An app to fetch all flight info

October 31, 2010|Currents, Kari Bodnarchuk, Globe Correspondent

A new app called FlightBoard turns your iPhone, iTouch, or iPad into an arrival and departure board for any airport in the world. Download the $3.99 application from iTunes, enter the name of an airport, and select “arrival’’ or “departure.’’ You get a real-time screen that offers such up-to-date information as gate numbers and flight status. You can have details of a particular flight sent to an e-mail account or posted on your Facebook or Twitter pages. FlightBoard, created by Mobiata, works with more than 4,000 airports and 1,400 airlines and is automatically updated every five minutes. www.mobiata.com

Hotel treats for the kids

Children get special treatment at all Affinia hotels in New York, Chicago, and Washington with the My Family Getaways deal through Dec. 31. Guests 12 and under receive a backpack stocked with a city-specific Frommer’s guide geared to kids, a deck of city adventure cards, a children’s digital camera with a carrying case, and a scrapbook with city-specific stickers. Add to that access to a chest that contains board games, family-oriented DVDs, arts and crafts kits, and children’s books. Nightly rates for all of Affinia’s New York hotels (there are five) start at $209, based on double occupancy, Chicago at $199, and Washington at $189. Affinia Gardens, a few blocks from Central Park, has patio suites and kitchenettes. 866-233-4642, www.affinia.com/myfamily

Adventures in Ecuador

Bike 12 1/2 miles into Cotopaxi National Park, and then post signs that tout leave-no-trace ethics and warn against illegal hunting. Or go ziplining through the canopy at Hacienda Santa Rita Ecological Reserve and help with trail maintenance. This five-day Ecuador trip, run by Montana-based Adventure Life, blends adventure experiences with volunteer conservation efforts. You start with a horseback ride among herds of wild horses to the foothills of Rumiñahui Volcano, led by guides who will tell you about the area and its medicinal plants. Then spend three nights at the Hacienda El Porvenir, around which you will plant trees as part of a reforestation initiative. Rates start at $930 per person. 800-344-6118, www.adventurelife.com

KARI BODNARCHUK