Phuket Technology: Gulliver’s guide to Phuket

PHUKET: Phuket pocket guides abound but occasionally one stands out from the crowd. Released last month, Gulliver’s guide to Phuket is a free iPhone / iPad app that is very user friendly.

Simplified to include just enough information for a weekend break or a short trip, it includes more than 150 attractions, venues and topics, each with up-to-date (2011/2012 season) contact details.

An offline map is included with dozens of pictures of major landmarks, and by turning on your location settings you can pinpoint how close you are to them. Nothing is ever more than two clicks away with the easy navigation shortcuts, and intuitive categorization helps you to quickly find what you’re looking for. Gulliver’s Guides combine the best bits of other guides and apps to figure out what works best for smartphone navigation.

Topics include Sightseeing attractions, activities, restaurants, nightlife, accommodation, museums and culture, day trips, safety and travel tips and much more.

Everything is categorized into sensible groups for easy access, then ranked according to popularity, proximity or price. Every topic has a brief overview to help you get to know an unfamiliar destination quickly.

The guide is produced by Virtualtravelguides.com – a professional travel content provider with more than eight years’ experience writing for some of the Web’s top names in online travel. The authors are locals, and the editing is done by expert travel editors.

In short, they provide just the right amount of detail, in a sensible and intuitive manner, and it is recommended for short term visitors.

Downloadable from Apple’s App Store, this application is free.