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January travel buys
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January 3, 2002: 4:04 p.m. ET
From mile madness to the Euro, here's what you need to know to make the most of your travel budget.
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New York (MONEY) - The airlines are enticing frequent fliers by lowering the number of miles needed for a free trip. A round-trip flight to Europe on American or TWA is 35,000 miles, down from as much as 60,000, if you fly before March 31. On Delta, a trip to Japan will cost you 45,000 miles, down from 60,000, through Jan.31. United has discounted flights to Europe to 35,000 miles (from 50,000) through March 31, and to Asia and the South Pacific to 40,000 miles (from 60,000) through Jan.31.
Euro alert
On Jan.1, euro bills and coins entered circulation in 12 European countries. For travelers, that means you'll get euros (recently 1.14 to the dollar) when you exchange cash or make an ATM withdrawal. If you have leftover francs or lire at home, spend them immediately. In general, you can use the old currencies in stores until the end of February. Commercial banks in most countries will continue to exchange their national currencies until the end of June. After that, only central banks will do so. For more information, go to www.euro.ecb.int.
Satellite nation
Imagine listening to a favorite radio station wherever you are in the continental U.S.— no static, no lost signal. That 's the idea behind XM Satellite Radio (www.xmradio.com), new $1-a-month music service. You can choose from 175 stations beamed via satellite, including CNNfn, ESPN and six jazz channels. For a receiver, we like the small and versatile $449 Sony DRN- XM01R, which plugs into your car or home stereo.
Rail Britannia
Through Feb.28, BritRail passes for unlimited travel among some 2,400 destinations in England, Scotland and Wales are 25 percent off. An eight-day Classic Pass is $199 for standard class, $299 for first class. A four-day FlexiPass, good for unlimited travel on any four days within two months, is $176 for standard and $262 for first class. A Family Pass allows one child age 5 to 15 to travel free. You must buy the passes before leaving the U.S. For information, call 877-677-1066 or go to www.britrail.net.
New Year redux
Once you've rung in the New Year, why not do it again? You can leave on Feb.7, 8, 9 or 10 for an eight-day Chinese New Year vacation in Hong Kong with Pacific Delight Tours (800-221-7179; www.pacificdelighttours.com). For $913 to $1,475 per person, double occupancy, you get round-trip airfare from the West Coast, six nights at one of six hotels, including the Majestic Hotel and the Ritz-Carlton, five breakfasts, a half-day city tour and seats for the New Year 's Day parade of colorful dragons and lion dancers on Feb.12. A Mid-west or East Coast departure adds $60 to $100 to the price.
Olympic preview
The month before the Olympics is a quiet time for the host city, which is why you'll find great deals in Utah this January. With the Grand Escape package, you can stay in one of the luxurious 700-square-foot rooms in Salt Lake City 's new Grand America Hotel (800-621-4505; www.grandamerica.com) for three nights for $331 per person, double occupancy. The package includes a day at Snowbasin, where you can ski portions of the Olympic downhill and Super-G courses, and a $20.20 discount on three lift passes at one of eight other ski resorts. For more deals, check out www.skiutah.com.
Reported by Andrea Bennet, Brian L. Clark, Tara Kalwarski and Nick Pachetti. 
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