must have Travel Apps
I don’t like to get too bogged down with 100 apps on my phone when I travel, and there are SO many out there to choose from, BUT I do have some favourites that were a life saver at one time or another during my travels! Here are some that were really useful while on the ground during our recent trip to the UK & Europe and in North America last year. Do you have some faves that I’ve missed? Leave a note in the comments.
WISE travel card. So this is more than just an ap, it’s how you will use your money when you’re overseas.I research loads of travel cards and this one came out on top. There is a really handy app for viewing transactions, loading and transferring funds. 3. You can can also load into Apple Pay. It’s just like a regular credit card but with VERY low fees. Amazing! You can sign up for a wise card HERE, for a limited time the $15 card fee is waved if you use my link.
XE - Currency exchange calculator. So good for figuring out the cost in your own currency! Probably my most used app overseas. You can pre set your top currencies too.
Apple Maps or Google Maps - OK, so you likely already have this on your phone... but did you know you can download offline maps to use when you’re out and about with no data? I also use google maps on my laptop a lot when in the planning phase to figure out distances and time between destinations.
Maps.Me - an alternative if you’re not a google maps fan, this is a great app that has offline maps for all around the world. Pre download the ones you want and away you go!
Citymapper - A public transport app with live timing for most major European cities. I didn’t actually use as much as my old faithful apple maps as I found google had this as well, but a great alternative and a bit more in depth. Definitely download if you intend on using a lot of public transport.
TripIt - If you want to put your Itinerary into an app that’s free, this is a great one. It’s super easy to add items in the app or on your desktop, or you can just forward your confirmation emails from bookings to a special email address and it adds everything for you. Format is great, nice and clean - can also be printed.
Uber - have this downloaded and ready to go. Uber is not available everywhere but for the places it is, it’s handy from the standpoint of where your destination is already loaded by the time you get in the car, so you don’t need to worry about a language barrier.
Transportation apps - I always download train or route planner apps for the country or city I’m going to. For example, if you’re going to Paris, download a Paris Route Planner and it will help you on the metro to figure out what lines you need. I do the same for the London Underground. If you have booked regional train tickets its also a good idea to download the national rail app so you can load in your booking and be updated with any changes.
Google Translate - A life saver sometimes! No frills, great app.
BlaBlaCar is a ridesharing app that I haven’t used, but its a great concept. Kind of like Uber, but for longer journeys. You can book in someones car who is going the same place as you.
Happy Cow - an app to find Vegan and Vegetarian restaurants in our location. This was great for us seeing as my hubby is allergic to dairy, which can be a little tricky in France.