1. Cheap Flights
Get in while you can. With oil costs skyrocketing, one wonders just how long the wonderful boom in budget airlines will continue. As prices rise, there’s the unfortunate chance that global travel might once again become the exclusive playground of the elite and wealthy, leaving the rest of us at home dreaming of exotic shores. With so many carriers nowadays competing for your buck, it’s never been easier to fly around the world and finding great deals is a cinch thanks to reason number two.
2. The Internet
The Internet truly has changed everything, the way we communicate, the way we access information, the way we live our lives. For travellers, the benefits are limitless. Being able to instantly email or chat with family and friends means I often communicate more with my pals on the road than off it. Researching destinations, comparing and shopping for hotel and flight deals, joining like-minded communities to make friends around the world, booking activities, and maintaining my bank account on the road are just a few feathers in the online traveller’s hat, which brings us to reason number three.
3. Global Banking
Travellers cheques were always a pain in the traveller’s butt. Finding a place to cash them without getting gouged on commission is never fun, but neither is carrying hordes of foreign cash in an overstuffed, not to mention vulnerable, money belt. Today, thanks to global networks like Cirrus, Plus and the major credit cards, I’ve withdrawn local currency directly from my bank account, at the bank rate, from Albania to Zanzibar. Although it’s always worth finding out what your bank charges are for foreign withdrawals, the convenience of having local money at your fingertips is worth every penny.
4. Digital Cameras
In the days before megapixels I backpacked East Africa, took countless rolls of film, assembled a beautiful scrapbook, and promptly lost it during a house move. Fortunately I still have the negatives, but finding them is not nearly as convenient as sorting through the 20,000 photos I’ve taken from backpacking 46 countries over the last three years. All of them are neatly categorized by country and date, and available to view and print at the click of a mouse. Being able to take more pictures and share them via email, social networks or blogs means more memories. But, I’d advise deleting the ones you don’t want and keeping them sorted to avoid the digital clutter.
5. MP3/Video Players
