Before the holidays get underway and many head out on their travels to visit family and friends, I thought I would take a minute and post about some of the current Android and I-Phone apps available. Although many of these apps are likely to be old news for seasoned travellers and tech heads, anything that helps the rest of us get a half leg up these days, can’t be that bad of an idea! I suggest trying the free apps first though, before possibly upgrading to the pro version (even though some offer great added features by doing so). Enjoy, hopefully a few prove useful for you! Please feel free to leave a comment as well. Cheers!
Robbie Bulger – The Florida Canuck
Tripit:
IFLY:
Where:
Poynt:
Taxi Magic:
Urban Spoon:
Wikitude:
Trip Advisor:
Yelp:
Gas Buddy:
Simple apps that can also be helpful while travelling
XE Currency, Evernote, The Weather Channel, Google voice, GPS Essentials
I am here, Astrid Tasks, Alarm Clock Xtreme , and
Brightest Flashlight
* Personal favourites (on my Samsung Gallaxy III)
Google Maps Google Business Calendar
Dropbox
Audible
Waiting for your flight: Some possible entertainment apps
Kindle for Android or I phone:
(There is no need to buy a kindle, read the latest books right on your phone)
Crackle (older shows and movies but free viewing)
Canada Newspaper app (Ottawa Citizen, Globe and mail, even has CBC, CTV, etc)
Audible.com (great app for the latest audio books, owned by amazon.com)
60 mins ,
New York Times, CNN,
RSSDemon or
Internet Radio: Pandora
Travelling with little ones, and some possible apps to check out
Links from Conde Naste Magazine, NBC News and USA Today:
A great website to checkout as well
Travelnerd
Some great travels, and a few thoughts along the way. www.floridacanuck.com
Thursday, December 13, 2012
Tuesday, November 27, 2012
Outside Of The Box Travel Tips
Thought I would take a minute to put up a post for anyone back home in the border towns (Kingston, Ottawa etc), possibly looking for cheap flights down south this winter and have some flexibility in your travel dates.
American Airlines has a sale on until midnight (27 Nov 12), for travel to select locations between 03 Dec and 07 Mar 13.
I know many travellers in Ontario are already used to searching for Syracuse flights to Florida (in which there don't seem to be any on this particular sale), but you may also want to keep in mind that there is a small airport in Watertown as well (ART is the airport code). It has quite a few Jan-Feb departures on sale to Tampa (TPA). Same as any flight search though, always try and look for mid week (Tuesday-Tuesday type thing). I did a few random searches and there still seems to be some availability on most mid week flights in Jan-Feb, again the sale ends tomorrow.
Here are a few quick examples of what a short drive or change in airport might mean to your wallet.
A family of 4 travelling on 19 -26 Feb 2013 from Kingston to Tampa, would pay $2596 (inc tax) on Expedia.ca (at the time I last checked at least). Same family jumps in the car for an hour, departs out of Watertown instead (with the exact same vacation dates) and pays $940 (inc tax) under that sale. Driving a little bit further to Syracuse (SYR) most times can almost always bring significant savings as well though. Let’s say you need to wait until Spring Break instead, and we use 12-19 Mar as our new dates. The same family of 4 now pays $987 Syracuse to Tampa even during a busy season. That said though, Toronto usually has pretty consistent pricing to Florida too (and is only about 3 hrs from Kingston). Flights for Orlando (MCO) may be a little cheaper from there on Delta Air lines.
Rental cars in Florida – with the high volume of tourists, the car rental rates tend to be somewhat lower here than elsewhere. You will also likely find that most car rental companies tend to be a bit more flexible with the drop off/pick up cities as well. Very common for someone to rent a car in one city (Orlando for example) and then return it in another (Tampa). Depending on what time of year it is, it may even be cheaper to do so.
When you’re checking car rentals rates, make sure you check the surrounding cities as well, doing so may save you a substantial amount. I remember a few years back, I had to fly down to Florida on short notice when my wife’s mom took ill. I was living in Ottawa at the time, and both my wife and daughter were already down here. I was pretty lucky with the last minute searching though, and managed to score a Jet Blue flight from Syracuse New York to Orlando for under $200. Gravity started to reapply to the situation though once I discovered that the normal $200-300 per week for a car rental was suddenly $1200-1400 for some reason. On a hunch I figured I would shop around on different sites and check Tampa prices as well, and man was glad I did! I had to go outside of the airport terminal a bit (a shuttle picked me up) but I was able to get a mid size car for under $200 as well (they did get me on the loan shark insurance though). A couple of trips before that, both my wife and I had accidents down here within a two week span, yep awesome! Apparently lost my sense of humour with it and wasn’t taking the chance again I guess!
That said, timing can mean everything in Florida! Since many students from around the United States (Canada too) travel here for spring break, the allotted time frame from one school break to another can be staggered anywhere from mid Feb until mid April. Throw in The Daytona 500 (2nd or 3rd week of Feb) or Daytona Bike Week (end Feb/ early Mar) or Easter weekend (end Mar/ early Apr), and it can definitely re-enforce the supply and demand concept! If there is a fair size city close to where you are going, and less is happening there during the same time frame, you might be better off renting a car there (even if the flight costs a little more). In my case (my wife’s family is from Tampa) she just borrowed a car and picked me up in Orlando. Yes, there is usually a little bit of effort and inconvenience that comes with any great amount of real savings when travelling, but sometimes you do have to way it out and make that extra effort (mind you much of the time, if there is only one person travelling, it will hardly be worth the while)!
Be sure to keep a look out for the next rant: When and Why use an Agent Robbie Bulger – The Florida Canuck
I know many travellers in Ontario are already used to searching for Syracuse flights to Florida (in which there don't seem to be any on this particular sale), but you may also want to keep in mind that there is a small airport in Watertown as well (ART is the airport code). It has quite a few Jan-Feb departures on sale to Tampa (TPA). Same as any flight search though, always try and look for mid week (Tuesday-Tuesday type thing). I did a few random searches and there still seems to be some availability on most mid week flights in Jan-Feb, again the sale ends tomorrow.
Here are a few quick examples of what a short drive or change in airport might mean to your wallet.
A family of 4 travelling on 19 -26 Feb 2013 from Kingston to Tampa, would pay $2596 (inc tax) on Expedia.ca (at the time I last checked at least). Same family jumps in the car for an hour, departs out of Watertown instead (with the exact same vacation dates) and pays $940 (inc tax) under that sale. Driving a little bit further to Syracuse (SYR) most times can almost always bring significant savings as well though. Let’s say you need to wait until Spring Break instead, and we use 12-19 Mar as our new dates. The same family of 4 now pays $987 Syracuse to Tampa even during a busy season. That said though, Toronto usually has pretty consistent pricing to Florida too (and is only about 3 hrs from Kingston). Flights for Orlando (MCO) may be a little cheaper from there on Delta Air lines.
Rental cars in Florida – with the high volume of tourists, the car rental rates tend to be somewhat lower here than elsewhere. You will also likely find that most car rental companies tend to be a bit more flexible with the drop off/pick up cities as well. Very common for someone to rent a car in one city (Orlando for example) and then return it in another (Tampa). Depending on what time of year it is, it may even be cheaper to do so.
When you’re checking car rentals rates, make sure you check the surrounding cities as well, doing so may save you a substantial amount. I remember a few years back, I had to fly down to Florida on short notice when my wife’s mom took ill. I was living in Ottawa at the time, and both my wife and daughter were already down here. I was pretty lucky with the last minute searching though, and managed to score a Jet Blue flight from Syracuse New York to Orlando for under $200. Gravity started to reapply to the situation though once I discovered that the normal $200-300 per week for a car rental was suddenly $1200-1400 for some reason. On a hunch I figured I would shop around on different sites and check Tampa prices as well, and man was glad I did! I had to go outside of the airport terminal a bit (a shuttle picked me up) but I was able to get a mid size car for under $200 as well (they did get me on the loan shark insurance though). A couple of trips before that, both my wife and I had accidents down here within a two week span, yep awesome! Apparently lost my sense of humour with it and wasn’t taking the chance again I guess!
That said, timing can mean everything in Florida! Since many students from around the United States (Canada too) travel here for spring break, the allotted time frame from one school break to another can be staggered anywhere from mid Feb until mid April. Throw in The Daytona 500 (2nd or 3rd week of Feb) or Daytona Bike Week (end Feb/ early Mar) or Easter weekend (end Mar/ early Apr), and it can definitely re-enforce the supply and demand concept! If there is a fair size city close to where you are going, and less is happening there during the same time frame, you might be better off renting a car there (even if the flight costs a little more). In my case (my wife’s family is from Tampa) she just borrowed a car and picked me up in Orlando. Yes, there is usually a little bit of effort and inconvenience that comes with any great amount of real savings when travelling, but sometimes you do have to way it out and make that extra effort (mind you much of the time, if there is only one person travelling, it will hardly be worth the while)!
Be sure to keep a look out for the next rant: When and Why use an Agent Robbie Bulger – The Florida Canuck
Monday, November 19, 2012
Tuesday, November 6, 2012
Thursday, October 4, 2012
Hidden Gems on a Disney Cruise for Parents
Anyone with kids or grand kids, thinking about taking a
Disney cruise, this post is for you! I figured I would provide some last
comments about our Disney Dream experience. Thought I would get them on paper before
the ole memory gives out!
When my wife and I dropped off our daughter Madie at the
kids club for the first time last Thursday, it kind of reminded me of sending
her off to school for the first time, except this time she ran towards the play
area like a teenager going to a rock concert!
After signing her in and handing over my drivers licence and
stateroom card (used to register or pay for everything on board, and generally
distract from the cause and effect that parting with cash sometimes has), she
then donned her little swipe bracelet and ran off towards the other kids, without
even a look back to get the go ahead! If your name wasn’t Mickey, Minnie,
Donald or Goofy, your words would now travel with about the same impact as a
dental floss salesman standing in front of a chocolate cake!
As Betsy and I let it sit in for a minute that we were now
yesterday’s news, and being the sceptical over protective dad that I sometimes resemble,
I was now questioning one of the club counsellors (who are amazing by the way) on
drills and procedures! She politely laughed at my “I’ll check on her in an hour
spiel”, as any hardened gate keeper there already knew, you were likely not
getting them back until closing time. Not without super nanny or at least a
good bribe anyway! Another reassuring feature that Disney now offers on the Dream
is the new portable wave phones. Great for texting or calling back and fourth
with each other, but you can also provide your number to the counsellors, who
will call you if your child gets tired or wants to go back to their room (don’t
hold your breath for that call though).
What were we to possibly do now? I had absolutely no plan in
hand at the time, but with their kid’s program being so reassuring, I was
willing to give it a try. For two parents who have spent most of Madie’s childhood
without being close to either of our families for support, we would now have
more time together than we had in years!
Another great
surprise for us too I think, was that the ship was not just put together with
kids in mind, there were tons of places that parents could go onboard, and with
hardly a hint of Disney in the background. We visited the duty free store and
some of the other shops on board for a bit, before stumbling upon what seemed
to be a cigar bar type venue where we sat out on the dimly lit outside patio
deck, with Spanish guitar type music playing in the back ground. I literally sat
under the moon having that odd cigar I on occasion have, with the captain’s
best in hand, this for me was worth the cost of the trip in itself, amazing! We
had added the exact right amount of cheese before that as well, by visiting another
pub on board and playing “name that TV theme song”. The next night Betsy signed
us up for a cognac tasting event ($20 each) which was incredible, and we
actually got to interact with other adults, without worrying how much the cab
back or babysitter would cost. The last night we went to the specialty Italian restaurant
on board and then picked Madie up to take her to the Broadway style Disney show
“Believe”. In the end I will just say “Take your first cruise”! I don’t care
who sells it to you or which cruise line you may prefer over another, you need
to go for it and give it a try! The best time ever!
Cheers, Robbie
Sunday, September 30, 2012
Saturday, September 29, 2012
Disney Cruise on the Dream
Friday, 28 Sept 2012
My wife (Betsy), my daughter (Madie) and I set out for Port Canaveral yesterday morning on the roughly 2 hour trip from our place in Tampa. As you can imagine the "are we there yet" excitement of a 6 year old (seven next week), was pretty much none stop until we finally arrived at about 1pm for a 4pm sailing. I didn't figure I was going to start my Disney cruise line 101 in the parking lot, but after talking with a few of the port authority staff, a couple of the tips I received were worth the early arrival. Hope they serve you well. Cheers for now!
1. When you drive into the Disney terminal area to drop off your luggage, the rest of your party should go inside and start the check in procedure right away, so no time is wasted while the driver parks the car. This did end up saving some time, as they were at the front of the check in line by the time I got there.
2. While parking you have the option to pay the normal rate and park in Disney's covered garage a little bit further away with 3,000 others, who may all very likely be ahead of you upon exiting at the end of the cruise (all of whom are stopping at the toll both to pay), or you can pay $20 more up front, and park in the outside parking lot right beside the terminal, avoiding the 45-60 minute wait time when it's over. I figured out of all of the stuff that I am likely to be over paying for while at sea, choosing that option was probably money well spent.
Once meeting back up with the family (in the first line up), I almost immediately got to appreciate the time we had saved by pre-registering online for on board children's activities as well as our shore excursion to swim with the dolphins. Although the lines would more than likely be much longer during peak season, the experience itself was great and not much different than checking into a busy hotel.
Thursday, September 27, 2012
The Aventure begins!
Wow, what a day so far and it is only 7:43 am. If under estimating what I needed to do for before leaving the house this morning for our first Disney cruise, was what I had been trying to accomplish, than man did I ever nail that one down!
On top of that though, why not launch your first blog at the same time. Go big or stay home right! Anyways, I plan to keep everyone update on are new adventures as we go along here. Very excited, haven't told our daughter yet about the dolphin swim in the Bahamas. Take care and make sure to check in with us over the next couple of days, as I will be posting some great pictures, good stories, and cruising tips you may not get anywhere (well, at least not the way I see them). Let the adventure begin, awesome!www.floridacanuck.com
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