Rep. Ron Paul, R-Texas, for example, prefers to spend most of his time in the Lone Star State rather than take fact-finding trips to Hawaii or Barbados.

"First and foremost, he doesn't think they're very productive," said spokesman Jeff Deist. "He gets virtually no corporate or [political action committee] money, so perhaps that results in fewer invites."

Paul's record of not accepting corporate money may result in fewer trips, but even some of his colleagues who do receive invitations choose to decline. Eight senators and 41 representatives in the current Congress filed no travel disclosures from January 2000 to May 2004. An analysis of trip documents by Medill News Service in partnership with American Public Media's Marketplace program and American RadioWorks found that some of those took privately funded trips that were documented only in the general financial disclosure forms filed annually. Others refused to accept any invitations, saying they simply don't have time.

Rep. James Saxton, R-N.J., for example, trimmed his privately funded travel plans partly because of increased assignments in the House. In the past year alone, he visited the Middle East three times and made four visits to military bases around the United States as a member of the House Armed Services Committee; the government paid for the trips.

"Because he travels so much, he likes to go home to South Jersey when he leaves D.C. rather than drink bottled water in a hotel room in some foreign country," said spokesman Jeff Sagnip Hollendonner.

Usually, the longer lawmakers serve, the more invitations they receive.

Seven of the top 10 privately funded travelers in each chamber have served for more than a decade. And of the top 10 most frequent House travelers, three were either chairmen or ranking members of committees; of the top 10 in the Senate, five were committee leaders.

Clout like this naturally attracts sponsors. For example, when a particular sponsor like The Heritage Foundation, a Washington-based conservative think tank, wants the government to reduce spending, influential members of the budget committees receive invitations to an educational retreat, said the foundation's Director of Senate Relations Tripp Baird.

As cushy as some of the trips may seem, they're hardly vacations.

"We're talking about budget reform that would make most members fall asleep," Baird said.

But sponsors don't save all the fun for senior members. Heritage also invites first-term members and newly appointed committee members on retreats to bone up on issues, Baird said.

Newcomers, however, often find little time for travel because they are busy running for re-election.

"The best time to knock off an incumbent would be in two or four years [from their original election]," said William Stewart, political scientist at the University of Alabama.

Though House incumbents are re-elected 98 percent of the time, the first few terms can still be a time of uncertainty. Therefore, most first- or second-term members work hard to solidify their advantage by meeting constituents and working on local issues whenever they can make time.

"Every free second the congressman has, it's important to be up in the district," said Jon Schneider, spokesman for first-term Rep. Tim Bishop, R-N.Y.

This is especially true for Arizona's Republican Rep. Rick Renzi, a freshman congressman involved in a hotly contested race in his large rural district this fall.

His spokesman, Matthew Ash, said there is "just not enough time in the congressional session for a congressman in a tough re-election in a district the size of Illinois to take trips."

For most lawmakers, like Renzi, who didn't accept travel invitations, it's simply a matter of political homing instincts.

"I'd much rather travel to my district and listen to constituents' concerns," said Rep. Sam Graves, R-Mo., in an e-mail reply. "I am back home every weekend."

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