Shopping in the USA at Christmas

With Christmas only a few weeks away and with the Great British Pound strong against the US dollar it makes sense to head out across the pond to start the Christmas shopping. However, be careful – you can also find yourself paying a hefty price if you have to use your smartphone, tablet or lap top to research best deals, store locations and restaurants using mobile data – it may mean you end up being charged up to $10.00 per megabyte if you’re not using a wifi hotspot.
Here are some travel tips to help your festive shopping trip run on budget;

• Ask your UK network to see if there is a bolt on deal for mobile data they can offer for mobile data in the USA
• Think about buying a pay-as-you-go USA data SIM card complete with a pre-paid data bundle for the duration of your trip
• Switch off mobile data on your smartphone or device and try to limit data usage to wifi hotspots in cafes, bars, hotels and restaurants.
• Do your research from your hotel the night before but check you make sure the wifi connection isn’t a hidden charge on your bill or limited to a small amount of data.

However, you can also opt to shut down your devices, get a street map at the hotel concierge and have a go at asking for advice or directions – it won’t hurt to get back to basics and ask a member of the NYPD for directions.