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Free WIFI in Cities, AirportsAccess Wireless Internet Hot Spots Across the USAFind free wireless hot spots in urban downtowns, in airports and along the highways in North America.
Cities, airports and even truck stops are airing free WIFI connections for anyone with a wireless Internet device. This is an excellent development for the business traveler. CitiesImagine opening your laptop to check your email at any sidewalk cafe, bus stop, or park bench downtown, at any city in the world. Towns like Bellevue, Washington, are instigating pilot projects so anyone outdoors will be able to connect to free Internet service. The Bellevue "Hot Zone" connects the central business district - from City Hall, to the Downtown Park and the Bellevue Square - in an expanding network. The project currently covers 150 acres along the Pedestrian Corridor, to 112th Ave NE on the eastern end, 100th Ave NE on the westside, NE 4th to the south and NE 8th to the north. This expands on the 2006 Bellevue public WIFI zone. The network is called BELLWIFI. More urban, outdoor, public Internet free zones are offered in Seattle, Portland, Atlanta, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Philadelphia, Spokane, Hermosa Beach, Riverside, and Austin. This is not intended as an exhaustive list. These things change all the time, so do your research before traveling. Rest Areas, Truck StopsMore rest areas and even some large truck stops are getting into the wireless Internet act. Now road travelers can fuel up, get some food and a toilet break, and then relax with their laptops for some free WIFI action. Keep on eye out for billboards mentioning free WIFI when you drive, and plan to patronize those stations. Alternative bets for free Internet access include most public libraries, Office Depots, EZ Lube oil change-type places, RV parks and campgrounds, fast food restaurants, certain hotels (like Holiday Inn Express and Best Western) and many local (nonchain) coffeeshops. Panera Bread is a reliable option. These hot spots may not be as convenient to access from the highway as a rest stop, but worth investigating if you are in dire need of email updates from the road. AirportsMost airports have wireless connections - the best airports have their WIFI free. Airports like Seatac (Seattle), Long Beach in California, Phoenix Sky Harbor (Arizona) and North Las Vegas all offer free WIFI to make your wait times more productive. Or at least more enjoyable (there is always YouTube for wasting time). You do have to check before you log on, however. USA Today reports "more than 40 airports (and the list is growing fast!) across the country have partnered with Wayport, T-Mobile, Concourse Communications and others companies to offer Wi-Fi services for $6.95 to $9.95 per day." There are options to buy monthly and annual subscriptions of course. All of these fees add up. How to Find the Free WIFIA lot of websites offer listings of free wireless hotspots...many of these sites are rarely updated, so don't rely on this exclusively for your travel information. Consider such sites as a starting point in your search, keeping in mind there are hundreds of new, public WIFI hot spots added around the world every day. Other ways to find free service connections:
Try to patronize businesses offering free WIFI and thank them for the service. A little appreciation goes a long way towards ensuring that network coverage remains free into the future. With proper planning and a good cell phone business travelers can drive from coast to coast and never miss of day of email, stock market tips or blog posts from their favorite business travel web writers.
The copyright of the article Free WIFI in Cities, Airports in Business Travel Tips is owned by Dan Florio. Permission to republish Free WIFI in Cities, Airports in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.
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