With good timing, your beach can be this uncrowded.

Low prices can be a double-edged sword, though; the opposite side of the blade being that very low prices can attract customers from a different economic echelon (those who are not the usual customers of your favorite resort). That has the power to change the character of the place.

For instance, if your ideal Caribbean retreat has a low-key, piano-at-sunset atmosphere with a quiet beach catering to those over 50, this year you may find it filled with younger families, louder music, more horseplay, less refined dress for dinner, etc. Nothing wrong with any of this, of course … unless it makes you feel like a third wheel on someone else’s vacation.

Here are three ways to improve your 2010 travel:
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Who wouldn't want a great hotel deal in this neighborhood?

Is it just me, or are there others who never, ever, ever want to stay in a $19 hotel room?

I’m much happier with deals like these that have come across my desk at about the same time, any of which will provide something far more memorable than the savings one forgets with the turning of the calendar.

In New York, families reign at the Sofitel where rates begin at a mere $259 a night (a bargain in Manhattan) and where children get a second room for 50 percent off (even better). Breakfast is included, just the thing to get you out the door to family favorites like Rockefeller Center, the New York Public Library, St. Patrick’s Cathedral and Times Square, all very walkable from your West 44th Street location. You just know that next year, it will cost twice as much. More info: Sofitel New York.

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