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Taking a trip in 2015 without any apps is like a caveman going hunting without a club. It’s simply not possible to be as efficient without the right tools in your kitbag!
You might not get beaten to death, or eaten by a lion, but you might suffer a more modern fate which could have been avoided with advance planning. These 7 travel apps have been a great help to me and might be the perfect travelling companion for you too!
Given that so many are free, it would be foolish not to at least try them and share your thoughts if you are not already a fan.
If your favourite isn’t on my list please feel free to tell us about your favourites in the comments section below
Tripit
Tripit is a great app for people planning trips which involve many hotels, flights and activities. By forwarding copies of your email confirmations to the designated email addresses, it combines your bookings into one itinerary. You can then share the itinerary with calendars, friends and colleagues.
You can also include maps to help you find specific locations, it tracks your total travel mileage, trips and cities visited, and advises you of the weather forecast for upcoming trips.
Tripit is free whilst Tripit Pro offers a free trial allowing you to decide whether to purchase an annual membership for $49.
The table below provides a comparison of the two options so you can decide for yourself which will meet your needs.
Comparison of free and paid Trip it Travel apps
| Tripit Pro – $49 per year | Tripit – Free | |
| Organize travel plans in one place | 😀 | 😀 |
| Access on smartphone/tablet with free apps | 😀 | 😀 |
| Add or edit plans manually | 😀 | 😀 |
| Sync travel plans with your calendar | 😀 | 😀 |
| Receive real-time flight alerts | 😀 | 😀 |
| Save money with VIP travel benefits | 😀 | |
| Share plans with your inner circle automatically | 😀 | |
| Store reward-program points in one spot | 😀 | |
| Get flight-refund notifications | 😀 | |
| Find out when a better seat is available | 😀 | |
| Locate alternate flights | 😀 |
Citymapper
Citymapper is a fabulous FREE app for finding your way around major cities such as London, New York and Singapore. It shows you the best way to get between point A and point B using all modes of transport including your own two feet. It even includes useful maps to get you from your hotel to the bus or train.
In short it saves you lots of walking and money as the bus is considerably better value than the underground if you are travelling in London.
Of course the added benefit is that you get to enjoy fabulous city skylines (London is definitely better enjoyed from above ground!) instead of a view of your neighbour’s armpit, endless inky black tunnels or the outside cover of a magazine.
Google Maps
If you are tired of getting lost on foreign motorways or haunted by the flight you missed because of traffic or bad directions then Google Apps is an invaluable piece of kit for you.
You simply connect to internet (perhaps using your mobile as a hotspot) and the app finds your location. From there you can enter your destination and the app shows your progress towards that destination.
Thankfully with the help of this app, we recently managed to find our way to the airport in Pisa using back roads and narrowly managed to avoid missing our flight.
Around Me
Around Me is a simple app which identifies your current location and then allows you to find local restaurants, bars, ATMs and many more facilities in your immediate vicinity.
I’ve used this app to find yoga classes, pharmacies, banks and Starbucks, of course!!
Been
Unless you enjoy counting the number of countries you have visited this won’t be of much interest to you.
If however you are dedicated to counting down the countries of the world, then Been gives you a pictorial overview of where you have been.
My Travel Assistant
My Travel Assistant is a great app which allows you to track your spending against a specified budget. It automatically converts spending from the local currency into your chosen currency.
I used this on a recent 6 week trip to Asia to track my spending against budget and boy did it focus my spending. I even managed to come in more than 30% under budget thanks to this one!
Magic Jigsaw Puzzles
If you are taking a long flight, train or bus Magic Jigsaw is an absolute must have although I’m sure you could take your pick of apps to provide your entertainment.
I’ve whiled away a good few hours in airports and on planes creating jigsaws. An added bonus is that you don’t ever have to worry about about losing a piece!
These 7 travel apps clearly do not comprise an exhaustive list but they have made my travel easier. Maybe you use ones you might like to share with us….
Great list! There are seriously so many fun/helpful/useful travel apps out there. This is a great time for travel and such a cool opportunity for app developers. My favorite travel app is HelloTel (http://bit.ly/1Ck6T4q). It’s a social network for travelers, and a super easy way for users to connect with other travelers at their hotel or nearby. I use it when I travel to new areas and I love asking for suggestions for restaurants, places with good beer selections, sports, and kids stuff. Real-time reviews and recommendations. Check it out!
That sounds fabulous. It might prove a little dangerous if I was using it whilst away with work though as might just end up socialising a little too much!! Will check out HelloTel – that’s a new one on me. Another great one is Hotspot Shield which allows you to connect via VPN so you can still watch UK TV (or your country of choice) whilst travelling. Proved invaluable on a recent trip round Asia!
Oh, I love having access to so much TV/movies/entertainment while on the road. I’ll check out HotSpot Shield. Also, I saw that HelloTel has expanded from the United States to international destinations, like Canada, Brazil, Australia and the UK. And yes, HelloTel might prove to take up a lot of time, like Facebook often does for me. Oh well, self control…
I love the fact that when you google HelloTel, the Daily Mail describes it as the app for lonely hotel guests. I have now downloaded and plan to trial it tomorrow night when I am away with work. Better warn my fellow hotel guests!