Low Fare Africa

Coming soon: Turn your smartphone into a hotel room key
Posted by: Sean O’Neill, Thursday, May 27, 2010, 1:08 PM

A new application will let travelers use their iPhones and other smartphones as room keys at Holiday Inns.
The Open Ways app makes it possible for guests to skip the front desk and go straight to their room, says a scoop by USA Today’s Hotel Check-In blog.
It’ll work like this: After you book a room, the hotel chain will zap an encrypted, unique audio code to your phone. You’ll get a text message, too, telling you what room you’ve been assigned to. Once at the door, click the app on your phone, and a signal will unlock your room’s door. A similar technology is already used as the key for rent-by-the-hour Zipcars.

The technology is still being tested in parts of Chicago and Houston and is not yet widely available.
Meanwhile, Apple recently filed for a patent for iTravel, a new app that will allow travelers to use paperless ticketing at airports, car rentals, and concerts.

One trick Apple would like to pull off is display on an iPhone’s screen a barcode-like graphic. Once you make reservations for your trip, airlines, hotels, and other companies can send you a code by e-mail or text message. You can have this code scanned by attendants at airport gates, concert turnstiles, or other shops. Already, Starbucks now lets you pay for your coffee via an iPhone app tied to the Starbucks debit card.

Apple’s other trick may be to add a “near-field communication chip” to each phone, which would make it easier and more common to use an iPhone as a hotel room key.
Do you like the idea of skipping the front desk by using your cell phone as a room key? Or does this new technology sound like it’ll create new problems?

Read the full article at Budget Travel

Botswana is coming to the small screen with the premiere of HBO’s newest series, The No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency coming up on Sunday, March 29th at 8PM.

Set and filmed in Botswana, the show follows the exploits of Precious Ramotswe, Botswana’s first female detective. She proves that with the right dose of confidence and determination, anything is possible. From the moment Precious opens the No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency in the capital city of Gabarone, she demonstrates the qualities of a true No. 1. Lady – confidence, independence, leadership, compassion, optimism, determination and inspiration.

Now you can join in the celebration by participating in HBO’s No. 1 Ladies’ contest! Nominate your “Number 1 Lady,” the woman who inspires and influences you with those same qualities, and you may be one of five winners chosen to receive an inspirational safari trip for two to Botswana, including a tour of HBO’s filming locations in Gaborone. Sign up for this contest, furnished by Botswana Tourism, at www.mynumberonelady.com

April 3 marks the return of the Cape Town International Jazz Festival, now celebrating its 10th anniversary. Since its inception in 2000, this festival has grown steadily in popularity, drawing over 30,000 people each year and in 2008 Melodytrip.com ranked it the 4th best jazz festival on the planet as well as #30 on its list of the top 100 festivals in the world.

This year’s event is set to feature performances by an array of international and local artists including Al Foster, Arturo Liedo, Dianne Reeves, Emily Bruce and many more. The festival also hosts a variety of musical and training workshops open to the public, providing an even more enriched experience.

So if you’re a music lover looking to plan a trip around a special event, the Cape Town International Jazz Festival provides the perfect opportunity to do so. Read more about the event at their official website, http://www.capetownjazzfest.com/