(Original Photo Source: http://www.nydailynews.com)
According to NYDaily News, Amanda Bynes tried to board a private plane yesterday without proper government ID, and she was rejected from the flight after telling the pilot to “Google Me! I’m Amanda Bynes!”
On my next flight, can I try that? “Hey ticket agent, I don’t need a valid ID…I’m LifeOfStaci…Google Me!” I mean, just Google Me (lifeofstaci) and hundreds of pictures of ME come up in the picture results. Google NEVER, EVER, EVER lies so this should be just as good as my government issued passport, right?
Ok, so maybe using “Google Me” as a form of identification to travel isn’t the next big travel trend, but let’s take a look at 5 real travel trends that will make travel easier and more fun!
Breeze through airport security
Travel + Efficiency lovechild, Tim Ferris, has backed reinvigorated travel startup, CLEAR, that aims to make airport security a little less hellish. How? By using Biometrics to identify you as a pre-screened, non-threat traveler. In select airports around the country, you get to bypass those long ass security lines in favor of a shorter line set aside just for you and other CLEAR members. If you’re willing to give up your fingerprints, iris scan and $179 a year, you can breeze through security in just 5 minutes.
Now from 32,000 feet
(Photo source: http://www.skyscanner.net/news/13-most-annoying-plane-passengers)
In-flight Wifi and Cell Service
Your iPhone is glued to your hand 24/7, so why should you have to put it down for a 3 hour flight…you might miss a REALLY important Tweet! We can’t have that, now can we? Well now you don’t have to be without access to your inner circle during your flight thanks to OnAir and GoGo, in-flight wifi and cell services that are being rolled out in flights across the globe. Just don’t forget to power down during take off and landing!
Last-Minute Hotel Booking Apps
Wanna get away…tonight? No problem! Thanks to a slue of new mobile apps that allow you to book discounted hotels at the last minute you can score a great deal on hotels in major cities around the world. One of the major players, HotelTonight, offers hotels in every price range (budget to super luxury) for serious discounts. The catch? You can only book on the day-of your first night’s stay. If you’re willing to roll the dice on where you’re going to lay your head during your next trip, give HotelTonight a try! (Save $25 on your first booking with code NKarim4)
Crowdsourced Travel Planning
Want to get away, but don’t know where to go? Ask Twitter! Want to try the best hole in the wall restaurant in a new city? Ask Facebook! Want to know if that great hotel deal you found on HotelTonight is in a safe neighborhood? Ask TripAdvisor! Gone are the days of having to search high and low for travel tips to plan your perfect getaway. Now you can crowdsource almost every part of your travel planning by simply using the online social networks you already have. Don’t believe us? Try tweeting out “Where’s the best restaurant in #Seattle?” and we guarantee you’ll have your answer by the end of the day.
Travel Like A Local
If you’ve been following our travels for longer than 5 minutes, you know that we’re huge advocates of traveling like a local. You get to explore cultures at a deeper level, save money, and you get to have an overall more fulfilling travel experience. Heck, we even made a video about how to travel like a local, and it seems like we’re on to something!
An emerging travel trend that is taking hold in the travel world is more localized travel, especially when it comes to food and overnight accommodations. Foodie businesses like Feastly and EatWithALocal strive to make it easy for travelers to find local hosts who will, well, feed them – either for free or for a small fee. Driven by the “share economy” and the rise of the travel like a local trend, veteran local housing sites like AirBnB and Couchsurfing.org are becoming go-to travel sites for travelers wanting a more local feel to their travel experience.
So while you can’t board a flight using “Google Me” as ID like Amanda Bynes tried to, you can use these 5 travel trends to make your travels easier and more exciting.
Now it’s YOUR turn! What travel trends do you think are on the rise for 2013 and 2014?
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