What is it about Black Friday that causes us to spend, spend, spend? The bargains, of course. The online deals abound and in some cases are more readily available than in the brick and mortar stores. Furthermore there are a lot of free shipping deals. Who wants to get up at 3 a.m. to wait in line? Not me.

The avid traveler on your shopping list will love you if you buy them a holiday gift that makes their travel easier and more comfortable. How about a netbook? We are leaving today for Europe. I bought my husband a netbook as an early Christmas gift so that he can take it along. He is thrilled with the convenience and size.

There isn’t an avid traveler around that doesn’t love to read about their destinations. Part of the fun of any trip is the planning for most of us. Who doesn’t like to know about the airport bus in Barcelona that takes you within a block of your hotel and saves you 25 Euros? Lonely Planet books tend to have a lot of that type of useful information.

One of my discoveries last year was the spinner type suitcase. I sing its praises to anyone that will listen. It saves my bad back on a trip because it reduces the strain. Furthermore my carry on spinner rolls down the aisles of planes so easily that you wonder why anyone with carry ons would use any other type of suitcase. Treat your avid traveler with one. They will love you for it.

Shop early, shop online, save money and aggravation!

Always trying to maximize my credits and discounts in travel, the purchase of about 100 shares of cruise line stock to receive online credit is a win-win situation. Because of our upcoming transatlantic cruise on the Celebrity Summit (watch here for blog reports on the cruise – great itinerary and great ship) we purchased 100 shares of parent company Royal Caribbean’s stock. It was trading for a little over $19 that day. We purchased it online from Scottrade and only paid $7 for the trade. Notification to Celebrity required a fax and a phone call – easy. Because our cruise is 14 days, we have received an onboard credit of $250. Here’s the real kicker: we made $110 on the stock!

This is also available from Carnival Corporation and applies to their family of ships, including Carnival, Holland America, Seabourn, Princess, P & O, Costa and Cunard. A couple of years ago we made a purchase of their stock and received a $250 onboard credit from them.

The onboard credit amount is determined by the length of your cruise. Go to the corporate site of the parent company and look for investor relations/shareholder benefit. Don’t miss this easy opportunity for a freebie. Maybe you will make money on the stock trade like us as well!