Airport Wi-Fi

How to find free Wi-Fi at airports

Airports, free Wi-Fi, Wi-Fi, ,

San Diego Airport new seats

If your business takes you to or through a few airports on a regular basis you already know if the Wi-Fi is free (and the location of the power outlets and best coffee).

But it’s often less than straightforward to jump online if you start or end your trip in an unfamiliar airport.

Many airports proudly promote their free Wi-Fi on concourse signs, on their websites and whenever someone in the airport opens a browser.

“As airlines consolidate and airports compete for traffic and air service, every little amenity helps to lure flyers, and free Wi-Fi is a great perk to keep consumers happy while they wait for the flights,” said Airfarewatchdog President George Hobica.

But, citing economic factors and long-running contracts, many airports still charge for Wi-Fi or offer just a few minutes of free access. Some airports, including O’Hare and Midway in Chicago, allow travelers to visit some tourism and shopping websites for free, but if you want to check email or conduct business, it will cost you. Still others are moving to a hybrid plan offering limited Wi-Fi for free but more robust service for a fee.

“A typical airline passenger carries two Internet-enabled devices such as a laptop and smartphone, or a smartphone and tablet,” said Henry Harteveldt, a travel industry analyst and strategist with Hudson Crossing. And because many of these devices are bandwidth hogs, “we’re seeing some airports charge extra for high-bandwidth activities such as audio and video downloads.”

You can poke around an airport’s website for the status of the Wi-Fi offered, but there are a few other ways to determine if an airport offers free or fee-based Wi-Fi.

Jaunted.com has an airport Wi-Fi map that draws Wi-Fi status information from the on-the-ground experiences of its writers and tips from travelers who use the map and send reports on where they’ve successfully accessed complimentary airport Wi-Fi.

“The main challenge right now is noting what networks are truly free and unlimited (examples: Hong Kong, JFK’s Terminal 5) and which are ad-supported, limited-time connections, as the latter is becoming more common, but not less confusing,” said Jaunted’s managing editor Cynthia Drescher.

The team at Airfarewatchdog just published its own downloadable airport Wi-Fi chart offering a snapshot of the Wi-Fi offered at many popular U.S. and international airports. But the chart is already out of date.

Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport, for example, is listed as “pricing unavailable,” but travelers currently get 30 free minutes of free Wi-Fi per device. In September the airport will switch providers (from Boingo to AWG) and begin offering free, faster Wi-Fi. (An advertisement will be shown every 45 minutes and paid higher-speed Wi-Fi will also be available.)

The Airfarewatchdog chart also doesn’t include the fact that in Houston, both George Bush Intercontinental Airport and William P. Hobby Airport offer 45 minutes of complimentary Wi-Fi to passengers. According to airport spokesperson Darian Ward, the goal is to begin rolling out completely free Wi-Fi in some terminals by the end of the year.

If you’re at an airport with a fee for Wi-Fi and you are unwilling to enter your credit card information, some travelers have had luck getting passwords for the Wi-Fi signal in airline lounges and cafes by using a free mobile phone app or search engine to look on sites such as Faceboook, Foursquare or Twitter for passwords being shared by other travelers.

(But you didn’t hear that here.)

My story about Where to find free Wi-Fi at airports first appeared on the CNBC Road Warrior blog.

Wi-Fi updates for O’Hare, Midway & Miami airports

Wi-Fi, , ,

Bucking a very definite trend, Chicago’s O’Hare and Midway airports, as well as Miami International Airport still charge for Wi-Fi access that would allow you to check email and take care of other business.

But these airports all now offer travelers free access to a wide variety of other on-line destinations.

At Miami International Airport, AWG (Advanced Wireless Group) is now delivering a free live stream of the CNN Airport Network on the wireless system that includes HBO, TBS, TNT and TCM programming as well as sports events and Spanish-language content from CNN Latino.

In Chicago, where Boingo provides the paid Wi-Fi service at O’Hare and Midway, there’s now a free Wi-Fi portal they’re calling “The Good Stuff” that gives travelers free access to about 30 sites for news, weather, shopping, entertainment, banking, travel and tourism, as well as local contact information.

To find “The Good Stuff” at O’Hare or Midway, go to the Boingo Wi-Fi network and click on the “The Good Stuff” panel on the left side on the page. Here’s where you can surf to for free:
–

GOOD STUFF

 

Better Wi-Fi for DTW & a fitness center for YYZ

free Wi-Fi, Layover, Wi-Fi, , ,

Two good bits of news on the airport amenities front:

EXERCISE

In September, a GoodLife Fitness Club will open in Terminal 1 at Toronto Pearson International Airport (YYZ) offering cardiovascular equipment, strength training equipment and free weights as well as luggage storage, a lounge area with massage chairs, towel service and changing rooms with showers and lockers. No word yet on what it will cost to use the club, but workout clothing will be available for purchase for those who get inspired by the layout.

And fans of fast, free Wi-Fi at airports will soon be much happier when spending time at Detroit Metro Airport (DTW).

Advanced Wireless Group is replacing Boingo at DTW and by September will install a much speedier Wi-Fi system that will be free to use if you’re willing to watch a 30-second advertisement once every 45 minutes.

The current system offers only 30 minutes of free Wi-Fi access to travelers willing to watch a 30-second video ad.

Cheaper – and free – airport Wi-Fi

Wi-Fi,

Free Wi-FI at airport

[Updated: 8/24/12 at noon]

Boingo Wireless and Google Offers are teaming up to offer discounted Wi-Fi access at 16 airports around the country that currently either charge for Wi-Fi services or offer limited free Wi-Fi sessions.

To take advantage of the offer, you may have to sign up for Google Offers (a Groupon-like deal service) and then purchase the discounted Boingo AsYouGo 24-hour deal, which is limited to one per person.

According to Boingo spokesperson Katie O’Neill, the length of the discount offer depends on how many people in the 16 participating airports purchase the passes, so the promotion may be withdrawn before the end of September.

Here are the participating airports:

  • Austin-Bergstrom International Airport
  • O’Hare International Airport
  • Chicago Midway Airport
  • Denver International Airport
  • Detroit Metropolitan Wayne County Airport
  • William P. Hobby Airport
  • George Bush Intercontinental Airport
  • Milwaukee General Mitchell International Airport
  • Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport
  • John F. Kennedy International Airport
  • New York LaGuardia Airport
  • Newark Liberty International Airport
  • Will Rogers World Airport -Oklahoma City
  • Lambert-St. Louis International Airport
  • Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport
  • Dulles International Airport

Before you hit “buy,” keep in mind that some of these airports, such as Denver, Dulles and Ronald Reagan Washington National, already offer a complimentary Wi-Fi service. Others, such as Austin-Bergstrom and Houston’s Hobby and George Bush Intercontinental, offer complimentary sessions of 30 to 45 minutes. The Detroit Metropolitan Airport recently announced that it would be offering complimentary limited sessions as well, beginning in September.

Why would you buy a discounted day pass when you can get Wi-Fi service at an airport for free? Only if you need more time than the free limited-time offers give you and if you want your Wi-Fi signal to be more robust than what others in the airport are getting.

“[M]ost complimentary Wi-Fi sessions have restrictions placed on them — either in terms of duration or bandwidth or both. The 50% offer from Google Offers and Boingo is for half off the premium sessions that are good for 24 hours at the top speeds available,” says O’Neill.

And don’t forget sponsored, 40-minute sessions of complimentary Wi-Fi are also rolling out at Dallas-Fort Worth International in September, courtesy of AT&T.  (More details about that here) .

 

Airport Wi-Fi: free, but why so stingy?

free Wi-Fi, Wi-Fi, , , ,

 

One of the most requested, used and appreciated amenities at airports these days is free wireless internet access.

And, in more and more airports, travelers are finding that Wi-Fi access is indeed free.

But the definition of “free” seems to be changing.

The trend for a while there was for airports to offer passengers unlimited use of Wi-Fi, making it possible to turn an irritating hour or two wait for a flight into productive work time.  But then some airports, such as Houston’s George Bush Intercontinental, began offering free Wi-Fi for limited time periods, forcing travelers who needed more time to purchase the service.

I wrote about what seemed to be that emerging trend in June, 2011, in my on-line “At the Airport” column on USA Today. (Should you pay for Wi-Fi? Airports explore tiered service.)

Three recent free Wi-Fi announcements underscore what now seems to be an official “sort-of-free” trend.

Earlier this week, it was announced that when Berlin’s new Brandenburg Airport (finally) opens, next March, passengers will be able to access basic complimentary Wi-Fi service for 30 minutes. (Somewhat troubling, users will only be able to access the service by entering a credit or debit card number.)

Travelers needing more than 30 minutes of Wi-Fi access (and, really, who doesn’t) will have to purchase a premium service – with higher bandwidth – from the contracted service provider, Boingo.

After some controversy over the fast-tracking of an interim Wi-Fi provider contract while what could be a two-year process to find a company to replace T Mobile gets underway, complimentary Wi-Fi should begin at Los Angeles International Airport in July.

Passengers will get access to 45 minutes of Internet service provided by Advanced Wireless after watching a 15- to 30-second advertisement.

And on Wednesday, Detroit Metropolitan Airport (DTW) announced that, in September, Boingo would begin offering a limited complimentary Wi-Fi access service as well.

At DTW, access to the airport’s wireless network for 30 minutes will be offered for no cost after viewing a 30-second video advertisement. “Users who require an extended or high-speed connection will continue to have the option to connect via one of Boingo’s existing service plans,” the airport said in a statement.

What’s up?

Some say that airports are taking a page from airlines, which now charge for services – such as checked baggage and seat assignments – that were once considered part of the ticket package. Boingo corporate communications director Christian Gunning says that the trend of airports offering tiered wireless access (free for s short time; then access to premium service for a fee) allows airports to generate revenue from both casual and more serious users.

Via e-mail he said, “Some of the airports really need every extra bit of revenue they can muster since they’re operating under big budgetary deficits and some manage to generate healthy revenues from alternate concessions (think slot machines in Las Vegas). … It’s pretty complicated overall, and the final outcome is slightly different for each airport we work with.”

Complicated? Sure.

Irritating? You bet.

What travelers might soon encounter at more airports?

Probably, but I hope not.