Using iPad, Kindle or iPhone as guide books

[drfred]

I'm hooked on my gadgets. Has anyone had success downloading guidebooks in whole or piece by piece to their electronics? I've done some downloading of Rick Steves guides and podcasts which were helpful in Spain. In the past I've read these on the flights for background or while sitting on my veranda on the ship or on a tour bus. But my worry (justified:( about pickpockets and sticking out as a tourist makes me reluctant to carry my devices while out touring in port. Who has found the perfect app? What is the Holy Grail of electronic guide booking?

[Michigan honey]

On a recent cruise we downloaded Rick Steve's guidebooks for several different countries. We carried our Kindle. It was a great reference. When I wanted to know how much to tip the information was right at our fingertips. When we needed directions, we just showed the natives the street name and we were on our way. I went through each book before we used it and bookmarked the salient sections. It was very easy to pull it up. The only downside to using the Kindle is that the maps were difficult to see.

[Essiesmom]

drfred, are you aware that the little red symbol you used is a thumbs down, not a question mark? EM

[drfred]

drfred, are you aware that the little red symbol you used is a thumbs down, not a question mark? EM

 

Sorry, thought it was question mark. Is there a way to change an icon after the fact?

[Redtravel]

It saves space in your carry on. Read the guides ahead of time. Also, place important doculents and phone numbers on your device.Know where to get services while on route. It can save your trip. Unfortunately I have had planes cancelled, luggage misdirected, and connections missed. Being able to access phone numbers/emails addresses, store locations, next plane times, etc. is vital. Hope that you never need emergency info. If you do, that electronic device can save the day. Keep it charged up.

[patty1955]

Almost all electronics will allow you to read text files, even the Kindle. Making a text file with all your travel info (flights, hotel, shuttle companies, etc.) and putting in on all your electronics is a really good idea. Thanks!

[jimzgoldfinch]

I'm hooked on my gadgets. Has anyone had success downloading guidebooks in whole or piece by piece to their electronics? I've done some downloading of Rick Steves guides and podcasts which were helpful in Spain. In the past I've read these on the flights for background or while sitting on my veranda on the ship or on a tour bus. But my worry (justified:( about pickpockets and sticking out as a tourist makes me reluctant to carry my devices while out touring in port. Who has found the perfect app? What is the Holy Grail of electronic guide booking?

 

Hi,

Amazon have plenty of guide books for kindle. Amazon has kindle apps for ipad & iphone for reading kindle books. You can also get books from the itunes store for ipad.

 

There is plenty of travel information on the internet - you could create PDF's of relevant info for your ipad.

 

Jim

[Onessa]

Yup, the nook is a bit bigger than I'd like to be taking it into port with me, but I do download guidebooks for in-transit and on-board reference. We've got a pair of "old" iPod touches (8Mg -- one which DD won, the other was a freebie from a purchase of other stuff) on which I download audio tours and text files for use in port.

 

(there are three of us DD, DH and I -- It certainly is easier to keep track of DH when I have him "leashed" to me by way of the audio splitter for his earbuds for the audio tours :D)

[CaroleLee]

I'm hooked on my gadgets. Has anyone had success downloading guidebooks in whole or piece by piece to their electronics? I've done some downloading of Rick Steves guides and podcasts which were helpful in Spain. In the past I've read these on the flights for background or while sitting on my veranda on the ship or on a tour bus. But my worry (justified:( about pickpockets and sticking out as a tourist makes me reluctant to carry my devices while out touring in port. Who has found the perfect app? What is the Holy Grail of electronic guide booking?

 

You are right about sticking out- however I did notice someone ahead of me in the Vatican using the 1-Pad 2 as a camera.I have an I-Pad2 downloaded as much info- maps, PDF etc as I needed for the W. Med . I also downloaded Rick Steves walking tours ( printed the maps) to my I-Pod. I-pod was light and easy to carry and did not stick out as a tourist thing.

 

Also had 4 books downloaded for the plane & sea days.

Carole

[cruisemom42]

I use my Kindle. I not only download guidebooks (Rick Steves and others), I make extensive port notes on my own and upload those to my Kindle as well. As others said, including important travel details is a great idea. I would caution you, however, not to put sensitive information on any device (such as credit card numbers, Passport numbers, etc) in case it gets lost or stolen.

 

The Kindle I have is really about the same size as (and is thinner than) a paperback guide book anyway, and nothing says "tourist" more than a guidebook!

[Sloop-JohnB]

Hi DrFred,

 

Interesting topic, I'll certainly be reading along, as I plan to buy & bring an Ipad with us on our cruise.

 

Sorry, thought it was question mark. Is there a way to change an icon after the fact?

 

YES YOU CAN !! :)

 

Below your original post that started this thread... look for the EDIT button... click on that it will take you to the editing feature. Next click on GO ADVANCED... and the little icons will be shown just like when you created the post.

 

You can change the title icon from the list below the text box. The Question Mark is found bottom row, 3rd one in from the left.

 

Cheers!

[islandwoman]

Has anyone tried the "All New Nook", the $139 black and white one? I like its size. How is it with guidebook maps?

[drfred]

I have been using a note app (evernote) on my iPad to copy and paste travel tidbits such as part of a thread from CC on how to avoid excessive charges on your iPhone. I've also been copying email correspondence with the hotel in Rome, the tour guide in Israel, and the car service we will be using on our upcoming cruise. I'm hoping I don't need them but just in case...I'm also collecting port ideas for all the ports we will visit. I haven't tried yet but I think this should sync with my iPhone and then really be handy if I don't take the iPad off the ship.

[runnerswife]

Has anyone tried the "All New Nook", the $139 black and white one? I like its size. How is it with guidebook maps?

 

Yes, I tried it.... don't know if I got a lemon, or what, but it didn't hold a charge very long. Defeats the whole purpose of buying it for travel. I was very disappointed so much so that I brought it back and now have a Kindle which I love. Good luck with whatever you decide to get. Mary

[BKboomers]

I use an app on my Android device called Tripit. Keeps all my travel arrangements i.e. flights, cruise conf#'s, hotel, shore excursions, everything. Just forward your travel confirmation emails to Tripit and it all gets organized automatically. You can add things to do and see in each port, maps, everything. Used it for the first time last March. worked great

[noriboating]

I also use TripIt and it is fantastic. I use it on my apple products.

[travelpeon]

I also use tripit and have for a few years. First on a iPod touch and now on my android phone. I still print the critical maps, confirmation numbers, and booking agency e-mail confirmations since batteries can die or devices can go haywire. Sometimes you don't want to hand over your gadget to a check in clerk/taxi driver to show a confirmation or clarification.

 

As for guides, have you seen wikitravel web site? There are a few ways to get wikitravel into an offline doc. http://wikitravel.org/en/Wikitravel:Offline_Reader_Expedition

 

For kindle, I usually add notes to a google doc and then email it as an attachment to my kindle address. You need to add your email address in the "Manage my kindle" page to the accepted email senders. Then just turn on wifi and it will download to the kindle. That way I have access to the data via browser and kindle.

 

I usually also add a pdf to dropbox and download it on my phone, email it to myself, or pop it into evernote. The main criteria is having it available in "offline mode" so I don't need an internet connection to read my file.