Top Ten Business Travel iPhone Apps

What travel application do you have loaded on your smartphone or iPhone? There are a few that I use frequently while traveling, including Kayak (great for getting current hotel prices and availability), TripAdvisor (great for hotel reviews), and TripIt (great for keeping track of itineraries).

Ned Levi, from Consumer Traveler, recently published his list of top 10 iPhone Travel applications. See what you think of his choices and let me know what travel applications you have loaded on your phone.

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Review of Springhill Suites, Virginia Beach, Virginia

The Springhill Suites in Virginia Beach, Virginia is clearly designed for both families on vacation who want a little extra room, as well as business travelers who might be visiting the area for more than one night. Like many Virginia Beach hotels, the Springhill Suites hotel is directly on the 3-mile expanse of Virginia Beach, so each room as a nice ocean-front balcony. The hotel is relatively close to the city's large convention center and makes a good option for conventioneers who want to relax as well as get their business done. Read my review of the Springhill Suites Virginia Beach, Virginia for more.

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Tips for Flying with a Toddler

When I told some co-workers that I was planning a four week vacation to South America - and I was bringing my 20 month old son - I was met with skepticism. An onslaught of questions soon followed. "Why on earth do you  want to put yourself through long flights with a toddler in a foreign land?" "What on earth will your toddler eat in Chile?" "Are you out of your mind?"

Trip planning consumed my free-time for a good month beforehand. This time, we weren't just flying to Grammy's house in New York; we were taking a (yikes) 12 hour flight to Santiago. I needed to be uber-prepared. I share with you the products of this resarch, including recommended parenting tricks and advice, as well as recommended travel-friendly products. Bon voyage.

Tips for flying with toddlers:

- Try to plan your flights around your toddler's normal sleeping times. Many international flights are late at night, which is a huge plus - they eventually fall asleep at midnight regardless of the excitement!

- Wear your toddler out beforehand. Run around the airport! No sitting allowed until they board the plane! Allow extra airport time for releasing energy before your flight's departure.

- Pack 3-4 healthy snacks in Ziploc bags. Pretzels, raisins and other dried fruit, crackers or cereal and granola bars work well. You never know how long you will be on the plane. I also packed a small bag of jelly beans (my toddler's all-time favorite, super special treat). Jelly beans can produce amazing results and changes of behavior. While I try my best to stay away from bribery, I'd rather treat my little one to a sweet than have them wake up an entire plane.

- Carry extra milk or formula. I was on a flight to Chicago once with my toddler and they only had creamer. Seriously. Horizon Organics makes a great product that doesn't need refrigeration.

- Pack extra diapers and two sets of clothes. If your destination climate is different, pack accordingly. Bring pajamas if you'll be on long flight. Toddlers really take their cue from routines - even if they won't be sleeping in a bed, putting on PJs will let them know it's sleepy time.

Published by Kirsten Kirsten's been with AC since early 2005 and now runs the content team. When she's not reading and learning about new technologies, she likes to hit the hills with her husband and two kids.  View profile

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Tracking Flights

In my last post I highlighted a top ten list of travel applications for the iPhone. This time I wanted to highlight an additional application (for smartphones, iPhones, and the Web) that might be pretty handy for frequent airline travelers.

The application, called FlightView, allows airline travelers to easily track the status of flights and airports. It provides real-time information on delays and allows users to graphically see everything from a flight's progress to the number of airlines being delayed at a specific airport. You can save frequent itineraries for repeated use and view everything from baggage claim info to the weather.

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