Around the world in 80 downloads

If your travel budget hasn’t just been pinched -- but is getting the life squeezed out of it by a big metal vice clamp -- it might be time to do a little armchair traveling. Tripfilms.com can take you all over the world, and it doesn’t cost more than your Internet connection.

What’s hot: The travel videos cover areas as diverse as Antarctica and Vanuatu. Once you click on a location, the videos are organized by such sections as “Overview,” “What to do,” “Where to eat” and “Where to stay.” I had the most fun looking through the travel videos tab for new additions. There I watched the video “Korean Street Food” (a student project featuring a teacher interviewing his students). Next I clicked “Highest-rated” videos in the side bar and watched “Faces of Papua, New Guinea.” While I was looking at Cuba destination videos, I was pleasantly surprised to find Lonely Planet’s Tony Wheeler giving me Havana travel tips on a YouTube clip. The videos load quickly, and it’s easy to stop them if you lose interest. Note: If you upload your videos, you are rewarded according to the number of views they get (you earn points for Amazon, iTunes or American Airlines certificates; restaurant videos will get you $25).

What’s not: Don’t expect the same number of videos from each destination. Naturally, the more popular a destination, the more videos you’ll have to choose from. New York and London, for instance, have about 200 each versus the remote Tajikistan, which has one. Also, you have to weed through some promotional clips on your way to the videos you want to watch. I found most of these promos in the hotel sections.

-- Jen Leo