Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Columbus Day
Second Monday in October
Veterans' Day
November 11
Thanksgiving
Fourth Thursday in November
Christmas Day
December 25
Safe Travel
Hurricane season along the Atlantic seaboard and Gulf of Mexico extends from June
through November, but the peak season is late August through October. Relatively speak-
ing, very few storms become East Coast hurricanes, but the devastation they wreak when
they do can be enormous. Travelers should take all hurricane alerts, warnings and evacu-
ation orders seriously.
Inland in the Midwest and South, tornado season is roughly from March to July. Again,
the chances you'll encounter one are slim.
When natural disasters do threaten, listen to radio and TV news reports. For more in-
formation on storms and preparedness, contact the
National Weather Service
(
www.nws.noaa.gov
).
Telephone
The US phone system mixes regional service providers, competing long-distance carriers
and several cell-phone companies. Overall, the system is efficient. Calls from a regular
landline or cell phone are usually cheaper than a hotel phone or pay phone. Services
such as
Skype
(
www.skype.com
) and
Google Voice
(
www.google.com/voice
)
can make
calling quite cheap. Check the websites for details.
Cell Phones
Most of the USA's mobile-phone systems are incompatible with the GSM 900/1800 stand-
ard used throughout Europe and Asia (though some convertible phones will work). G3
phones such as iPhones will work fine - but beware of roaming costs, especially for data.
Check with your service provider about using your phone here.
It might be cheaper to buy a prepaid SIM card for the USA, like those sold by AT&T or
T-Mobile, which you can insert into your international mobile phone to get a local phone
number and voicemail.
Planet Omni
(
www.planetomni.com
) and
Telestial
(
www.telestial.com
)
offer these services, as well as cell-phone rentals.
You can also buy inexpensive, no-contract (pre-paid) phones with a local number and a
set number of minutes, which can be topped up at will. Virgin Mobile, T-Mobile, AT&T and
other providers offer phones starting at $20, with a package of minutes starting at around
