Using an iPad to tour places such as Rome? or iPhone?

[*Jen*]

My husband gave me an iPad last month, and while I've primarily used it as a Kindle, I'm interested to see who's taken it into port stops such as Rome. I was thinking about putting all the notes about each church/monument/fountain/etc onto the iPad and then essentially using it as a guide book. And loading maps, too. And I suppose some podcasts. And the train schedules. And lunch ideas. And some simple italian phrases. LOL. Okay, so I'd put almost everything on there!

 

Has anyone done this? Too heavy to be practical? Too worried about theft? Too much of a hassle?

 

As an alternative, has anyone done something similar with an iPhone? If so, how did that work? Did you keep your data plan so you could use it as a GPS?

[hkto]

Data roaming charges are extremely high so I would put Iphone in airplane mode or leave it at home. Loading reference info into Ipad is a good idea; the only draw back is that it's hard to see the screen in bright daylight. Last year I brought a real GPS but hardly ever used it. It's useful for calculating distances between places but depending on model battery doesn't last very long; may be max 1 hr on mine. Actually signage in historical part of Rome is pretty good and major sights are easy to find.

[-Lew-]

Hi Jen,

 

I've used my iPhone while in Europe and I plan to do it again in October. Be sure to check out the AT&T iPhone Travel Tips web page. It could save you a lot of $$.

 

Using an iPad as you describe is a great idea! We have one and haven't decided whether to bring it in addition to the iPhone.

 

I suggest you subscribe to Rick Steves' Italy Audio Tours podcast. We haven't used it before, but will this time.

 

If you're not familiar with Evernote, I strongly recommend you check it out. It allows you to sync documents between your computer and your iPad...and other devices. You can load the docs you want into Evernote on your computer and then just sync to your iPad. It's a piece of cake! Best of all, it's free for limited data use.

 

Enjoy your cruise...

 

Lew

[D4]

Has anyone done this? Too heavy to be practical? Too worried about theft? Too much of a hassle?

 

As an alternative, has anyone done something similar with an iPhone? If so, how did that work? Did you keep your data plan so you could use it as a GPS?

 

I wouldn't take an iPad to ports. You have to lug it around (it's not near as light as a small Kindle) and I'm sure it would attract thieves. It is an attention magnet and many European ports have a lot of theft problems with regular stuff (wallets, cameras, etc.)

 

On the other hand, I put things like you mentioned on my iPod touch to use in ports. I can put it in an inside pocket to secure it, so I don't have to worry too much about theft.

[Keith1010]

I think I would use the iPhoneif you have it as it would be much smaller and less likely to be lost/stolen/left behind.

 

It sounds like a great idea.

 

As mentioned keep data roaming off or to play it safe put it in airline mode.

 

Keith

[operafan]

I've decided to leave the iPad at home and bring the iPod touch instead. It's too much of a theft target and too big to fit in my travel handbag. I made screenshots of Rome maps etc and stored them on the touch. To make a screenshot of a web page, hold down the "home" button and the on/off button at the same time. The picture of the page will be stored in photos on the ipod touch or on your iPad.

[Dushi]

operafan-

 

I was planning to bring my iPod Touch along on the med cruise. Thanks for the tip on saving screenshots of maps, train schedules, etc. Does the device automatically create a new folder for these screenshots in "photos" or would I do that after the fact by using iTunes?

[operafan]

operafan-

 

I was planning to bring my iPod Touch along on the med cruise. Thanks for the tip on saving screenshots of maps, train schedules, etc. Does the device automatically create a new folder for these screenshots in "photos" or would I do that after the fact by using iTunes?

 

They were put into folder called "saved photos". I increased the size of various sections of a "tourist map" and made several screenshots. It made it easier to see street names etc.

[-Lew-]

Whether you use an iPad, iPhone or iPod Touch, you really should check out Evernote here. Check out their web site to see how much better it will work for you than taking screen shots on your device and viewing them in the photos app.

 

Lew

[operafan]

Whether you use an iPad, iPhone or iPod Touch, you really should check out Evernote here. Check out their web site to see how much better it will work for you than taking screen shots on your device and viewing them in the photos app.

 

Lew

 

Sounds great but does it require an internet connection to access your info?

[-Lew-]

 

Sounds great but does it require an internet connection to access your info?

It requires a connection to sync your data. Once synched, you can then specify which notebooks will reside on your handheld device and; therefore, be available at all times...even when there's no connection to the internet.

 

Evernote is not limited to Apple devices. There are versions for both Macs and Windows computers and the following handhelds: iPhone, iPad, iPod Touch, Blackberry, Palm Pre and Android.

 

It's a great travel app, but I use it every day for storing all kinds of documents: credit card bills, brokerage statements, screen shots of online purchases, travel confirmations, etc.

 

Before someone asks...no, I have no financial interest in Evernote. I'm just a user and a big fan.

 

Lew

[joanne59]

I've been using Goodreader for the exact same purpose and have found it will hold all our travel docs. I am able to save anything that is sent as an attachment, photos, txt docs, maps, receipts and it has a web access link that allows you to download and save PDF files. Our entire med cruise is saved on my iPad to be used as a reference tool while onboard. They have an iPhone version as well. We intend to take both items, but will leave the iPad on the ship while touring.

 

 

Happy cruising....Joanne

[-Lew-]

 

I've been using Goodreader for the exact same purpose and have found it will hold all our travel docs.

That's great! Much better than the iPhone screenshot technique IMHO as you can transfer full size documents to your device.

 

I was not familiar with Goodreader so I checked it out. You may also want to take a look at Evernote when you have a chance.

 

Enjoy your cruise...

 

Lew

[KirkNC]

I've been using Goodreader for the exact same purpose and have found it will hold all our travel docs. I am able to save anything that is sent as an attachment, photos, txt docs, maps, receipts and it has a web access link that allows you to download and save PDF files. Our entire med cruise is saved on my iPad to be used as a reference tool while onboard. They have an iPhone version as well. We intend to take both items, but will leave the iPad on the ship while touring.

 

 

Happy cruising....Joanne

 

This is exactely what we did on our recent cruise. I had maps, articles, Rick Steve's podcasts, train schedules, bus schedules, you name it, I had it. I broke the uploads into sub-directories for each port. It worked great. That combined with my hand-held GPS were a big help in making our trip sucessful.

 

We had everything copied so we did not even use internet access. In fact the phone was on airplane mode for our entire trip.

 

Kirk

[joanne59]

I've been using my iPad camera connection kit to upload photos, which is so easy to do. Still have not figured out how to post a picture on CC from iPad. Anyone figure this out?

 

 

 

Happy cruising....Joanne

[Onessa]

I downloaded Rick Steves Rome audio book/tour to my iPod and it was a great help. I had several maps of each port we were visiting downloaded. I bought an audio tour of Rhodes, ($15US and it was licensed for everyone in my family) and it was excellent (Discovery tours maybe?) they had other cities available but I just tried the one. Some stuff I downloaded was schlock so you do need to be careful as far as what you buy.

 

I had an Italian dictionary downloaded and used it a few times for a particular word. Did not use the Euro exchange program, but did use the English to Metric measurement app a few times. I of course had downloaded a bunch of NPR programs to keep me entertained on the plane trip. Oddly enough my DH used the iHandy levl app twice (but he's slightly OCD any way!). DD used the scientific graphing calculator app so she did not need to bring her's with for her homework. So we all used our iPods quite a bit!

[reunion cruiser]

I'm looking for a good site to download street maps of Venice to sink on an Ipod touch. Any suggestions? thanks.....

[-Lew-]

Google Maps or Bing Maps are a good place to start. Some of Rick Steves' podcasts have maps and building diagrams that can be downloaded.

 

I have a Mac and use a program call Skitch to take screen shots of the areas of interest on maps. I then print them as PDFs to Evernote which will sync with Evernote on my iPhone.

 

There is another program mentioned above called GoodReader. GoodReader on your iPod Touch appears as a drive when connected to your computer. You can drag files to GoodReader drive to later view on your iPod Touch.

 

Lew

[KirkNC]

If you save the map as a picture you can than load it into Good Reader.

 

Kirk

[neverenoughtime]

What are your favorite app's and audio downloads? I'm taking an I-touch this year. Last year we used some of the Rick Steves audio tours. I'd like to check out others. Any suggestions both good:D and bad:eek:?? Thanks!!

[-Lew-]

What are your favorite app's and audio downloads?

You don't mention your itinerary, so my first suggestion would be to go to the iTunes Store and enter your ports of call in the search box one at a time and see what comes up. Suggestions for both podcasts and apps will be provided.

 

Other than the Rick Steves podcasts you might want to take a look at the following:

 

• Insider Travel Guides from Concierge
   
  
• Italy from the Inside
   
  
• Italy Guides
   
  
• Traveling to Italy
  

Enjoy your cruise...

 

Lew

[Kksmama]

Thank you very much for posting about evernote! I started using it last night after I just came across your post (not sure what I was looking for in the first place). What a powerful, easy tool! I read somewhere else to be careful about putting sensitive info like credit card statements on there, but for organizing our 2 week cruise/land vacation this is exactly the right app! Thank you!

 

 

 

Evernote is not limited to Apple devices. There are versions for both Macs and Windows computers and the following handhelds: iPhone, iPad, iPod Touch, Blackberry, Palm Pre and Android.

[wantocruisemore]

I have a (probably stupid) question about using your Ipod or your Droid phone for data.

 

DD has a new I phone. Other DD has an Ipod that's not a phone. I have a Droid with Android. DH has a Blackberry & he will get an international plan for trip but since we're not sure on charges do not want to use it much. Also purchased a Mobal phone for kids to use when out without us and for an emergency number to be reached.

 

My question is if you have the Droid or the I phone, how do you use Evernote or anything else to access your information if you have the phone in Airplane mode? We don't want to incur data roaming charges and get back to a huge bill. We have Verizon if that makes a difference.

 

I realize my age is showing but I have alot of confusion when people are talking about downloading maps, etc.

[wcook]

OK, call me a luddite, but I honestly believe this is one of those situations where goodold paper is the superior medium.

 

Yes, technology is great. It's wonderful for *planning* a trip. But when walking around - especially someplace like Rome - I'd much rather have a notebook with all my maps and notes than an ipad.