13 Essential Travel Apps

With today’s smart phone technology, travellers can tailor their experiences like never before. Let your phone be your ticket to easier, less stressful travel. From landing cheap airfares and selecting comfy seats to researching your destination and packing like a pro, here are 13 apps to lighten the travel load.

(Photo by Thinkstock)

1. SeatGuru

Unveiling over 700 seat maps from over 100 airlines, this ingenious app uncovers the inside scoop on seat legroom, width, missing windows and available power sockets. If a seat near an emergency exit gets drafty, or won’t recline, SeatGuru spills the beans. With the information this free app provides, you can book your flight’s seat assignment without fearing a nasty surprise. SeatGuru also let’s you track flights in real time, and search for airfare deals.

(Available for free for the iPhone and Android)

2. Packing Pro

Forgetful frequent flyers and seasoned travellers swear by this handy app for fuss-free packing. Bursting with over 800 items in convenient categories such as clothes, medical, accessories, gadgets, kids and pets, users can rely on Packing Pro’s templates, or create their own customized lists. Add categories, check off pre-trip ‘to do’ lists and email your findings quickly and easily.

(Available for the iPhone: $2.99)

3. Trip Advisor

Guidebooks and industry websites only give you half the story. Thankfully, Trip Advisor came on the scene with its refreshing website overflowing with a million-plus travel reviews written by real people. Now savvy travellers can explore Trip Advisor’s wealth of invaluable information on the go with this convenient app. Check out reviews of hotels, restaurants and attractions around the world from your phone anywhere, anytime.

(Available for free for the iPhone and Android))

4. Gate Guru

Tired of dragging your carry-on luggage through crowded terminals searching for a specific shop, restaurant, or lounge? This app can tell you where to find restaurants, stores, currency exchanges, ATMs, and baby changing facilities in airports around the globe. Need to locate a car rental desk, or a phone-charging station? Gate Guru has you covered. And as an extra bonus, you can get updated flight information, too. Save time, avoid frustration and make your journey through the airport a breeze.

(Available for free for the iPhone and Android)

5. AutoStitch

The smart phone marketplace is saturated with camera apps, but AutoStitch sticks out from the crowd. Perfect for capturing sweeping vistas on vacation, AutoStitch makes snapping panoramic photos effortless and addictive. Simply take overlapping pictures, and then hit ‘stitch’ for the app to automatically sew the images all together. The result is a striking high quality panoramic shot. Cropping and sharing options via Twitter, Facebook and email add to this app’s allure.

(Available for the iPhone: $1.99)

6. White Noise Lite

White Noise is one of those smart phone must-haves that can make a real difference when you’re on the road. Need to silence a noisy hotel room, or airplane, so you can get some shut-eye? White Noise plays ambient sounds – waves on a beach, chirping crickets, spring rain, oscillating fan, and more – to help you nod off. Its adjustable timer let’s you program the sounds so they quietly fade out as you drift off into a sound sleep.

(Available for free for the iPhone and Android, Blackberry: $0.99)

7. Kayak

Keeping tabs on multiple email travel confirmations for hotels, flights and vehicle rentals can add up to a skull-splitting headache. Leave behind the paper trail (and the stress!) by getting organized with Kayak. Forward all the confirmation emails from your airline, and hotels to Kayak, and the app will build a comprehensive trip itinerary for you. Flight tracking, airfare comparisons, and hotel bookings can also be completed via this multitasking app.

(Available for free for the iPhone, Blackberry and Android)

8. Trip Advisor City Guides

The sister app to Trip Advisor, City Guides contains free travel guides for many major cities including London, Barcelona, Dubai, New York, Paris, Rome, and Tokyo. Download your chosen guides to your phone and you’re ready to sightsee. Find out about your destination’s history, weather patterns, culture, architecture, restaurants, hotels and shopping. Best of all, you won’t require a data connection to view your downloaded guides – everything is stored conveniently on your phone.

(Available for free for the iPhone, Blackberry and Android)

9. Skyscanner

Stop wasting precious time clicking through website after website for airfare deals. Searching over 1,000 airlines and travel agents, Skyscanner locates the cheapest dates to fly as well as the most affordable destinations. Got your heart set on someplace special? Just enter your destination, dates, and the number of travellers and the app does all the heavy lifting for you. Displaying a range of prices, stopovers and airlines, the app let’s you book your flights directly with the airline or travel agent.

(Available for free for the iPhone, Blackberry and Android)

10. GasBuddy

Just enter your city, or postal code into the search window, and GasBuddy will display the cheapest gas being served up near you. Whether you’re driving in Canada, or the United States, GasBuddy is by your side helping you save money.

(Available for free for the iPhone, Blackberry and Android)

11. Google Translate

Don’t be lost in translation. Here’s an app that will serve as your travel interpreter, translating over 60 languages for your communication pleasure. It’s easy! Just select the language you want to learn, speak or type a phrase into your phone, and the app will deliver a translation that you can read and hear.

(Available for free for the iPhone and Android)

12. Postagram Postcards

Send personalized postcards to your pals without the fuss of finding a post office in an unfamiliar country. The Postagram app uses your own photos – from your phone, Instagram or Facebook accounts – and turns them into actual postcards that are delivered by mail.

(Available for free for the iPhone and Android)

13. National Geographic World Atlas

Finally you can have the whole world in your hands! National Geographic’s beautiful award-winning World Atlas app is a must-have for armchair travellers and globetrotters alike. Spin, expand, and zoom the 3D globe to access detailed maps, tools to measure distances and need-to-know facts such as current weather, demographics and currency.

(Available for the iPhone: $1.99)