If you do decide not to bring your smartphone, tablet, laptop, etc., with you on vacation, take a moment to consider which features or applications you might actually want or need while traveling. For example, you won't have access to your phone-based GPS navigator app, so you may want or need a paper map. You won't have access to your phone's address book, so you should make it a point to write down any emergency or important contacts that you think you may need while away from home. Without your smartphone, you also won't be able to check your calendar for scheduled activities, so you should make a paper-based schedule of vacation events ahead of time, as well, if you think you'll need it.

Bringing a standalone camera is also a good idea, since many of us have come to rely solely on our smartphone cameras for snapping quick pictures and video.

You may also want to grab a new notebook or journal to keep track of all this information. A journal is a great way to keep track of all the cool stuff you do during your vacation--and you can paste some of your photos in after the fact, to add some visuals to your written adventures.

If you think you'll constantly worry that you forgot to notify someone of something, or that someone who needs to get in touch won't be able to, you'll never be able to relax and enjoy your vacation, technology or no technology.