Saturday 24 January 2009

Free Mobile Application/E-guide to Les Deux Alpes - NEW from Ski-Ride Productions

The barefoot sand dancing nomad inside me hankers after the traditional wonders of travel: an invaluable tip from a cheerful bus conductor or a philosophical point to ponder etched onto a wooden bench top by the ocean.

But even I have to admit that there's room in my rucksack for destination e-guides. That said...as long as the content held by the e-guide is really worth the effort of scrolling and scrolling and scrolling some more to get the info I need.

I carry my mobile everywhere and because it definitely attracts less attention than whipping out a floppy and flapping fold out city map when I'm lost, I'm all for using my mobile for navigation and information purposes when travelling. However, if an e-guide for mobile phones delivers a mere edited down version of guidebook content, rendered devoid of depth following the transfer from print to digital media, then I'd much rather pass on this technology until it offers a little more substance.

But enough about me. Here's more about Ski-Ride Productions' latest TXTguides™ - mobile guide to Les Deux Alpes, France written and updated monthly for ski and snowboarders.

If the SkiSpot guidebooks written by Francis Johnson and published back in 2005 are anything to go by, the content of his e-guides will be far from factually thin on the ground and won't waste travellers' time with superficial and spindly sentences. The SkiSpots guidebooks were densely packed with destination facts and useful piste information, right down to how many snowboards fitted in the lockers at certain ski stations. Reading these original guides from cover to cover, I was stunned by Francis' attention to detail.

Francis Johnston (director & executive author at Ski-Ride Productions) announced:

"I’m delighted to add this great resort and ski area to the Ski-Ride series. Les Deux Alpes is one of the biggest and most popular ski resorts in the Southern French Alps, and a particular favourite with freestyle enthusiasts, with a well-deserved reputation for guaranteed snow and lively apres ski.

Now, anyone planning to visit this great area can use this in-depth guide to fully plan their visit, and then take it with them on the slopes. Since virtually everyone carries their mobile phone with them wherever they go, they don’t actually need to pack anything extra in order to carry masses of up-to-date information at their fingertips".

The resort-specific guides are published in a specially-developed electronic format that allows them to be saved/read on mobile phones with no need for a network signal in order to use them at home or abroad. Plus there's the added bonus of no additional weight in your ski jacket.

All TXTguides™ are licensed free-of-charge rather than sold and readers can freely share the guides with friends via email & Bluetooth. Crucially, the content is also updated every month during the European ski season.

Other titles include:

Val d’Isere & Tignes (Espace Killy, France), Soldeu-El Tarter & Pas de la Casa (Grandvalira, Andorra); plus Arcalis & Pal-Arinsal (Vallnord, Andorra).

There's lots more detail at ski-ride.co.uk/txtguides/


Look out for my full review of Les Deux Alpes TXTguide


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