Laptop and Mobile Phone in the Deep South

[Lifemagician]

Hi, and Welcome to the Great American RoadTrip Forum.

First the technology. Your laptop will be fine, and wifi is so widely available in the US, you will find it almost everywhere. Most accommodation (of all types) has wifi, and often free. Many establishments, such as Starbucks have free wifi, and you can even find it at rest areas along some of the interstates. So no worries there. The phone is another matter, and not likely to work. But hey!! get onto Skype and you will be able to call anywhere. Otherwise you can buy one of the pay as you go phones. Bringing your phone and getting a sim card is not likely to work, as sim cards are rarely used in the US.

Thinking of planning tools, etc. for your trip, make sure you bring your UK automobile club membership with you. It will entitle you to tourism information at all AAA offices, as well as free maps and accommodation guides. It will make the world of difference having good paper maps with you. You cannot be guaranteed to have wifi in every place, and relying solely on a gps is not recommended. Furthermore, when you see a sign which offers discounts for AAA members, tell them you are a member of an automobile club which has a reciprocal arrangements with AAA. Some will give you the discount, some won't. But hey! it 's always worth asking.

As for booking accommodation. Booking before you come is no guarantee that it will be cheaper. There are booklets which you can pick up along the way, at travel plazas, welcome centres and rest areas, etc. (as well as on the internet) with discount coupons for accommodation. These are mostly for walk-ins. It all depends on how comfortable you are with not booking beforehand. Alternatively you might like to check out the reservations tab on the green bar above, where there are some good deals to be had.

You will love this trip. And yes, I too was retired before I ever took my first road trip. It was daunting, but now, almost 100000 miles later, I am planning my fifth trip. So plan on future trips, as you will find it becomes addictive.

Enjoy the planning.

Lifey