I spent almost five weeks in Japan this summer. My T-Mobile plan includes international data but it is pretty slow so I rented a Pocket WiFi from eConnect. I ordered it in advance and picked it up at the post office at Narita Airport. I bought the 50GB plan for about $125. When I came close to running out (our traveling party of five used it pretty much non-stop on their phones and laptops) I bought more data for about $1 per GB. It was very fast and worked everywhere we went, including the remote mountain town of Koya-san. At the airport on the way home I put it in the return mailer and dropped it off at the post office. — MF

Japan has had a network of extremely high-speed bullet trains for 50 years. (The US has zero.) China now has an even more impressive network of high-speed bullet trains that cover great distances and are easy to ride. A popular route is Beijing to Shanghai in 4 hours, going 350 km/h (217 mph). Another great long trip is Beijing to Guangzhou (near Hong Kong) in 8 hours (averaging 305 km/h the whole way), which is the longest high speed route in the world, a trip I made with joy recently. Flying is faster and, depending on class, cheaper, but you get an intimate and revealing glimpse of this vast country slicing through at ground level. Booking tickets online is complicated but doable. As always, head to the Man in Seat 61 for the best advice on how to do this. — KK

While traveling in China, the government will prevent you from accessing Google, Gmail, Google maps, Facebook, Youtube, Twitter, Snapchat, Instagram, The New York Times, and many other news sites. If any of these services are important to you, you need to use a very good VPN to circumvent the censoring. (China is able to block some VPNs that work elsewhere). The best VPN for China is the ExpressVPN app, which you can load on your phone and laptop. Once loaded it’s pretty seamless and unnoticeable. You can reach any site with fine speed. There’s a monthly subscription of $8.32, but it’s worth it compared to cheaper and free VPNs. It’s useful anywhere in the world sites are blocked. Even in the West, if I am accessing a public wifi spot for my mail I’ll turn it on as an added layer of privacy. — KK

China is so vast that the only way to get around is either by high speed train or plane. But because of its language barrier it’s really hard for foreigners to book tickets for either. The best way to book a flight in China is via the English language site Trip, which I use. Easy to make reservations, changes, refunds. I can skype a call to them if needed. For trains I use the English language site Travel China Guide. — KK

I travel in other countries a lot, often in remote places, and when I do I prefer smaller hotels, hostels, guesthouses, homestays, inns and Airbnb. Over the past decade I’ve used many apps and sites for booking smaller places in Asia, Latin America and Europe, but in the last 3 years I’ve settled on Booking.com as my go-to. It has a unified interface to 1.1 million hotels and guesthouses worldwide, with the widest coverage and selection, accurate prices and info. It is also high reliability (if they say you have a reservation, you do) and they make it very easy to change or cancel. If I can, I will always book through Booking.com rather than the hotel direct. — KK

Hertz rental cars have an option called “Manager’s Special”. You agree to take whatever car they give you at below Economy car rates. You’ll get at least an economy car, but usually a bigger car, maybe even a nice car. — KK

Google Trips is an app (for iOS and Android) that scans my Gmail for travel and dining reservations to build an itinerary and offer things to do at your destination. It’s worked like a charm so far, identifying every upcoming trip I have planned. It even created summaries for past trips. — MF

Would you like to improve your chance of having an empty middle seat when you fly on Southwest? Here’s a trick I’ve started to use that works. When I board, I look for a 3-seat row of chairs where a very large person is sitting in the window or aisle set. I will sit in that row, either in the aisle seat or window seat. As the plane starts to get full, passengers will be reluctant to sit in the middle seat because the big person is encroaching on the space. One time when I did this, the guy sitting in the seat (he was probably 6’5” and weighed 300 pounds) leaned over and said conspiratorially, “No one will sit here. It’s always the last seat they take.“ — MF

GateGuru is a smartphone app with a lot of travel features, but the only one I use is the amenities list. It will show you all the eateries, shops, and services located in your terminal, along with the location. It also has user ratings for the places. I use it to find the best place to eat when I’m waiting for a flight. — MF

Airlines are reluctant to tell passengers the real reason a plane is late, or how long a delay will actually last. But if you go to your airline’s special cargo website, you’re more likely to get the real story. I’ve also found FlightAware to be an accurate source of information about delays. — MF

A Global Entry pass is a true bargain if you do any international travel. You don’t need to wait in line for immigration at reentry to the US. But it also serves as validation for the TSA Pre-check short-cut for security screening at most major US airports. Much shorter lines. To get in the program requires an appointment to get fingerprinted and $100 every five years. Well worth it. — KK

I have two US passports, both valid and official. Because I travel overseas so much, I often have my passport tied up in getting a visa somewhere, so I have the second passport available. This gives me some breathing room. It’s also useful if you are traveling to countries that don’t recognize Israel and you have an Israel stamp in your passport. To get a second US passport you apply as if you are renewing your passport by mail and add a letter requesting a second passport. Instructions here. — KK

Scott’s Cheap Flights is a free newsletter that finds amazingly inexpensive flights all over the world. The newsletter includes Google Flights and Momondo links, so you can book the flight yourself. The latest newsletter has a roundtrip flight from Los Angeles to Stockholm for $343. — MF

My international flight to Los Angeles was delayed for 10 hours. The airline didn’t tell me I was eligible for compensation, but a friend told me about an app called AirHelp. I entered my name and confirmation number. Instantly, AirHelp told me the airline was obligated to pay me about $700. AirHelp did all the work, and about a week later I got the money, minus a 25% commission for AirHelp, which was a small price to pay for not having to do anything. — MF

There are occasions while traveling that you want to enter a country with a one-way ticket, but that country requires an onward ticket to enter. This is a job for Best Onward Ticket which will sell you a legit onward ticket that you use only to get in and then they cancel after 48 hours. It costs $12. Much easier than booking a ticket yourself and cancelling because it avoids byzantine fees and hidden charges. I have not personally used this service yet, and other similar services in the past have gone belly up, so buyer beware, but this outfit gets good reviews and I find the hack useful so I’m mentioning it. Let me know if you’ve tried it. — KK

Hopper is a smartphone app that predicts when airfare to a desired destination will be the cheapest. I’ve set up an alert for Chiang Mai, Thailand. About once a month Hopper sends me a message with the best price it can find, telling me to “wait” or “buy.” The price recently dropped from the $900s to the $500s and Hopper said “buy.” — MF

The Basetrip provides essential information you need when traveling internationally. Just enter your country of origin and your destination and the site will tell you the currency exchange rate, mobile phone service options, the crime rate, electrical outlets, drug and prostitution laws, and more. For an extra $5 per trip, you’ll get passport & visa information, travel advisories, and language phrases with audio pronunciation. — MF