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Tech and gadgets will improve your vacation this year… unless they totally ruin it

Published Jan 12th, 2015 6:00PM EST
Gadgets and Apps for Traveling
Image: izzyvideo

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2015 has just started but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t already planning your next escape from your regular day-to-day life. But before you do that, you might make sure you pack all your gadgets, as tech toys might play an important role in your next vacation, significantly improving it, or totally ruining it, depending on how you feel about technology in general. Online travel resource Travel and Leisure has recently published a look at 11 trends that are changing the way we travel and many of them closely connected with current tech developments.

FROM EARLIER: The latest Google Now trick will totally improve your travel experience

Your iPhone or Android smartphone will continue to be the most important gadget you need in your travels. In addition to staying in touch with other people, and accessing digital content on the go, these devices also open doors to a variety of travel-related services.

Your smartphone could serve as a payment device (via Apple Pay, Google Wallet, and other apps) and offer quick access to restaurants (including the ones that’s harder to get into on a short notice) and other destinations, including precious directions. Additionally, the app-laden device could offer additional travel perks and information while in airports and other places along the road.

The actual traveling might become even better, thanks to a variety of improvements deployed by certain airlines. Companies now offer longer flights on many additional routes and new services, such as a certain type of special, high-end social networking opportunity on some flights, that are all possible thanks to new tech advancements.

Once you reach your destination, you might end up enjoying a hotel-like experience even if you haven’t booked an actual hotel and instead opted to rent a full appartment. Services like Airbnb, One Fine Stay, BeMate, and others, are significantly upping their game, offering certain services to customers that are usually found in hotels, including cleaning, concierge and food delivery.

Since your vacation should be all about resting, at least in theory, you should know that many hotels might make use of technology to offer you a better sleeping experience, from better sleeping beds, noise reduction headboards to sleep monitors and smarter alarms.

What the guide doesn’t say is that you might want to put your devices down once you reach your destination, and actually enjoy your vacation. More information about this year’s travel trends and how technology could enhance your next vacation — complete with specific airline details, new routes, and apps to install on your smartphone — is available in the full Travel and Leisure report at the source link.

Chris Smith Senior Writer

Chris Smith has been covering consumer electronics ever since the iPhone revolutionized the industry in 2008. When he’s not writing about the most recent tech news for BGR, he brings his entertainment expertise to Marvel’s Cinematic Universe and other blockbuster franchises.

Outside of work, you’ll catch him streaming almost every new movie and TV show release as soon as it's available.