Memorial Day means the start of summer and that means the start of peak travel season in the US.
That's great!
Wait...is it?
That also means that everyone else has the same bright idea. The age old statistic about the increase of home burglaries during the summer months hasn't changed, and criminals keep their eyes open for families to take their week long escapes.
The good news is that technology has made it easier than ever to ensure a carefree escape while also keeping your property safe. Here's some ways how to help ensure a seamless summer vacation.
1. Organize your travel documents
When traveling, there's nothing worse than not being able to find your boarding pass, hotel or car reservation when you need them. Alto Mail is an app that helps keep confirmation emails, tickets and more organized in one place. Add all your mail accounts to the app and see everything in one place, including Gmail, Outlook, Yahoo!, AOL Mail, iCloud, and others. Beyond the typical inbox display, Alto Mail proactively scans your inbox automatically highlight important information so you can find what you need, when you need it.
See how it works below:
2. Secure your home while you're away
New home security systems allow you to check in on your home from your smartphone, no matter where you are in the world. I like Piper because there are no monthly fees for monitoring. Just buy the gear, plug and play. The system starts at $279 and you can control all functions of the camera from your smartphone...anywhere around the world.
3. Have a backup plan
It's happening more now where you did everything right, but your room, flight or car was overbooked. Now you get to the counter and there is nothing the hotel/airline/rental agency can do to help you (so they say). Luckily, apps like HotelTonight and Booking.com's Booking Now will let you book unsold hotel rooms at discounted rates the day of check-in.
4. Protect your ID while calling and shopping on- and offline
The new iOS app Sudo lets you protect and control who gets your personal information by creating an extension of your own identity. You can create a new, fully functioning phone number through the app that can send texts and calls - keeping your main phone number private, and also save you a bunch in international calling fees. You can also use the app to create a new email address, and soon Sudo will launch a "pay" feature that will allow purchases by generating a new card number through the app, adding an extra layer to your personal information.
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