Lifestyle, food and drink, and our family life and travel adventures.
I love to travel; whether it’s around my own lovely country, or exploring somewhere abroad. I think we are really lucky that we now have so much technology that can help us plan a trip, get around once we are there, and even speak the language.
My phone is so important for me to have with me (and fully charged!) when I am away somewhere – I wouldn’t be able to get around London without it, especially on the tube! Before we kick things off, if you are travelling abroad do be careful with your phone, crime can be higher in certain areas so it’s important you know what to do should you fall victim and avoid criminals racking up a big phone bill because you didn’t report it. This guide on stolen phones tells you the best the course of action.
So I thought I would share 10 top apps for travel, that will help you navigate your way around a new place, find the perfect hotel, manage your flights, look back on where you’ve been, and more!
I have mentioned the brilliant Citymapper app before – over the last couple of years it has helped me find my way around London via the tube, which I just found impossible by myself before. It’s so easy to use – you can put in where you are (or it finds you itself) and where you want to go and the type of transport you want to use and it tells you where you need to go from and when, how many stops, how long it takes, the best exit to leave the station from and more. It’s bloody brilliant.
It also has Uber integration and is available in 30 cities around the world.
Citymapper is free on iOS and Android.
I’m sure most of us already use Google Maps, whether wandering around a big city, or as a sat nav in your car. It’s brilliant for helping you navigate around an unfamiliar place, and is really easy to use too. You can also use it to find particular types of places around you, such as restaurants, shops, or places to visit.
It is free on iOS and Android.
I absolutely love the Hotel Tonight app and have used it lots of times, in fact every time I am going for a spontaneous night or two away I check this app first. The app finds you hotels in the area you are heading to at great discounts, up to 7 days in advance so you can get some real bargains at some really nice hotels. I got a room at the Threadneedles Hotel in London, which is absolutely beautiful for £119 and then I had a discount code which meant I paid £104 – which is a crazy price for a 5 star hotel in London!
You can use the app in most big cities, including abroad (I have been very tempted to book a last minute trip to Seville many times!) and it tells you their rating for each hotel, like basic, solid, and luxe, which is really helpful. It’s really easy to book a hotel through the app, and the more you book, the more ‘perks’ and discounts you get.
Get it here on iOS and Android.
With Duolingo you can learn loads of different langauges, create goals, and choose how many minutes a day you want to practice for. It’s great for learning some basics before you go abroad, as well as whilst you are there. It starts off really simply so that it’s not overwhelming, and it’s really fun to use and pick up the basics. The app guides you through levels that you need to complete, and then tells you how proficient you are in that language! I find it quite addictive once I start using it! There are 23 languages to choose from.
There are ads in between each stage, or there is a paid version to remove them, but it’s a monthly price and it’s expensive so not worth it in my opinion.
XE Currency is great for travellers as it converts every currency for you, so it’s great to use abroad to check how much something costs. I also use it when I’m at home to quickly check how much someone has offered me for a blog post when it is in dollars. It’s also great because it saves the last updated rates, so that you can use it offline as well, if you’re abroad and trying to save your data.
This is great for really quick translations on the go. You can type in a word as normal, but you can also take a picture of some words you come across on your travels and want to understand, so it’s really useful to have with you whilst abroad. The app supports 103 languages (in type mode).
LiveTrekker is a really cool little app that creates a digital journal of your travels which allows to you to look back on your trips on an interactive map. It tracks you as you go with a red line on the map, so you can see exactly where you’ve been, and you can also add extra details along the route as you go, such as photos and text.
Available free on iOS and Android.
Google Trips helps you to plan your trip by bringing all of the important travel information and reservations together from your gmail, as well as giving you activity suggestions based on what’s nearby, customizeable day plans, and any itineraries. It is also available offline, so you will always have the details you need with you.
It’s really handy to have everything together on your phone, and be able to check it when you need it, as well as looking for things to do or places to eat all in one place.
If you would prefer not to use Google, then Tripit is also a great app that works in a similar way. Tripit also pulls together your travel information that you send to the app via your email and it will organise it all for you as one itinerary. You can also share the plans with others, if you are travelling as part of a group.
Available on iOS and Android for free (with an optional annual upgrade fee).
App in the Air is a really clever app that lets you track your flights and keep you updated about a flights’ status, even offline. It is easy to use, and by putting in your flight details you can track boarding and landing times, along with current waits for check-in, security, and customs. You’ll also find gate information, airport maps, tips from fellow users, and other features that will help save time and reduce stress. It also keeps track of statistics such as the routes you have gone on which all displays on a map. App in the Air also integrates with Tripit.
Available free on iOS and Android, with paid upgrade options.
Although not strictly a travel app, the Kindle app is brilliant to have on your phone when you’re travelling. You can read books, magazines and ebooks you have downloaded from Amazon whilst you are travelling, without taking another tablet or a load of heavy books with you, and it will sync with any other Kindle product you use. It’s perfect for when you’re flying abroad or travelling long distances, and you can enable a book to be available offline too.
Are there any other apps for travel that you love or have you used any of these? Tell me about them in the comments!
This is a collaborative post.
Welcome to Birds and Lilies! I'm Lou: mother, blogger and freelance writer. This is my lifestyle blog, where I talk about motherhood, infertility and IVF, beauty, my love for food and wine, as well as my thoughts about stuff, and our real-life and travel adventures.
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