chloedickensonLast Updated on 9th May 2024
This post about my top apps for travelling contains affiliate links and mentions of previous collaborative work. Please see my disclaimer for more.
As much as I hate to admit it, I rely on my phone quite a lot when I’m travelling. It’s not so much that I necessarily need it to be able to travel, but the convenience of having the apps and resources on my phone to make my travels easier is just nice to have.
With that in mind, I’ve compiled a huge list of all the best apps I’ve used for travelling over the years. Some only apply to certain countries, so you won’t be able to use them everywhere, but typically speaking, all of these apps have made travelling much more convenient for me in one way or another.
A few years ago, I wrote a post about the best free travel apps that you’ll actually use, so there’s some overlap there, but this post contains a fully up to date, comprehensive list of my top apps for travelling.
Babbel – top apps for travelling
My recent collaboration with Babbel was pretty much a dream come true for me as I’d been wanting to properly learn a language for a long time.
I’d dabbled in learning Spanish with a few other apps and websites before but I’ve honestly never used anything as effective and successful as Babbel.
It’s now firmly on the list of my top favourite travel apps and I love how I can practise my Spanish skills literally anywhere in the world using the app.
(This isn’t sponsored btw – I just really cannot rave about Babbel enough! You can read my sponsored post with Babbel here though if you’re interested 👀).
Netflix
While Netflix isn’t technically a travel app, I did use the Netflix app an awful lot when we were travelling; particularly in Southeast Asia where we spent a lot of time travelling on buses.
What I love about the Netflix app is that you can download many shows and films when you have an internet connection and then you can still watch as many things as you want, even if you’re not connected to Wi-Fi.
We did this so much in Asia and I had a constant stream of shows downloading when we were in a hotel or hostel, so that when we were travelling on buses for up to 14 hours at a time, I could watch as much Netflix as I wanted.
WhatsApp is another app that isn’t really travel related at all, yet it’s something that I used on a daily basis, multiple times a day.
I use WhatsApp when I’m travelling in order to video call my parents, message friends and family back home and even sometimes to correspond with freelance clients of mine.
Grab – top apps for travelling
The Grab app is something that’s only really relevant to Asian travel but it is an app that we used religiously during the seven months we were in Southeast Asia.
It’s basically like the equivalent of Uber and it allows you to book taxis, scooters and even order food all in one convenient app. We used it to take many modes of transport in and around places like Bali, Singapore and Malaysia.
We also ordered food from numerous restaurants via the app when we couldn’t be bothered to go out and find something to eat.
If you’re heading to Asia in the future, I’d definitely recommend downloading the Grab app.
Campermate
Campermate is another destination-specific app as it only works in Australia and New Zealand.
It’s an absolutely fantastic app that tells you everything you need to know about campervanning in Aus and NZ. From both paid and free campsites, including all the things you need to know about each site, as well as public toilets, dump-stations, rubbish bins and more.
If you’re going on a campervan road trip in either of these countries, I really couldn’t recommend Campermate enough. We used it every single day while travelling in NZ and Aus and it really is bloody fab! It’s also completely free to download!
TripAdvisor
TripAdvisor is another one of my favourite travel apps as it’s one that can be used worldwide.
The app is so easy to use and if you’re logged in, you can use it to save and plan trips and itineraries.
We use it all the time when we’re travelling to research nearby attractions and activities, as well as to research the top places to eat. You can read reviews from other travellers who’ve been to certain places before and you can also add your own review to help future travellers too.
Pinterest is yet another app that isn’t specifically travel related, yet it’s one that I use all the time while travelling.
It’s so great for researching travel guides, and as a travel blogger myself, I also use it to share my own travel posts and guides to help out other travellers.
I love how you can ‘pin’ (save) things to different boards and the search bar makes it so easy and convenient to look up guides to pretty much everywhere in the world.
Airbnb – top apps for travelling
If you use Airbnb frequently when travelling, then I’d really recommend adding the app to your roster.
You can use it to search for places to stay, log in to your account to check on your booking and even message Airbnb hosts if you have any questions or queries.
NordVPN
NordVPN is such a useful app to have on your phone when travelling. You do have to pay for a VPN subscription, but if you travel frequently, it can definitely be a good idea to have one.
The way a VPN works is by essentially allowing you to ‘log in’ to another IP address somewhere else in the world. For example, if you were in New Zealand, but wanted to watch something on the US Netflix, you can access a US IP address by using a VPN.
I’m sure it’s much more complicated than that in reality, but in essence, that’s basically how it works.
We mainly use a VPN to be able to watch different Netflix shows in countries around the world, but it can also sometimes just protect you that little bit more, especially if you’re in a foreign country.
Google Maps
It goes without saying that Google Maps is a great travel app to have on your phone.
No matter where you are in the world, Google Maps helps you to navigate from one place to another, and while some places in the world might not have a fully updated system in place and the roads and routes aren’t quite accurate all the time, it is incredibly helpful in most countries and cities.
We used Google Maps an awful lot in New Zealand and Australia when we were in charge of getting ourselves from A to B.
Booking.com
Similarly to Airbnb, the Booking.com app works in pretty much the same way; allowing to you research and book accommodation all over the world.
I actually prefer using the Booking.com website as opposed to the app as I sometimes find the app a little fiddly, but it is very useful to have downloaded on your phone so you can book hotels and hostels on the go.
Google Translate
Google Translate is another fab travel app, especially in countries where English-speaking citizens aren’t very prominent.
We used Google Translate a few times in Southeast Asia to translate ‘allergic to peanuts’ as Matt is severely allergic to nuts so it’s incredibly important for us to properly convey that before we order food where we’re not sure of the ingredients.
Neveo – top apps for travelling
Neveo is a great app/website for travelling, especially if you plan to travel for quite some time.
I was very kindly gifted a few months free of the Neveo app which is basically a monthly photo album that you can upload photos to and then deliver it to your friends and family back home (or just yourself if you prefer!).
While travelling, we sent an album to our parents back home full of pictures of our adventures and it was always so lovely to hear when they’d received it each month.
It also means that we have many photo albums full of our favourite travel pictures that we can now cherish forever.
You do have to pay a subscription fee for Neveo, so unfortunately it’s not free like many of the other apps in this post, but it’s a great way to remember your travels through pictures.
Priority Pass
The Priority Pass app is one of my very favourite apps for when we’re travelling as the subscription-based service gives you access to airport lounges in dozens of countries around the world.
It’s great to use if you travel a lot and spend a lot of your time waiting around in airports as you get full access to more than 1300+ lounges worldwide. We’ve used Priority Pass in places like China, New Zealand, Singapore, Thailand, Philippines, Vietnam and more when we’ve had long connections between flights.
You get full access to the lounges for up to 3 hours (and you can extend in some places too) and before you travel, you can search for the airport you’re travelling from to see how many lounges they have, plus what benefits you can enjoy.
The subscription is pretty expensive, depending on which package you opt for, but if you travel an awful lot, I would say that it’s worth it.
Oh and did I mention? You can enjoy unlimited food and drink (including alcohol!) in most lounges worldwide!
Related posts:
- The Best Free Travel Apps That You’ll Actually Use
- 30 Ways To Travel Without Even Leaving The House
- Travel Inspired Date Night Ideas
- Creating A Travel Gallery At Home
- How To Learn A Language Without Even Leaving The House
Pin for later – top apps for travelling
Do you have any recommendations of top apps for travelling? Let me know in the comments or on Instagram @imjustagirl_16.
I also love Rome2Rio as a jumping off point to figure out the best way between two destinations while traveling abroad where I’m not familiar with the transport!
Rachel
Oh great tip! Thank you!
Thank-you so much for this! There are so many apps here I’ve never heard of, I’ve bookmarked your post ready for when I travel again.
Ah amazing, thank you Emily! X