By Wendy Perrin

Thinking about a winter trip to Mexico?  Skiing in the Canadian Rockies?  Hitting a Caribbean beach?  If you haven't got a passport, better squeeze the trip into your schedule before January 23.  That's when you'll need one to fly back into the U.S. from Mexico, Canada, or non-U.S. islands in the Caribbean. (You won't need a passport if you're returning to the U.S. by land or sea.)  Go to getapassportnow.com or, if you can't get through because its bandwidth limit has been exceeded, click here for the new rules.

It normally takes about 6 weeks to get a passport; at busier times it can take 8.  But this coming winter won't be normal (witness the getapassportnow.com bandwidth problem, thanks to all the people needing them!). If you're wondering how the already crunched State Dept. is going to cope with the sudden influx of paperwork, join the club. The good news is that you can pay a rush fee ($60 plus overnight delivery costs) to get your passport within 2 weeks.  Of course, that fee is in addition to the first-time passport cost of $97 or the renewal cost of $67.

When I renew my passport this spring, you can be sure I'll cough up the rush fee. That's if I have enough time between international trips. If not, I'll use my favorite passport and visa expediting service: ZVS.

Got a passport expiring in 2007?  Remember that some countries won't let you in unless your passport is valid for at least six months beyond your trip dates.

Heading to a country requiring a visa? Remember that you might need two to four blank pages in your passport that can be used for the visa and stamps.