Here are five applications that can help you with your travels or travel plans. You may even know of some of these five, but we doubt you’ll know them all. If you know, our “congratulations to you”!
1) Rome2Rio
It takes the guesswork out of planning your transportation from city to city. Plug in your origin and destination, and it lays out the choices-plane, train, bus, and car-along with the approximate time each route will take. Use it when traveling around Europe or when weighing Amtrak versus a flight from, say, Boston to New York. The app factors in the total time it will take door-to-door using each type of transit.
2) SkipLagged
This app is similar to Kayak and Google Flights for finding airfare deals between specified cities. But SkipLagged can also help you save with a “hidden city” option – a one-way ticket from City C when the stopover is really your final destination. By ditching the second leg of the trip, you may save money and time vs. other tickets from City A to City B. Note that travelers looking for a roundtrip option will have to buy two one-way tickets to take advantage of these hidden-city fares.
3) Google Translate
There are several translation tools on the market, but Google Translate’s features are still the best among free apps. You can write or even speak words and phrases that the app then translates into more than 100 languages. It even works off-line (so you don’t rack up data charges) for more than 52 languages. Bonus: you can take photos with your phone’s camera to translate signs and menu options (although this works best with simple typefaces – it struggles with ornate script).
4) Mobile Passport
Before you next head overseas, download this app authorized by the U.S. government. It can get you through customs faster on your return. You plug in basic personal information and your passport data, along with a selfie, ahead of time. When you arrive back in the U.S. at one of the 21 participating airports (they include most of the major hubs), the app asks a few questions about your trip, it then lets you jump into a dedicated Mobile Passport line.
5) Were We Go
With this app you can download maps of the cities you’re planning to visit and then use the off-line mode to view them. That can save on phone charges overseas. And closer to home, the app’s offline version of the New York City subway map makes it easy to double-check your route even when you’re underground. Offline maps are available for 1300 cities across 110 countries. They take a while to download, so make sure you allow time to get them set up before you take off.
Like it? Share is care.
Have a Good Trip!
* For airline tickets from the United States to Brazil or Latin America, custom travel packages, hotels and alternative stays, as well as Cruises from the United States, contact our travel agent and tour organizer, Magali DaSilva. Phone/WhatsApp 1(323) 428-1963 – email: magali_at_soubrasil.com
Facebook Comments