A PBX system in a hotel may provide more power than standard phone lines which could damage your modem. You can get testers and adapters at some of the above sites to avoid problems.

Advice on using a laptop abroad at either www.roadnews.com/ and kropla.com/phones.htm.
Computers and Phone Resources and tips at Independent Traveler.com

Internet Access
Several of the larger U.S. Internet providers have access numbers that work overseas, but they aren't cheap. Surcharges for America Online's international access vary from $3.95 per hour in Japan and the United Kingdom to $24 per hour in Uganda. Earthlink/Mindspring offers nearly 2,400 local numbers in 65 countries, with a surcharge that ranges from 10 to 15 cents a minute, or $6 to $9 per hour.

Get Access Telephone Numbers for: EarthLink and AOL

Cybercafes You can easily locate cybercafes worldwide by using the Cybercafe Search Engine at cybercaptive.com, which says its database contains more than 4,600 verified locations in 141 countries. When we tried it, we found ten locations in New Delhi, one of which offered web surfing for less than $2 per hour.

You can access e-mail at a cybercafe by using a web-based e-mail account.It's best to set up several such accounts in case one proves difficult to access abroad.

Final cautions. You may have to adjust to unfamiliar conditions in a foreign land, such as screen displays and keyboards that are different from those in the U.S.
You may want to print out a screen dump of the menus for commom browsers such as Internet Explorer and Netscape, because you may get a version of the browser in a foreign language and knowing the positions of the menu items will save you having to translate them.

When you're in another country, avoid using unfamiliar computers to access a bank or brokerage account, or to make a credit-card purchase. You have no guarantee your personal data are secure.

Accesories
Ultra Mini Optical Mouse with retractable cord - Targus - $20
iGo Juice 70 power adapter - Mobility Electronics - $160 with 2 adaptor cables.
Earthmate GPS receiver (USB) - DeLorme - $130
X's-drive II combination card reader / Hard drive - Vosonic - $80 (w/o HD)
WiFi Finder - Kensington - $40
Deskjet 450cbi compact ink jet printer - HP - $350

Return to Travel.