Top 10 Free Travel Apps

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Using my iPhone for and during travel was the best thing I ever did. There are so many cool apps that makes travel and travel planning easy, so I decided to put together a list with the top 10 that I like so far.

You’ll find apps for booking anything from tickets, to hotels, and finding food and wifi when you’re out and about. Some of these aren’t particularly made for travel but should be used when you are, like Google Translate and XE Currency. It makes it all easier!

We’ve already reviewed Kayak on here and AirBnB, so I only included one of them to not have too many repeats.

(If you want another list, here’s one)

10. GasBuddy

Gasbuddy Free AppFind the cheapest gas anywhere you go.

Calling all road-trippers! With the rising gas prices it can be a hassle trying to find a way to save a buck on the road. GasBuddy solves that problem in one simple step. This app uses your phone’s GPS to find the nearest gas stations and find all the listed prices. So, now you can check out the prices of the place around the block versus down the street and plan out stops along the road in the USA and Canada.

Betcha didn’t know that you could bring in some cash with this app also? Since GasBuddy depends on users to report prices, people earn points when they report, and those points can turn into prizes, which of course can go right into your gas tank.

Click this link to download it for free!

9. GateGuru

Gateguru Free AppGet flight tracking information, airport amenities, and security wait time all in one place.

Sometimes the wait before boarding the plan on a vacation or business trip is a massive hassle. Traffic to the airport, long lines at the security check in, bad food or little choices at the gate, never knowing if the flight will be delayed. But, GateGuru is an app that has been made to solve all of that in one shot.

Providing information on real-time security waits, airport maps and most importantly for many travelers, real reviews, information and photos on most airport amenities. So, it’s really easy to find the best and quickest place to grab a snack before boarding, and the app provides notifications if the plane is late or switches terminals, a really nice addition.

Click this link to download it for free!

8. TripIt

Tripitf Free AppKeep all of your travel plans in one place and easily share it.

One of my favorite apps, TripIt keeps everything together in one spot. In the past, sometimes it would be a struggle to try to remember to print out my airplane ticket, the rental car confirmation and the hotel address, especially if I had reserved everything at different times. What I love the best about this app is that I can simply just forward my email confirmations to TripIt and the information is automatically pulled and organized.

Another great feature is that TripIt makes it really easy to share my itineraries, prefect for sending to travel buddies to coordinate timing, my parents or my significant other so they know where to reach me.

Click this link to download it for free!

7. Urbanspoon

Urbanspoon Free AppFun way to find all the local food options when out on the road.

I don’t know about you, but for me some of the best parts of traveling is to try out some new food. I don’t want to go to and find the local hotspots, and yea, quench my craving for Thai! The best part of Urbanspoon is that if allows you to search all area restaurants based not only location, but by type of food (i.e Thai, gastropub, vegetarian) and by price range.

So let’s say I’m out on business and want a cheap dinner and am craving Italian. Just filter the Urbanspoon app to those choices, and shake shake shake it up. The app will produce a list of restaurants that match your requests, from there you can view the menu, reviews and even make a reservation.

I’ll never go hungry again!

Click this link to download it for free!

6. TripAdvisor City Guide

TripAdvisor City Guide Free AppOffline guides that can provide information on city eats, lodging, and attractions.

The TripAdvisor City Guide provides a fully downloadable guide on some of the most popular cities all over the world, such as Boston, LA, NYC, Rome, Barcelona, Sydney and Tokyo, and stores in on your phone, no wifi is needed to access them. TripAdvisor is one of the most trusted review sites online, covering hotel, resturant, attraction and transportation information all in one spot, by real users. The city guides brings all that power into your iPhone.

Not only does this app offer reviews, but it also has facts about each city and even self guided tours. The self guided tours option is a really great feature that can give any traveler new to a city a quick way to get out and explore new places, neighborhoods and historic sites.

Click this link to download it for free!

5. Wi-Fi Finder

WiFi Finder Best Free AppGet ya Wi-Fi going, simple as that.

The Wi-Fi Finder app is pretty self explanatory. You need Wi-Fi, and it finds it for you. Now that Wi-Fi is getting installed in more and more places, especially in cities, not having to worry about finding a place to plug in when you’re traveling is a real gift. No more will we be all jammed into our local Starbucks like sardines!

Basically, this app uses the GPS in your phone to zone in on area Wi-Fi. It also has a filter option, to find hotspots that are free or pay, or by provider. You can also pre-download locations, so if you are off and don’t want to use roaming on your iPhone to find Wi-Fi hotspots, the locations are already set to go on your phone.

Click this link to download it for free!

4. SkyScanner

SkyScanne Free AppFinds the cheapest places and dates to fly all over the world.

Looking for an iPhone app that searches for the cheapest flights on the major and independent airlines, tells you which dates are the cheapest to fly and allows you to book and share the flight details? Then look no further, SkyScanner is the app for you.

SkyScanners is an independent airline aggregator, so every time you search for a flight, it will give you the lowest options available, searching over 1,000 airlines and travel agent websites to you the prices of any trip. Another great feature about the app is it’s sharing capability, perfect for those group trips, or if you just want to alert your family to your flight information, with one click a flight ordinary can be shared via email, Facebook or Twitter.

Click this link to download it for free!

3. Google Translate

Google Translate Free AppsBe able to translate text easily on the go.

With translation capabilities for 63 languages, a traveler would have to be somewhere pretty remote to not be able to use this tool. Another great benefit of Google Translate is that it takes the 17 most popular languages and allows the user to speak into the iPhone and have the app convert the speech into text on screen. Also, it takes the top 24 languages and allows the user to listen to them, something that is really helpful to get the pronunciation down.

This app also allows the most used phrases to be starred and easily accessible, something that can really help travelers who frequently hit up the same spots on for business or pleasure.

Click this link to download it for free!

2. XE Currency

Xe Currency Free AppEasy way to get any currency converted while on the road!

There’s nothing worse than when I’m on the road and have to do all that pesky math in my head to convert currencies. The torture!

But, seriously, this app gives me every world currency available, live. I don’t have to worry about looking at rates that are a week or more old. And the XE Currency app let’s me track up to ten currencies at a time, perfect for those multi country globe hopping trips, there’s no way I can get my math wrong and currencies confused.

I can also personalize my settings, picking which currencies I track and how often I can get updates, a feature that totally comes in handy.

Click this link to download it for free!

1. AirBnB

AirBnB Free AppFind accommodation anywhere!

When I travel, one of the biggest expenses for me is lodging. It can be so frustrating, especially if I’m working with a budget, to have to go on a hunt to find a good place to stay that’s close to the action but still in my price range. Enter AirBnB. Almost like a Craigslist of accommodation, this app is a marketplace of people who have available places to stay, either beds, private rooms, or entire homes/apartments and people who are looking for places to stay.

Operating in a variety of budgets, AirBnB gives the option to find places that are diverse and interesting, and an added bonus is that many of these places come with a built in tour guide – the owner, who can provide a wealth of information about the area.

Click this link to download it for free!

 

So, there you go, some really useful tools for when you’re traveling, whether it’s a roadtrip or further away from home! If this list is not enough, here’s another resource, from National Geographic, with a list of 20 apps

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