I've saved a lot of money over the past few years by re-visiting reservations to check rates. It's reached the point to where I consider just about any reservation to be "provisional"; something that I use to get my foot in the door and protect against the cost rising, but I book with the intention of trying to do better and that is often the case.

The nice thing about savings is that they're tax-free. I know that sounds a little trite, but think about it. If you are traveling on your own money and you save $30 or more a night on a hotel reservation because you checked back and adjusted it -- or $150 on an airline ticket because you've learned when to pull the trigger -- then that is money that you would have otherwise paid out in after-tax dollars. The same holds true for points, miles, redemption and upgrade strategies that person picks up over time here. These are ways that we are able to do more with less; often a LOT more with a LOT less. There is no question that the value of all this stuff is equivalent to thousands of "after tax" dollars annually to me and that it has made a substantial and positive change in lifestyle possible. Thank you all for your contributions!