App way to travel

App way to travel

When an app transforms a smartphone into a compass, credit card or tour guide, these days a mobile device is all a modern traveller needs to ensure a pleasant journey.

But not all apps are created equal.

Some, such as WiFi Finder, are great ideas that do not work as well on the road. The free app is supposed to locate Wi-Fi spots and save on data-roaming costs, but these are awkward to locate offline.

Foodspotting crowd-sources culinary recommendations - but sadly, it is underutilised so the repository of dishes is not as rich as it could be.

Fortunately, there are plenty of good apps flooding the market, many of them free or inexpensive.

They work well online and offline, and serve the important daily needs of travellers, such as calculating foreign exchange, providing directions and translating menus.

SundayLife! looks at 16 apps which smoothen the journey.

vlydia@sph.com.sg

FIND ACCOMMODATION

A last-minute staycation or flight cancellation might have you fretting over finding a place to stay, but thanks to apps such as HotelQuickly and HotelTonight finding accommodation can be a breeze.

HotelQuickly focuses on the South-east Asia and Australasia markets and offers 20 to 30 per cent off best rates at three- to five-star hotels such as Pan Pacific and ParkRoyal.

The trade-off is that users can make only same-day or next-day bookings for stays of up to five nights through the app.

Meanwhile, HotelTonight specialises in last-minute listings for North American and European destinations.

Bookings on this app can be made no more than seven days in advance. Each listing includes pictures of the hotel, descriptions of its amenities and reviews.

For those on a budget, particularly backpackers who plan their travels day by day, HostelWorld is ideal. The app links travellers to 25,000 international budget accommodations and more than 3.5 million user reviews. Each listing includes pictures, prices, descriptions of the amenities and reviews, so travellers know exactly what they are getting when they book.

All these apps, which are like smoother, sleeker versions of TripAdvisor, are free and available for both iPhone and Android phones.

EXPLORE

Though it started out as a networking tool, Foursquare is one of the best apps for getting insider tips and a local perspective on a destination. The app lets users leave comments about a location, be it a restaurant, museum or nature park.

Log in to Foursquare to find out which cafe serves the best coffee or which restaurant has the best brunch and what time you should get there to avoid queues.

More than 50 million people use Foursquare, so you are guaranteed to gain insights, no matter where in the world you are. You can search by destination and activity, and the app keeps track of your preferences to better gear its future recommendations.

Another app which aims to provide a local perspective is Spotted By Locals, for which natives and residents of a destination share insider tips on favourite bars, cafes, art galleries, underground parties and how to get there.

The app has guides for 58 European and North American cities, which are free and available for download via Android, iPhone or pdf.

If you want to create your own city guide, download Stay.com's app.

Select your location and Stay.com will provide recommendations on restaurants, accommodation, tourist attractions, bars and restaurants.

You can also browse themed guides created by other travellers and the destination's residents. As you see items you like, add them to your guide and build your personalised itinerary.

Your selections will be stored on the guide's offline map, which you can access any time.

As you are touring, the app will give you recommendations on nearby hot spots, so you do not miss out on any great adventures.

You can also share your itinerary with friends and family to mine travel recommendations from them.

And when travelling in a group, you can share your guide with your companions, so everyone can add his own items of interest and have access to the same information.

The app is free and available for iPhone and Android phones.

KEEP FIT

Travel has a way of expanding our minds as well as our waistlines. But who wants to spend hours in the gym when there are sights to be seen and beaches to enjoy?

Enter 7 Minute Workout, a high-intensity interval training app sponsored by pharmaceutical company Johnson & Johnson.

The free app takes you through 30-second intervals of body weight exercises such as lunges, push-ups, squats and jumping jacks to get your heart pumping and your muscles burning.

The sessions can be completed in one, two or three circuits, which are led and demonstrated by Chris Jordan, the physical trainer who developed the routine.

There are 36 exercises and 12 additional workouts which can be customised and mixed, so users have more than 1,000 circuit variations to keep them interested.

The app can also log workouts, so users can keep track of their fitness.

As relaxing as it can be, travel can take a toll on the body after hours of walking or sitting on a tour bus.

Ease sore muscles and aching joints with the help of Pocket Yoga, a mobile yoga instructor.

The app, which costs $3.75 and includes a comprehensive directory of yoga poses, has five yoga sequences to choose from.

Users opt for 30-, 45- or 60-minute sessions at beginner, intermediate or advanced levels.

Each class has its own background music and is led by an animated woman, though her instructions sound monotonous.

Once downloaded, you can take your class wherever and whenever you want, no network or Internet connection necessary.

PLAN TO PRECISION

For those who like to have their trip detailed and organised, there are a number of apps that can help you plan and prepare.

WeatherPro is ideal for weather dependent vacations such as skiing or self-drive trips. It has weather reports for more than two million geographical locations, with forecasts every three hours.

The reports include everything from temperature to air pressure, from wind direction to the probability of precipitation.

The basic app costs $4.20 and extra features such as high-resolution weather maps, radar forecasts and UV Index can be added for $2.49 to $6.99 each.

When shopping overseas, never be unsure about how much that beautiful dress or leather sports bag costs in your own currency with the XE Currency app.

The free app provides up-to-date currency exchange rates, charts to show the currency's fluctuation and a built-in exchange calculator which does not need network access to run.

While in transit, use GateGuru to make the most of your experience in the airport.

The app, which is under the TripAdvisor umbrella, provides detailed airport maps and information about the airport's amenities, restaurants, reviews and airport tips.

The app also has a JourneyCard view which acts as a detailed itinerary of your trip. From there, users can view or access all the information they need for their travel, including security wait times, flight delays and gate changes.

Another useful TripAdvisor app is TripIt, an app which collates all the details of your trip, from accommodation booking to flight information and daily itineraries, in one place. The free app keeps track of past and upcoming trips as well as frequent flier miles and rewards points.

If packing for a holiday is not your forte, try PackPoint.

Users input the dates and location of travel, and the number and type of events on their itinerary, whether they are willing to wear basic clothes such as shirts or shorts more than once and if they will have access to laundry facilities.

Then the free app will generate a list of items to pack, based on these details and weather forecasts at the destination.

The user can add or remove items from the list before checking items off as their suitcase is filled.

If you do not want to stand out as a tourist once you land, stuck on a street corner holding a large, flapping map of the city, download MAPS.ME. The app is free and has detailed maps of 345 countries and islands.

Once downloaded, no network is required. The map provides specific directions and route instructions, and also thousands of "points of interest" - anything from restaurants and tourist attractions to petrol stations and ATM machines.

UNDERSTAND THE LANGUAGE

A key challenge of travelling abroad is communicating in a foreign language.

Travellers can mitigate this problem by downloading Duolingo, a free language app which teaches language like a game, with fun challenges, points and rewards when levels are completed.

English speakers can learn everything from common to complex phrases and vocabulary, as well as idioms and pick-up lines in seven European languages, including Spanish, French, German and Irish.

Those looking for an app to help them navigate foreign street signs or confusing menus can try Word Lens Translator, a camera app which translates phrases through the phone's camera.

Just hold your camera in front of the words or phrase you want to understand and the translation will be superimposed right there on your screen.

While the app does not work so well on script or stylised lettering, it has high rates of success for street and shop signs and menus. The best part is, the app is free and does not need any network to run.

The only downside is that so far, it translates only six European languages, including Russian, German and Portuguese, into English.


This article was first published on Dec 14, 2014.
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