When planning your next mini-vacation, think outside the box. If you are a soccer (football everywhere else) lover, you might want to schedule something through SoccerResort.com.  This company plans 6 vs. 6 two-day soccer tournaments all over the world almost every weekend of the year.  They arrange reasonable hotels packages in vacation destinations such as Costa Rica, Las Vegas, Miami, Ireland, etc.  Play soccer for two days with other players just as fanatic about the sport as you, and see the sites for the remainder of your stay. I attended the Setanta Bay Area tournament last year, and it was a blast. Winning teams receive trophies and credit toward their next tournament.

When flight delays occur en masse or simultaneously at airports across the nation, like they did today after an FAA computer glitch sent officials scrambling for the backup computer system, you could check your flight status and overall on-time performance at individual airports by visit airline and airport web sites separately, but it’s a lot easier and more efficient to access that information in one place with USA Today’s Real Time Flight Information feature.

Bookmark the page and use it to view which major airports across the country are operating normally and which ones are currently experiencing delays (different colors are used for normal, delays and major delays), as well as to check individual flight status (scroll down to the bottom). You’ll have to dig a little deeper to find delay information for most smaller airports, but you can still start the process from the drop-down box towards the middle of the page.

Whether it’s a weekend away or a month-long backpacking trip through Southeast Asia, booking solo travel comes with its own set of special considerations. When you’re going it alone, travel can be a lot simpler. After all, you’re not going to be stuck debating every move, schlepping your traveling companion’s overstuffed suitcases or jockeying for toiletry space on the bathroom’s single shelf. But traveling as a single person can also be more expensive. And while many of us travel solo specifically for the solitude it offers, for others, the  experience can be a lonely one.

But single travel doesn’t have to be more expensive than traveling with companions, nor does it have to be an isolating experience. I’ll tackle tips for the solo travel experience itself in a future post, but for now, some things to keep in mind while researching and booking an upcoming solo trip:

1. Pay attention to pricing schemes. It may seem like “duh” advice, but it’s important. Hotel rooms (and especially special hotel packages), vacation packages and cruises are often priced based on double occupancy. If you choose to purchase them as a single traveler, you can run the risk of paying more - i.e the dreaded single supplement - for your accommodations than you would if you were traveling along with a companion. But not every company prices its offerings that way. Your job as a savvy traveler is to pay attention to the breakdown and make the best choice based on your needs. Luckily for solo travelers, many travel search sites and online travel agencies (including Kayak.com, Sidestep, Orbitz, Expedia) price their vacation packages per person.

2. Choose a hotel with solid on-site services and amenities. When it comes to lodging in a major city, choose a property that offers onsite dining and other services (a good concierge, complimentary car service, overnight laundry, etc.) that will make your life easier should you end up arriving in the middle of the night after a delayed flight or without your luggage. Sometimes, this can mean choosing a hotel that caters more toward business travelers, who are likely to be traveling alone. Sure, you’ll strike out on your own to eat, drink and explore your surroundings, but it’s nice to have a solid home base from which to operate - and to count on when you’re jet-lagged, tired or met with some unexpected travel complication.

3. Research group travel tours carefully to find one that meets your needs and suits your goals. With more single travelers hopping around the globe than ever these days, it’s no surprise that there are more companies and tour operators catering to them than existed a decade ago. But before you book based solely on price, spend some time considering your goals for the trip. If your goal is meeting people, try booking a tour with a company or organization based in your hometown (universities with continuing education programs, civic organizations and culinary groups often offer good options). That way, the majority of the people on your trip are likely to live in your area. You can also look for companies that offer some sort of forum or community for participant feedback to give you an idea of participants’ overall experience. You might also want to consider a volunteer vacation or educational trip (anything from surf camp to language immersion) that combines interaction and socializing with time for independent activities.

4. Ease into the solo experience. If you’ve never taken a solo trip, don’t start with a month in a country where you don’t speak the language. Strike out for a weekend by yourself first or prep for that upcoming solo adventure by tacking a day or two of single travel onto a longer family vacation or group trip with friends.

5. Consider the offbeat and unusual. Before booking your plane ticket and a room at your favorite hotel chain for a quick getaway, consider new ways of traveling that may be less attractive or feasible with multiple people. Couch-surfing, for example, is often easier when you’re a party of one. If you always opt for flying, consider taking an overnight train instead, just for kicks. Opt for a hostel over a budget hotel or bunk in at a tiny bed & breakfast, where interaction with hosts is part of the package. Stay in a yurt, visit a car-free island or overnight in a lighthouse inn.

Do you have any tips for single and solo travelers? Leave comments below or send me a direct email at lsanders (at) kayak (dot) com.

These days, I almost always grab something edible during the post-security, pre-boarding stage at the airport - even if the flight is just an hour or two and I’m not really hungry and there’s nothing really exciting on the grab-and-go shelves. I’m the kind of traveler airports must love - because I always leave a little cash in my wake. The reason? I’m never quite sure what sustenance I can expect to find on board - and who knows how long I’ll really end up on the plane when it’s all said and done. As many travelers know all too well, these days, boarding the aircraft does not necessarily lead directly to one’s ascent into the friendly skies.

But as the NY Times‘ Michelle Higgins points out in the paper’s Practical Traveler column today, being late for a connecting flight often rules out time for water and snack purchases. And that means relying on the airlines for sustenance. The column concludes by rounding up the drink, snack and meal options on a handful of major U.S. carriers. You can find similar information for a variety of airlines on the Kayak.com Airline Fees page.

If you do plan to dine during your next flight, a few things to keep in mind:

- When searching for and purchasing flights, pay attention to the flight schedule’s layover time. Choosing a slightly longer layover will not only give you enough time to buy bottled water or a snack in the airport, but it gives the airline adequate time to transfer your luggage to the next plane.

- Whenever possible, bring both cash and a credit card to pay for in-flight food and beverage purchases. Some carriers, like Alaska Airlines, no longer accept cash in the cabin. But for just as many other airlines, cash is the only option you’ll have - and paying with exact change often expedites the purchase process.

- International flights will usually offer a free meal to passengers, but the type of meal depends on when and where you’re flying. If you have special dietary needs or preferences, it’s always important to check with the airline before you travel.

- Even water may cost you these days. Though airlines traditionally offered soda and water free of charge, US Airways’ decision to charge $2 is setting a new precedent for the industry.

…besides our own fabulous Kayak.com Airline Fees page, of course, here are some of our favorite airline fee charts:

• The Ultimate Guide to Airline Fees (Seat Guru, Airfarewatchdog, SmarterTravel)
• FareCompare U.S. Domestic Airline Fee Chart
• Airfarewatchdog’s Airline Frequent Flyer Fee Chart

You know Kayak.com helps you find cheap flights, hotels, and car rentals. But did you know it can also help you make your next holiday, business trip, or beach vacation more environmentally-friendly? Here are the top five way to go green with Kayak.com, courtesy of guest blogger and Kayak.com friend Elizabeth Sanberg, avid traveler and co-founder of Go Green Travel Green:

1. Search for Nonstop Flights. Nonstop is better for the environment than flights with layovers because as much as 50% of a flight’s fuel is burned during takeoff and landing (when the engines need to generate the most power). Thus, by choosing a flight with just one takeoff and landing — even if it’s a little more expensive — you’re significantly reducing your carbon footprint. Kayak makes it easy by offering a check box to indicate your nonstop flight preference.

2. Show Nearby Airports. If the closest airport doesn’t offer nonstop flights, see if a nearby airport does. For instance, Washington Reagan Airport doesn’t have nonstop flights to London. But by using Kayak’s “show nearby airports” feature, you’ll find that nearby Washington Dulles Airport does. Instead of choosing an itinerary with a layover, choose to fly nonstop from an airport a little further away. You’ll create fewer carbon emissions during your car ride to the airport than you will with an extra flight.

3. Choose Economy Seats. Yes, the extra legroom and free meal in business and first class are nice, but you’ll lower your environmental impact when you choose to fly economy. Economy seats take up less space; thus, more people fit on a plane, which lessens your individual carbon footprint.

4. Search Hotels Near Preferred Location. Kayak has a nifty feature that lets you plug in an address or attraction and find hotels nearby. When you’re planning your trip, think about where you will be doing most of your activities and stay at a hotel in that area. You’ll be a greener traveler if you walk or take public transportation to your activities, instead of driving or taking a cab.

5. Request a Smaller Rental Car with Good MPG. When you search for rental car deals on Kayak, set your preference to the smallest size car that meets your needs. Then use the new Miles Per Gallon feature to exclude cars that get worse gas mileage. Not only you reduce your carbon emissions, you’ll also save money on gas.

+1. Search Green Travel. Search Green Travel is a new tool that lets you use your favorite travel search engine while giving back to the environment. Travelers use Search Green Travel to search for cheap flights, hotels, and rental cars. Search Green Travel then donates 50% of advertising profits to environmental charities.

Elizabeth Sanberg is avid traveler committed to reducing her environmental impact without spending a fortune. She currently lives in Washington, DC and is the co-editor of Go Green Travel Green and co-founder of Search Green Travel.

Meet two of the latest travel tools from Kayak.com: the Fuel Cost Calculator and the Miles Per Gallon Filter, both of which now appear alongside car rental search results to help travelers determine the total cost of their car rental before they book a reservation.

As you can see in this screen shot, I pushed the MPG Filter (on the left, half way down the screen shot) all the way to the right in my hunt for cars with the highest gas mileage - and my options dwindled to far fewer cars than my original search produced.

Above, Kayak.com’s Fuel Cost Calculator - an industry first - estimates the total cost of gas for a trip and instantly adds this figure to the daily rate of each car option. The Fuel Cost Calculator takes into consideration four factors:

- miles per gallon for each vehicle

- average price of gas

- number of estimated miles traveled during trip

- type of driving (highway, city or both)

Sure, other fuel calculators exist, but ours is the only one that instantly updates the total price of a car rental per day so travelers can easily compare the final price across rental car agencies and car class.

I recently decided to renew my passport. It had one year left to go until expiring, but the last time I cleared U.S. Customs, I was basically told that the next time, I’d be lucky to get through with my tattered, water-damaged book.

I wasn’t looking forward to parting with it - what if I had some reason to leave the country the day after I sent it off to the National Passport Processing Center? I remembered all the horror stories from last year - wait times that stretched on and on for months and caused travelers to miss their international trips.

But I went ahead and bit the bullet and mailed the sucker off on July 23. Now just imagine my shock when I opened my mailbox yesterday and found - tah dah - my brand new passport. I didn’t pay for expedited service, but my new book arrived in exactly two weeks.

I also applied for a passport card - which U.S. travelers can use in lieu of a full passport to enter the country by land or sea from Canada, Mexico, the Caribbean and Bermuda - but I haven’t received that yet. Production on those just began in July 2008, so I’m expecting that one to take a while longer (the State department web site is estimating that people who applied before production began should expect their passport cards by early September, so I’m not going to be looking for mine until after that).

Just an FYI to anyone out there thinking about renewing - the process has vastly improved since this time last year.

We all know a picture’s worth a thousand words, but in the case of Me No Speak pocket guidebooks, pictures may just be worth a whole lot more. After all, who needs a thousand words when the person on the other end of the conversation can’t understand them?

The guidebooks - available for China, Japan and Thailand - have been around a while, but I was reminded of them yesterday by Thrillist. Yes, you may feel silly accosting a stranger on a busy street corner and repeatedly pointing to a picture of a train, but you’d probably feel a whole lot worse after wandering aimlessly, missing your scheduled departure and spending the rest of the day pantomiming your way around town in search of food, shelter and distraction.

Along with transportation, the guides also tackle food, shopping, health topics and accommodations.

Don’t lie. Instead of doing work, you’re secretly gearing up for the long weekend ahead. Well, instead of idly day-dreaming about ‘dogs and pyrotechnics, learn something while you’re procrastinating. Here, a list of links to help you get the most out of your holiday weekend fireworks photography opportunities (hint: get a tripod):

Fireworks Photography in Five Easy Steps

How to Photograph Fireworks from the New York Institute of Photography

Top 5 Tips for Shooting Fireworks

How to Photograph Fireworks Displays

Garry Black’s Photographing Fireworks

About.com’s Fireworks Photography Lessons Archive

Better Photo’s Top Tips for Photographing Fireworks

Webshots Blog’s Pro Tip: Photographing Fireworks

[Photo Credit: New York Institute of Photography]