket holders are being advised to show up as early as 7 a.m., but no later than 9 a.m., to make sure everyone gets through security in time for the formal part of the swearing-in ceremony, which begins at 11:30 a.m. Security screening for the ceremony closes at that time, so you'll be waved away if you show up late, ticket or not.

For those without tickets to the ceremony, the entire National Mall will be open to public for the inauguration. Giant video screens and an audio system set up and will enable everyone there to follow along. Although the Mall is open 24 hours, camping there is prohibited and tents are banned.

For those who’d rather try for a glimpse of the president along the inaugural parade route, which begins at the Capitol steps and heads up Pennsylvania Avenue to the White House, note that there is room on the sidewalks for only about 350,000 people. There will be security teams on duty, and once the sidewalks are full, that’s it. Camping on the streets along the parade route is discouraged, so don’t expect to be able to grab your sidewalk spot until about 7 a.m.

For a list of pre-Inauguration Day events open to the public, as well as a list of official and unofficial inaugural parties and balls, see the Destination D.C. Web site. Some of these events are free; tickets (some quite pricey) are still available for others.

• Bonus tip: Security will be tight everywhere in and around D.C., so leave lots of otherwise useful stuff (strollers, umbrellas, etc.) at home. The District of Columbia’s 2009 Presidential Inauguration Web site has a long list of items that will be prohibited from all inaugural event sites.

Bathrooms, hand warmers and more
If you’ll be spending the day attending any part of the festivities, it will be a very long, crowded, and probably cold day. You’ll need to dress warmly, bring food (snacks, sandwiches, juice boxes, maybe; but no coolers or glass containers) and have lots of patience.

You’ll likely be standing around in the cold for long periods of time and, eventually, you’ll need to go to the bathroom. Keep this in mind: there will 5,000 portable toilets on the National Mall on Inauguration Day, but there will be no bathrooms for ticketed attendees during the inaugural ceremony on the Capitol West Front.

Metro will be closing all bathrooms inside its 86 stations, but will put around 150 portable toilets outside the stations. Bathrooms in the Smithsonian Institution’s 13 museums on the Mall will be open to the public on Inauguration Day (until 5:30 p.m.), but you’ll need to wait in line to pass through security checks there as well. And the restrooms in restaurants and bars, many of which will be offering Inauguration Day specials, may be restricted to customers only. The bottom line: use the can when and wherever you can, and bring along your own stash of toilet paper.

Another thing to keep in mind, says Capitol Hill resident Helen DeBarge, is that “You can’t plan on finding anything you need in any store in D.C. on Inauguration Day. So stock up and come prepared.”

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D.C.-based freelance media producer Heather Dahl agrees, and urges everyone to buy disposable hand and foot warmers now. “While covering the 2005 inauguration, I tried buying hand warmers for my gloves the day before the ceremony, but every place was sold out.”

Emergency plans
Even if everything goes smoothly, it will be important to plan what to do if there’s an emergency or if you get separated from your friends and family.

If you have a cell phone, make sure it’s fully charged and bring along a device that lets you recharge. Cell lines may be overloaded during parts of the day, but you should still be able to send text messages. Just in case, bring along some change for pay phones and write down important phone numbers on a piece of paper. Also, sign up for Alert DC, which will send you official text messages about any emergency situations occurring in D.C. A free-to-download iPhone app will also help you figure out where you are and what amenities are nearby.

Pack a personal emergency kit with first-aid supplies such as Band-Aids, antiseptic wipes, aspirin, toilet paper, medications, snacks, a small flashlight and some extra cash.

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Create a “what-if” plan with your travel group. Agree on what you’ll do if anyone gets lost. It could be as simple as having a brightly colored bandana to wave above your head if you get separated in a crowd, or something more complicated, such as an edge-of-town meeting time and place you’ll all gather should the day’s events go awry.

Haven’t made plans to be in D.C. but still want to go?

Harriet Baskas writes msnbc.com's popular weekly column, The Well-Mannered Traveler. She is the author of the “Stuck at the Airport” blog, a contributor to National Public Radio and a columnist for USATODAY.com.

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