Tag: travel

You’re Packing Your Carry-On All Wrong. Here’s How to Do It Right

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It’s a common mistake. When packing for a trip, you throw everything into your carry-on bag in a way that feels methodical and organized. But the closer that bag gets to full, panic sets in as you realize you won’t have enough room to fit everything. Once you stop to consider your options, you can plainly see your packing job is not sane at all, but a master class in completely unhinged chaos.

Properly packing your carry-on involves a mix of technique, economy, and smart planning. Follow these tips to get everything you need—and nothing you don’t—into that bag or suitcase.

Do the Math

Pull out everything you think you need for the trip, then get rid of half of it. Really, you won’t need all of those clothes. If that feels extreme, try this: Bring two tops and one pair of pants for every three days of your trip. Undies and socks for every day, though.

Picture Me Rollin’

Don’t pack your clothes folded. Rolling everything and slotting it vertically into your carry-on will earn you gobs of space, and it’ll keep your shirts from wrinkling too. This isn’t a lifehack; this is a must.

You may have heard of the KonMari fold. This is the folding method for clothes popularized by the high priestess of tidy organization, Marie Kondo. Learn it, practice it, live it. Her tutorial video has over 6 million views. (The long-sleeve T-shirt fold will make you gasp!)

Folks who have served in the military also know a similar trick known as “the Army Roll.” Both methods work for shirts, pants, undergarments, and just about anything that doesn’t need to be pressed.

Use the Washing Ma-Sink

Bring along some concentrated detergent and a travel clothesline. Then, a sinkful of water is all you need to replenish your wardrobe. This tip is essential for reducing the number of clothing items you need to pack for longer trips.

For detergent, Sink Suds are pretty good and TSA-safe ($15 at Amazon). Of course, there’s always good old Dr. Bronner’s unscented soap ($3 at Amazon), which can be used on your clothes, your body, or whatever needs a wash. We really like this travel and camp clothesline from Sea to Summit ($15, also at Amazon). It uses a clever system of beads on the string to provide tension and hold up your wet items without clothespins.

Kill the Wrinkles

Pro tip: If it doesn’t smell, it’s clean. Fool everyone with a couple of spritzes of Downy Wrinkle Releaser ($8). Frequent flyers will find this two-pack of travel-size bottles will last them a year. This has a “fresh linen scent” which isn’t too unpleasant, but if you are sensitive to scented things, try Begley’s 3-in-1 spray ($8 at Amazon).

Layer, Layer, Layer

Don’t think about clothes—think about combinations. Mix and match tops and bottoms to get more use out of everything. Light jackets, scarves, and funky ties all keep you looking fresh and your suitcase looking empty.

For winter travel, consider packing a base layer instead of sweaters, sweatshirts, and fleeces. A cozy second skin will keep you just as warm while taking up far less room in that bag. Also, merino wool—the material these marvels are most commonly spun from—is naturally resistant to odors and will stay wearable your whole trip. (Well, maybe wash it once; wool dries quickly too.)

Stow Away a Small-Things Bag

Go to a drugstore and stock up on essentials: shampoo, toothpaste, Advil, lip balm, deodorant. Put it all in a small bag, tuck it into your luggage, and forget it until you need it. You’ll need it.

You have literally zillions of options for small bags and zipper pouches (not literally), but we’re total suckers for small pouches made from recycled sail cloth. They are rugged as all get out, and eco-friendly to boot. Resails’ $22 pouches are cute. These $20 pouches from Agave, also recycled, are equally cool.

Vacuum Your Wardrobe

If you can’t bring less, at least break out the shrink-o-matic. Buy a bunch of bags, throw your clothes in, and suck all the air out with a pump or vacuum cleaner. Slot your paper-thin parcels right into your bag. Give them a minute to reinflate on the other side, then hang up your items to let the wrinkles fall out.

Just know that if you’re going to load up your suitcase with a bunch of vacuum-sealed bags, it will be heavier in the end. Be sure to check your airline’s weight limits for carry-ons.

Prep Offline Mode

Physical books are lovely, but they have no place in your carry-on luggage. Go fully digital to carry a wealth of knowledge while winning back a wealth of space.

Before you hit the road, hit download. Kindle books of course, but also a dozen podcasts, a few Spotify playlists, an offline movie or two in Netflix or Amazon. Nothing’s worse than flicking over to airplane mode and finding your phone is suddenly useless.

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November 23, 2024
Inside Clear’s ambitions to manage your identity beyond the airport

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The more Clear is able to reach into customers’ lives, the more valuable customer data it can collect. All user interactions and experiences can be tracked, the company’s privacy policy explains. While the policy states that Clear will not sell data and will never share biometric or health information without “express consent,” it also lays out the non-health and non-biometric data that it collects and can use for consumer research and marketing. This includes members’ demographic details, a record of every use of Clear’s various products, and even digital images and videos of the user. Documents obtained by OneZero offer some further detail into what Clear has at least considered doing with customer data: David Gershgorn writes about a 2015 presentation to representatives from Los Angeles International Airport, titled “Identity Dashboard—Valuable Marketing Data,” which “showed off” what the company had collected, including the number of sports games users had attended and with whom, which credit cards they had, their favorite airlines and top destinations, and how often they flew first class or economy.

Clear representatives emphasized to MIT Technology Review that the company “does not share or sell information without consent,” though they “had nothing to add” in response to a question about whether Clear can or does aggregate data to derive its own marketing insights, a business model popularized by Facebook. “At Clear, privacy and security are job one,” spokesperson Ricardo Quinto wrote in an email. “We are opt-in. We never sell or share our members’ information and utilize a multilayered, best-in-class infosec system that meets the highest standards and compliance requirements.”

Nevertheless, this influx of customer data is not just good for business; it’s risky for customers. It creates “another attack surface,” Gilliard warns. “This makes us less safe, not more, as a consistent identifier across your entire public and private life is the dream of every hacker, bad actor, and authoritarian.”

A face-based future for some

Today, Clear is in the middle of another major change: replacing its use of iris scans and fingerprints with facial verification in airports—part of “a TSA-required upgrade in identity verification,” a TSA spokesperson wrote in an email to MIT Technology Review.

For a long time, facial recognition technology “for the highest security purposes” was “not ready for prime time,” Seidman Becker told Swisher and Goode back in 2017. It wasn’t operating with “five nines,” she added—that is, “99.999% from a matching and an accuracy perspective.” But today, facial recognition has “significantly improved” and the company has invested “in enhancing image quality through improved capture, focus, and illumination,” according to Quinto.

Clear says switching to facial images in airports will also further decrease friction, enabling travelers to verify their identity so effortlessly it’s “almost like you don’t really break stride,” Peddy says. “You walk up, you scan your face. You walk straight to the TSA.”

The move is part of a broader shift toward facial recognition technology in US travel, bringing the country in line with practices at many international airports. The TSA began expanding facial identification from a few pilot programs this year, while airlines including Delta and United are also introducing face-based boarding, baggage drops, and even lounge access. And the International Air Transport Association, a trade group for the airline industry, is rolling out a “contactless travel” process that will allow passengers to check in, drop off their bags, and board their flights—all without showing either passports or tickets, just their faces.

NEIL WEBB

Privacy experts worry that relying on faces for identity verification is even riskier than other biometric methods. After all, “it’s a lot easier to scan people’s faces passively than it is to scan irises or take fingerprints,” Senator Jeff Merkley of Oregon, an outspoken critic of government surveillance and of the TSA’s plans to employ facial verification at airports, said in an email. The point is that once a database of faces is built, it is potentially far more useful for surveillance purposes than, say, fingerprints. “Everyone who values privacy, freedom, and civil rights should be concerned about the increasing, unchecked use of facial recognition technology by corporations and the federal government,” Merkley wrote.

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November 20, 2024
19 Gifts for Travelers Who Are Always One Flight Ahead (2024)

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Shopping for the best gifts for travelers? Our guide features top picks that frequent fliers will truly appreciate.

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November 18, 2024
Scientists Establish the Best Algorithm for Traversing a Map

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“It’s a great algorithm,” said Erik Demaine, a computer scientist at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. “It’s very fast, simple, and easy to implement.”

To put this procedure into practice, you’d need to decide on a system for organizing your notes—a data structure, in the lingo of computer science. That may sound like a minor technical detail, but time spent searching through your notes whenever you need to edit or remove an entry can have a big effect on the overall runtime of the algorithm.

Dijkstra’s paper used a simple data structure that left room for improvement. In the following decades, researchers developed better ones, affectionately dubbed “heaps,” in which certain items are easier to find than others. They take advantage of the fact that Dijkstra’s algorithm only ever needs to remove the entry for the closest remaining vertex. “A heap is basically a data structure that allows you to do this very quickly,” said Václav Rozhoň, a researcher at the Institute for Computer Science, Artificial Intelligence and Technology (INSAIT) in Sofia, Bulgaria.

In 1984, two computer scientists developed a clever heap design that enabled Dijkstra’s algorithm to reach a theoretical limit, or “lower bound,” on the time required to solve the single-source shortest-paths problem. In one specific sense, this version of Dijkstra’s algorithm is the best possible. That was the last word on the standard version of the problem for nearly 40 years. Things only changed when a few researchers took a closer look at what it means to be “best.”

Best Behavior

Researchers typically compare algorithms by studying how they fare in worst-case scenarios. Imagine the world’s most confusing street grid, then add some especially perplexing traffic patterns. If you insist on finding the fastest routes in these extreme circumstances, the 1984 version of Dijkstra’s algorithm is provably unbeatable.

But hopefully, your city doesn’t have the world’s worst street grid. And so you may ask: Is there an algorithm that’s unbeatable on every road network? The first step to answering this question is to make the conservative assumption that each network has worst-case traffic patterns. Then you want your algorithm to find the fastest paths through any possible graph layout, assuming the worst possible weights. Researchers call this condition “universal optimality.” If you had a universally optimal algorithm for the simpler problem of just getting from one point on a graph to another, it could help you beat rush hour traffic in every city in the world.

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November 17, 2024
12 Best Carry-On Luggage (2024): Away, Travelpro, and More

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Aer’s Travel Pack 3 is about as close to a travel-bag Swiss army knife as you can get. It’s a practically indestructible backpack made of 1680-denier ballistic nylon! It’s a sophisticated briefcase with a handle! It’s a tech organizer and a laptop bag and a suitcase! Though it might be over-engineered for some (“almost too much bag,” according to my husband), the Travel Pack has a sleek, unisex design (available in black, gray, navy, or olive) and utility that make it usable for everything from day-to-day work to business trips to international backpacking.

There’s a roomy, clamshell-style main compartment that fits shoes and about two outfits, or more with a couple of packing cubes, plus a separate divided laptop compartment for two computers. The front unzips to reveal two rows of pockets reminiscent of a miniature over-the-door shoe organizer, perfect for pens, power cords, snacks, or notepads. There are compression straps on both sides to cinch it down to a more manageable size. It should be noted that even when not compressed, the 21.5 x 13-inch profile is still small enough to be stuffed under an airplane seat. Both main compartments have zippers that can accommodate a lock, and a loop on the bag allows it to fit sideways over a suitcase handle. The only detractor is that the water bottle holder is bizarrely small, even when unzipped to its full capacity. It barely fits a 40-ounce ThermoFlask, and the included magnetic strap won’t even fit halfway around it. As long as you don’t get thirsty, this is a pretty solid bag that I think most people would be happy with. —Kat Merck

★ Alternative: I recently took Travelpro’s Altitude travel backpack ($280) on a work trip. I loved the full-access, flat-top opening, which saves space in a small hotel room. I also loved that it has structure, so you can pack it like a suitcase, and it’s expandable so you can bring home a large book or a library souvenir T-shirt if you really want to.

Specs

Material: Ballistic nylon | Exterior dimensions: 21.5″ x 13″ x 9″ | Weight: 4.12 lbs

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November 14, 2024
I Went Birding With the World’s First AI-Powered Binoculars

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For bird identification when the Bird ID setting is active, the AX Visio uses a modified version of Cornell Lab of Ornithology’s Merlin Bird ID’s extensive bird database. The Mammals ID, Butterfly ID, and Dragonfly ID settings on the binoculars are powered by the Sunbird database. However, while mammals and flying insects can currently only be identified in Europe and North America, the Bird ID software works everywhere—even Antarctica.

The identification apps use a combination of image recognition and geolocation, which is enabled by a built-in GPS sensor that tells the software where you are in the world. That can help it narrow down which species you’re probably looking at.

Looking Out

I’m an amateur bird watcher, and I got a chance to test out the AX Visio in the field at andBeyond Phinda Private Game Reserve in South Africa. (Swarovski flew me down there to test the binoculars in the field.) Guests at the reserve can currently rent the binoculars for $40 per day, with the proceeds benefiting local conservation projects.

Initially, I was overwhelmed by using a pair of binoculars powered by technology; I was worried it would be hard to master the camera and species identification. Fortunately, they’re quite user-friendly. On the bridge of the binoculars is the mode-selection wheel, which is easily rotated to move between the AX Visio’s settings, including the species identification modes for birds, mammals, butterflies, and dragonflies. There is also a mode for photography, which uses the onboard camera to snap a photo, and other settings.

For proper identification, the binoculars must be held steady and focused properly so the imaging system has a clear shot of the animal. When you point the binoculars at a bird, a red circle appears in your field of vision, and as long as the animal fills up most of that circle then it’s close enough to identify. Press the raised button on the top of the binoculars and within a few seconds, the name of the creature will be displayed on the screen.

I was impressed that the binoculars accurately identified very small birds. The AX Visio correctly identified a 5-inch-long malachite kingfisher which was clearly visible on a branch above the water 30 meters away. Later, I spotted a 9-inch-long bee-eater camouflaged in a tree 100 meters away, but it was too far for the AX Visio to identify the bird. Frustratingly, sometimes a bird would be clearly visible within the red circle but the binoculars would display an error message that there was no bird to identify.

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November 9, 2024
US Airlines Have New Rules on Refunds for Canceled Flights. Here’s What to Know

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The rules that just went into effect, Buttigieg says, represent the bare minimum universal standard for refunds and fees that US airlines should offer customers.

How Does the New Refund Rule Work?

If your flight is canceled or “significantly changed,” you are entitled to a full refund in the same way you paid, whether it was by cash or credit card, promptly and automatically.

“Significantly changed” means the departure or arrival times changed more than three hours for domestic flights or six hours for international flights, as long as any leg of that flight was in the US. A significant change could also include the addition of extra stops, a downgrade to a lower class of service, changes in departure or arrival airports, or swaps to planes that are less accommodating to those with a disability.

“Promptly” means refunds have to arrive within seven business days if paid by credit card or within 20 calendar days for other payment methods. Airlines can’t issue the refund by offering travel vouchers or other types of credits unless the passenger specifically requests that. The refunds can’t require customers to opt in for them; they have to trigger automatically.

In a call with WIRED, a DOT spokesperson said that one important thing for travelers to understand is that a customer can walk away from a delayed flight and get a refund if it fits the criteria, then book another flight with the same airline or try a different airline. But if the customer accepts an alternate flight to continue their trip or other type of rebooking from the airline, they are no longer entitled to that refund.

One bone of contention has been whether airlines are properly informing customers of their right to these refunds. Under the new rules, the airlines have to proactively inform customers of their right to a refund instead of steering them to vouchers or other offers first.

If a customer cancels their flight due to a government or doctor restriction because they have a communicable disease, the airline doesn’t have to provide a cash or credit refund; it can offer travel vouchers or credits that are transferable and valid for at least five years.

How Do the New Baggage and Service-Fee Rules Work?

If you paid a baggage fee and your cargo was mishandled and didn’t get to you within 12 hours of your gate arrival, the airline has to refund that bag fee. The rule for international flights stretches that deadline to between 15 and 30 hours, depending on the duration of the flight.

If you paid for extra services on a flight such as Wi-Fi, an upgraded seat, or an entertainment option and you didn’t receive what you paid for or it simply didn’t work, that triggers a refund from the airline.

What’s Next?

Additional rules that the DOT is hoping to enact early next year include outlawing fees for family seating, requiring airlines to offer compensation plus meals and hotel stays for lengthy flight delays, and a rule that would expand the rights of passengers who use wheelchairs.

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November 8, 2024
How to Use a VPN to Watch to Netflix When You Travel Overseas

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This is the point where it becomes obvious how a VPN client makes life easier. There are really only two steps to follow. The first one is to select the server. On an iPhone using ExpressVPN, there’s a prompt for Current Location. I selected that and picked the United States, then Chicago. I then clicked the big red Connect button and watched it turn green. That means I was connected to the Chicago server and was ready to watch a Netflix show. Every VPN app works about the same: Select the country and city, then click the big connect button.

In my case, once I was connected to that Chicago server, I could then go to Netflix.com to watch Stranger Things without any problems. It also works with Netflix’s apps on your smartphone or your tablet, as long as your VPN app is also running on that device.

In case you are wondering, this is perfectly legal. As long as you are using your own paid account, a VPN merely allows you to access a streaming service from remote places.

Troubleshooting

A VPN client is not always perfect. There may be times when you select a server in another country and you still can’t connect or can’t watch a Netflix show.

I was in a slight panic once when I wanted to watch the season four finale of Stranger Things. No spoilers here, but let’s just say I knew there would be an epic battle. I used ExpressVPN while I was in that small town in Austria on vacation, and while it normally all worked fine, on a Sunday afternoon, the server I wanted to use in Chicago was just not cooperating. I chatted with the online support, which was available right within the iOS app on my iPhone, and the tech representative suggested using a server in New York City instead. That solved my problem.

What happens on occasion is that the server might be overloaded with too many connections, or it might be down for maintenance, but selecting a different server solves that issue. You can even do a quick Google search like “which VPN server works best in the United States for Netflix” and check Reddit forums and other sites for help. Apparently, a lot of people know you can connect to a VPN when you travel, and they might even be hooked on the same shows. Also, Netflix can detect when there are too many people using the service through one VPN server. You’ll find you have to select a different one in that case (e.g., Netflix has blocked the server).

Also, a few caveats: I used the full, ad-free, 4K version of Netflix. The ad-supported version might not work correctly over a VPN when you travel overseas. The VPN workaround may also not work if you’re trying to stream a live event on Netflix. There may also be restrictions on which VPN clients you can use in countries like Russia and China.

Netflix is also more likely to block VPN access when you use the mobile app. If you are using your phone or tablet, it’s better to use Netflix.com in your browser and make sure your browser is set to “desktop” mode. With desktop mode on, Netflix won’t detect that you’re on a mobile device and redirect you to the mobile app.

The good news is that a VPN app tends to work smoothly most of the time. I finally did watch that final epic battle in Stranger Things, and I kept up on BBC reports as well using the BBC One website. I never missed a show and, truth be told, that final battle was amazing.

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November 7, 2024
‘Dark Tourism’ Appeals to Travelers Captivated by Death

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During the month of October, many folks get into the spirit of Halloween by putting themselves in scary situations, like going to see a horror movie or visiting a haunted house. However, some travelers seek that feeling all year round by engaging in “dark tourism.”

Dark tourism is the act of going to places that are connected to the macabre, or historical sites where death and suffering took place. Places such as Chernobyl; Auschwitz; Salem, Massachusetts; and notorious crime scenes are some of the places connected to the darker narratives of history that travelers choose to visit. Aside from the historical interest, people visit these places to feel a connection with the victims and come to terms with the injustices they suffered.

Another part of the appeal is the physical charge one often gets from being in a state of unease. James Giordano, a neurobiology researcher at Georgetown University Medical Center, says getting frightened triggers a specific response in the human body.

“The idea of being somewhere that is evocative of fright or evocative of horror and the garish is exciting,” Giordano says. “Going to those places is like we are hanging out over the edge a little bit.” Think of when someone might look intently at a grisly auto accident on the side of the road, he says. Going to some of these spaces where tragedy has occurred may evoke similar feelings, but in different ways.

Fear, and the rush of adrenaline that comes with it, is present. So is a capacity to relate in some ways to the lessons of history that one can glean from visiting a site of historical terror. But another key element is also present: safety. People are expecting to be scared, but they also know they’ll be safe the whole time. As Giordano puts it, the allure of dark tourism is about getting “all of the rush but none of the reality.”

More Than Just Witchcraft

A museum in the tiny Swiss town of Ennenda commemorates the last person to be executed for practicing witchcraft in Europe. Visitors can learn about the historic site and even see the sword used to behead the impoverished accused woman, Anna Göldi, who was killed in 1782. Nicole Billeter, one of the curators of The Anna Göldi Museum, says the museum and its presentation are meant to educate visitors about incidents that happened hundreds of years ago in a way that counters the historical misinterpretations of witchcraft from the 19th century.

“There are so many false images around witchcraft which are starting from the 19th century,” Billeter says. “Everyone has this historical picture of [what people who are condemned for witchcraft did] which is really historically false. We want to correct it.”

Anna Göldi’s history is discussed in school in Switzerland, Billeter says, and so local tourists come seeking a connection to history. “In Switzerland, we have all kinds of young people,” she says. “I was astonished that teenagers are coming.”

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October 31, 2024
9 Best Toiletry Bags, Tested and Reviewed (2024)

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There were multiple great bags we tried whose features or designs just didn’t add up to a place in the top spots above. However, everyone has something different they’re looking for in a toiletry bag, so while not perfect for us, some of these options may still be perfect for you.

State Bags Benson Toiletry Kit for $68: This is a solid, simple bag with three mesh pouches and a snap-in/snap-out plastic envelope that could theoretically hold something messy like a toothbrush or bar of soap. The navy version I tested had a coated polyester wipe-clean exterior and interior made from recycled bottles, and I liked that it had the option to hang. However, the organization was more rudimentary than similar-category bags we tested, and it was missing some of the thoughtful details featured on other bags in the same price range, like a quick-access pouch on the back and a larger hook with a rubber tip to prevent slipping. (This bag’s thick, small plastic hook wasn’t even wide enough to hang on a towel rack.)

July Hanging Toiletry Bag for $85: I own and love July’s carry-on suitcase, so I was excited to try the brand’s popular hanging toiletry bag. It’s a great design with a zippered pouch on the back, plus a body that zips flat to reveal PVC and pouch zip compartments and a large, rubber-tipped metal hook that tucks away. It looks well-made and stylish with leather trim and gunmetal hardware, but my husband took it on a business trip and found that its pockets are actually quite small, confirming a worry I had when I tested it in my bathroom at home. It wouldn’t be an issue if the bag itself were small, but it took up a full quarter of the carry-on.

Fjallraven Kanken Toiletry Bag for $55: I love this thing, which makes me feel like a Red Cross nurse on the battlefields of World War II. It’s made from a proprietary Fjallraven fabric blend that combines organic cotton with recycled polyester, so it feels like fabric but is more waterproof and durable. It has a clamshell design with a sturdy interior plastic hook. My quart bag of bottles goes into the enormous lower zip compartment, my toothbrush and deodorant in the top compartment, and there’s mesh pockets and MOLLE webbing so that your tiny things are easily visible. However, its dimensions are very large, so this might not be for you if you’re a minimalist with just a toothbrush and a comb. —Adrienne So

Calpak Clear Cosmetics Case for $85: Constructed largely of water-resistant, wipe-clean PVC, this clear cosmetic case (I tested the medium size) zips all the way around and folds flat to reveal two zippered compartments and one smaller zippered mesh bag. It also looks like a cute little purse with its 16 trendy color options, dual handles, and metal bottom studs. However, contents aren’t as easy to access as other cosmetic cases that just open from the top—you have to lay the Calpak flat to open both sides, which requires a 16-by-10-inch footprint, and the all-clear construction isn’t very discreet.

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October 28, 2024