Travel & Leisure
Ratings & Advice
The latest ratings and advice for Washington, DC area travel & leisure.
Advice
- 30 Tricks Sellers Use to Manipulate You
- 60 Travel Booking Tips
- 65 Things You (Probably) Shouldn't Pay For
- About Checkbook: Why We're Unique
- Airlines that Allow Free Stopovers Let You Design a Vacation with Variety
- Airport Parking Hack
- Buy Now, Pay Later Often a Debt Trap
- Cell Phone Services
- Checkbook’s Top Shopping Tips
- Complaining: How to Get Results
- Credit Cards Provide Strong Protections for Consumers
- Cruises: How to Get the Best Deal
- DNA Ancestry Services
- eRead for Free
- Facebook Privacy Settings Checkup
- Fitness Industry Changed by COVID
- Free Perks You Didn't Know You Have
- Hotel Intel: How to Find the Best Rates for Rooms
- Hotels Gouge Guests With Absurd Resort Fees
- Hotels’ ‘Refundable’ and ‘Flexible’ Rates Often Not What They Seem
- How to Make a New Fitness Plan
- Kids' Activity-Kit Services
- Parking: Finding the Best Rates
- Rental Car Insurance: Should You Buy It?
- Restaurants Pay Steep Commissions and Fees to Order-and-Delivery Services
- Smartphone Photos Apps and Tools
- Social Media Headshots: Do's and Don'ts
- Tickets: Saving on Seats for Shows and Sports
- Timeshare Exit Companies Deserve a Time Out
- Tipping Tips
- Travel Insurance
- Travel Websites Mislead by Falsely Declaring Few Hotel Rooms Remain
- Travel: Health and Safety Info for International Trips
- Travel: Help Finding Cheap Flights
- Vacation Home Rentals
Current Issue
-
Crash Course on Auto Insurance
Most drivers will save $500 to $1,500 per year by switching companies
-
New Shingles, No Shakedown
Our ratings tell you which roofing contractors have you covered
-
Manipulative Marketing Is Now the Norm
30 tricks sellers use to make you pay up and pay too much
-
Shop Like a Pro
Our top tops for scoring the best prices and avoiding common problems
- Top Dental Specialists
-
Home Maintenance Checklist
Our guide for what to do and when to do it
-
Laundry List
Ratings of area drycleaners
-
Floor Shows
How to get on great footing at a fair price
-
Carpet Stores and Installers
Rolling out our ratings
- Buying Area Rugs
-
DO Fence Me In
Best barrier builders
-
Tailors and Sewing Pros
Who makes the cut?
-
How to Buy a New Car
Strategies to get the best price and avoid dealers’ traps
We aren't loyal to businesses, we're loyal to you.
Easily find ratings, reviews, and advice on local service providers.
Checkbook is nonprofit, independent, and provides unbiased information.
We don't run ads or take referral fees from business that we rate.