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- When making hotel reservations, and when arriving, ask about unpublished specials or upgrades. Nothing spurs innkeepers to generosity like empty rooms.
- Restaurants may be blessedly empty this time of year, but call ahead to ensure that they’ll be open when you arrive. That old saw about small towns rolling up the sidewalks at night seems even less funny when you’re peering into a darkened café window at 8 p.m.
- Bring foul-weather entertainment, just in case your visit coincides with a nor’easter. You won’t regret sacrificing a little luggage space to a pack of cards, an extra novel, and a trashy celebrity magazine.
- Consider staying someplace with a kitchen or kitchenette. Local real estate companies can provide listings for fully equipped rental condos at affordable winter rates. A gas grill, a microwave, and an icemaker go a long way toward easing your dependence on year-round diner and coffee shop menus.
- Pack clothes that will keep you warm and dry. Layers, as always, make the most sense, but you’ll want waterproof boots and jackets for exploring tide pools and walking cliffside trails.
- Don’t forget sunblock, even when you’re bundled up.
See our list of great off-season beach bargains.
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