Let's face it, getting away from it all isn't what it used to be. Until recently, when you went on vacation, the only way you could be contacted was on your hotel telephone but today, people want to be accessible no matter where they are and that extends from your International compatible cell phone to making sure you can surf the Internet and read your emails from a park bench or your hotel room.
I was recently at Boston Logan Airport and my flight was delayed. I looked around the gate lounge and saw no less than 50 people using their lap tops, but it was only when I too tried to boot up and log on that I realized that Boston Airport actually charges for the luxury of getting online.
So where can you get WiFi access (wireless Internet access for those not in the know) and more importantly where is it free?
A great resource for finding WiFi hot spots in US cities is Yahoo's Mobile site at www.mobile.yahoo.com/wifi. Just type in your address, even if it is a street corner, and the site will list all available hot spots and whether or not there is a charge to use the service. New York City, particularly Manhattan, is a great destination for free WiFi sites. Bryant Park, NY State Library and some Starbucks are just a few of the hundreds of locales.
But, back to my airport dilemma. If in doubt about which airports in the US and around the world offer free services, check out www.wififreespot.com/airport.html for a comprehensive list that is updated regularly.
Quikbook (www.quikbook.com/shortcuts.asp), the hotel booking search engine also provides a great service that allows you to find which hotels in a particular US city offers complimentary WiFi service. This resource comes in handy particularly if you are on a business trip and having guaranteed Internet access can make the difference between a comfortable night ordering room service and preparing for your all-important presentation or a stressful night searching for an Internet caf¿.
From an economy-priced hotel perspective, you will be pleased to know that you don't need to pay a fortune for a room to get your WiFi service. Two budget/economy hotel chains promise free high-speed Internet in all their rooms. Wingate Inn (www.wingateinns.com) and Microtel Inns (www.microtelinn.com) bring high-tech amenities to a true budget motel across the US.
The WiFi Hot Spot Directory (www.hotspot-locations.com) is a massive global list that is constantly adding providers from coffee houses to libraries, street corners to universities. While not always free, the site currently features over 30,000 hot spots including 15,885 in Europe, 10,773 in North America (of which 9,665 are in the US), 2,585 in Asia and 333 in Australia. You can search by country, state or city plus you can choose to only see free WiFi locations to save you sifting through data you don't intend to use. So if you happen to be at the Pizza Hut in Porto Alegre in Brazil, you will be happy to know that you can go online with one hand and hold your slice of pepperoni with the other. Likewise enjoy a macchiato at the Lot87 Bar in Rome and read your email at the same time.
Visiting China and want to download your photos to a file-sharing site and free up some space on your memory card? Try www.danwei.org/China-Guide/Beijing_wifi/wireless_hotspot_beijing.htm, which lists the various free WiFi hotspots in Beijing, Kunming and Shanghai.
Until now, flying and WiFi have not mixed but late last year the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) approved technology giving airlines a more affordable option for providing Internet connections. To date, no airline in the US has started offering WiFi services, but United Airlines is currently in the process of installing the technology to do so and it can be expected that there will be a hefty service charge involved. European airlines like Lufthansa and SAS have installed wireless Internet access in their planes, as have Asian carriers All Nippon Airways, Japan Airlines and Singapore Airlines, but according to a September 2005 Gartner research study, the majority of travelers (78 percent in the US and 75 percent in the UK) said they would rather stay out of contact while in the air. WiFi access on International carriers currently costs anywhere from $10 for a half hour to $30 for an entire flight.
Over the coming years, as technological changes and advancements with the Internet and computer hardware come into affect, chances are that WiFi will become even more widespread than it currently is. Staying connected is getting easier!
