In the last 6 days I have been lucky, and occasionally hard-pressed, to speak at innovation, future building, and thought leadership events in Sydney, Brisbane, Indianapolis and Melbourne. While the romance of international travel and globe-trotting never ceizes to amaze me, I believe that there are a few new frontiers of international travel. Recently, I have been lucky to be part of an advisory board to Delta Airlines on defining the future of travel, and I have also shared my musings with the new business magazine for the Beijing-Shanghai High Speed Railway Line. Despite the lofty ambition to define, imagine and inspire a new way to travel, to connect with global minds in their locales, and to taste the roasting varieties in cafes around the globe, the everyday experience of travel can sometimes be miles apart from the innovative future we are trying to imagine.
So I thought I'd share some quick practical tips from a seasoned traveller on what can make your next international trip a little bit easier and a little more welcoming.
This is a cool social networking tool for frequent travellers. What I love about Tripit is that anytime you receive a booking confirmation from an airline or hotel, you simply forward it as an email to Tripit and they automatically create an itinerary for you, which you can digitally share with family, friends and clients, and allows them to track where you're up to and whether you have arrived safely. In cases of cancellations and delays, it also equips you with alternative flight routes to reach your destination, which is a great bonus as I have found out on numerous occasions. Tripit also has a free application which you can access on your mobile devices so as you're rushing around from airport to airport, you're constantly connected and one step ahead of the crowd, something which proved very handy on a recent trip to the San Francisco and Indianapolis when I was hit with delays and cancellations. Finally, Tripit also integrates with Google calendars, so that your professional network can know exactly when and where you are.
Google calendars have been a blessing for me. They beautifully integrate and sync with my iPhone, and contain all my most up-to-date travel information. I have invited my team and BDMs to view this information, which allows clients and travel agents to work out exactly what travel arrangements fit with mutual availabilities, and to make the logistical side of this international puzzle work.
This tool integrates with Tripit and automatically sucks in any information that is automatically updated in Tripit. FlightTrackPro is a very handy device, which reminds me which terminals, and gates to be at, shows me real-time updates of flight delays, and whose user interface neatly gives me an overview of when to be where. At those time when you are running late and hoping that a connecting flight will also be somewhat delayed, this is a life-saver, because it pleases the inner statistician in all of us by giving us the historical likelihood of a connecting flight being delayed. For those times we need to transition quickly between terminals, it has built in maps, support phone numbers, and gives seat advice in advance of checking-in online.
So, in many ways the future of travel may not be so much about what the airlines have in store for you, as opposed to how much you take travel matters into your own hands. It helps to be prepared, organized and tuned-into real-time data, which enables good decision making and swift shifts of plan in between Caviar and Champagne.
What are your thoughts on the future of travel, and what other good tools and tips do you have for the savvy international traveller of the future?
WE WILL EQUIP YOU WITH THE VIDEOS AND MATERIALS YOU NEED TO SUCCESSFULLY PITCH ASN.
0 Comment