Anyone who travels with a smartphone knows how important having the right travel applications can be. The following is a list of just a few of the most popular smartphone applications help travelers plan for their trip, as well as help them when they are there.
Before you go, the most important thing you need to do is understand your phone's data plan. When you go overseas, you have a great chance your phone will work as you walk around Italy or France, but it you don't know how much it costs to use your phone - or in some chances, even having it turned on while traveling can provide your a financial shock wave when you return home. Rear our other page about how to travel with a phone overseas to learn more - this is a very important thing to do.
The following is a listing of the most common smart phone travel applications broken down by subject:
Trip-Planning and Information
Rick Steves Audio Europe (free, self-contained) has 200 radio interviews and 29 audio walking tours of Europe's top sights, organized by destination for easy browsing. Download the playlists that interest you before your trip, then listen to them as you travel.
Apple's iBooks, Amazon's Kindle, Sony's Nook, and other eBook readers (free apps, but pay content, self-contained) allow you to download and read guidebooks, novels, and much more.
Ebook Apps (pay, self-contained), offered by various travel publishers — including Lonely Planet, Frommer's, and Rick Steves — are guidebooks in app format. These are similar to an ebook but don't require an eReader, allowing them to be more customized (and, in many cases, easier to navigate).
TripAdvisor's app (free, Internet) gives you access to millions of user reviews of restaurants, hotels, and sights (though TripAdvisor ratings should be taken with a grain of salt). Yelp is arguably even better, since most reviews are from locals rather than travelers — though in Europe, Yelp only covers London and Paris (so far).
Orbitz, Priceline, Booking.com, Expedia's TripAssist, Travelocity, and other travel-booking apps (free, Internet) allow you to search for flights, hotels, rental cars, and more.
TripIt This is a free travel organizer so you’ll never have to dig through your printed, paper itineraries again. Trip It links to your e-mail account and picks up every confirmation number that comes into your inbox. Any flight, hotel, or even dinner reservation that contains a confirmation number will be put into an organized itinerary, all in one place. Flight delays and last-minute changes sent to your e-mail will be updated automatically.
Layar This is a free application and is an augmented reality app, meaning it gives you extra information from the digital world “layered” on top of something real in this world. Simplty point your camera's phone at a landmark, and the app will share interesting facts about the destination. Layar works best when you think of it as a travel app. It works very well in big cities and top destinations, but can be middling or even useless in lesser-traveled spots.
Urbanspoon - Find local eats by “shaking” your device and watching near-by restaurants slide up and down your screen like a slot machine. Urbanspoon uses GPS to pick popular restaurants local to your neighborhood throughout the U.S., Canada, U.K. and Australia.
Yelp - Stuck in a new city without a clue as to where to eat? No worries. Just fire up your handy Yelp app, which locates all the nearby eateries, then browse by proximity, neighborhood, price, or what's open now. You also get easy access to Yelp's burgeoning collection of customer reviews, so you can avoid any clunkers. Not hungry? The app lets you find a whole host of other on-the-road necessities, such as bars, banks, drugstores, and gas stations.
Airport and Airline Information
Free Airport WiFi: This is a website that lets you know about free WiFi at airports.
MyTSA - This application which is available for iPhone and mobile Web platforms lets travelers check on navigating security checkpoints and finding out the time to pass thru the checkpoint you will be using. The app has a real-time airport status map, which is useful enough, and reproduces the agency's standard traveler's guide, including all the information about liquids, choosing your security line, medical needs and more. The Security Wait Times feature is the most promising part of the app, although it depends wholly on travelers self-reporting in the airport. The "Can I Bring?" function is a bit of a crap shoot -- given that airline food is all but ancient history, I searched on "fork," and was instructed that a tuning fork is a musical instrument, which is "permitted in the cabin of an aircraft or in checked baggage, although some special conditions may apply." What conditions? For example, can I eat with it?
FlightAware - This is the easiest, no-frills app to track your flight; just provide your airline and flight number and let Flight Aware do the rest. Accept the push notification feature for updates on flight delays, gate changes or cancellations.
Stuck at the Airport: GateGuru - This is an iPhone and Android app that is essentially a Seat Guru for airports, the free Gate Guru app has information and maps for gate locations, food vendors, stores, ATM's, places to plug in, airline clubs, Wi-Fi availability and more for heaps upon heaps of airports.
Airport Car Finder: While this is currently for iPhone 3Gs or later only, it is an interesting app to help you find your car because who hasn't come back from a long trip, or just a trip to the grocery store, and wondered where they parked their car? This .99 cent app uses the phones compass and camera to pinpoint the location of your car. When saving your car's location, you take a photo of the car, which is assigned a location that will show up on a map when you return to find your car. The new Parking Meter Alert is an excellent addition; it will give you a notification that looks the same as an appointment notification. Some users have reported spotty results, and the company is up front about admitting that performance depends largely on the accuracy of the GPS signal at the time you pinpoint as well as return to your car. Another iPhone app is the G-Park App.
Navigation and Transportation and Taxis
Know that various GPS apps (pay, Internet) work the same as your car's GPS system, but the ones with European maps can be prohibitively expensive. Also, GPS gobbles valuable bandwidth, which can be extremely expensive if you're data roaming. Here are a few to consider.
Google Maps (free, Internet), one of many handy route-finding apps, uses GPS to identify your current location and downloads step-by-step driving or walking instructions to your destination. Google Earth
Google Earth - Includes the same maps, as well as 3-D models of landscapes and buildings as Google maps, but this is a pocket-sized version of Google's awesome web app. The Google Earth iPhone app lets you travel the globe while, um, traveling the globe. Handy for lending some perspective or just locating yourself in a new city, the app makes use of the same types of global satellite and aerial views you would get on the web. Just picture it: a third of the world's land mass, available for your viewing pleasure at the tap of a finger.
DB Navigator (free, Internet), German Rail's comprehensive train timetables, includes connections for all of continental Europe. For the UK, try thetrainline (free) or UK Train Times (pay).
Various subway map apps for the London Tube, Paris Métro, and others (pay, self-contained) have detailed, digital plans of public transit networks that save you from having to unfold an unwieldy map on a busy platform. The free, self-contained MetrO is a handy route-planner for public transit in dozens of European cities, but does not have maps.
Hopstop - The commuter's dilemma: subway, bus, or cab? HopStop makes the choice easy. Just enter your starting and ending addresses and the app gives you detailed directions of how to get there via public transportation. You can even specify more walking or less walking, fewer transfers or more transfers, and so on. Rainy day? Taxi mode will estimate the time and cost of taking a cab, and give you information about nearby cab companies.
AroundMe - This was the first iPhone app to make use of Google's location-aware API, and it remains one of the easiest and fastest apps for locating points of interest near you, no matter where you are. Like Yelp's app, it can quickly tell you about restaurants and bars in your vicinity, as well as other useful categories such as hospitals, ATMs, supermarkets, theaters, and more. But perhaps AroundMe's biggest attribute is its simplicity and speed: most of your hunting can be done with a single click.
Skyscanner (free, Internet) helps you search a wide variety of European budget airlines to find the cheapest connection between any two points.
When using Kayak (free, Internet, other flight trackers available), plug in your flight details, and this app will keep track of whether your flight is on time — and, for the folks back home, will even allow them to track your plane's progress on a map.
"TAXI!": Call a Taxi, Taxi Magic, cab4me : These apps find the nearest cab companies to your location and offer contact numbers, location, and even the ability to book and pay for your ride. None of the cab apps worked very well in the suburban and rural areas I visited this summer, but a number of friends swear by the apps, and have mentioned the three above at some point. Cab4me has a prettier user interface but costs a couple bucks; Taxi Magic is free. Call a Taxi has an iPad version, but since the iPad has no phone, that means that none of the phone numbers are clickable, a fairly serious failing. For any cab app, you may want to avoid using the auto-pay options, as some services hold up to $45 each time you call a cab, much like a security deposit.
Parking
Car Finder: While this is currently for iPhone 3Gs or later only, it is an interesting app to help you find your car because who hasn't come back from a long trip, or just a trip to the grocery store, and wondered where they parked their car? This .99 cent app uses the phones compass and camera to pinpoint the location of your car. When saving your car's location, you take a photo of the car, which is assigned a location that will show up on a map when you return to find your car. The new Parking Meter Alert is an excellent addition; it will give you a notification that looks the same as an appointment notification. Some users have reported spotty results, and the company is up front about admitting that performance depends largely on the accuracy of the GPS signal at the time you pinpoint as well as return to your car.
Language Translation
Google Translate (free, Internet), a remarkable app, lets you type in a foreign language (or you can have someone speak clearly into your smart phone) and you'll get an immediate translation. You can also say or type a sentence in English, then a computer voice actually says the translation (or hold up the screen to show someone the written translated message).
Word Lens - This is a real-time translation app that you have to see to believe. (And you can, thanks to this video demo.) The app uses augmented-reality technology to translate real-word objects in real-time. You simply aim your smartphone's camera at a sign in a foreign language, and it'll instantly translate it for you. Menu in Spanish? No problem — point the app at it and watch the words transform. The quality of the translations can sometimes be spotty, but Word Lens is an exciting look at technology to come. The app is free; language packs are limited currently - Spanish as of this posting and costs $9.99.
Lonely Planet Audio Phrasebooks and other phrase book apps (pay, self-contained) are digital phrase books that allow you to simply press a button to hear the phrase you're struggling to pronounce.
iTranslate: Available for the iPhone and Android is a great dual-window instant translator app -- you set your "from" and "to" languages, then type a word or phrase in the top window, and the translation appears in the bottom window. From there, you can e-mail, text, tweet or copy the passage to send, post or insert into a document or e-mail. The app is free, although for an extra one-time fee of $1.99 you can set the app to read the translation to you. The user interface is as simple as simple gets, so this is really easy to use, and the results were extremely accurate with all of the most common travel phrases I tried.
Babelingo: Only for iPhone for now is available in 11 languages. It is a slightly simpler phrasebook app, with a somewhat more sophisticated interface, opening to a screen that lets you choose from common phrases for conversation, time, getting around, money, eating out, medical, and lodging. For each of these there are a few dozen common options -- "How far is it from here?" "Can I have a map, please?" "Where is the toilet?" -- each with a succinct translation. The output page features the translated phrase white letters on a black background; if you are really at a loss to be understood, Babelingo suggests that instead of trying to say what's on the screen, you just show it to whomever you are trying to speak with.
Practicalities
Measures (pay, self-contained) converts various European units (metric measurements, clothing sizes, even currency) to familiar American ones.
All-in-One Travel App "Where" is a cross platform app that distinguishes itself from the competition by trying (often successfully) to collect the location-specific information you can find in a number of other, more specialized apps into one uber-app. So instead of having one app for news, and one for local movies, and another for local gas prices, and another for weather, another for restaurants -- you get the idea -- Where has a small app-inside-an-app for each. In many cases, the app within the app has still another app inside -- in the Coffee applet, for example, you can choose only nearby Starbucks franchises, or nearby Dunkin' Donuts, or nearby Au Bon Pain, etc. Where gets all its info from reliable sources -- the weather comes from AccuWeather, the gas prices from Gas Buddy -- and I found that it could almost take the place of an entire handful of apps already on my phone.
mPassport (pay, self-contained) are city-specific apps that direct you to English-speaking doctors and hospitals, as well as local names for prescription medications.
All-in Notes, Microsoft OneNote, and other note-taking apps (pay, self-contained) let you combine photos, recorded sounds, and written notes to keep a multimedia journal of your trip.
Should I Bow or Tip?: World Customs and Cultures - This is a free iPhone World Customs and Cultures app is a guide to the sometimes odd and potentially confounding cultural differences you will experience when traveling internationally. You can learn that Bulgarians shake their heads from side to side for "yes," and up and down for "no," and that pointing with your index finger in China isn't usually done; instead, use your whole hand. There are countless such pointers for dozens of countries in the app, making it not only useful but arguably interesting enough to read.
Bathrooms: SitOrSquat - This is a web application that addresses a basic need that every traveler has thought about. When nature calls, this Sit or Squat app shows you a map and/or list of nearby publicly accessible toilets. Another website that has similar information is The Bathroom Diaries.
Free WiFi: This is a website that lets you know about free WiFi at common locations such as companies like Panera Bread, Barnes & Noble, Starbucks, Krystal, FedEx Office and McDonald's, hotels, motels, resorts, RV parks, campgrounds, and vacation rental locations, all which have multiple or single locations with Free Wi-Fi. You can use each company's web site's location search feature to find a location near you or where you'll be travelling.
Money and ATM Finders
There are a number of ATM finder apps out there, including those embedded in official bank apps (such as the Bank of America app); platform availability varies for each, but you will find one for almost any smart phone.
ATM Hunter: This is a free app by MasterCard returns a list of nearby ATM's, including information on the establishment in which you will find it (bank, gas station, mall, store, etc.). It also allows you to filter to find a specific bank, a drive-through, wheelchair accessibility, 24-hour operation and a bit more. It's one of only a few ATM finders that claim to offer worldwide information. Unfortunately, it only offers map view once you have selected a specific ATM.
Oanda Currency Converter or XE Currency (free, Internet) instantly tells you today's exchange rate.
Currency iPhone App: This is a free XE iPhone app.
Weather
The Weather Channel, AccuWeather, and other weather apps (free, Internet) help you better plan your day.
Keeping in Touch
Using Facebook, Twitter, and other social networking apps (free, Internet), you can post descriptions and photos of your trip while keeping track of what your friends are up to back home.
Skype or Fring apps (free, Internet) use VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol — see here) over a Wi-Fi signal to allow you to make free calls to fellow users' computers and smartphones, and cheap calls to other phones.
New York Times, ESPN ScoreCenter, and other news/information readers (free, Internet) help you keep track of news and scores back home.
DropBox (free, Internet) saves files from your computer in an online account, which you can access from anywhere on your smartphone or a computer.
Cell Phone Photography Applications
PostaGram This is a unique iPhone and Android app that lets you take a picture and someone else prints it out in a post card format and sends it via snail-mail for you to anywhere in the world - Very low effort but with a great result. Other similar programs may be found such as SnapShot Postcard and fCards will let you email your postcard instead.
Photosynth - This is a free Microsoft program which is both an Internet and iPhone app. Whether you’re standing at the base of Machu Picchu or flying down the slopes in Zermatt, Microsoft's Photosynth Interactive Panorama Capture and Sharing is a free app which makes the best of your camera by stitching together your photos to create panoramic images. Send 360-degree views to friends and family while you’re abroad – prepare to be amazed.
360 Panorama: This is a simple and ingenious iPhone panorama app that give you a 3D space and you "paint" your surroundings
InstaGram: A very high rated FREE iPhone app - It has a crisp, clear interaction with no fuss or muss. Snap a photo with your iPhone, choose a filter to transform the look and feel, send to Facebook, Twitter or Flickr – it’s all as easy as pie. It’s photo sharing, reinvented.
Our site contains over 100 pages of travel safety tips and security tips that are useful for any traveler. You will find tips involving luggage theft, avoiding pickpockets, laptop theft, hotel burglary, and airplane, train, automobile, and boat travel crimes.
