Best mobile apps for travel

Best Mobile Apps For Travel

Make your mobile phone your travel consultant, booking buddy, planner and navigator. Who needs a PA now?

The best mobile apps for travel

Finding the best mobile apps for travel seems like an everything thing to do, right? What would we do without our smart phones? Imagine no social media, no apps?

Could we actually function now? If you’re old enough, think about life in the 80’s. It was almost all analogue, save for the few with those brick size mobile phones.

Foreign travel is one of the most enlightening and enriching things we can experience. Some like to do it over a few days or weeks, other go for months at a time to really absorb the looks, feels and tastes of a place.

As with any adventure, there will be a few daunting or scary elements. There will be times where you will be scratching your head thinking “where the Hell is the supermarket to stock up on supplies?” Or “That sign up there looks quite important; I wonder what it says.”

Data roaming on mobile and cell phones are as handy as ever. All your problems can be solved by downloading a few of the best mobile apps before you go on your travels. This article is going to help you choose which ones are tops for the task. From online translators to guidebook apps. Whatever concerns you when going to a totally alien place, the apps listed below will be sure to put your mind at ease.

BEAT THE LANGUAGE BARRIER WITH THESE GREAT MOBILE APPS FOR YOUR TRAVELS

When traveling, it does usually help to have a few of the basics down in terms of language. However, unless you’re incredibly dedicated, that’s not always an option. So, having a translation app installed on your phone will take a lot of the stress off.

Google Translate

It seems like everybody’s go-to, but for a variety of decent reasons. Top of the list? It’s a free travel app. In terms of its functionality, it caters to your translation needs whether or not you’re connected to Wi-Fi or mobile data. When offline, 52 languages are still available to you.

Road signs, menus, and other written material need bother you no more. Among Google Translate’s awesome features is a camera mode that can translate nearly 40 different languages just using your phone’s camera.

iTranslate Voice

Sometimes if you’re in a hurry, typing something into a translation travel app may not be an option. A voice-operated app like iTranslate Voice will be more up your alley.

44 languages instantly become at your convenience, translating something right back to you after you say it. A really handy feature is the phrasebook, where the app stores your commonly-used translations for you to look up when required.

The catch? Its offline capabilities are a bit more limited, so if this is the one you’re going to pick, make sure you have your data roaming sorted before you travel. You can’t always plan your translation needs according to the nearest Wi-Fi.

Finding your way around

Nothing is scarier when travelling around a new town or city than getting lost. If you are travelling with people, then at least there are more pairs of eyes to recognise landmarks or take note of street names, etc. On your own, it can be terrifying.

What you need on standby is a reliable map app to help you familiarise yourself with your surroundings, find your destination and, if you get lost, regain your bearings.

City Mapper

Thankfully, there are a few mobile travel apps out there that can offer you good maps .It’s a common hazard in the big cities to get lost. Knowing how to get from one place to another in the shortest time possible is a huge priority when traveling.

Enter the City Mapper app. It’s perfect for finding your way from A to B.

True, it doesn’t cover here, there and everywhere. But if you’re stuck in a major popular city with no idea where to go, City Mapper is definitely worth a download. Its other downside is that it is solely for directions and transport, which some users may find off-putting.

Some travelers like to see what they can do and see nearby. City Mapper is not the app for that. We’ll cover apps more appropriate to finding stuff to do in a later section.

MAPS.ME

Like your translation needs, you can’t always count on free Wi-Fi being nearby when you get lost.

And there is a finite amount of mobile data you can use without it costing you a fortune. So, having an offline maps app on hand will certainly prove useful.

Maps.me is perfect for the job. Not only will it provide directions in an offline state, but travel and transport information, such as bus and train times will also be available to the user.

FOR FINDING STUFF TO DO

Going to a different country and lounging around a hotel room – that’s not travel. It’s a vacation and, no doubt, very relaxing. But there is no experience to have. Exploring one’s surroundings, seeing things, meeting people – that is travel! So, alongside tackling the language barrier and finding your way around a new place, you will need help finding things to do and see. For the reason that travel is exploration, here’s some of the best mobile travel apps available.

Google Maps

Google is your friend throughout your travelling experience. Its Maps app was not mentioned in the last section because of its far superior capabilities. It’s more than just a simple way of finding directions. It is your own personal guidebook.

This travel app leaves no stone unturned. If you’re on a gourmet traveller’s trip, it can highlight all the best restaurants. If you’re there for a cultural tour, it will pick out all the best sights to see nearby. Want to experience some foreign nightlife in all its notoriety? Google Maps has the recommended bars and clubs.

They have the answer to any travel question you may have. The only real con in this long list of pros is the offline capabilities. Google Maps reduces to very basic functionality when offline.

AroundMe

Maybe you’re an individual who can’t get on with Google Maps. Such people exist. If you don’t mind paying a couple of dollars for a very easy-to-use app, then maybe give AroundMe a try instead.

Their user interface is very appealing to the eye and unbelievably simple to use. Google is not the only one with loads of answers. AroundMe can give a lot of detail for a wide variety of subjects, from opening times of the local amenities, conveniences, and landmarks, to showtimes at cinemas and theatres.

TRAVEL PLANNING

Any places to visit require travel planning and that needs quite a lot of thought and time. When it comes to putting all that information together, we now have some of the best mobile travel apps to handle the task.

Tripit

Here’s a cool travel application that you could use with your vacation planning.

Things get complicated when you’re booking multi hotels, airlines and car hire. As you move along you collect more and more information with you confirmation emails etc.

By the end of it all you may have a bit of a mish-mash of dates, times and info to still organize.

Trip it will do the job for you. All you have to do is forward all the confirmations and the Tripit logarithm will create a nice and neat master itinerary for you.

Google Trips

Not to be outdone, Google trips is another really good mobile travel app that makes all your information, from reservations to addresses with map available to you offline. You can plan the eating, sightseeing and the rest all with this one app. This is really good.