Taking off Travel blog

There was an interesting piece in USA Today yesterday about the development of airport apps – apps that guide you around the airport, covering shops, restaurants, security and check-ins. The apps reviewed were Gateguru, iFly Pro, Flysmart and GoHow Airport, and of these, Gateguru looked the most interesting, especially with planned improvements in functionality. The developers want to include geotagging information that will help travelers identify information such as which lines are moving fastest. Now that’s what I call useful! Have you tried any of those apps?

If not, then add them to our previous lists of useful travel apps:

The Best iPhone Apps For Travelers

The Best Free Blackberry Apps For Travelers

Got an iPad For Christmas? Here Are Some Cool Apps

A few weeks ago, I got a message from one of my Twitter friends asking me to check out Activitravel, a newish travel site. I say ‘newish’ because it’s been running since 2009 (Update: the site was launched in October 2010).  Activitravel bills itself as an “online activity travel guide and community that helps active travelers identify and share information about the best places in the world to participate in various activities”. It was fonded by Oyvind and Trond Gronflaten from Norway, two brothers who are passionate about activity travel.  I decided to check it out.

Easy Sign Up

Plus point number one is that I could sign in via Twitter, Facebook, Yahoo, Google or MySpace and the site grabbed some basic profile information to start me off.  You can add your Facebook Page URL, Twitter name and site URL as well as some basic information about your site. You also have to state whether you represent a business.

The ‘Went’ List

Once you’ve done that, the next step is to start adding to your ‘went list’ – the list of places you have visited. This also populates a map with pins on the places you’ve been. One of the easiest ways to populate this list is to  click on the two drop down boxes (one for activities, the other for location) that you can find on every page of the site. Once you’ve selected one of each you get a list of the top activities (according to the community) and can add these to your list. Click on the blue die to rate and add. From there you can add more information, highlight top experiences, add photos and see what the experts have said.You can also add activities to your Wish List.

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Amazon's Kindle - small and light

Ever since the iPad came out, people have been asking me when I’m getting one? The short answer is, I’m not (well, not unless one turns up under the Christmas tree). I’ve had a Kindle for about 10 months and I plan to stick with it. In fact, it’s become  one of my favorite travel accessories for both personal and business trips.

No Laptop Replacement

The first reason why I’m sticking with the Kindle is that I already have a laptop – and I don’t need another one. My little Samsung NC-110 combines portability and utility in a handy package and allows me to work comfortably wherever I go. I love how the iPad looks but it wouldn’t be my first choice for serious computer work.

Second, I don’t need a device whose primary purpose is to make the net all shiny and pretty when I’m on the move. I can use my cell phone for email and browsing (and the color is pretty good) and all I need is a device that allows me to read books – and that’s where the Kindle shines.

A Device for Reading Junkies

I am reading junkie — and I never thought I would like an e-book reader, but I was wrong. Any hard-core reader will know the sinking feeling that comes when you have run out of reading material on a trip or you’re not sure when next you will make a trip to the bookstore or spend a couple of hours browsing on Amazon. The Kindle solves that problem for me. I always keep a store of free to download books on my Kindle to make sure that there is always something to read. It’s also good to be able to shop at the Kindle store right from the device. If I read more magazines, then maybe the iPad would be better, but it’s mostly books for me, so the Kindle wins again.

Read Business Documents

For business travel, another plus is  being able to read Word documents and PDFs on the Kindle. I’d be the first to admit that this is not perfect but if you have a few documents that you want review before your meeting then you can carry them on your Kindle and reduce the weight of your case. And if you’re a social kind of reader and want to tweet or share your latest finds then you can do update Twitter and Facebook with the Kindle as well.

I like the screen too. The E ink has great contrast making books easier to read on the Kindle then when you’ve got one in your hand — and I never ever have to worry about the size of the print.

Lightweight Reader

Best of all – and this is why I won’t travel without it again – the Kindle is light. It’s lighter than a paperback, it’s lighter than an iPad and it’s definitely lighter than a hardback so there is no need to strain back lugging heavy books around or to struggle to prop up your book when reading in bed. I can store  thousands of books on it without adding any weight to my suitcase or briefcase. I’m with the people mentioned in this post on Computer Shopper:

Let’s also remember those who travel often and have little time to read. For them, portability alone may justify the cost of a Kindle, in a less calculable sense.

So that’s why the Kindle is now my must-pack travel accessory. Are you using a Kindle, an iPad or another electronic reading device? Which one did you choose and why?

(Photo by jblyberg)

Is it possible to take a flight without being bumped, arriving late, losing your luggage or experiencing one of the many other things that can go wrong with air travel?  We all know travel can be a hassle, but it doesn’t always have to be. Sometimes you can save yourself some trouble by doing some research ahead of time, using handy online tools and reports.

Flightstats

One of my favorite tools for tracking airline performances is FlightStats. Visit the home page and it automatically shows you a map of airports near you with a handy delay index. That means if you have the choice of departing from more than one airport, you can choose one with a low level of delays, avoiding airports with significant or excessive delays. You can even check different time periods for each airport to see if there’s a better time to fly.

Next, if you’re worried about which airline to choose to get to your destination, compare all the possibilities using Flightstats’ on-time performance rating tool. Enter the name of the carrier and the flight number to see how it stacks up for overall on-time performance and number of delays. Check out user ratings of airports and flights too – or download desktop widgets to keep track of key metrics – handy for frequent flyers. Read more »

Today, I’m reviewing trip planning site, Duffel, testing it with a planned trip to Las Vegas next year. Here’s what its creators say:

Duffel is not only a place where you can collaboratively store, organize and archive all these travel ideas and trips, but you can also use them to compile your own itineraries that go hand-in-hand with your favorite travel guidebook.

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