Tag: Wi-Fi
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Podcast #127 — Critiquing My Top 10 Travel Tips; Reviewing VPNs
In this episode, I talk again about digital security on the road, especially the use of a VPN. I review three VPN products, including NordVPN which is giving away a year’s subscription to a TravelCommons listener. I dig into the process of generating the Top 10 Holiday Travel Tips listicle I do every couple of year, and follow up on stories… Continue Reading →
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Podcast #113 — 2014 was a Bad Year to Fly; Restaurants Go Local
Can frequent travelers just write off 2014? We all knew we were abused by the airlines with high prices and lousy service. I guess it’s somewhat comforting to know that analysis of 2014’s data proves us right. I’m not sure there’s much more we can do than enjoy the little things and hope 2015 is better. Once we get to… Continue Reading →
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Podcast #112 — Holiday Airport Etiquette; Travel Tax Pile-Up
Here’s a new episode to keep you occupied if you’re stuck in a line somewhere while traveling Thanksgiving week. There are tips for the non-frequent traveler on how to avoid major airport faux pas and a review of how travel taxes will soak you when you get to your destination. We also talk about a high-tech suitcase that’s blown through its… Continue Reading →
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Podcast #108 — Worst Travel Experiences Ever
We look back on a brutal travel winter with stories about how driving instead of flying probably wasn’t the best idea, and a completely awful United flight that ended up with a drive — but not by choice. I also talk about my recent trip to Beijing, China and my plans for a round-the-world-in-8-days itinerary to India and Manila. All… 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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Best Hotel Amenity? Free Breakfast
Recent surveys by TripAdvisor and Hotels.com report that the most popular hotel amenity is free WiFi. If they both didn’t misplace a decimal point, then they surveyed the wrong travelers. Experienced travelers know that the most important amenity is the free hotel breakfast. Now I’m not denying that the growth of mobile devices — smartphones, tablets, laptops — has made… 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 #84 – End of Year Status Calculus; TSA Porn
Walking into the TravelCommons studios for this episode felt like walking into a confessional — “Bless me Father for I have sinned; it’s been 6 months since my last podcast…” I talk about the new TravelCommons web site and the new Facebook fan page. I talk about some recent WiFi experiences — at 35,000 ft and while on vacation in… Continue Reading →