Smart World Travel WiFi Review

It has been more than 8 months since my last useful travel blog post. And I surely like to make your time worthwhile with this "after hiatus" entry.

Last June, I got an awesome opportunity to visit Israel, The Holy Land. As for any travel agent, internet connection is a must in our every out of the country trips. I swore to myself I would never use Globe's postpaid roaming services again (after a series of ridiculous charges last 2015). So whenever I'm out of the country, I would either rent a pocket wifi at my country destination, or buy a local sim.

I was on a familiarization trip in Israel, and our itinerary is super packed. So to not be a cause of delay, I opted to rent a pocket wifi from here. That's where Smart World Travel Wifi enters.


Booking the smart travel wifi is easy peasy. You just have to fill in info on their website, pay for it via credit card at checkout, verify your order via email and you're all set. What's good about it, is a courier will deliver/pick up the item for free if you reside in Metro Manila. The device will be delivered 1-2 days before your indicated trip departure. You must present a valid id and present it to the courier upon delivery. That's it, you're ready to go.


What's not so good about it is that, you are required to pay a PHP 4,000 refundable deposit too. So in my case, since I rented it for 7 days, my credit card was charged 7,567.46 (including a Debit Card /Credit Card Transaction Fee: Php 137.46). That's 490 x 7, + 4,000.

Unlike with my previous experience in renting pocket wifi abroad. (I've used pocket wifi rental in Hong Kong, Japan, South Korea and Taiwan). A refundable deposit is not directly charge to your credit card. It's only a floating amount. You will only be charged for it if you do not return the device. So your card will only get charged for the days you will rent the pocket wifi.

And that's where Smart not being transparent in their FAQ's section. You'll have the assumption that the credit is somehow quick.








They say that they will credit back the deposit once receipt of the device in good condition. 5-7 working days to credit should be sufficient. From my experience, they credited back the amount after 3 weeks.

Overall, I can say that it is still reliable. The signal though is still dependent on each countries partner telecom company. But in Israel, the Smart Travel Wifi got better signal and connection compared to our bus' wifi and even with the hotel's. I just hope that they include partnership with Jordan and Egypt soon, since most Holy Land Pilgrimage tours include these countries.

Smart Travel Wifi is in partnership with Sky Roam. The only difference is that Smart Travel Wifi provides free pick up and delivery, while with Sky Roam you'll pay Php 150 for courier service.

Overall, I am satisfied with Smart Travel Wifi. I just think that the refundable deposit should not be charged to the card right away, it should just be a floating amount.


But nonetheless, it made my trip to Israel a memorable and productive one. I was able to be instantly connected to my loved ones, clients, colleagues and my staff in the Philippines.






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DEC 16-18: ALL IN HONG KONG TOUR PACKAGE

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PANDA HOTEL promotion
Booking Period: until August 31, 2017 only
Travel Date: December 16-18, 2017
Minimum 3 persons to avail (Triple Sharing only)


HURRY!!! While rooms and airline seats last. Avail of our ALL IN HONG KONG TOUR PACKAGE. We require only 50% Deposit to secure the rooms. 50% balance payable on or before November 15, 2017.
INCLUSIONS:
o Roundtrip Airfare via Cebu Pacific MNL-HKG-MNL with 7kg.hand carry allowance only
Flight details: MNL-HKG 5J 110 07:10-09:25
HKG-MNL 5J 115 21:00-23:00
o Two (2) nights hotel accommodation at PANDA HOTEL
1 Room (Triple Sharing)
o Roundtrip airport and hotel transfers VIA seat-in-coach basis
o Daily outside breakfast
o Compulsory Hong Kong Halfday city Tour
o Choice of Shenzhen / Ocean Park Tour / Disneyland or Macau Day Tour

Exclusions:
o Travel Tax of PHP 1,620 collect in Manila
o 15 kg. checked in baggage PHP 1,100
o Compulsory tipping USD7/pax for guide/driver

NOTE:
Seat in coach service Airport to Hotel: 9:30AM-11PM
Seat in coach service Hotel to Airport: 6:30AM-9:30PM

Itinerary:
DAY 1 -Arrival Hong Kong, meet and transfer to hotel. Free time.

DAY 2 -Breakfast outside hotel Hong Kong city tour - Visit Harbourfront promenade , Jewelry factory and
souvenir outlet, Aberdeen Fishing Village pass by mid-levels of Victoria Peak (Sampan ride is Optional).

Proceed to - Choice of Shenzhen / Ocean Park Tour / Disneyland or Macau Day Tour

DAY 3 -Breakfast outside hotel, Free time until transfer to airport.

For Inquiry:
Wanderstruck Travel & Tours
Office Address: Unit 2 #18 21st. Ave. Cubao Quezon City Philippines 1109
Telefax (63.2) 4220785 / 9752331 / 9111735
Mobile 0917 854 3779 / 0917 820 8549 / 0923 533 2899
Email: reservations@wander-struck.com /wanderstrucktraveltours@gmail.com
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Copyright © 2017 Wanderstruck Travel & Tours, All rights reserved.


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