I’ve come a long way since my first jaunt abroad (4 months with no phone!). While it was liberating to spend 4 months without a phone attached to my hand, it just isn’t realistic for me anymore. I’ve talked about how I use my iPhone abroad for free but on my last trip in Hong Kong I stumbled upon a really cool travel service.

Our hotel room in Hong Kong came with a smartphone! The device was provided by Handy and the phone was programmed with city guides, maps, restaurant recs… everything you need to make exploring on the go a cinch.

On this particular morning we rode the Star Ferry from Hong Kong Island to Kowloon. We were expecting rain but after an hour the sky still looked sunny, so we pulled out the Handy and checked the forecast. The rain would hold off until the afternoon! We had hoped to go biking and with a quick google search we got all the information we needed to make it happen: metro stops, bike rentals and path maps.

Having a smartphone with unlimited data made our week in Hong Kong so much easier, from finding restaurants to navigating their public transportation. While it didn’t replace my iPhone all together (a girl’s got to Instagram), it saved me from draining the battery on my phone and we didn’t need to worry about finding wifi. And at the end of our trip we easily cleared our user history before checking out.

Check to see if any hotels offer a similar service where you’re traveling. INSIDR.Paris recently unrolled a smartphone rental for Paris that includes tons of travel tips and guides for the city.

Know of any similar services? How do you stay connected when you travel?

*Photos by Anna Pineapple