Category: Travel Tech
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Podcast #109 — ‘Round the World in 8 Days; Beijing Mass Transit
Just when I’d reset my body clock after a trip to Beijing, I headed off for an 8-day around-the-world itinerary. It was 44 hours of flight time, setting a new personal record for stupid travel. I learned a few new things along the way — Singapore Air flight attendants get grumpy when you don’t let them serve you, and Manila Airport… Continue Reading →
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Podcast #103 — Hospitality is Personal; Tablets Everywhere
Doing a bit more travel since the last episode, so have more to talk about. First business trip of the year started out great, but quickly deteriorated as weather delays forced me to make quick changes. I update my trip management app recommendations after TripCase released the latest rev of their app, and talk about good mass transit experiences in… Continue Reading →
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Podcast #102 — Trip Management App Comparison; TSA Scanner Shuffle
Traveling to New York earlier this month, I missed Hurricane Sandy but took the full brunt of the follow-up nor’easter that the Weather Channel helpfully named Athena. The travel havoc wreaked by the wind and snow was a perfect setting for a side-by-side comparison of the free versions of the leading trip management apps — TripIt, TripCase, WorldMate, and Kayak.… Continue Reading →
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Podcast #101 — Future of Mileage Tracking Tools; Searching for Local Food and Craft Beer
Back in the TravelCommons studios after a couple months of summer break. We open up with thoughts about skipping rental cars, sharing listener comments on the Chicago Layover Excursion video, and the current state of American Airlines — great new airplanes, deteriorating on-time stats. Michael Komarnitsky, the founder and CEO of GoMiles, talks about why he sold his company to… Continue Reading →
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Podcast #98 — Stolen Luggage & Passports; Restaurants Want Your Smartphone
A backpack stolen from the train to the airport — or more specifically, passports inside the stolen backpack — unexpectedly extends a beer-tasting weekend in Brussels. During my recent international trips, I find that Apple’s FaceTime and iMessage aren’t working reliably — could be because of hotel WiFi bandwidth constraints. TSA’s PreCheck expedited security screening feels like you’ve passed through… Continue Reading →
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Podcast #97 — 1st Trip to Beijing; Most Important Hotel Technology
Lots of travel has kept me away from the mic — Beijing, London, Vienna, Phoenix, New York, and New Orleans. Big difference in airline load factor between international and domestic flights. The international flights were at 30-50% capacity while the domestic flights were booked solid. These trips allowed me to compare the different treatment US airlines get in international airports.… Continue Reading →
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Podcast #96 — Eating and Drinking with Social Media; Frequent Flier Alliances
Finishing up my annual 2-week travel sabbatical in an unseasonably warm Chicago. In this episode, a listener asks about if and when to use travel compression socks, we discern the popularity of in-flight Wi-Fi service from Gogo’s IPO filing, and dissect a recent article on the best airports for tech users. We look at the new wave of social media… Continue Reading →
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Podcast #93 — Travel Stories from September 11th; Traveling with a Google Chromebook
Coming up to the 10th anniversary of the September 11th terrorist attacks, I repeat a segment from the September 2005 episode that tells the stories of travelers trying to get back home when all planes were grounded and all US borders were closed after the attacks. Also, we finish up the two-part review of new Google technology with observations after… Continue Reading →