1. The internet gives you access to local news

in the areas you will be visiting

In addition to accurate up to the minute news, you can read ads and find out about interesting things that are happening at the time you will arrive. Begin your foreign cultural immersion while still at home.

For example these are the online English language newspapers I read regularly to keep up on things happening in the places I travel to:

Philippines Inquirer
Uganda New Vision
China Daily News
Beijing People's Daily News
Bangkok Post

2. The internet gives you access to local radio stations.

This can be really good if you are traveling to someplace and you will be driving yourself. You can begin to get an idea about traffic patterns.
It is also a good way to find out about performers in town and other things to do.
When you’re away from home, you can still follow your favorite radio shows online.
Here’s an app that helps with this.

Tunein.com

3. Try a meet up website.

Going to someplace exotic, remote or off the beaten path? Can’t find a lot of good information about that area? Trip advisor.com and virtualtourist.com are okay for finding out about normal stuff. But if you want to really get specific information or you want to find out about things not so commonly found on the internet, then you might want to try my tried and successful method.

Go to some online meet up website and write a profile that says exactly what you want. For instance you might say “I want to meet someone who can tell me about some good local restaurants”. Or whatever you are searching for. You might say “I’m looking for someone who would like to go visit local restaurants with me and my wife, where we can try local food in good restaurants that only local people know about.”

You will be surprised at what you can learn about some place before you even go there. And there is almost no village or town anywhere that doesn’t have some internet café full of locals looking for something interesting to do.

• COUCHSURFING: This is an excellent place to meet people & even find a place to crash for a night or more. If you travel to experience the local culture and lifestyle then check this site. https://www.couchsurfing.org

• CITY OF A THOUSAND WELCOMES : Here’s a great idea if going to Dublin, meet someone and talk over tea or coffee. Arranged by the website. A free service supported by civic sponsors. http://www.cityofathousandwelcomes.ie/

• TRAVBUDDY: This website is designed just for travelers to meet other people and other travelers. http://www.travbuddy.com/

There are dozens of options for online meet ups, but these samples will give you some good ideas for getting started on a new kind of travel experience. WARNING: Scams are rife on the internet. There are dangers involved in this style of meeting people. Do your own due diligence and don’t whine to me if you get mugged or kidnapped by Al Qaeda terrorists. Do let me know if you have a good time!

4. MEETING PLANNER:I don’t use this all the time, but lately I have had many online meetings and phone conferences with people scattered through various time zones. This app makes it easy to choose times that are okay for all who are involved.
www.timeanddate.com

5. Here are some aids I use on almost every trip I take. I’m not a huge frequent flier, but last year I was on about 30 flights to & between the USA, Canada, Mexico, China, the Philippines, and Thailand.

• SEAT GURU: I love this website to find the best seat. It’s not as good as having flown on a plane yourself and scoped out exactly the best seat choices, but it is nearly as good. There is a phone app for this website. http://www.seatguru.com/

• AGODA:There is no better hotel website. It doesn’t cover all of the world yet, but it will. I have never found cheaper rooms on another website for the same hotel. Easy to use. Great coverage in Asia and some other parts of the world. Recently started in Mexico and is absolutely #1 for hotel shopping in Baja California. www.agoda.com

• GOOGLE EARTH OR MAP:I use this tool before every trip to a new location. I like to study the map view. Then I like to go to the street view and just look around at where I will going to for the first time.

• Kindle Ebook reader:I use the simple $49 version that has wifi ads when turned on. Those ads don’t display while I’m traveling. The Kindle and Amazon.com are the GREATEST things to come out of the computer age for travelers like me. I could write a dozen pages about how much I love this device. Kindle app available for all computers, smart phones and tablets. Don’t leave home without it.
www.amazon.com