Travel Apps :: Book Crazy

In our digital world, there's something comfortingly cozy and stormy-weekend-in-Tofino-y about flipping though the pages of a book, versus swiping an e-book's pages on a screen. But in the interest of joining the 21st century and packing light, reading books on my iPhone is a travel must. E-Reader Apps {in my order of preference} Kindle I wrote about kindle for iphone last april, and Amazon's genius little app opens a world of possibilities {to the tune of 800,000 books} given any book you download can be shared between the multiple devices it supports: kindle reader, iPhone, iPad, iPod Touch, Blackberry, Android, etc... To put this in perspective, let's say you're reading a book on your kindle device while waiting for your flight, then, your batteries die, so you continue where you left off with that same book on your iPhone. Cost: free.

iBooks Originally debuting on the iPad and later released for the iPhone and iPod Touch, iBooks is Mac's attempt at competing with online book giant, Amazon's Kindle. Although Mac's iBook reader might have a prettier, quintessentially Mac-esque design, it offers similar functionality to the Kindle, yet you can read Kindle over multiple, cross-platform devices. Currently, iBooks only works with iPhone, iPad and iPod Touch, but like Kindle, can wirelessly synch between each. Cost: free.

Kobo Like the Kindle and iBooks apps, Kobo offers similar basic functions, but its claim to fame is the 1.8 million books subscribers can download for free. The app works and syncs the 'place' in your book between iPhone, iPad, iTouch, Android, Blackberry, Palm Pre and its own e-reader. Cost: free. — Get more travel tips and updates like this by subscribing to RSS or email. —

Other Travel Apps Don't forget to peruse the other 60+ travel apps we've reviewed from travel first aid, to luxury and boutique hotel finders, to border waits, to trip itinerary management. Here are the most recent:

• TomTom
• Get Packing
• Picture Translate
• Flightcaster
• Boiling Frog

From the Archives :: Travel for Free

{This was originally published Monday, December, 7th, 2009---the month Trip Styler first started stylin'. It has been republished below with enhancements.}

Although the notion of traveling for free does sound too good to be true, it is completely and legitimately possible. All it takes is a little insider knowledge and planning. Whether you travel once or ten times per year, traveling free boils down to a) being strategic about your {travel} spending, b) being serious about your hotel and airline loyalty, and c) tracking your points and miles in order to take advantage in a timely fashion.

If you are serious about reaping the benefits of travel, here are 3 major ways to start accumulating points, miles and dollars toward travel.

1) Get a Travel Credit Card Getting a travel credit card was one of the best decisions my husband and I ever made. Rather than selecting a credit card with points toward a GM vehicle or cash back, every time we spend money on our card our travel points go up. Our Travel Rewards Card has no black-out periods, an online booking portal and if you book your travel via expedia or the like, you can apply your points/cash to your purchase. The most popular travel redemption credit cards in Canada are RBC's Avion, CIBC's Aventura and TD Canada Trust's First Class. The Travel Strategy: Rather than using a combo of cash, debit and credit for your purchases, use your travel credit card{s} {responsibly} for everything, and the points will accumulate much faster. Another way to collect points quickly is to put business expenses, charitable donations or big-ticket purchases on your card. Both regular and one-time payments add up, so if you are disciplined, using a credit card for the majority of your purchases can get you one step closer…to Paris!

2) Join an Airline Loyalty Program As mentioned in Friday’s post, making a point of choosing one or two Airline loyalty programs can be advantageous. Since most airlines are part of larger syndicates, you gain points flying with multiple carriers through programs like One World or Star Alliance. Try to find flights with one of the carriers within your preferred airline’s alliance to amass points every time you fly. I hear the Seychelles whispering your name. The Travel Strategy: When possible, look for flights with carriers within your preferred airline alliance. Redeeming your points in low season will render the greatest bang for your buck. Here's an example. Also use airline points to upgrade to business or first class, or to redeem non-travel related items {like a slow-cooker} through their loyalty page. Finally, many carriers' points expire after 18 months. So keep track of your points through a website or app like PageOnce.

3) Join a Hotel Loyalty Program Choosing to be an Intercontinental Ambassador or Starwood Preferred Guest has its benefits, and this too can put you on the path to free getaways. When planning your trips, seek out your hotel group’s properties, and if the price is right, try to give them first right of refusal. Often, joining programs such as these will give you the inside track on new property openings and discounted rates, so it pays to be loyal and in-the-know. The Travel Strategy: When possible, stay at one hotel group's properties to continuously gain points. Most hotel points programs have a yearly cycle, meaning you need to achieve a certain amount of stays each year to keep your status. Also, knowing your loyalty program's benefits and fine-print is a must to fully take advantage. Some hotel loyalty programs offer more than just free stays. Between complimentary dinner or spa vouchers, additional points towards a partner airline’s miles program, free internet, upgrade or 3rd night free certificates, it is important to familiarize yourself with your program’s opportunities so you can effectively reap the rewards.

Using Free Travel Some people save up their travel points for that one, dream vacation. I know someone collecting and holding onto their points for a rustically fancy, over-water hut in Bora Bora. Or, there's the use your points as you go method. I've opted for the latter to ensure none of my points expire and I take advantage of everything. Both strategies have their time and their place. My biggest piece of advice for free travel is be intentional about spending on your travel credit card, be intentional about your flights and hotel stays and monitor your points and miles. Having lost points before---akin to losing money---I'm now committed to keeping track, so I can consistently redeem points and miles to offset the cost of puddle-jumping from one continent to another.

[photo by moi, taken at the Marriott Wailea, Maui]

Showing Up Unprepared

Are you a type-A plan your face off traveler, or a let's just see what happens traveler?

In the past few years I've done both, employing the ultra-planned and laissez-faire approaches. With each type under my belt, I think there's a time and a place for both. For example, you don't want to show up in Nairobi without a hotel, secure transportation or high-level itinerary, whereas, that's totally doable and almost romantically vagabondish if you visit somewhere for the weekend and figure it out as you go.

Showing up Prepared In mid-fall 2010, I went to Maui with my husband. Since I was only there for 3 nights, and it's a destination I know pretty well {but would like to further explore}, the trip was fairly dialed in terms of what we'd do when. During the day, I planned on exercising followed by relaxing in the sun {not sure why I had to plan that, but I did}, and at night we pre-arranged reservations at our favourite restaurants, so we didn't miss our cherished sunset meals or moments. Similarly, when we visited Europe and Africa in late 2009, we had a 24-hour stop-over in London. Because it was short, I pre-planned our transport, hotel and the show I'd been dying to see to make sure we got it all in. The planning paid-off, we had a fabulous night out at Wicked {the musical} and loved our pod hotel.

Showing up Unprepared Because my personality is planning-oriented, in the past, when I didn't plan every second of an itinerary, I somehow felt I wasn't doing my destination justice. In reading every available guidebook and online review about the area, I had the sense I was using all available resources to embrace the city's highlights. Then, after a few bad tourist attractions and less-than-favorable restaurant visits, I embraced the fly by the seat of my pants side. This rendered great experiences talking to locals and various hotel concierges about where they eat and what they do. My newfound organic approach was a hit, for example, while in Laguna Beach, CA this past summer, we were told to go to a restaurant called 230 Forest by a couple we met while sitting at the Roy's Newport bar. Their suggestion was bang-on, and we had a great meal!

All in all, this semi-reformed ultra-panner has lovingly embraced showing up semi-unprepared. I emphasize semi, because I still like to read articles and reviews pre-trip, in addition to consulting my travel apps while at my destination. Although I will still consult guidebooks in the future, I won't plan every second of my getaway and will always seek local input. Along with a little planning, semi-unpreparedness---or what I call strategic itinerary moments---allows us to discover our destination our way, travel unhindered within it and roam with a looser sense of time. Sounds like a vacation to me!

Travel Trends :: 3 Innovations

{Enter to win a gorgeous fleur de lis necklace. Contest closes tomorrow at noon. Details here.}

Sometimes products come onto the market and you wonder how you lived without them. The next three innovations are in this category. From a rollable shoe, to a spray-on wrinkle releaser and mini vacuum-packed diapers, each of these products will save space, simplify and relax {on many levels} your next globe-trot near or far.

Footzy Rolls Designed by two sisters who after bruised heals and soar feet took a break from their lengthy relationship with stilettos and started Footzy Rolls. These irresistible, inventive and rollable flats are the perfect solution for travel because they look chic, can handle multi-concourse treks and pack better than flip flops. At a starting price tag of $20usd, I think I'll take 3! My faves are the silver and gold snakeskins, the rock 'n red sole and the black footzy flops. Find them online.

Wrinkle Releaser I loath ironing. Even when you gingerly pack your wrinkle-prone shirts in your suitcase using all the packing tricks of the trade, wrinkles still abound. So, imagine my excitement when I heard about a new Downy spray-on product that actually relaxes wrinkles sans iron!  Apparently, the 10-second process involves 3 small steps: spray, tug and smooth to release unwanted wrinkles. I can't wait to pick one of these babies up when I head to the US. If it works like it says it does {and most of the reviews are good}, I will be bringing it {decanted into a travel-sized container} with me every time I travel. Bonus, it leaves a fresh scent in case your garment needs a pick-me-up. Find it at stores like Wal-Mart in the US from $9 usd.

Diaper Buds When I have kids, I'm already excited to travel with a little diaper innovation called Diaper Buds. Vacuum-packed to 70% smaller than a loose diaper, these pint-sized protectors are a major space and stress saver for that travel stretch when you can't easily replenish your stock at a store. Once you open the bud, it blooms into a full-sized diaper available in sizes 2 - 5. Find them online from $1 usd.

Travel Beauty :: Olive Oil Inspired

{This week: enter to win a gorgeous fleur de lis necklace, details here.}

I have a bit of an olive oil obsession, which started long before my trip to the Italian Riviera, and I go through a bottle at a frighteningly fast pace. Not only do I cook with it at every meal, I even bake with it {try this recipe for olive oil cake---it's fantastic}.

Olive oil is packed with nourishing ingredients like Vitamin E and Omegas 3 and 6, and has been a beauty secret women have relied on for thousands of years. You can rub it into the hands and feet to hydrate dry, cracked skin, use it as a rinse-out hair masque, and even apply it to the face directly for a natural, ultra-moisturizing anti-aging treatment. Or...you can indulge in new Olive Essence from Spa de Soleil---a Certified Organic, natural skin care line that is formulated with pure olive oil and nourishing 24K gold---another age-old beauty secret that Cleopatra is said to have used to stay young and gorgeous.

This USDA Certified Organic collection fights aging naturally with an impressive list of ingredients that really is chemical-free. My favorites include Organic Gold Healing Nutrient; a silky formula that infuses olive juice, fruit extracts and amino acids into the skin to help it recover from environmental stresses {and living in LA I have enough of those!} and Organic Gold Peptide Complex, which is an intensive formula with powerful antioxidants in a unique oxygenated delivery system to fight premature aging. The Organic Gold Facial Peel leaves skin feeling soft and glowing. All formulas are scented with a delicate, fresh fragrance and absorb instantly---definitely a must-try! All of my favorites come in travel-friendly sizes.

Olive Essence is priced accessibly, with the most expensive item being only $32.99. Available online at www.homespacollection.com.

{Want more travel beauty? Get your fill the third Wednesday of every month. Lauren, our travel beauty expert is already whipping up her next concoction post!}