In just a few days my out of office message will be set automatically and I will be trading Teams chats, project meetings, and emails for Irish pubs, cliffs, and castles!

I am extremely excited for this trip (and ready!). I have never been to Ireland before, and it’s been over 15 years since I have traveled outside of the US. I am headed to a family member’s wedding, and we’re taking some additional time while we are there to explore and do touristy things.

The average (normal) person would be worried about what necessities they need to pack, planning, etc. I’m over here stressing about what tech and gadgets I absolutely need to bring with me. I’m trying to keep it as light as light as possible, so I’m just bringing the core necessities:

  • MacBook Pro (will be my M1 Pro - I have the M5 Pro ordered but sadly won’t arrive until after my trip)
  • AirPods
  • iPad Mini (one of my favorite devices - great for reading and consuming media)
  • Travel Plug Adapters
  • Apple Watch
  • Lots of USB C to USB C cables
  • Apple TV (I know, I know, this sounds crazy but I’ll get into it)
  • UniFi Travel Router

The new kid on the block this year is my UniFi travel router. I’m so excited to use this thing. I purchased my first piece of UniFi gear back in 2017 (I think). It started with a USG and an AC Lite. For anyone who is familiar with Ubiquiti, it really is addicting. It’s phenomenal prosumer network gear. It allows for all types of configurations, looks great, and works really well. The travel router lets me connect to a wifi or ethernet connection (such as hotel or cafe wifi) and then will broadcast my home SSID. So, it essentially puts me on my home network wherever I am. I was able to test it briefly on a weekend trip a few months ago, but I’m excited to give it the real test on this trip.

As for the Apple TV. If you haven’t done this, seriously consider bringing it along with you the next time you travel. It’s small, so it won’t take up much space in your bag, and a couple of years ago Apple introduced support for captive portals (that pesky login screen when you connect to hotel wifi).

It’s perfect, you plug it in, connect it to wifi and you’re logged in to all of your apps. I never liked the idea of signing into Netflix, Peacock, etc. on a hotel device, so I would often just watch something on my MacBook. The only issue sometimes can be the placement of the TV in hotels. Sometimes you have to really jam yourself in there to be able to connect the HDMI port.

Tech aside, I’m really excited for this trip. Given how long it’s been since I’ve traveled internationally, I’m really excited to walk around Dublin, hit some pubs, coffee shops, and we even have the Jameson and Guinness tours on the books. The only thing I’m a little hesitant about is driving on the left side of the road, but I’m hoping to adjust quickly. Even though I’ll be lugging my most coveted tech along, I do hope to get some time to disconnect.