Editor's Note: Inspired by Follow Friday on Twitter, I am profiling (in far more than 140 characters) extraordinary travelers who you, too, should follow! Through these profiles, I want to introduce you to globetrotting souls that follow their hearts to places near and far, so join me each Friday in my quest to be inspired by some of the most intriguing adventure seekers on our planet!

Be inspired by: Steven Shoppman & Stephen Bouey (Denver)
Follow them at: @theworldbyroad

Ahh . . . New Jersey. State of gardens, 'da Shore,' and now, 28 flights per week on Jet America. The new low-cost airline  promises nine seats on each flight will cost just $9. Now, despite the claim on their web site that this is "not a gimmick," it feels a bit gimmick-y. But for $9, who cares?

According to the Associated Press (via Yahoo), service begins July 13 with  flights at Toledo, Ohio; South Bend, Ind.; Melbourne, Fla.; Newark, N.J.; Minneapolis and Lansing, Mich.

Flying to Colorado last weekend, I had beer on my mind. (Hey, as long as I kept my watch set to Eastern Time, it was almost an appropriate hour for a drink.) Since the Denver area is home to big-name brewers like Coors, more than 100 craft breweries, and the annual Great American Beer Festival, I thought I'd begin my three-day weekend with an ice-cold glass of local beer.

When I arrived in Boulder, though, I happened upon a tasting that instead turned my attention to wine as I was introduced to the delicious products of Colorado wine country--a place I'd never even heard of before.

Editor's Note: Inspired by Follow Friday on Twitter, I am profiling (in far more than 140 characters) extraordinary travelers who you, too, should follow! Through these profiles, I want to introduce you to globetrotting souls that follow their hearts to places near and far, so join me each Friday in my quest to be inspired by some of the most intriguing adventure seekers on our planet!

Be inspired by: Melvin Boecher (Cologne, Germany)
Follow him at: @traveldudes

Please join us in welcoming Martha Stewart to The Window Seat! This is an abbreviated version of Martha’s first travel column that debuted in the April 2009 issue of Martha Stewart Living Magazine. This article is a part of the new quarterly travel section and her next piece is scheduled for the August issue, which hits stands July 20, 2009. An abbreviated version of the next travel article will also be featured on The Window Seat so be sure to check back soon.

In the summer of 2008, I decided to travel to England, Ireland, and Poland to visit some of our company’s strategic partners. I also planned to sightsee and to film several segments for my TV show. This is not an unusual scenario. I frequently combine my love of travel with business because I go places that I think most of us would enjoy seeing and experiencing.

Please join us in welcoming William Mullins and Leslie Banker to The Window Seat. They are the co-authors of Britannia in Brief: The Scoop on All Things British and their guest blog reveals the top rock sites in London.

When you marry a Londoner who loves music as much as he loves his native city, excursions around the city follow a different narrative than the usual guidebooks. That’s how I know that Notting Hill was the neighborhood where Jimi Hendrix finally kissed the sky and where the riots occurred that inspired the song “White Riot” by the Clash. We were in London last spring doing research for our book, Britannia in Brief, and as we walked for miles William noted a few of his favorite music destinations in the city.

Matchmaker, matchmaker, make me a match…at 40,000 feet?! If your mom has set you up with every available soul within a 50-mile radius, you’ve tried Match.com more times than you care to admit, and you’re still looking for Mr. or Ms. Right, you might try heading down under.

Air New Zealand is introducing the world’s first Matchmaking Flight. Adventurers looking for amour can book this flight from Los Angeles to Auckland on October 13, 2009 and see if sparks fly in the air. And you’re going to love the price. Round-trip flights are starting at just $780*. The airline will also treat you to a pre-flight gate party, themed food, drink, and games to encourage mingling on the flight, and a singles-only bash at the SKYCITY Convention Centre in Auckland.

Have you heard the news? The economy stinks. I know, you're shocked (shocked!). But despite what some reports would have you believe, people are still traveling. Maybe not at the same rates or with the same budget as in past years, but they're still going. After all, what would summer be without vacation? Like a day without sunshine? Or like a gnome without a garden?

Travelocity has just released a list of ten summer hotspots for 2009. Think of it as a "most improved," rather than a "most popular" list. These ten domestic destinations are seeing a rise in popularity despite one-third of travelers cutting back on their summer vacation budgets. Good news in tourism alert! The local economies of these destinations should benefit from their improved rankings.

It’s the most interesting reason for a flight cancellation I’ve seen in a while: a Japan Airlines flight was stopped yesterday after its engine "ingested" a giant luggage cart on the runway at Los Angeles International Airport.

The footage is pretty unbelievable—I’m not sure what I’d do if I looked out a plane’s window and saw its monster engine chowing down on a metal cart.

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Don't get me wrong -- discounted room rates are great. Like a moth to a flame, I'm drawn in by percent-off promotions when I shop for a hotel deal. And these enticing deals are everywhere -- 25% off! No, no wait, there's another one -- 40% off! Wait - 60% off!

And then I stop to think -- 60% off what, exactly? If you don't know the starting price of a hotel room, the discount may not mean much to you.

Personally, I like my discounts in dollars. Resort credits offer a specific dollar amount for you to spend while you're at your hotel on cocktails, food, spa treatments -- you name it. It is one of the most popular hotel trends in a down economy and, depending on the amount, can add a great deal of value to your vacation. Here are three  resort credit offers available right now:

Catch a ride on a clattering cable car, slurp clam chowder from a sourdough bread bowl, stroll Fisherman’s Wharf--most tourists in San Francisco know the drill. But as locals, it often breaks our hearts to watch the hordes move from one time-honored experience to the next en masse, never stopping to wander without purpose through our charming city, never trying the new thrills and attractions.

It's no doubt that the recommendation against all non-essential travel has many people thinking twice about their upcoming trips. Travelocity alone has emailed nearly 14,000 customers about this issue and has had over 30,000 page views to their related FAQ. While most people are opting to change their plans for alternate destinations like Orlando, Las Vegas, Atlanta, the Bahamas, or the Caribbean some people are still chosing to go. If you have a trip in the coming weeks, what will you do?

Sorry to gloat, but I have a much-needed two-week vacation coming up and I’m starting to think about how to pack for the trip. My suitcase, you see, isn’t very big. In fact, it’s what you might call downright small. For the first part of my trip I’m going to be moving around from one place to the next, and so I want something light and versatile, that’s easy to carry up and down steps.

So how to pack two week’s worth of stuff into my small but well-worn suitcase? I’m going to have to be creative—and just accept that I’ll be doing laundry once or twice while on the go. Since I don’t know when or where exactly I’m going to be able to find access to a laundromat, though, there are two areas where I’m definitely not going to skimp: socks and underwear.

As for the rest, my motto’s got to be, “less is more.” I plan to employ the following strategies:

Several airlines have announced plans to test and install in-flight WiFi this year, making it possible for passengers to surf the web during their flights. Good news for both business travelers and those who are just plain bored.

According to an article today on CNN.com, Looking for a Wi-Fi hot spot? Try 10,000 feet up, this is not only a desirable feature for fliers, but it’s also a profitable move for carriers. In the article, Harlan Platt, an airline industry expert and professor of finance at Northeastern University in Boston, Mass. said "Normally, air carriers rush to purchase capital equipment that raises their cost but doesn't raise their revenue. ... This is actually a revenue-producing tactic. And it's a good one because it's providing value to the passenger and it's creating incremental revenues for the airline."

I'm taking a flight to San Diego tonight, and already I've had several people look at me aghast. "But flying!" they say. "The germs! What if someone coughs next to you on the plane? What about the swine flu?"

Of course, Joe Biden's comments yesterday about "a confined aircraft where one person sneezes....that goes all the way through the aircraft" haven't helped my case, but I'm certainly not panicking. Not in the least, in fact. Here's what I plan to do:

1. Give Lady Macbeth a run for her money with my handwashing.