5 travel apps to help plan a vacation
If you want to plan a vacation there’s no need to spend hours surfing the web and sitting in a travel agent’s office browsing through magazines – although the pictures are beautiful. All you need to do is visit the App Store (Apple) or Play Store (Android) and download helpful apps directly to your phone. This way you can plan a vacation from anywhere, at anytime - and even use an electronic dictionary to learn a new language while in transit. Our current state of hyper-connectivity ensures there are several free apps that can help you at every stage of the planning process, from booking a hotel to navigating a city when you arrive – you just need to know where to look.
Here are five apps to help plan a vacation:
Book your hotel and flight with Priceline
You may have seen Priceline’s advertisements on television featuring William Shatner and Kaley Cuoco, but Priceline is more than a travel discount website. They also have a mobile app that offers deep discounts. By downloading the Priceline app, you can find last minute deals and exclusive discounts for mobile users on hotels, flights and car rentals. Keep in mind the default currency is US Dollars, so you may want to change it to Canadian Dollars to get an accurate picture of the prices.
Use Tripit to plan activities
You’ll never be late with this download because Tripit is an itinerary planning app. It allows users to access their itinerary on a smartphone, tablet, computer or wearable device. All you need to do is forward your trip confirmation to Tripit and the app will create a detailed master itinerary, including flight details, booking confirmation numbers, your hotel address and dinner reservations, etc. The Tripit app is available on iOS, including Apple Watch, Android devices, BlackBerry and Windows phones.
Google Maps helps travellers get around
Never make another wrong turn when you download the Google Maps app. If you allow data roaming while away from home, this app can help you accurately drive or walk you to your next destination. If you prefer exploring a new city on foot, Google Maps can save a lot of time with step by step directions, and helps keep you safe from making wrong turns. You can follow the real-time map locator or use the voice activated directions – although you may look like a tourist, it’s better than carrying a paper map.
Let iTranslate help you communicate better
There’s nothing worse than exploring a foreign city and not being able to ask a question, get directions or converse with the locals. iTranslate is available in 90 different languages and allows users to write and speak while travelling. It translates text and websites, can initiate voice conversations and acts as a dictionary to lookup words and conjugate verbs. Google Translate is another popular translation app to help communicate while away from home. Language apps like these will help you get by in many Carribean, European and Asian destinations.
The XE Currency Converter helps you spend wisely
Have you ever travelled to a foreign country and wondered if you’re getting a good deal while shopping, or how to calculate the tip on a meal? The XE Currency Converter quickly solves this problem. The last thing you want is to come home from vacation and discover you completely went over budget thanks to the foreign exchange rate. A currency converter is like your MasterCard…never leave home without it.