The Geek Traveler: Gadgets and Tips for Your Vacation

Posted 12/20/2011 at 2:23pm | by David Murphy

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It’s oxymoronic to say that a vacation is stressful. But it is. And I’m not even talking about the sand that’s waiting to creep into your shorts on the beach, the hotel room that’s going to spring a leak, or the vast number of other disasters about to transpire throughout your travels.

I’m talking about the very, very beginning of your vacation: The part right after you’ve planned and purchased the tickets up until the moment you step off the plane at your intended (and final) destination. As a geek, you’re probably wondering if there’s a better way to go about “the routine:” The printing of the tickets, the writing down of the key details, the absurdity of the packing, the praying that your carry-on bag isn’t too big, et cetera.

Well, there is. Technology benefits all, be it in the form of websites to help you during the planning process or gadgets to assist you in your travels. I’ve compiled a list of some of the must-have items in each category below: Consider this your top travel guide for all things tech. You won’t want to leave home without it—or, at least, without saving a copy of this guide on your travelling tablet PC!

Planning

I’m not about to get into the 85 different websites out there that all attempt to shave $5 off your plane ticket in some creative fashion. (We’d be here all week). Rather, I’m going to assume that you’ve picked out your airline, selected your flights, and have pulled the trigger on your (usually) expensive ticket. Now’s a great time to sign up for a free account at the web service TripIt, and here’s why: Set it up correctly and the service will automatically go through your email to find confirmations of all kinds.

Why is that important? In doing so, TripIt automatically builds an itinerary of your trip – a kind-of one-stop-shop with all of the arrangements (and their critical details, like confirmations numbers and the like) displayed in a chronological order right there on the site. And, yes, TripIt has mobile apps for both Android and iOS: It beats writing down all the nuances of your itinerary in a moleskin notebook by far.

And while you’re at it, don’t forget to forward your flight information (and the website FlightAware) to your friends and loved ones, especially those tasked with picking you up at your destination airport. They can use the site to view your plane as it travels across the country in real-time – and what I like most about FlightAware is that they can also tap into the same functionality on their Android or iOS-based devices. It’s perfect for helping them decide if they should make an hour detour to get some food or put the pedal to the metal, depending on how close your plane is to the airport.

If you’re curious about the cuisine that’ll be offered on your flight, it’s worth your while to make a quick pit stop at Airlinemeals.net: A wonderful site full of user-submitted pictures to help you lament about your poor flight planning or rejoice that your carrier selection will come with more than just a bag of pretzels and an ice-filled soft drink.

As an astute traveler, you’re no doubt aware of the various package discount sites (Jetsetter, Travelzoo, Livingsocial Escapes, SniqueAway, Vacationist, et cetera) that try to deliver a kind-of Groupon-like discount for potential passengers quick on the purchase. But if you’re aiming to travel on the cheap, it’s worth your while to check out a few online alternatives for booking inexpensive lodging. You’ve no-doubt heard of Airbnb: The website that allows you to turn a person’s residence (or spare room) into your own personal hotel for a period of time. What you save on cost, you’ll lose on lifespan if you end up making a mess of your host’s actual abode.

If that’s still a little bit out of your price range, the next step down the ladder is the always-popular CouchSurfing website. Your lodging on a polite host’s couch, or floor, or what-have-you is completely free. That’s a travel trait guaranteed by the site, which will boot hosts out of its network if they attempt to charge a price for the service they’re providing. That said, it behooves you to go after the couches of verified members: CouchSurfing uses a verification process and user reviews to help you determine that potential hosts are just that, and not axe-wielding maniacs.

But if you want to keep your travel plans to just a party of one, well, why bother leaving your good ol’ “Hotel Airport?” Alright, so you can’t base an entire trip on Tom Hanks’ lifestyle in the movie The Terminal (you’ll never be allowed back into the security area, sans plane ticket, should you decide to leave and explore the city you’re in). The site, “The Guide to Sleeping in Airports” is still a good one to keep in the back pocket just in case you find yourself stuck in an airport with a longer-than-expected layover for whatever reason.

And, as always, don’t forget to use the power of crowdsourcing to help you plan things to do (or places to eat) at your final destination: Yelp, OpenTable, TripAdvisor, et cetera. Sites like these are the bread and butter of any journey to a new location!