Investors rely on up-to-the-minute information to make decisions. Thanks to a handful of innovative travel companies, you can stay in touch when traveling instead of putting your investing activities on hold. Focusing on easily accessible and sometimes free wifi, the following airlines, airports, hotels and cruise lines are the best choices for investors on the move.
AIRLINES
Virgin America
Many airlines claim to offer wifi, but in most cases this is limited to select planes and routes. Virgin America is the only airline with wifi on its entire fleet. As Virgin put it, we “made history at 35,000 feet,” by offering wifi on every flight.
Their network supports the following browsers and devices:
- Browsers: Google Chrome, Internet Explorer, Mozilla, Firefox and Safari
- Handheld devices: Apple, Android, Blackberry, Microsoft Mobile and Nokia
The cost of using wifi on handheld devices is:
- $4.95: Flights less than 1.5 hours
- $7.95: Flights longer than 1.5 hours
For laptop use, the cost is:
- $4.95: Flights less than 1.5 hours
- $9.95: Flights less than 3 hours
- $12.95: Any 24-hour period
- $44.95: Monthly unlimited wifi on any Virgin America flight
Virgin America planes also feature electrical outlets at every seat! Other domestic airlines hoping to fly ahead of their competitors in wifi innovation are Alaska and Delta. Both offer internet connectivity on a majority of their fleets.
AIRPORTS
While some airports offer free wifi, most charge around $8 for a 24-hour period. US cities that feature free airport wifi include:
- Los Angeles, California
- San Diego, California
- San Francisco, California
- Denver, Colorado
- Las Vegas, Nevada
- Portland, Oregon
The most frequented US airports with best wifi connectivity, according to PC World, are:
- Ft. Lauderdale-Hollywood, Florida
- Baltimore-Washington, Maryland
- JFK, New York
- LaGuardia, New York
- Charlotte, North Carolina
- Raleigh-Durham, North Carolina
- Cleveland, Ohio
- Nashville, Tennessee
- Dallas-Ft. Worth, Texas
- Seattle-Tacoma, Washington
HOTELS
Kimpton Hotels
Kimpton is a luxury hotel chain that offers free wifi at over 50 locations in 24 cities. Their “InTouch” Loyalty Program (no cost to join) offers internet access in all lobbies, guest rooms, restaurants, and conference rooms. If that weren’t enough, they also offer free wine tastings every afternoon!
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Other hotels are rapidly changing their wifi policies as well. Omni now offers free in-room wifi at all of their locations, and Best Western has recently implemented free wireless internet for all guests. Higher-end hotels offering free wifi at select locations include Hilton, Hyatt, and Wyndham.
CRUISE LINES
Celebrity Cruises
While the cruise industry has improved in many ways, high speed internet connection is not an area that has received much innovative attention. Celebrity Cruises, however, stands out as a cruise line offering the best wifi connectivity at sea.
Unlike other cruise lines, which only offer wifi in select public areas, Celebrity offers it in individual cabins. Cruisers can pay 75 cents per minute, or purchase blocks of time in the following increments:
- $70: 100 minutes
- $120: 200 minutes
- $250: 500 minutes
Celebrity also offers Apple-sponsored iLounges, complete with all the bells and whistles of their newest gadgets. Nevertheless, the cost that one has to pay for wifi access when on a cruise is pretty steep when compared to other travel industries.
There are two other Cruise lines making waves in off-shore mobile technology. Royal Caribbean and Norwegian Cruise Lines both offer wifi access throughout common areas, though only select ships feature it inside guest cabins.
As mobile technology continues to take over the planet, it won’t be long before every business offers some kind of free option for getting online. Until then, plan your travel according to your own convenience. Trading on the go has never been easier, so long as you know who to go with!
Let us know in the comment section below what other airlines, airports, cruise lines or hotels would be a great choice for investors looking to stay connected.
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