As camps conclude, families are taking their final summer vacation before the school year begins. While travel this season is fraught with difficulty, some apps can make your trip easier and more enjoyable.
(Some of these apps only provide service to specific locations; hence, it is advisable to familiarize yourself with them before your trip to ensure they can be of use to you at your destination.)
Lounge Buddy: With the sheer number of delays and canceled trips this summer, you may find yourself spending more time than originally anticipated in the airport. Lounge Buddy offers access to premium airport lounges around the world. Simply input your itinerary, and the app will tell you which lounges you can access and how to gain access to them. You can purchase lounge access in advance or on the day of your travels.
Priority Pass is another lounge app that provides you with information about and access to airport lounges.
Tricount: If you’re traveling with friends or extended family, bill-splitting can be an uncomfortable and time-consuming process. Not with Tricount! Tricount allows you to calculate shared costs and split bills regardless of currency.
It’s simple to use. Enter your trip and invite the people traveling with you to join. The app will divide shared bills between members of your group for you, and it can be as easy as taking a picture of the receipt.
Since it’s not always practical to split bills in the middle of a trip, Tricount also provides a clear division of who owes what at the end of the trip.
Trip Whistle: Traveling to a foreign destination has safety risks. Trip Whistle allows you to easily send your location to close contacts. It also provides emergency numbers for firefighters, medical personnel and police in nearly 200 countries.
Smart Traveler: Smart Traveler is another safety app. It provides U.S. travelers with tips and up-to-date information about the vaccines and visas that are required to travel to different countries. You can also register your trip on the app, and the app will send your information to the local embassy and consulate.
Please note: Smart Traveler is the official State Department app for U.S. travelers. If you’re uncomfortable providing such information to the U.S. government, Smart Traveler may not be the app for you.
JStay: JStay allows you to rent a vacation space that fits your kashrut requirements. Using a similar model to Airbnb, hosts can list their holiday accommodations and travelers can rent them. Hosts are also encouraged to recommend Jewish conveniences to maximize the Jewish travel experience.
Hotel Tonight is another option for last-minute deals if your holiday sleeping arrangements didn’t work out as planned.
Time Shifter: Does the time difference get to you? Time Shifter allows you to avoid jetlag using tips and a schedule based on neuroscience research on sleep and circadian rhythms. The app is personalized and takes into consideration age, destination, gender, sleep patterns, and so forth.
Guides by Lonely Planet: This app provides ideas, recommendations and activities to ensure you have the best time at your destination. You can swipe through the app to find options on what to see, where to eat, where to sleep, shop, drink, and play. You can filter options by price or activity subtype.
Another trip planning app is Lucky Trip. Lucky Trip takes a unique approach to creating a travel itinerary. Simply input your budget and preferences and Lucky will create a trip tailored specifically to you.
XE Currency Converter: For overseas travelers, XE Currency Converter allows you to keep on top of changing rates. You can track up to 20 currencies with alerts and notifications on the app.
WiFi Map: There are over 100 million free hotspots in WiFi Map’s database. You can search by location to find the nearest WiFi hotspots – along with their passwords – to ensure you have a connection when you need it.
Tip: Download the maps so you can find the WiFi hotspots offline too.
RoadTrippers: Want to go on a road trip to end the summer with a bang? RoadTrippers is great for mapping your trip, getting recommendations on activities to do on your route, and even finding gas price estimates. You can also use the map to share your route with family and friends.
GlobeTips: Not sure of the tipping expectations in a foreign country? GlobeTips offers tipping advice for over 240 countries. It’s easy to use. Select your country, enter your bill and the app will give you the recommended tipping amount based on your location. You can also use the app to split bills.
