Data Usage - Tips and Tricks when Travelling

There’s nothing worse than coming back from a holiday and seeing that you’ve not only completely blown through your data, but that you’re also slapped with a hefty phone bill.

It’s an unfortunate fact that data roaming can be mind-numbingly expensive - even if you’re just making a quick phone call back home. 

Fortunately, we’ve got some tips and tricks that can help you maximise your data while you’re on the go.

1. Turn off apps you are not using
When you’re using your phone, it’s normal to cycle through various apps - whether that be Instagram, Snapchat, TikTok and more.

While that might be fine on a normal day-to-day basis, these apps can consume a good amount of data when you’re travelling.

Many of these apps consume a good amount of data in the background as they’re not only refreshing content but there’s also constant backing up and updating of the app. 

To prevent these apps from consuming all of your data, you can restrict background data for the apps that you’ve got on your phone. The best part is that even by doing so, your apps will still work perfectly - it might just take a couple more seconds to load. 

Other than restricting background data, you can also go ahead and turn off auto updates from the App Store or Play Store to minimise data use - just remember not to turn off updates altogether as bug fixes and the like are important!

While you may also be tempted to back up those photos and videos that you’ve taken during your trip, it can wait. Instead of backing them right away and using all of that data, you can set these file backups to only be done via Wi-Fi.

2. Disconnect and head offline 
In this digitally connected world, the idea of going offline can sound like a nightmare - especially when you’re travelling and may want to post those videos and photos that you’re capturing.

Disconnecting for a while, however, will not only help with saving data, but it’ll also allow you to focus on what’s happening around you - for just that little bit.

If you’re not keen on disconnecting altogether, there are a plethora of travel apps (not social media though) that you can still use while offline. These apps can range from anything from local guides to currency converters, itinerary planning and more.

A handy tip is to go ahead and sync these apps with the latest information via Wi-Fi before you head out. While you’re doing that, you can also check and see if these apps have an offline mode.

Examples of some apps that you can consider using include:

Here WeGo, a web mapping and navigation service that allows you to download maps beforehand. Even when you’re not connected to Wi-Fi, you’ll still get all of the directions you need, whether that be for driving, cycling, walking and more.

XE Currency, an app that that allows you to make currency conversions quickly and easily.

TripAdvisor, an app that will allow you to download reviews, maps and saved locations for popular cities around the world.

If you want to listen to your favourite songs while you’re travelling, you can also go ahead and download songs and podcasts to Spotify via Wi-Fi and listen to it while you’re travelling. 

3. Use web browsers that’ll help you save data 
Interestingly, not all web browsers are created equal and some can actually consume more data than others. Google Chrome and Opera Mini for example, are both great browsers that can compress data. 

With Opera, it uses its own servers to compress web pages thus helping to reduce data consumption by up to 90%. In addition, it also comes with a built-in ad blocker, which is always a handy feature to have.

With Google Chrome’s data saver feature, you can reduce data consumption by up to 50%. It can also help with compressing text and images, thus boosting the speed and lowering roaming costs.

What’s great about both browsers is the fact that it also comes with a nifty dashboard so you’re able to monitor your data usage with ease. 

4.Turn off data roaming
When we’re travelling, it’s normal to switch off and sometimes forget that we’ve got data roaming on when we don’t actually need it. Where possible, either use your Airplane Mode or go ahead and disable Cellular Data.

Minimising data usage

Even though data roaming might have gotten more affordable in recent years, using too much of it can still be relatively costly - especially if you’re not careful. While you’re travelling, the tips and tricks mentioned above can definitely help with saving a considerable amount of data.

The most important thing to remember is that you’re travelling, so take the time to soak in the sights and enjoy your surroundings!