Traveling has changed a lot over the years, and these days, technology makes things a lot easier, safer, and much more enjoyable. Gone are the days of flipping through paper maps, struggling with language barriers, or stressing over expensive international phone plans – today, with just a few technical gadgets and apps, your entire trip is in your hands (literally).
So what modern tech do you actually need when you’re traveling? Keep reading to find out some of the gadgets that might be useful to you, depending on where you’re going and what kind of trip you’re planning – picking some of them to use could change everything for the better.
Pack Smart
Before you even leave home, packing smart can make or break your trip – and we don’t mean you can just throw a whole load of stuff into a suitcase and hope for the best (that’s actually the opposite of smart!). You need to think about what to pack in terms of your gadgets because forgetting something at this stage could be a disaster, especially if it’s something you can’t buy when you arrive.
A packing cube (or probably cubes) can be really useful, for example. True, they’re not exactly tech, but they are a new invention (new-ish), and they’re the best thing you can ask for when it comes to keeping your packing nice and organized. You’ll know where everything is all the time and never have to spend ages digging through what you’ve packed to find something, so it’s less stressful and less time-consuming to use this kind of gadget.
Then there’s a portable luggage scale. You might not need one of these if you’re just going away on a vacation for a week or two, but if you’re traveling for longer (or you love to buy souvenirs on holiday), it could come in useful. Overweight baggage fees can be huge, and if you’ve got a handy scale with you, you can make sure that you’re not going over the limit – it could save you hundreds.
And did you know there’s such a thing as smart luggage? These are suitcases that come with built in GPS tracking, USB charging ports, and even their own weight sensors. You’ll never overpack or lose your case again if you’ve got one of these.
Tools For Connection
There’s nothing worse than landing in a new country and realizing you haven’t got any phone service – especially if you know you’ve got people waiting to hear from you at home or you need to get online to book various activities or even accommodation. In the past, buying a local SIM card used to be the best thing you could do, but today there’s a better option – an eSIM.
With an eSIM Japan, for example, you can activate a local data plan right away without having to swap your physical SIM card for a new one. That’s much more convenient, especially for frequent travelers when you’re hopping from one country to another – you won’t have to spend any time (or money) hunting for phone kiosks wherever you are and you won’t have to run the risk of a language issue meaning you end up with the wrong thing because you’ll have instant access to everything as soon as you land.
Noise-Canceling Headphones
Whether you’re on a long-haul flight, a noisy train, or you’re stuck in a busy airport, noise-canceling headphones are fantastic – you’ll be glad you’ve got them when the noise levels are getting a bit too much and you just need a little peace and quiet and some time for yourself. They totally block out any distractions, which makes it easier to enjoy your favorite music, audiobooks, podcasts, and so on without the background noise around you ruining things.
And they’re a wonderful tool to use if you want to get some sleep on a flight – you could just wear them without any sound, or you could play some soothing white noise or whatever might work for you to help you sleep. When you get to your destination or wake up in your hotel room feeling well-rested, you’ll be glad you opted for noise-canceling headphones in the end.
Chargers
Wouldn’t it be awful if your phone ran out of battery when you really need it? After all, you’ll be using your phone for so much, like navigation, making bookings, translation, paying for things, and, of course, taking photos, so the last thing you want to worry about is the battery failing you.
In the past this wouldn’t have been something you could do something about – once the battery ran out, that was it. Now, there are options, and you’ll want to invest in at least one of them to help you out. The first to consider is a portable power bank, and ideally a high capacity one (at least 10,000mAh) – just plug it into your phone when you need a boost, and you should be able to keep your battery live all day (just remember to recharge the power bank overnight otherwise it’ll be useless).
Another good option is a universal travel adapter because not all countries use the same plug type. If you’ve got a universal adapter, you’ll be able to charge your devices no matter where you are and not even have to worry about whether it’s possible or not.
Finally, you could consider a multi-port USB charger as well. If you’ve got a load of different devices, like a phone, smartwatch, tablet, and so on), a charger with multiple ports saves a lot of space and fuss – just one device can charge everything for you. You can even charge various things at once, although bear in mind that if you do that, they will charge more slowly so it’s not wise if you’re in a rush.
Translation Apps
It’s always good to try to learn a few useful phrases in the language of any country you’re visiting – it’s polite, at the very least, and it’ll help you enjoy your trip better if you can ask for things or tell people important information. However, you’re not going to be able to learn an entirely new language overnight, no matter how hard you try, and that’s why downloading a good translation app is going to be so crucial for you.
There are a number of different apps you can choose from (take a look at what they can do and read some reviews to get a good idea of which one’s best for you) to help you translate language when you’re out and about – you can even use the apps to translate signs and menus, which means you don’t have to worry about missing out on something or making a mistake. For some, you can even use wireless earbuds and get real-time translation, so you can have conversations with people more easily – just think of how great that could make any trip to any country.
Travel-Friendly Security
Losing your passport or credit card information (or having it stolen) while you’re traveling is a total nightmare, and you’ll want to avoid it if at all possible – the good news is that modern tech makes it possible (although you still need to be careful as well).
One thing you can get is an RFID blocking wallet that protects your cards from digital pickpockets who just use their own tech to steal your card information and don’t even have to be next to you to do it. Or what about smart luggage locks that can be opened with a fingerprint or phone? And you can even get an AirTag or Tile Tracker to pop in your suitcase or backpack so that if it gets lost, you’ll be able to find it again quickly.