Story by Ed Salvato; image courtesy Sunny.org/rainbow
With over 100,000 apps for the iPhone alone and a blizzard of travel Web sites and booking engines to choose from, sometimes you need a guiding hand to show you the one or two nuggets that may actually make your life easier.
Our occasional Travel Tech Roundup attempts to do just that. Today's post focuses on three new bits of technology that may enhance your travel life.
There's an app for that
- Gay-friendly Ft. Lauderdale promises LGBT visitors can take it from mild to wild on their next vacation in this welcoming South Florida gay mecca. Their free, easy-to-navigate mobile app allows you to select the type of activities you want to experience "ranging in levels from mild, medium to wild -- day or night!" There are also Foursquare deals from particiupating businesses.
Better than couch surfing
- There's a lot of buzz about EBAB, the global (though primarily European) network of LGBT bed and breakfasts. The site won't win awards for design but it is a proven, safe, and effective clearinghouse for gay and lesbian owned B&Bs and visitors who love them. All things equal, wouldn't you rather fork over your hard-earned pink dollars to a great LGBT-owned guesthouse? Plus you get to meet gay and lesbian locals (the owners) who know the scene.
Skip past the line, smiling
- The other day upon arriving from Canada I watched travelers whiz by me, step up to a little electronic kiosk then waltz to customs as my glacially slow line snaked slowly through immigration. What is this magical device, I asked myself? It's the federal government's new Global Entry systerm, which "is a program developed by U.S. Customs and Border Protection that allows pre-approved international travelers entering the U.S. to expedite the clearance process."
- It's only available at a handful of U.S. airports including New York Kennedy, Chicago O'Hare, Dallas/Fort Worth, Miami, Los Angeles, and Boston. If you remember another such system that went belly up. Fear not: This is a U.S.-supported feature so it won't go bankrupt anytime soon. Who said the government never works? Info: www.aa.com/globalentry
Story by Ed Salvato; image courtesy Sunny.org/rainbow
With over 100,000 apps for the iPhone alone and a blizzard of travel Web sites and booking engines to choose from, sometimes you need a guiding hand to show you the one or two nuggets that may actually make your life easier.
Our occasional Travel Tech Roundup attempts to do just that. Today's post focuses on three new bits of technology that may enhance your travel life.
There's an app for that
- Gay-friendly Ft. Lauderdale promises LGBT visitors can take it from mild to wild on their next vacation in this welcoming South Florida gay mecca. Their free, easy-to-navigate mobile app allows you to select the type of activities you want to experience "ranging in levels from mild, medium to wild -- day or night!" There are also Foursquare deals from particiupating businesses.
Better than couch surfing
- There's a lot of buzz about EBAB, the global (though primarily European) network of LGBT bed and breakfasts. The site won't win awards for design but it is a proven, safe, and effective clearinghouse for gay and lesbian owned B&Bs and visitors who love them. All things equal, wouldn't you rather fork over your hard-earned pink dollars to a great LGBT-owned guesthouse? Plus you get to meet gay and lesbian locals (the owners) who know the scene.
Skip past the line, smiling
- The other day upon arriving from Canada I watched travelers whiz by me, step up to a little electronic kiosk then waltz to customs as my glacially slow line snaked slowly through immigration. What is this magical device, I asked myself? It's the federal government's new Global Entry systerm, which "is a program developed by U.S. Customs and Border Protection that allows pre-approved international travelers entering the U.S. to expedite the clearance process."
- It's only available at a handful of U.S. airports including New York Kennedy, Chicago O'Hare, Dallas/Fort Worth, Miami, Los Angeles, and Boston. If you remember another such system that went belly up. Fear not: This is a U.S.-supported feature so it won't go bankrupt anytime soon. Who said the government never works? Info: www.aa.com/globalentry
