The romance of travel is something that has failed to distinguish in the modern age. In years gone by, the ideal image of travel consisted of a leather suitcase, an incoming steam train and a paper ticket.
Now in the 21st century, travel looks much different: technology might have deprived our wanderlust of some of its magic, but it has provided us with the ability to travel further with less, and we couldn’t be happier.
While the majority of us will be aware of our favourite sites for booking tickets and accommodations, we decided to put a list together of five essential uses of technology when traveling that you may not be taking advantage of. So, without further ado, let’s dive in…
International eSIM
While these suggestions are not ranked, we are starting with this one due to the fact that without it, you would be setting yourself up for a stressful and more expensive trip. In fact, it is the key to unlocking the true potential of modern-day travel.
An International eSIM grants you access to the internet at all times without having to worry about finding free WiFi or surprising roaming charges. The best International eSIM can be purchased and configured in just one minute, allowing you to take the stress out of having access to the internet when travelling. The eSIM is not a physical object but is instead set-up using a QR code. All this means that you are able to keep your local SIM card in your smartphone and receive calls as usual.
File Hosting Services
There are a plethora of file hosting services available, with most people simply referring to them all as the cloud at this point. This will likely not be something you haven’t heard about, but we can’t stress enough just how amazing of a service this is for anyone on the road.
If you have a smartphone, and our guess is that you do, you are quite literally carrying an excellent camera with you at all times. By taking advantage of both the camera and file hosting services, you are quite literally creating an anthropological ethnography of your trip. This is something that you can share with friends and family to explain your travels, reflect on at the end of every day, or use to reminisce in the future. Trust us, if you don’t do this, you will regret it massively.
Maps
Yes, this one will sound obvious, but we literally can’t stress how important this is when travelling. Look, we encourage the act of wanderlust and getting lost on occasion. It often leads to the best discoveries of your trip. However, there are simply times that you need and/or want to get from a to b in the quickest time possible.
Moreover, map apps are a great way to get a feel of a city as you walk around. Use this technology wisely, and you will be more than familiar with a new area in a matter of hours. When you compare this technology to the fact that people would have ti buy and carry maps in the past, you truly get a sense of just how lucky we are to be living in the digital age.
eBooks
Naturally, there is a large amount of down time when travelling. Whether it is waiting for an airplane, sitting on a bus, or just kicking off your shoes after a long day of exploration, you will want to be able to relax in a manner that you see fit.
eBooks and travel are a match made in heaven. Instead of predicting what book you will feel like reading on your trip, you can carry an entire library in your backpack. If you were explain this technology to someone as little as twenty years ago, they would have a tough time imagining that it would be readily available to the public at such a reasonable price.
The Bottom Line
We are living in an age in which technology has become an integral part of our daily life. If we use it correctly, it has the possibility to extend our ability as a species. Allow it to work for you when travelling, and you will be able to focus on the actual experience rather than the organizational details. From here, we wish you happy travels!
