Travel briefs

TRIP TIP

If your travels take you overseas but you'd like to keep your cell phone handy -- and that phone runs on AT&T Wireless or T-Mobile -- you can cut calling costs by renting a SIM (Subscriber Identity Module) card once you arrive. Pop this thumbnail-size card into the phone in place of your usual SIM card, and you'll have a local phone number and pay about the same rates as any local user, avoiding the $1-a-minute roaming fees you'd otherwise incur. The only catch is that before leaving, you must ask your carrier to unlock your phone to accept another carrier's SIM. T-Mobile will do so once you're 90 days into a contract, Sidekick users excepted; AT&T will unlock a phone once you're out of a contract, iPhone users excepted. Use Verizon, Sprint or another carrier that doesn't employ SIM cards? Look into renting a phone after you touch down.

WASHINGTON POST

THIS JUST IN

Air Canada's regional carrier Jazz is removing life vests from all its planes to save weight (about 1 pound each) and fuel. Jazz spokeswoman Manon Stuart said that government regulations set by Transport Canada allow airlines to use flotation devices instead of life vests provided the planes remain within 50 nautical miles of shore. Safety cards in the seat pockets of Jazz aircraft now direct passengers to use the seat cushions as flotation devices. Jazz planes do fly over the Great Lakes and along the Eastern seaboard from Halifax to Boston and New York.

ASSOCIATED PRESS

ESCAPE ARTISTS

Last week, as a new version of Monopoly was released, we asked readers what a Minnesota edition of the popular board game would look like. The answers were at turns charming ("Tokens should definitely include Paul Bunyan and the Jolly Green Giant" ) and harsh ("Go to Burnsville, N. Mankato or Shakopee. Go directly to Burnsville, N. Mankato or Shakopee. Do not pass go and do not collect $200.") Along with Minneapolis and St. Paul, Edina, North Oaks and Thief River Falls got nominated for the high-end dark blue properties. And which towns got called out as low-rent purple? Embarrass and International Falls, "because it's so cold."

KERRI WESTENBERG

WEB WATCH

Thrillist.com can help you find the trendiest restaurants and nightclubs. It has a free daily e-mail newsletter and city-specific information on what to do and what to buy in Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco and Boston. Las Vegas gets a weekly mention. There's a Thrillist Nation for everywhere else. Expect tips for Web-savvy players who like to drink, party and shop. Or subscribe for the great dining tips and skip the rest. It's not interactive, but Thrillist tries to link to menus and restaurant websites.

LOS ANGELES TIMES

ECO-FRIENDLY PUSH

Ever feel guilty about forgetting to turn in those plastic keys at the end of a hotel stay? Some companies are beginning to ease guests' concerns by experimenting with keys made of wood, paper, corn and other recyclable materials. The nation's first wood key card debuted two weeks ago in Denver as part of the Democratic National Convention's eco-friendly push. Sustainable Cards, in Boulder, Colo., donated 70,000 keys. Word is some of the keys broke, so refinements are in the works.

WASHINGTON POST

BOOK BRIEF

The new "Guide to Women's History Sites and Resources" includes listings for the homes of famous women from Harriet Beecher Stowe to Eleanor Roosevelt, national parks like the Women's Rights National Historical Park in Seneca Falls, N.Y., and museums such as the Jane Addams Hull-House Museum in Chicago. There is also a section on Arizona's Women's Heritage Trail -- www.womens heritagetrail.org. The book can be ordered for $7.50 plus $1.85 shipping from the National Collaborative for Women's History Sites at Jane Addams Hull-House Museum, University of Illinois at Chicago (MC051), 800 S. Halsted St., Chicago, 60607.

ASSOCIATED PRESS