Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Online Traveler's Toolbox
Veteran travelers usually carry some essential items to make their trips eas-
ier. Following is a selection of handy online tools to bookmark and use.
•
Foreign Languages for Travelers
(www.travlang.com). Learn basic terms
in more than 70 languages and click on any underlined phrase to hear
what it sounds like.
•
Maps
(www.mapquest.com). This is the best of the mapping sites. It lets
you choose a specific address or destination, and in seconds it will return
a map and detailed directions.
•
Travel Warnings
(http://travel.state.gov, www.fco.gov.uk/travel, www.
voyage.gc.ca, or www.dfat.gov.au/consular/advice). Keep abreast of global
developments that affect safe travel.
•
Universal Currency Converter
(www.xe.com/ucc). See what your dollar or
pound is worth in more than 100 countries.
•
Visa ATM Locator
(www.visa.com),
MasterCard ATM Locator
(www.mas-
tercard.com). Find an ATM when everything else is closed and you need
local currency.
•
Weather
(www.intellicast.com and www.weather.com). Get weather
forecasts for cities around the world.
agencies, we suggest renting the phone
before you leave home. North Americans
can rent one before leaving home from
InTouch USA
(
&
800/872-7626; www.
intouchglobal.com) or
RoadPost
(
&
888/
290-1606 or 905/272-5665; www.road
post.com). InTouch will also, for free,
advise you on whether your existing
phone will work overseas; simply call
&
703/222-7161
between 9am and 4pm
EST, or go to
http://intouchglobal.com/
travel.htm
.
Buying a phone
can be economically
attractive, as many nations have cheap
prepaid phone systems. Once you arrive
at your destination, stop by a local cell-
phone shop and get the cheapest package;
you'll probably pay less than $100 for a
phone and a starter calling card. Local
calls may be as low as 10¢ per minute,
and in many countries incoming calls are
free.
Wilderness adventurers, or those head-
ing to less-developed countries, might
consider renting a
satellite phone (“sat-
phone”).
It's different from a cellphone
in that it connects to satellites and works
where there's no cellular signal or ground-
based tower. You can rent satellite phones
from RoadPost (see above). InTouch USA
(see above) offers a wider range of sat-
phones but at higher rates. Per-minute call
charges can be even cheaper than roam-
ing charges with a regular cellphone, but
the phone itself is more expensive. As of
this writing, satphones were outrageously
expensive to buy, so don't even think
about it.
10 Getting There
Prague, Warsaw, Zagreb, Budapest, and
Moscow receive the greatest number of
international flights to Eastern Europe. If
you're planning to explore the entire
region, you might consider starting at one
of these gateways and catching connecting
