How To Find WiFi On The Road In US And Canada
Mari
Living a full time mobile lifestyle and running my business from the road is one of the greatest pleasures–and greatest challenges–I’ve experienced to date!
By far, the biggest stumbling block is finding consistent high speed internet access. (The second biggest challenge is what Ty and I affectionately call our Mobile Marriage Bootcamp. Ha!)
Here’s a summary of how and where to find internet access on the road:
- Your own EVDO aircard (PLUS router for multiple computers).
- RV parks with no/low cost wifi.
- Hotels, motels, inns and other local businesses.
- Internet cafes.
- Restaurants.
- Satellite.
1. Your own EVDO aircard.
While in the contiguous States, so long as we’re in or near a reasonably sized town, I can easily get a signal for my EVDO aircard by Verizon. It’s a small gadget about the size of a cell phone with a USB plug that pops directly into my laptop for internet access on the go.
However, when the signal is weak and there’s only a couple of bars, the connection speed can be terribly slow. And, for someone like me who is constantly online, it can be a hair-tearing-out experience!!
We opted for a plan with Verizon that only covers the United States for $60 per month for 5Gb of data transfer. So far, 5Gb has been sufficient for both Ty and me though we can’t do any major uploading or downloading of music and video files. No biggee.
However, traveling through Canada proved a bit of a challenge - we had to be sure not to use the aircard and instead opt only for RV parks that provide wifi access. (See #2 below.)
On that note, I had a huge learning experience at a conference in Vancouver where I racked up a bill of $1,115! Fortunately Verizon were understanding. The *only* indication you’re on international roaming is a teeny black triangle (that is normally red).
Sprint also offers an EVDO aircard for $60/month or $99/month to include Canada. You have to sign a two year contracts for either Verizon or Sprint.
NOTE: if you buy your aircard directly from Verizon or Sprint, they try to sell you one aircard + plan per computer.
I’m SO glad I discovered 3Gstore.com [thanks to my experienced RVer buds at Escapees.com]. 3Gstore.com offer exemplary customer service as profiled in Seth Godin’s book, Meatball Sundae.
Through 3Gstore.com, I was able to purchase a Kyocera Router and plug in my aircard to literally create our own HOTSPOT!! We also purchased a small antenna that helps boost the signal.
The fab peeps at 3Gstore helped me with all the set up and configuration to make sure the connection is secured with a key. That way, wherever we go, no one else can tap into our signal.
I often use the aircard directly in my laptop while Ty is driving either in the motorhome or our car. We have an inverter for both vehicles which allows me to plug in and get electricity so as not to drain my laptop batteries! My office is *literally* mobile!!
2. RV parks with no/low cost wifi.
To augment our own aircard and hotspot access, we frequently seek RV parks that offer free wifi access. More and more parks are including wifi in the campground rate. Average nightly rates are $25 which typically includes hookups, access to restrooms, hot showers, laundry room, convenience store and other features like pools, spas and more. The park wifi is typically quite a bit faster than we can get with our aircard.
3. Hotels, motels, inns and other local businesses.
When we’re passing through towns and have a quick pit stop, I’ll often check if I can pick up any signals from nearby hotels, motels, inns, internet cafes, gas stations, etc. One caveat - if you can get online, these connections are not secure. Be careful of doing any online banking or purchases, for example.
4. Internet cafes.
These are my fave as I get to enjoy a good cup of Americano and a pastry while getting some high-speed work done! Plus, I get to have a change of environment, listen to great music (usually), and connect with some locals.
5. Restaurants.
Sometimes we’ll go to a restaurant or cafe for a meal and if they offer a secured connection, the manager will gladly give us the password knowing we’re just passing through.
6. Satellite.
An alternative internet access source for RVers is satellite dish. We’ve seen some fellow RVers fussing with the set up of their dish and you can’t get connection while your vehicle is actually moving. You need to be parked up with a view of the southern sky. We’re often in treed parks, so that’d be tricky.
With the EVDO aircard and router system, we’re up and running in no time whether mobile or stationary. Satellite is quite a bit pricier than the EVDO aircard system too. Check out this Ground Control Mobile Satellite Internet System (MSS).
I hope this list helps you out whether you’re an RVer or just do a lot of business traveling! I’d love to hear your experience and ideas for getting even faster and more reliable internet access on the road! Please add your comments below:
Posted on: Sunday, September 7, 2008 at 2:07 pm 
Culture, Internet Business, Motorhome Tips, Personal Stories, Report from the Road, Travel Tips. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed.
You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
Mari,
You’re right that finding a good Internet signal is one of the biggest challenges of traveling. I’ve used all methods and have found, that even now, a mixture is needed.
When we were in Big Bend National Park we had a landline because the Aircard (old one) did not work nor did our cell phones. That was painfully slow- if you could get on. We bought a satellite Internet dish. For the most part we were very happy with it though found many campgrounds back east where we could not get a signal for the trees. Then we got totally frustrated with the slowness of the satellite signal and customer service was worse than awful. We switched to a Verizon Aircard.
The Aircard has worked pretty well but we’ve been in places where we did not get a signal (and got one in others where we were very surprised). In those cases, we use a coffee shop or do “war driving” and drive around until we get a signal- perhaps at a motel, public building or other business. And I still have an Earthlink account so even occasionally use a landline. My sister’s house in L.A., for example, is in one of those odd areas that does not get a Verizon signal of any kind.
Good idea to ask at a restaurant with a secured connection. I’ve never tried that.
Enjoy Alaska! It is stunning.
Jaimie
Jaimie Hall Bruzenak’s last blog post.. Another unique RV - the Star Streak II
September 8th, 2008 at 3:45 amHi Mari,
Thanks for this great info. Larry and I can’t wait til we get back on the road some day! Now that I am an official internet worker bee, it is great to know I can stay connected where ever I am.
I am hoping I can get on line in an internet cafe in Italy so I can check in now and then. Hard to think I can leave my “inter-friends” for two weeks!
Travel safe and I love the pix of your home!
Fondly,
September 8th, 2008 at 5:12 amCatherine
Hey Mari!
Your posts are always filled to the rim with excellent information. And this one proves it.
Geez…I can’t wait to be on the road and go lookin’ for WiFi access. You give me goose bumps just dreamin’ about it!
Love you…hugs always,
September 8th, 2008 at 11:26 amMudd a.k.a. Stuck-in-Montréal-Oza
xoxo
You guys, your life is awesome!!! How incredible. Really! Reading about your adventures gets me even more excited for our jump into the nomadic lifestyle.
My husband (Justin) and I leave on September 30th to backpack to various countries around the world for a year or so.
As we have been planning for our adventure we have been updating a blog. http://www.nomadbackpackers.com We would love to have other opinions, ideas, encouragement, advice, helpful tips, and more left as comments.
Thank you for being an inspiration to others! Follow your dreams and live!
Thanks,
Natalie
Natalie’s last blog post.. Our first mistake
September 12th, 2008 at 6:00 amMari, this is exciting! My wife and I will be buying a motor home next year, now that I am a full-time internet entrepreneur. We’ve Gotta have internet on the road. We will be able to travel around to visit our 3 sets of grandchildren!
We all live in 4 different time zones. Cool!
thanks, Grandpa Shayne
September 18th, 2008 at 1:20 pmThanks for the awesome post! We are looking forward to traveling fulltime and as much as I like not having to work, I would like some spending money for those expensive Internet Cafe coffees! We found a great opportunity to sell WiFi Internet (refer parks that don’t have it) to WiFiRV.com. We have stayed in many of the parks that offer their service and have never had a problem. We were on their site and saw they pay for these referrals which is awesome and helps ease the cost of gas as well.
Keep posting your awesome posts and photos - we’ll see you on the road!
September 28th, 2008 at 7:38 pmI forgot to add - here is a directory of parks with WiFi hotspots! http://www.wifirv.com/hotspots/index.php
Hope this helps to get you connected more on the road!
September 28th, 2008 at 7:40 pmVery interesting, clearly shows your knowledge. Thanks for sharing!
October 12th, 2008 at 8:18 am[...] Source. [...]
October 29th, 2008 at 7:04 amHi Mari
Our satellite system was around $600, but I have the advantage of being married to an Uebergeek.
It is really not too difficult to set up once you get the hang of it, but I don’t think I’d attempt it without Don. I’m with you on the connectivity, though. We had an extended trip this summer, not planned that way, and I was online for on average an hour a day. Many offline things got done but oh, it was frustrating. 
If you are ever in Weaverville, California, there is wi-fi that can be picked up from the parking lot of Tops Supermarket, but the Starbucks there has power sockets and doesn’t chase you out. There is also wi-fi at Mamma Llama coffee shop. Also, we have parked outside public libraries before now, and some of the CA state parks have limited-range wi-fi too.
Have fun!
Linda
Linda’s last blog post.. Experimenting with video
November 19th, 2008 at 10:52 pmMari:
For years I used a regular aircard in my laptop when on the road. Then early last year, in preparation for my transition to living and working (as a VA) fulltime from my RV, I got a USB EVDO — also through 3Gstore.com. Mine is through Sprint and it’s every bit as fast as cable internet was at the condo in San Diego. One thing that was pointed out to me, which saved me money in the long run, was to get my card through my business as Sprint and Verizon both recently raised their prices based on transfer allowances. Because my Sprint card is through my business, I don’t have that limitation (at least not at present).
It is wonderfully freeing to be able to “connect” from anywhere and allows me to serve my clients while my 2 Giant Schnauzers, 2 parrots and I enjoy a changing view from our windows. I spent nearly 10 years planning this transition and the internet connectability issue was big when I started looking at it. Things have changed quickly in that regard.
Love your blog — full of great information! Wishing you and yours a wonderful holiday season.
December 25th, 2008 at 9:07 am