Traveling without a cellphone or laptop these days is pretty much unheard of. There are so many tools we can use while traveling to make navigating foreign roads, finding the best restaurants and even booking flights as easy as 1, 2, 3. There are countless websites and mobile apps out there but I’ve put together a list of my favorites that I used while I was on my most recent trip!
Hostelworld
If you’re just traveling on holiday, chances are you probably aren’t going to be staying at a hostel. However, if you’re planning on doing some long-term travel, hostels are a great way to save money and meet fellow travelers. I used Hostelworld constantly as I was traveling throughout Southeast Asia and Australia. The mobile app (and website) lets you search any location with selected dates and provides you with all the hostels around with cost per night. It also provides filters on price, rooms (single vs dorm, etc), facilities (lockers, free wifi, etc), rating and type (hostel vs apartment vs B&B). When using the mobile app, you can turn your location on and the app will geo-filter all the hostels close to you. Additionally, a new feature the mobile app just released is called “Speak the World”, which uses Google Cloud Translate software to instantly translate up to 43 languages.
I will say that I had a bit of trouble using the mobile app interface- it was quite slow and sometimes would close out unexpectedly. I found myself using the website more often, which was always quick. Regardless, the user experience on mobile and web is really simple and easy to navigate.
Skyscanner
When traveling long-term you have the advantage of being on your own schedule. Every day doesn’t have to be planned out weeks before nor do you have to book accommodations far in advance. When I began my trip, the only flights I had booked were to my first stop, Bangkok and my flights coming home four months later from New Zealand. I had six countries to visit on my trip, but hadn’t planned exactly what places I’d be headed to and when. Skyscanner made it super easy to search for the cheapest flights by month instead of particular days, which saved me a lot of money. This is one of my favorite flight search engines that I have been using and recommending for years!
Some of my favorite features on Skyscanner include:
1. Whole Month View
If you’re flexible on timing and dates, this feature is THE best. Simply enter in the airports you’re flying in and out of and in the date section chose the “Whole Month” option and either chose a specific month or click “Cheapest Month” for the cheapest flight currently available.
2. Everywhere Search
Feeling bouts of Wanderlust but not sure where to go? Enter in the airport you’re flying out of and then in the “To” column, simply type in “Everywhere”. You then have the option to choose specific dates or months and results will appear for countless countries with the cheapest estimated options.
3. Price Alerts
This feature allows you to set up price alerts for a specific flight search. You will get notified when the price drops or rises so you can jump on a great deal. When using the website, you can set up email alerts or download the mobile app and get notifications straight to your phone.
Another travel tip: Always use Google Chrome’s incognito mode when searching for flights. Websites track your browser cookies and can therefore raise prices to get you to book quickly. So make sure you’re in incognito mode and clear your browser history and cookies.
Check out some great summer deals on Skyscanner below!
- WOW Air Flash Sale
- Flight Deals Under $100
- Cheap Flights to Nicaragua *deals end May 31*
*I’ve partnered with Skyscanner to share with you my favorite site for flight deals. I’ve used Skyscanner for years and highly recommend it!
TripAdvisor
Unfortunately for us Americans, Yelp doesn’t exist all over the world. Insert TripAdvisor- the best place to find restaurants, hotels, sights and more. I used this app a lot when traveling and with its great geo-location feature, finding whatever you need around you is so simple. They also recently updated their mobile app and website to include flights, vacation rentals, booking tours and more.
Southeast Asia especially thrives on tourism and I didn’t realize how important a simple TripAdvisor review could be to a restaurant or local business. There were countless occasions where owners would politely ask me to leave a review for them because it really impacted their business. I started to write reviews instead of just passively using the app as I too rely on reviews when traveling and visiting restaurants, hotels, etc.
Google Maps
Luckily this is an app most of us already have on our smartphones. Google Maps has a great offline maps feature that enables you to download a map so that when there is no connection, internet is slow or we don’t want to use data, one can still navigate their way around. The app lets you chose how wide of an area you want to download, and even though it does take up phone storage, you can delete it once you no longer need it.
Another app I saw many travelers using was called MAPS.ME– a similar program to Google Maps. So if you don’t already have Google Maps or want to try something different, check it out!
Campermate
This app is only relevant if you’re traveling to New Zealand, but I wanted to share regardless as it’s super helpful. If you followed along on my trip a few months ago you’ll remember I traveled through the South Island of New Zealand in a campervan. When traveling in a campervan its important to know where the petrol stations, dump stations and campsites are located. Campermate makes it extremely easy to find all of this and more. What’s also great about the app is that you can add in new locations and travel tips like secret swimming holes or free campsites. This app is a MUST if you plan on traveling by campervan through NZ!
Grab
Grab is like Uber but for Southeast Asia. While Uber does exist in some of these areas, Grab is more well-known. With the app you are able to request a taxi, motorbike, car, van, coach bus, and even carpool. The service is available in Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand, Vietnam, Philippines and Myanmar.
