As the year ends and the holidays pass, business travel has slowed down for a few weeks—and  our Savvy Travel Warriors are not thinking about that long trip overseas or around the world… at least for the moment.

But with the arrival of January in just a few days, everything starts up again and we are faced with preparing for days and sometimes weeks on the road.  I took a poll of several frequent flyers and have come up with a list of items that they must have with them for those long hauls.

What I won’t travel without…

1. Headphones or earplugs—This was the most popular answer. They keep out the noise, crying children and loud talkers.
2. iPod—Not only is this relaxing, with nothing better than listening to your own music, but it can also help avoid any unwanted conversation with the person next to you.
3. Books or magazines—These provide the opportunity for some down time and the possibility for a really good read.
4. Workout gear—Running shoes allow you to indulge more than normal while on the road and maybe not feel as guilty about it if you can get a few workouts in.
5. Gum or mints—Great advice someone once gave me was, never turn down a breath mint! You just never know.  It’s always a good idea to have fresh breath for you and those around you
6. Healthy snacks—You can only eat so many M&M’s
7. Water—A must, although you have to wait to get it once you have been scanned and patted down, this is key to staying hydrated for the immediate meeting after you’ve landed, or for a good night’s sleep
8. Power cords and an extra laptop battery—We have all been stranded at one time or another; these can save you so you can keep working!
9. Neck pillow and extra socks—Stay comfy with your own pillow instead of risking a “used” one on the plane and have a couple pairs of socks, one pair for each direction
10. Hand sanitizer—No explanation needed

Safe and happy travels!

Having had the good fortune to work with Virgin Galactic as an Accredited Space Agent for their sub orbital space flights, I have what some might consider a “unique” bucket list:

• Virgin Galactic Sub-Orbital Space Flight – It is still remarkable to me that this amazing flight will be  available in my lifetime. It is my dream to experience the awesome view of our earth from a sub-orbital flight and experience what less than 500 people in history have achieved–space flight. Those who have experienced say it is life changing.

Closer to home, I have a few dream vacations as well:

• World Cruise – I dream of exploring the world by sea visiting exotic ports of call and deciding which ones I want to return to and visit in more depth.
• The Seychelles – My passion for snorkeling and photography make this a top spot on my bucket list.

Savvy Traveler here to introduce today’s guest blogger, Amy Chlebeck, who works in leisure travel for Carlson Wagonlit Travel and was named one of Travel Agent magazine’s Top 25 Agents for 2010. Amy shares how travel plays a key role in her celebration of the holidays – enjoy!

When thinking of the holidays, what do I think of? Family. But, my family often tells me I have a one track mind – ok, maybe a two track mind, because at the holidays I think of family and TRAVEL!  Regardless of whether you are traveling to spend the holidays with loved ones, or are planning a family trip to create memories rather than buying a gift that may be forgotten shortly after it is given, travel during the holidays can be a wonderful experience.

This past Thanksgiving my husband and I left cold and snowy Minnesota for the sunny Phoenix area to spend Thanksgiving with his grandparents, a tradition we have been maintaining for the last several years.  Not only do we enjoy our vacation time with them golfing, relaxing in the sun, finding new favorite restaurants, and of course watching football on Thanksgiving Day, but nothing means more to them than to have family with them for the holiday when the rest of the family is back in Minnesota.  The memories really are like the MasterCard commercials say: “Priceless.”

So, if you have not done it before, think about planning a family trip for the next holiday season or sometime in 2011.  The memories you’ll create are incredible! This Christmas, trips to great tropical spots such as Mexico and Hawaii have been wildly popular, while many others cannot resist the pull to see Mickey, Minnie, and friends in their holiday garb.  Disney World is magical at Christmas, as well as throughout the year.

Tell me, where are you when reading this?  Are you wrapping up your business travels to be home for the holidays, or are you off to create personal holiday memories of your own?  I would love to hear about the holiday travel memories you are creating this year and in years past. Happy holidays!

Loyalty.  Who gets it?  It’s difficult to determine—even for me, someone who works in the travel industry—which loyalty programs I should be signing up for.  From hotel to airline programs, loyalty programs all are aimed to sway our buying decisions—but which ones are really the best?

Many individual loyalty programs can pose difficulties for most travelers to earn what we all really want —a free hotel room or a free airline ticket.  Although I am not a road warrior, I have traveled to the same hotel brand fairly regularly over a three year period, and I finally just received enough points for two free nights.  For some of us less frequent travelers, building enough points on individual programs takes time.

So for me, the fastest way to reach those milestones is to find a program that allows me to earn points on every purchase I make (I earned a number of extra points during the holiday shopping season this year).  Some cards even offer products to cardholders that allow them to earn two points per dollar on gas, grocery and dining purchases.

In my case (as with many others), building points totals on credit cards doesn’t actually happen on business travel, when payment is through my company’s designated payment form.  But it certainly is nice to balance points earned from my personal spending with any reward points I might earn on flights or hotel stays for business travel to push me closer to my goal.

If your company allows you to keep reward points you earn during business travel, such as frequent flyer miles, look for programs that let you transfer points to other locations.  One example would be an airline reward program that allows you to use your points to stay in a hotel, or save up for non-travel purchases.

Last week the news site Mashable posted a great “top five” list of iPhone apps to help travelers avoid international business faux pas while traveling abroad. Late in Japan, where punctuality is very important? One app tells you how to appropriately apologize to be in line with Japan’s culture, and suggests not scheduling meetings before 9 a.m. due to long commute times in the major cities. Great detail! Check it out if you’re headed overseas any time soon. Some are free and others cost up to $25 – you might want to check with your travel department or boss first before buying and expensing one.