An International Smartphone Plan For Cruise Travelers, Finally

by Chris Owen on

Many cruise travelers have no problem at all controlling the expense of using their smartphone internationally; they simply turn it off for the duration of the trip. That done, they proceed to communicate with the rest of the world via email on Internet time bought from the cruise line. They don’t dare turn on their smartphone because if they do, the first message they see is one warning of potential overage charges they will incur if they use it – until now.

Recently, AT&T announced three different Cruise Ship Package plans with cruise travelers in mind:

  • AT&T Cruise Ship Calling: Includes 50 minutes for $30 per month
  • AT&T Cruise Ship Calling and Messaging: Offers 50 minutes of talk and 100 text/picture/video messages sent for $60 per month
  • AT&T Cruise Ship Calling, Messaging and Data: Includes 50 minutes, 100 messages sent and 100MB of data for $120 per month

A minimum one-month trial is required, which works well with the idea of “turn it on before you sail, turn it off after you’re done.” The new plan is currently limited to the ships of Royal Caribbean International, Azamara Club Cruises and select Celebrity Cruises ships. See att.com/cruiseships for list of ships and details.On-ship networks operate only while in international waters. Docked at a pier, anyone with a smart phone can turn it on and access any available signal. Right about then would be a good time to have Boingo installed to pick among available signals and log in on one that works with your device at no additional charge.

AT&T Cruise Ship package kicks in when users see “Cellular at Sea” displayed on your device.

Have no clue what usage you might have while traveling via cruise ship? AT&T also has an International Data Calculator that can help.

Photo Of The Day: Science Center Dragon Boats

by Chris Owen on



This Photo of the Day, titled “Science Center Dragon Boats,” comes from Gadling Flickr pool member James Wheeler and was captured using a Nikon D600.

In the caption for this image, James tells us, “Dragon boating has become a popular activity on False creek in Vancouver.” Dragon boats once exclusive to the Pearl River Delta region of China’s southern Guangdong Province are made of teak wood in various designs and sizes.

Want to be featured? Upload your best shots to the Gadling Group Pool on Flickr. Several times a week we choose our favorite images from the pool as a Photo of the Day.

Tips for being featured: well, first of all, don’t tag your photos as “all rights reserved,” which will make them basically untouchable for our Photo of the Day. Also, add a caption describing the image and (better yet) your personal experience when capturing it, details of the photography gear used and any tips you might have for others wanting to emulate your work. I pick the Photo of the Day every Saturday and often tap James Wheeler for some inspiring photography for these very reasons.

Now, you can also submit photos through Instagram; just mention @GadlingTravel and use the hashtag #gadling when posting your images.

Planetary Resources To Change How We Explore The Cosmos

by Chris Owen on

Planetary Resources is a group of world leaders that are building the ground floor opportunities for a space travel industry. Not long ago, in “One Good Reason Why Space Travel Will Happen In Your Lifetime,” we told of their idea to mine near-Earth asteroids for raw materials, basically making space travel profitable. Now, the forward-thinking team at Planetary Resources has tapped a diverse group of supporters to make access to space widely available for exploration and research.

Planetary Resources already includes Google’s CEO Larry Page, filmmaker James Cameron and others who are known for turning exploration into profit.

Recently added to the roster are Virgin’s Sir Richard Branson, actor Seth Green, Star Trek’s Brent Spiner (Data) and Rob Picardo (The Doctor), Bill Nye the Science Guy, futurist Jason Silva and MIT astrophysicist Dr. Sara Seager.

Coming up on Wednesday, May 29 at 10:00 a.m. PDT in Seattle at the Great Gallery at The Museum of Flight (also streaming live), Planetary Resources’ Peter Diamandis, Eric Anderson and Chris Lewicki, along with vlogger Hank Green, will announce an unprecedented project that proposes to change the way humans explore the cosmos.While exact details are being kept secret for now, the plan is to give students, teachers and the public access to “the most innovative space observation technology ever built,” said Planetary Resources in a Reddit post. Also to be covered at the live event, an offer for the public to directly participate in cutting-edge citizen science and discovery.

Doubtful? Check this video with Chief Asteroid Miner Chris Lewicki. Looks legit to me. What do you think?

Can’t Afford Trip To Antarctica? Maybe A Simulated Experience Will Do

by Chris Owen on

The idea of a trip to Antarctica is a bucket list item that few travelers have checked off. Tourism numbers are rising as Antarctica welcomes more visitors, but the cost to get there can be prohibitive. Now, Cruise ships head south to visit Antarctica more than ever before. But a luxury cruise ship is surely not a cheap ride. Still, a new theme park attraction might just have the fix needed or at least count as research for the eventual expedition.

SeaWorld Orlando’s largest-ever project, Antarctica: Empire of the Penguin takes guests on a simulated voyage to Antarctica, complete with a colony of over 200 penguins in their natural habitat. Getting an authentic feel for Antarctica, guests will experience life on the ice through the eyes of a penguin. Via new state-of-the-art interactive ride technologies, visitors get a unique, personal adventure that is said to be different for everyone.

“When our little hero penguin learns to waddle and slide, we’ll feel what it’s like as the car moves and reacts to the storyline,” said Brian Morrow, SeaWorld Parks & Entertainment’s creative director, in a TravelPulse article.Like a slow roller coaster, the ride rocks along gently through a re-creation of Antarctica, making a case for environmental education along the way and ending in an icy penguin habitat.

Read more here: http://www.miamiherald.com/2013/05/23/3413794/seaworld-introduces-antarctica.html#storylink=c
Read more here: http://www.miamiherald.com/2013/05/23/3413794/seaworld-introduces-antarctica.html#storylink=cpy

“When he takes his first swim or barely escapes danger, our guests will feel as if they’re right there with him. On this adventure, we learn that we’re a lot like penguins. We’ll find we need each other and our families to survive,” added Morrow.

Antarctica: Empire of the Penguin is the coldest theme park attraction in the world with the temperature set to the low 30 degrees to maintain the penguin’s natural habitat. The area is so big that it is considered a “realm” rather than a single attraction. It also includes a gift shop and a restaurant – two venues travelers are not likely to find on an actual visit to Antarctica.

Check this video for more on Antarctica: Empire of the Penguin.


Three Airport Travel Apps That Work, Save Time, Make Flying Fun

by Chris Owen on

Airport travel apps for smart phones and tablets are must-have items for some air travelers, much like that phone itself. But it is easy to get over-apped and have three different sources texting the fact that we have landed, that the flight is running late or that it is time to check in. Choosing the best ones can be more difficult than using them. Here are some tested, but not necessarily popular, airport apps that can save time and make flying fun.

Seat Alerts – Airplane Seat Monitoring and Alerting By ExpertFlyer.com is a must-have for anyone who has ever booked the last seat on a flight or been stuck in the middle with no way out. Monitoring flight information the user inputs, Seat Alerts sounds off if/when aisle or window seats open up on that flight. The free version gets one seat alert at a time. Multiple alerts are available for purchase. Seat maps also include recently updated SeatGuru seat ratings. Seats may not open up, but it’s worth trying.

Airports by TravelNerd By NerdWallet
Airports puts all the information on the 70 most popular airports in one easy-to-use app. Other apps have basic terminal maps and real-time flight tracking but this one adds much more detail and has information on ground transportation, airport parking options (with coupons), Wi-Fi availability and pricing, airport restaurant, shop and lounge hours and locations along with an Offline mode that works without a signal.My TSA By Transportation Security Administration
This airport travel app might have been one that app freaks took a look at before and dismissed as useless, like the Terrorist Threat Level app. Updated recently though, this one has TSA PreCheck information in the dashboard so a tap on the icon shows what checkpoints and airlines are serviced. Users can also check approximate wait times at TSA security checkpoints, search an extensive list of items that will (and won’t) make it through the checkpoint and have the ability to provide immediate feedback to TSA concerning their checkpoint experience.

Once out of the airport, getting around is easy too when armed with the right travel apps, as we see in this video: