When traveling there are so many pieces you are juggling in your head, especially if you are going across the world to a country where you do not speak the language. As much fun as traveling to new places can be, it can be stressful navigating it all. But fear not, there’s an app for that!

My Top Ten Travel Apps

Below are my top ten favorite apps that I use on most trips and always keep on my phone. Some of them are beneficial if traveling with a group or internationally, but they all make life so much easier when away from home!

Airline Apps

Whatever airline you are flying with most likely has their own app where you can check-in to flights, download boarding passes and get set-up for entertainment and wifi while flying. It is also helpful to get notifications of any changes to your flight, including last minute gate changes that the app will notify you of when they are happening.

WhatsApp

Why would I download another messaging app when I can just text? Not all phones or carriers support international calls or messaging, and it is not ideal for someone going on vacation every once in a while. WhatsApp allows for free international communication regardless of what kind of phone or carrier you have. It is a more secure way of messaging with end-to-end encryption. You can also send and receive media like photos and videos, keeping everyone up-to-date in the group chat.

Mobile Passport Control (MPC)

The Mobile Passport Control is an app from the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) that allows you to submit your customs declaration information electronically when you land before arriving at the checkpoint, hopefully expediting the process. This can save you some time and the lines for MPC tend to be shorter than the regular customs line and you do not need global entry to participate or get this app. Anyone can use it. The only downside to it is it is not available at all airports and sometimes isn’t available even if the airport supports it, so check before you travel to your destination to see if this app will save you time!

Global Entry

The Global Entry app is for Global Entry members. In order to get Global Entry you must submit ahead of time an application, complete a background check, schedule an interview and pay approximately $120. This has been well worth it for me who plans to travel internationally at least once a year, if not more because the membership is good for five years. Global entry gives you expedited customs and TSA security screening, which means less time in the airport and more time exploring, which is always the goal!

Tricount

Tricount is a must-have when traveling with friends or family and you are splitting expenses! I take a girls trip maybe every other year and one of my friends introduced me to this app and we use it every time we are together (traveling, birthday get-togethers, splitting dinner bills, etc.). You create a Tricount for whatever you are using it for and share the link with your friends (or family) to get them all in. Everyone adds their expenses and who they are splitting it with. If two of you split off from the group and grab lunch together and someone grabs the bill, you can just select the two of you versus splitting it between five or six at a bigger dinner. It easily tracks who has paid more or less and usually whoever owes the most is the next person up to pay for the next thing and then it keeps it pretty even throughout the whole trip. At the end, it calculates who owes what and suggests how everyone can settle up. Honestly, this might be my favorite of all ten apps! Highly recommend!!

TripIt

This app is great if you are taking a trip and need a daily itinerary. TripIt is a free travel planner app that can take booking confirmation emails and create a comprehensive itinerary based on what you have scheduled. You can also manually add activities in and then everyone can have access to each day’s schedule. Again, this is very helpful when traveling with a group of friends so one person doesn’t get stuck telling everyone all of the things (although they probably still will).

Google Translate

This one might be self-explanatory, but traveling abroad to countries where you don’t speak the language can make the experience a little more challenging. I always try to learn a few key words to exchange pleasantries with the locals, but beyond that, I’ll use google translate to help me order food, read signs and communicate with cab drivers.

Google Maps (for Transit)

When traveling to larger cities, navigating mass transit can be intimidating, especially in a different country, in a foreign language. You probably already have Google Maps, so let’s put it to good use! Type in your destination and then choose transit at the top for mode of transportation and it will break down exactly how to get there, including walking to station, which line to get on, if you have to switch lines at any point, how long it will take and if you have to walk at all at the end before arriving at destination. I prefer this over metro or city specific subway apps because this can be used anywhere!

Uber

This might be a controversial “favorite” app but it comes in handy when you need a ride across town because hailing taxi’s can be difficult and just as sketchy. It’s not my first option, but you don’t want to be in a situation where you need one and are needing to download the app after the fact. In today’s world, it’s good to take extra precaution, making sure someone knows where you are at all times (sharing locations if you feel comfortable) and when possible, traveling with other people. This is good for grabbing an Uber, but also just traveling in general!

Flighty

The app for all your flights… if you have an iPhone. Unfortunately there is not an android version for this app currently. This is great for someone who travels often; whether for work or pleasure. I have not personally used this app yet, but my husband swears by it. It’s designed to be your day-of-travel companion. Once you’ve booked your flight(s) you can manually upload them into the “Your Flights” section, unless you have Flighty Pro, then it can access your calendar and will automatically import them. Flighty will update you on any changes to your flight, including gate changes usually quicker than even the airline apps will. Some international airports are well-known for not giving you gate information, until just a few minutes before your flight and Flighty helps get your this information as soon as it is available.

There is a Flighty Friends feature where you can either get automatic flight updates from those you are “friends” with on the app or manually enter flight details for anyone not on the app. This is great when you are meeting up with someone for a trip and/or picking someone up from the airport and need up-to-date flight information at your fingertips!

One of my husband’s favorite features beyond the day-of flight information is that Flighty stores all of your flight information and builds a flight “passport” with everywhere you have been. You can either keep it as a yearly passport or an “all-time” passport, giving your great statistics and visuals from your travel history. For my husband who travels internationally one or two times a week, this is a really cool feature to have!

What are your favorite travel apps?

While these are the ones I wouldn’t travel without, I’m sure there are many other apps that make traveling a breeze! What am I missing? What are your favorite travel apps?

Thanks for stopping in! Let’s stay connected and see the world together!