Planning on taking a trip soon? Then make it an even better experience with these useful travel apps.

Whether you need to navigate an unfamiliar place without the use of mobile data, translate an indecipherable foreign language, or easily book your next stay, these are the top travel apps to install before you set off on your next adventure.

1. ATM Fee Saver 

Ever been frustrated with ATMs abroad charging exorbitant fees?

Well, not anymore with the ATM Fee Saver app, which gives you clear information on ATM locations and expected withdrawal fees. 

Often there are still banks where you can make withdrawals for free or for a low fee and this app makes it easy to find them! About 30 destinations are currently covered, including many countries in Europe, Latin America, and Southeast Asia.

Download: iOS or Android

 


 

 

2. MAPS.me

MAPS.me lets you download map data for a country or region so you can even use it when offline.

This app was a serious life-saver when I was trying to find my way through the infinite windy alleyways of the medina in Fez, Morocco — and so many other places where I’d have gotten totally lost!

Since MAPS.me is based on the Open Streets Map project, it often has details that are not visible on Google or Apple Maps. It’s much more suitable for exploring a city on foot or for hiking in nature, as it will often show all the paths and natural features whereas Google or Apple Maps will show just a green void.

In some developing countries, MAPS.me is also much better for road navigation. I found this to be recently the case in Albania, where the commercial map apps were a mess (as they had not yet bothered to do a proper survey of this country), but MAPS.me held up really well.

Download: iOS or Android

 


 

3. Splitwise

Are you traveling together? Then Splitwise is just amazing for splitting your bills, or just keeping track of your expenses.

I use Splitwise all the time when I’m traveling with a group. You can easily add expenses to the list, specify who it should be split with, and keep track of who’s paid.

The best feature is that you can automatically settle all your bills at the end of your trip. 

Download: iOS or Android

 


 

4. XE Currency

The best way to avoid getting overcharged abroad (or just making costly mistakes) is to have the latest exchange rates with you all the time. 

XE Currency works when when offline.

Download: iOS or Android

 


 

 

5. Wise

Speaking of currencies, I use Wise to convert my home currency to foreign currency.

Many foreign banks, ATMs, or even sites like PayPal use horrible exchange rates. But Wise has great rates, and is easy to use too. You can even set up automatic currency conversions, which get triggered when the rate is most favourable.

If you sign up for a full Wise account (free), you can also get a debit card that lets you take money out abroad without added fees (up to a monthly maximum).

Wise also gives you local bank details for several major currencies, which is super handy if you run an online business or plan to work abroad. 

Download: iOS or Android

 


 

6. Hostelworld

Hostelworld is the biggest hostel booking site, so if you’re a budget traveller chances are you’ll be using this app a lot!

Once you’re logged into your account, booking your next place to stay will take only a minute.

Download: iOS or Android

 


 

7. Skyscanner

The popular flight search engine Skyscanner has its own app, making it easier to search for flights on your smartphone or tablet. Get it for iOS or Android.

 


 

8. Kiwi

Kiwi is my other favorite flight search engine, and like Skyscanner it’s fully independent so it includes as many carriers as possible.

It has some amazingly powerful search tools for finding the best flights. However, I recommend booking with the carriers directly, so as to not have to deal with a 3rd party agent in case of cancellations, re-bookings, or other issues.

Download: iOS or Android
 


 

9. Pocket

Pocket lets you save any webpage for later reading. Just hit the share icon and select the Pocket icon, and you’ll be able to pull up this article or blog post from the Pocket app later. This is absolutely brilliant for stocking up on reading material before a long flight or bus journey. Pocket now also lets you save videos for later viewing!

Download: iOS or Android
 


 

10. Duolingo

What better time to learn a language than while you’re fully immersed in that language on a trip? Duolingo makes language learning fun by adding game-like scoring and progression systems. It’s free and it’s excellent for learning the basics.

Unlock the Flirting pack and you can even learn such useful phrases as “I’m not drunk, I’m just intoxicated by you.” Hello there sexy locals.

Download: iOS or Android

 

Rome2Rio, Duolingo, and VOLO

 


 

11. Rome2Rio

This is seriously the most amazing app for finding out transportation connections, even in the most remote places. Type in where you are and where you’re going and you get a list of bus, train, flight, and self-drive options.

Download: iOS or Android

 


 

12. Trail Wallet

This app makes it easier to track your daily travel budget and expenses. Supports 200+ local currencies, daily budget targets, spending categories, and much more.

Download: iOS only — on Android, try Travel Pocket.

 


 

13. Google Drive

Speaking of data security, be sure to back up your files! 

Seriously, I’m so sick of hearing travelers tell me sob stories about how they lost all their photos!

Make sure your phone is set up to sync with either Apple iCloud or with Google Drive (or with a competing service such as Dropbox or Microsoft’s Onedrive). Google Drive gives you 15 GB for free. I personally use the $2 a month plan for 100 GB of cloud storage, which gets synced across all my devices.

 


 

14. VOLO – Your Travel Journal

It’s fun to keep some kind of journal during your trip. While you could easily use the built-in notepad apps, it’s more fun to use a dedicated travel journal app.

With VOLO, you can create a kind of scrapbook, including pictures and text, and can even co-author your journey with your fellow travel buddies.

Download: iOS or Android

 


 

15. Timeshifter

The jet lag experienced after long flights can seriously undermine your energy levels and enjoyment of your first few days of travel.

However, you can minimize jet lag by adapting your schedule and behavior prior and during your flight. The jet lag app timeshifter makes this easy by giving you the right reminders.

Download: iOS or Android

 


 

16. Skype

Yeah, these days we all use FaceTime or Zoom to make video calls, not creaky old Skype.

But… Skype has one extremely useful feature, which is to make international calls at a local cost.

Skype is a great way to get around roaming charges if you’re somewhere far abroad. I always keep my Skype account ready with a few Euros or Dollars worth of call credit, as this has often been a real life-saver when having to make calls abroad that would normally cost a fortune in roaming.

Download: iOS or Android


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