I am a minimalist when it comes to technology. You know how they say if something goes unworn in your closet for over 6 months, get rid of it? I haven’t gotten far enough to master that with clothes, but I am that way with my apps.
I only keep apps that I actually use and I’ve just searched through my phone for the best travel apps I have downloaded; I have separated them by category.
Booking Apps for Your Phone and Tablet
1. Skyscanner. This app searches so many budget airlines (1,000’s of airlines) that I find it most useful. It’s also the fun app that will allow you to set your departure city and see where you can fly to cheapest for a last minute vacation. I have never followed through and booked through the app, I wait until I’m at a computer to book.
2. Momondo. Ever since a review I did for this company, I have always checked them to see if I can find a good flight price. Again, this is an app I look at for reference when I’m away from a computer but have not booked from.
*** A side note… I also download Kayak, Priceline, Agoda, and Booking.com, then delete them.. then download them… it’s a terrible cycle but I can’t keep them all on my phone because of space. I rarely book directly from my phone so I check all these before making a big booking. You can see my list of favorites on my travel resources page.
Travel Apps to connect with people while traveling
3. Skype. I use this every other day to talk to my parents and having it on my phone to answer a free call anywhere is pretty cool.
4. Whatsapp. I use this to message not only friends back home, but here in India to save on recharge.
5. Viber. Another messaging app that also does calls. I have both because some travelers I meet only have one or the other.
More Useful Travel Apps
6. Google Maps. Pretty obvious one but saves me time and time again.
7. Duolingo. It’s a great language learning app, which reminds you to “practice” every day. If you’re traveling through a new country, it’s great to learn a few phrases and help dig into the culture. It’s also great to pass time on transport since it’s an offline app. It’s a free app.
8. Google Translate. This is the coolest app! Definitely give it a try. One unique feature that I can’t use in India (yet) is the photo translation. You can take a photo of a menu and it will translate it for you! Magic.
9. Weather Channel. Another obvious one!
10. XE Currency. My favorite app because it works offline, and when you connect to internet again, rates are updated so you stay current. You can input the currencies you’ll be using on your trip. No more standing at the ATM wondering how much money to take out! This app is free.
11. Gate Guru. Keeps you aware of any changes made to your flight and can help you find what you need in the airport.
12. Spotify. I used to be really against this because I hate change. As I’ve shifted from an iPhone to a equally as good MI phone, I’ve started using this. I download playlists based on music a like and think it’s even better than Pandora.
13. Multiple Readers. I use Polaris Office to open PDF’s, office spreadsheets, and more from work emails. I have a couple apps for this actually in case this one rejects what I open. I download Lonely Planet PDF’s and books I transfer to my phone. I use both Amazon Kindle and Aldiko Book Reader to make sure I have options to open any file.
14. MX Player. I download movies and my favorite TV shows and transfer them to my phone or tablet before flights and long trips. This app allows me to open them on my Android. I also have VLC in case MX rejects the file.
Travel Apps for Photography
15. Snapseed. I use the free app Google Snapseed to edit all my photos. Many times these edited photos are assumed to be taken with a DSLR so it’s a very good little app.
16. Google Camera. Another free app, google camera does two things I love: fish eye and blurring the background. It takes a while to get a hang of but is worth figuring out.
17. Instagram. Of course this has to be on the list. The best way to share travel photos! Follow me: @hippieinheelsblog
Travel Apps for India
18. Cleartrip. I’m a huge fan of cleatrip for booking flights, hotels, and trains in India. I also like makemytrip, but between the two, I find Cleartrip is incredible easy to navigate and doesn’t crash when booking! This is an app that I will book direct from. Set up an account and you can book on here in just two minutes throughout your trip which is great when WiFI isn’t stable.
19. IRCTC Connect / Indian Train Status. Perfect for looking up train times and to check for delays. I’ve found that the delays are very accurate. If you need to jump on from a different station, you can check and see where the train is. Set up an account ahead of time.
20. Learn Hindi Free Quickly. You have to pay for the extensive phrases, but the basics are listed and would come in helpful on your trip.
cleartrip
6 Other Travel Apps
There are a lot out there so I’ll go ahead and mention a few others I’ve played around with and although I found useful, I wasn’t using enough to keep around.
1. Waze – an app to help you determine traffic and take alternative routes
2. Globetipping– This .99 cent app does what it implies and would be good if you’re hopping countries a lot.
2. TripIt- it seems every traveler swears by this free app which makes itineraries from your bookings. For the unorganized person, I imagine this could be a lifesaver.
3. Uber– This isn’t useful for me in India, but I will add this back to my phone when in other countries. You can check rideshareapps.com to learn more about Uber and the similar app, Lyft.
4. Packing Pro– At 2.99, this app will help you not forget the important things.
5. TripSplitter– If you’re traveling with a friend and bothering each other over keeping track of every nickel and dime, this app is for you.
*** If you don’t plan on getting a SIM card while traveling and will be without 3g, I recommend reading this article, 25 offline travel apps, because I think you’ll find it quite helpful. I don’t use most because I am almost always connected to internet.
Great list, but I would definitely add Trail Wallet! It is a budget tracking app made by Simon and Erin of Never Ending Voyage and it is invaluable. We’ve been using it to track our budget for years and I don’t know how we lived without it before!
I’ve heard good things about that app, haven’t tried it myself. Maybe on my next long trip I will.
I LOVE momondo. I bought my flight to India through them!
Yeah they are great. I found them last year and now always check their rates.
Gosh I miss my smartphone! It’s liberating being without it sometimes, but as you have just proved, is a bloody useful bit of kit.
They sure are. Prior to this last year, I went without one for a year and half and now looking back I don’t know how I did it! I ended up getting one when I started my blog.
I’m guessing from your post that Uber has not yet come to Goa, but I have used it in Bombay, Hyderabad, and Bangalore in the last 3 months and have had great experiences. The drivers have all been friendly, and with their slashed prices their sedans are cheaper than Ola’s minis. Let me know if you don’t already have an account and I can send you my code to sign up. Might come in handy when you’re travelling in a larger city :)
xx
No Uber yet in Goa and I didn’t know if they would be expanding after the Delhi Uber incident – someone said Uber was banned? So I wasn’t sure!
I think they were going to ban it, but I’m not sure if it ever happened outside of Delhi. I know it’s been gaining some popularity in the south, and they are also aiming to hire 200+ women drivers in India to address the safety issue. I actually just published a post yesterday on my cab experiences in Bangalore, and these days Uber is leading the way as my go-to: https://veen83.wordpress.com/2015/03/26/cabs-in-bangalore-which-company-is-the-best/
xx
awesome,thanks for sharing
Cleartrip was a revelation for me – how easy is it? Love it – booking trains through that site is a joy!
Instagram of course – agree there!!
No AirBnB?
Cleartrip is great! I love it. Airbnb I use via computer, but it didn’t make my app list :)
I wanna try the Google Camera but I can’t seem to find it in app store. I’m using iPhone is it availble for my mobile? Thanks.
Hey, I’m not sure but just tried on a friends iPhone and couldn’t find it, but can on my android.
i use TravelMate with my friends, it saved me a LOT of stress and money (https://itunes.apple.com/app/apple-store/id933481421?ct=hi)
Funnily enough I used Skyscanner for the first time last week and managed to book a cheap flight through them. I agree about Snapseed which is one of the best photo editors around. Waze and TripSplitter are two Apps I did not know about and will have to check them out. Thanks for such an extensive list. Really helpful.
I’d add that Uber in India is alive and well, and have used it several times whenever I’m on vacation there. Just have to have cash handy for the driver.