Don't be tempted by cute, cheap, useless kitsch that will clutter your house. Find out what products, colors, or fabrics make your travel destination famous, and spend your money on one or two quality items that you will keep and use for years.

Decide on an item you will actually use, such as a table cloth or beautiful platter, or think about an item that will add to your home's decor, such as a decorative bowl or painting.

Remember to consider your home's existing color palette and style and chose something that will fit in.

Plan on enjoying the cobbled streets of Barcelona? Taking the metro around Paris? Then ditch that wheeled suitcase and pack in an interior frame backpack or a large bag with shoulder straps.

Wheelie-bags are great in the airport or for wheeling from the car up the paved drive to the hotel, but not if you're exploring less accessible destinations. Their wheels catch in cobblestones and brick, they overturn on sidewalk curbs, and they're hard to maneuver in tight quarters.

Strap on your backpack and you're ready to walk to the train station or take the metro.