August 1, 2016
My Favorite Travel Apps
I’ve been traveling a lot lately, and I often get asked what my favorite travel apps are. Rounding up the list of my favorite travel apps has made me realize how much I’ve come to depend on them; it’s hard to believe that I used to get around without a smartphone! Remember when we had to mapquest everything and write it down? Or when we used physical maps? I can’t say I miss those days. I got lost a lot. Check out my favorite travel apps, for help planning your next trip!
GETTING THERE
Rome2rio
Rome2rio is an app that searches any mode of transportation to get you where you are going. Put in your start and end points, and it will show you how to get anywhere by plane, train, bus, ferry and car! My friend Andi, who is currently writing a book about road trips in the USA, introduced me to this app!
Download: iOS | Android
Hopper
Figuring out the best time to book your flight is very confusing; there seems to be no rhyme or reason to its fluctuation. Hopper predicts the best time to book and compares prices among different airlines. The calendar is color coded according to the cheapest times to fly, which is especially beneficial if you have a flexible travel schedule. Get push notifications when prices drop or before they increase. It will let you know if you should book now, or wait!
Download: iOS | Android
WHERE TO SLEEP
Airbnb
Airbnb has homes, apartments, and vacation rentals all around the world that can make your trip feel like you’re more of a local. It’s great when you’re traveling in a group, can be a cheaper alternative to hotels, and I love pet friendly Airbnb’s so I can bring along Miku when I travel.
If you’re new to Airbnb, click this link to get $30 off your first booking.
Download: iOS | Android
Hotel Tonight
Hotel Tonight has amazing last minute deals, so if you’re looking to book a quick last minute weekend getaway, or your plans fell thru, this is a great place to look first. Depending on the hotel, you can find rooms that are half their normal price. I also love checking out their deals for last minute staycations!
If you haven’t tried Hotel Tonight yet, use code: KGROVES19 for $25 off your first booking.
Download: iOS | Android
Hotels.com and Booking.com
I’ve had a lot of luck finding good deals on both Hotels.com and Booking.com. Hotels.com has some good incentives: you can collect 10 hotel nights to get a free night, which is handy for the frequent traveler, and they have “secret prices” once you log in (and some in-app only discounts – right now they have $15 off with code APPHEAT). It’s still worth checking both for the best price. Also: here’s a tip! Use honey to automatically find the best coupon codes upon checking out. It saved me an extra 12% the last time I booked a hotel.
Hotels: iOS | Android
Booking.com: iOS | Android
TRIP PLANNING
Yelp
This one might also seem obvious, but Yelp is a huge time saver when you are traveling and don’t know where to go or what to do. Just like you might use it in your hometown, Yelp is great for finding restaurants or other local businesses when you’re traveling! All the reviews also make it easy to know what to order, what to avoid, and all the filters make it easy to stay within your travel budget. I also like OpenTable for restaurant reviews, but mainly because they make it so easy to make restaurant reservations! And p.s. we New Yorkers love a reservation.
Yelp: iOS | Android
OpenTable: iOS | Android
Wikitravel
Wikitravel is an incredible resource when you are traveling. It’s like Wikipedia but specifically for travel! Their city guides can be quite extensive, giving you the background of each destinations culture, how to get around, where to stay, eat, shop, do, etc. It’s a great starting point and resource for any trip.
Download: iOS | Android
Roadtrippers
Plan out your US road trip with the help of Roadtrippers: local places to dine, scenic points of interest, and those weird roadside attractions that are an absolute must for any long car rides. If you’re not photographing your group in front of a large dinosaur, atop a giant red dachsund, or by a tremendous ball of yarn, you’re doing it wrong.
Download: iOS | Android
TripAdvisor
TripAdvisor is another great starting point if you’re just starting to research your trip. They not only have reviews for hotels and restaurants, but also activities and attractions. I always want to maximize my trips, so I like to check out TripAdvisor during the planning stage to see what is worth spending my time and money on. It’s best used in conjunction with other resources, if you’re looking for the path less traveled, but it’s a great place to start when planning a trip!
Download: iOS | Android
Atlas Obscura
This one is not an app, but has a great mobile site. If you’re looking for an off the beaten path travel experience, Atlas Obscura is your rescource for strange and curious attractions. You can search “ghost towns” or “miniature cities” by location, or browse their wide array of stories detailing wondrous and fascinating destinations.
http://www.atlasobscura.com
GETTING AROUND
These days there are so many apps you can use to get around while traveling. Although a lot of major cities have taxis, using an app is often times familiar and easy. Since there are so many apps, here are a run down of the ones I use frequently:
Uber – their service spans across the globe, if you’re in a different country – chances are they probably also have Uber! This makes it super easy when ordering a car, you don’t have to worry about having the correct currency or figuring out how to say your destination in the local language!
Lyft – Just like Uber, Lyft is a car service/rideshare app. Their coverage is not as extensive as Uber, but they offer services all throughout the United States and several cities abroad.
Gett – Gett is a great option if you are traveling in NYC. They are a black car app that offers pre-booking, no surge pricing, and flat rate rides to the airport. They also offer you the price up front so you are never surprised at the end of your ride! Gett is also available in the UK, Russia, and Israel.
Via – Are you visiting NY but on a budget, and don’t want to take the subway? Via is the most affordable shared ride in Manhattan, you can ride anywhere south of 125th St for a flat fare of $5! They use car service SUV’s so you can always expect to be picked up in a premium vehicle with plenty of room. They do have different pricing on weekends and evenings, and don’t operate 24/7, but as one of the cheapest ways to get around town it’s definitely worth considering.
Uber: iOS | Android
Lyft: iOS | Android
Gett: iOS | Android
Via: iOS | Android
COMMUNICATING ABROAD
When traveling abroad, you’ll often times notice not everyone is using regular texting to communicate. In Europe most people are using WhatsApp and in Asia most people are using LINE Chat. Both of these apps use data (which is great if you can’t afford to buy one of those expensive international phone plans) – so as long as you can hop on wifi, this will save you data fees but also international texting fees. You can also make free calls to your friends over data on these apps if they are a user. If you have to make international calls, whether you are traveling or not, Viber offers great rates at significantly cheaper prices than any of the phone carriers. Since Viber also works on wifi, this makes it super easy if you need to call a restaurant, your hotel, or friend when you are traveling abroad for just pennies!
Viber: iOS | Android
WhatsApp: iOS | Android
LINE Chat: iOS | Android
Google Translate
This might be an obvious one, but it’s an important one when you are traveling in a foreign country. I love their camera and handwriting features! You can take a photo of text or handwrite characters you don’t recognize and it will automatically translate it for you. Plus you can practice how to say basic phrases you might need to know, as they have a speech option that repeats the words in whichever language you are trying to translate.
Download: iOS | Android
HELPFUL TRAVEL TOOLS
Currency Convertor
These types of apps always come in handy whenever I’m traveling or planning a trip abroad. My favorites are Units Plus and GlobeConvert. These apps also come in handy in every day life since you can convert pretty much any metric using these apps.
Units Plus: iOS | Android
GlobeConvert: iOS
Free Wifi Finder
This app is helpful when you are traveling either abroad or you just need to get on wifi. This comes in handy when you need to get some work done, and just using your phone isn’t going to cut it.
Download: iOS | Android
I hope these apps will be as helpful for you as they have been for me! Are there any other travel apps that I should check out? I’d love to know!
