How to get free internet access anywhere you travel and how to save money on internet access at home

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When I moved to my new apartment here in Atlanta, I was glad that my complex had free wifi in the clubhouse and pool area. But it sucked that whenever I got into my room, the connection was gone. Because of my newfound hobby of blogging about personal finance, I actually invested in cable internet access at home. Basically in the current market situation, there are only a few options that people have for internet access at home.

• Dial UP- which for virtually everyone is not an option. Say goodbye to NetZero
• DSL - currently in order to get DSL, you need a phone line. This sucks for people like you and I who only use their cell phones for all their phone calls. When you don’t need a landline and are required to have one, the cost of DSL gets really expensive. To have a landline averages from 13-20 dollars depending on where you live. DSL is then priced anywhere from 20-45 dollars depending on how fast you want your connection. Prices can go north of 50 dollars a month really fast.
  • Bell south DSL - currently they have 19.95 special for their slowest speed which is not much better than dial up I think. The speeds vary from slow to fast and the fastest one cost around 40 dollars a month + a basic land line.
  • Techdirt writes an excellent post. Georgia says DSL shouldn’t require phone service. check you laws because I think this is something that will happen if it hasn’t happened yet.
  • Punny money talks about dry loop DSL which is DSL without a land line- check it out.
• Cable internet- again, the situation here is that if you want cable internet, you need to have cable hooked up. I didn’t want cable and just internet but I needed to get cable so i opted for “basic cable” meaning that I get the channels that I would have gotten with a good antenna for about 18 dollars a month. Most of the time, your run of the mill cable internet connection is faster than your DSL connection. The problem also lies with when you have Satellite television. This means that you don’t have any cable so you are pretty much screwed in this situation especially if you use a cell phone.
  • Staples 105 dollar rebate for 6 months of cable internet at 19.95 - i’m not sure if it works for everyplace but i’m taking advantage of this offer and so far so good. You need to be a cable subscriber so it should cost around 35 dollars a month.
• Wireless ISP= This is what you are pretty much left with if you tend to be a frequent traveler and need internet access all the time on the road. This is also expensive running north of 5o dollars a month and the connection is not that fast too. In addition, if you continue to read this article, you will see that you honestly do not need to have this because there are many places with free internet when you are outside your home.

When you are outside of your home and need internet access there are many places that you don’t need to pay to get internet access. Don’t waste your money at starbucks because they have this thing called T-mobile internet access that costs a fortune to the tune of 10 dollars a session online. Here is a nonexhaustive list of places that you can go for free access. Check out wififreespot for a more comprehensive list.

• You neighborhood public library - get a library card and you are set to go.
• McDonalds- eat your big mac and surf
• Apple store
• Panera Bread
• Bruegger’s Bagels
• Cosi Coffee and Sandwiches
• Caribou coffee
• CompUSA
• Office Depot
• Port City Java
• Sapp Bros Truck Stops
• Staples
• Krystal restaurants
• Community Coffee
• PJ’s Coffee

The major airports with free wifi access

• Phoenix sky harbor
• Sacramento International
• Colorado Springs
• Hartsfield Jackson Atlanta Concourse E
• Ft. Lauderdale
• Gainesville regional
• Jacksonville airport
• orlando international
• Kansas City international
• JFK at terminal 6
• Portland international

Hotels with Free internet - this is a big deal for interviewees traveling

• Best Western
• majority of Clarion Hotels, Comfort Inn and other Choice Hotel brands
• Country Inn and Suites
• Four Points Sheraton
• Hampton Inn- not all of them
• Hilton Garden Inn- not all of them
• Holiday Inn Express - not all
• Holiday Inn - not all
• Homewood Suites by Hilton
• La Quinta Inns
• Marriott’s Courtyard, Residence Inn, Spring Hill Suites, Fairfield Inn, Towne place suites - many have but check
• Quality Inn- not all
• Staybridge - not all
• Super 8 - not all
• Wingate Inns
• Extended Stay America- flat rate of 4.99 per stay.

Another big thing that is picking up nationwide is Fon.com which is a growing community of free internet providers. I am also a member and am going to be providing some free bandwidth for my neighbors. Its great if you live close to starbucks and people need wireless access but don’t want to pay 10 dollars to the evil conglomerate. The idea is that everyone will be willing to share their access so that where ever you go there will be someone like you who will do the same. Its secure and you decide how much bandwidth to share. Check it out.

if you have any other places that you know of, I would love to hear them

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