road trip app android free

Best Road Trip Apps for Android in 2022

There are few things better than hitting the open road on a cross-country road trip. Whether you're heading out with your best buds or loading the kids into the car to visit relatives a few states over a little app prep will make sure the trip goes as smooth as is possible.

More: The best phone car mounts for any phone!

Android Auto

Google trips.

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If your car doesn't have Android Auto functionality built into its stereo system, it's worth checking out Google's app for staying connected in your car. It's now available on any Android phone , so you don't need to buy a brand new car or upgrade your car stereo to take advantage of the convenience — it'll just run right on your phone and can be configured to automatically launch when connected to your car's Bluetooth or a Bluetooth FM transmitter .

Android Auto is the safest way to access your phone while driving, giving you one-touch access to navigation, music controls, and recent calls. As you'd expect, there's great support built in for Google Assistant including the option to have incoming text messages read out loud (admittedly not the best option if you're in a packed car with friends or family).

Android Auto lets you navigate with Google Maps, listen to playlists or podcasts from your favorite apps, send messages via voice, and more while eliminating the other ways your phone can distract you on the road. If you're hitting the road this summer, you should absolutely have this app download on your phone.

Download: Android Auto (Free)

While Google Maps remains the most popular navigation app for Android (largely due to its inclusion as a stock app on most Android devices), Waze is a great option to consider for all your GPS navigation needs.

Waze users get the benefit of all the information gleaned from other Waze users on the road, from real-time traffic information including accident reports, police traps and other hazards seen on the road. You're also encouraged to add your own updates and contribute to your local Waze community as well. Using all that data, Waze will automatically reroute you to avoid any upcoming hazards, and also has really smart features for finding the cheapest gas stations along the way as well as ways of keeping family and friends in the loop on your ETA.

Download: Waze (Free)

Google Trips is a great travel planning app that helps with some of the mundane aspects of traveling like keeping track of your reservations, while also helping to plan out your days in a new city by suggesting cool things to do based on your interests and available time.

If you're planning to make a pitstop on your way to your final destination, plug the city into the app and see what it generates! It's also available offline, so if you planned out your pit stops ahead of time you can keep in the know even if your phone's data konks out.

Download: Google Trips (Free)

When you're exploring a new city trying to figure out what's worth checking out, you're best off checking in with the locals. Yelp is one of the most popular apps for reviewing restaurants and businesses with over 100 million reviews posted by users just like you.

When you're in a pinch for a roadside bite and need to know what's good, Yelp will help you find the perfect restaurant to fuel up and get back on the road.

Download: Yelp (Free)

Fuelling up is often one of the biggest expenses you'll incur on a road trip. GasBuddy helps you find the cheapest places to fill up along the way. Not only is this an app that you'll want to use on a road trip, but you might end up becoming an everyday user once you see the savings for yourself.

All the data is user-generated, so if you see a cheaper gas price not listed in the app, you can report the price in the app and contribute to the GasBuddy community.

Download: GasBuddy (Free)

What's a road trip without some kick-ass driving music? Or maybe a podcast is more your speed? Regardless of what you prefer to listen to on your long distance drives, Spotify is the best streaming service you should be using in 2018.

Spotify has improved its free, ad-supported mobile app with "made for you" playlists that are curated based on the songs and bands you listen to. With a premium subscription, you get full, unfiltered access to streaming access to over 40 million tracks along with a wide range of curated playlists, so the music won't ever stop, even on the longest of drives. Spotify also includes podcasts, and with Spotify Premium you can download songs and podcasts to your device for offline listening during those times on your trip where cell reception might be lacking. It also plays real nice with Android Auto allowing for hands-free control of all your music while you're on the road.

That is, unless your co-pilot has already claimed the role of in-car DJ…

Download: Spotify (Free)

Best Streaming Music Apps for Android

With its latest update allowing for offline viewing on mobile devices, Netflix suddenly became the go-to app for parents hoping to distract the young ones in the back without having to worry about all that data.

There's a large amount of kid-friendly content available to be downloaded for offline viewing, which should help keep the shouts of "are we there yet?" to a minimum. Load up a phone or tablet with your kids' favorites and look forward to the quietest road trip you've ever enjoyed. It's also a great option for keeping adults quiet, too. A subscription is required, of course, but if you don't already have one you for sure know someone who does.

Download: Netflix (Free)

Where are you headed?

How do you plan for your road trips? Any apps that we missed? Let us know in the comments!

Update June 2018: Updated some of our picks for the Summer of 2018. Drive safe out and have fun!

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Marc Lagace was an Apps and Games Editor at Android Central between 2016 and 2020. You can reach out to him on Twitter [ @spacelagace .

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For every kind of trip and every destination, the best road trip planner, the best vacation planner, the best group itinerary planner.

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The 10 Best Road Trip Planner Apps for 2024

Save time, money, and energy with these apps so you can focus on the fun instead

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We love road trips! Planning them can be fun but, let's be honest, also stressful. The right road trip planner apps can take some of that stress away by helping you plan, organize, and manage travel before and during your trip. We've researched and tested these apps to help give you peace of mind so that you can spend more time enjoying your trip.

The Ultimate Map App for Planning Your Route: Roadtrippers

Access to free and convenient travel guides.

Share-ability so friends can join in on the planning process and suggest places to visit.

The app can use up the battery life of your device quickly. Take a car USB charger with you.

Built for travelers, Roadtrippers helps you create your route while allowing you to discover great places as you plan it out. Add a new place to your itinerary to work it into your trip.

The app features an easy-to-use interface. In addition to covering the U.S., it also covers Canada, Australia, and New Zealand.

Download For:

Automate Your Trip Planning and Organization: Google Travel

Automatic trip organization via Gmail integration. 

Offline access so you can see your trip information even when you don't have an internet connection.

Limitations with customizing some day trips exactly the way you want.

You can count on Google to make your trip planning a breeze. Pre-constructed day plans are available for hundreds of the world's most popular destinations, which you can customize to your liking.

It's one of the most versatile travel planner apps out there, giving you one convenient place to see your hotel, rental car, and restaurant bookings.

Find and Book a Last-Minute Place to Stay: Hotels.com

A fast, easy-to-use booking feature.

For every 10 nights you book through Hotels.com, you get one night free, provided it's the average daily rate of those 10 nights.

No option to easily cancel if you change your mind.

Whether your road trip itinerary changed, or you haven't decided on a place to stay yet, Hotels.com can help you find a place and book it when you're on the go, even when it's super last-minute. You can sort and filter hotels, see the amenities they have to offer, compare prices, and catch a glimpse of how many rooms are available.

This is the app you'll want to have handy if you want to see in-depth hotel details at a glance and need to find a place to crash ASAP without breaking the bank.

Find Local Restaurants, Read Reviews, and Make Reservations: OpenTable

Lots of great filter options and suggestions.

Access to gorgeous, high-quality images of menu items and informative reviews from other users.

Reported problems and inconveniences with their built-in reward system.

Searching for specific restaurants is more difficult than simply looking at what's around in the area.

Deciding on a place to eat in a new area is quick and hassle-free with OpenTable. See what's nearby, filter restaurants by cuisine, see photos of what's on the menu, make reservations, and get personalized recommendations based on your preferences.

OpenTable is known to be one of the top  location-based food apps  available, so you know you can trust its information when you're dying for something to eat.

Navigate Like a Local: Waze

Hands-free navigation with voice commands.

Alerts-only mode for road hazards and police.

Share up-to-date ETA with friends.

Spotify and Apple Music widgets get in the way.

Cluttered maps can be confusing.

Higher battery usage than Google Maps.

Waze  is a community-driven travel app that shows you the shortest possible route to your destination. Like Google Maps, Waze makes real-time adjustments for traffic jams and other obstacles—but Waze is often more accurate since it caters specifically to drivers.

The app syncs with your Google Calendar and can tell you when you should leave for appointments based on traffic. There's also a cool option to record your own voice and use it for directions .

Know Exactly When and Where to Make a Pit Stop: iExit Interstate Exit Guide

Access to detailed summaries of what's at the next exit (including gas prices at nearby gas stations).

Search for the next 100 exits from your location.

The app can only be used on major U.S. exit-based highways.

No offline access, so you'll use your data plan while you're on the road.

Making a pit stop for food, gas, or a bathroom break is easy when you have the iExit app. Using your device's GPS, the app offers helpful suggestions for when and where to stop based on your location along the highway.

Whether you're looking for well-known franchises like Starbucks and Walmart to convenient amenities like free Wi-Fi and truck or trailer parking, this app has you covered.

Find the Cheapest Fuel Nearby: GasBuddy

An in-app gas payment feature.

Opportunity to save 10 cents per gallon on your first fill-up and five cents per gallon on every fill-up after.

The app can take up a lot of data and battery life as it runs in the background.

GasBuddy is an app specifically designed to find nearby gas stations and save money on gas. Use it to find the cheapest gas in your area and filter gas stations by amenities like car washes, restaurants, and bathrooms.

It's the app you want to have if you're serious about finding the cheapest gas around. Information comes from users like you, so you have the most up-to-date prices.

Download For :

Never Forget an Item: PackPoint Premium Packing List

Access to a built-in library of items to pack with the ability to add or remove items as needed. 

An elegant, intuitive app interface.

Can't input multiple destinations for a single trip.

Not a free app.

PackPoint helps you make sure you have everything you need based on where you're going and what you're doing. In addition, the app takes into consideration the length of your trip and the expected weather conditions. Perhaps best of all, this app turns a mundane chore into something that's actually quite fun.

Find Out Where to Park and How Much It Will Cost: Inrix ParkMe

ParkMe is the only app that also includes street parking and parking meter rates where available, in addition to parking lots.

Real-time updates on available parking spots.

Rates and hours may be inaccurate in some areas.

ParkMe claims to be the world's largest and most accurate parking database. It allows you to purchase your parking spot through the app and compare prices across parking providers to help you save more money.

If you're road tripping around major cities in the U.S., Canada, or Europe, this app can be a huge help. You can even compare parking options and prices so that you always get the best deal.

Automate Your Itinerary: TripIt

Automatically creates itineraries from your inbox.

Widget displays trip details on your home screen.

Annoying amount of alerts by default.

If you're planning a trip, you'll likely have a lot of confirmation emails for hotels, appointments, restaurants, and attractions. TripIt syncs with your inbox and uses that information to compile an itinerary so that you don't have to scramble for it.

The free version is fine for road trips, but if you ever fly, the premium version gives you the option to upgrade seats and track reward miles.

In addition to your phone, laptop, and tablet, other travel tech essentials include chargers, headphones, travel adapters, cameras, luggage trackers, and off-grid communications

Yes. You can use Google Maps as a trip planner through the “Places” and “My Maps” features. Both the Google Maps website and app let you save locations to lists and get directions.

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15 Useful Apps to Download Before Your Next Road Trip (for Free!)

If you are looking for the best road trip apps , you’re in the right place!

Traveling along the wide open road can be a lot of fun but can also be stressful if you’re worrying about getting lost, finding gas, looking for a hotel, or are trying to keep to a tight budget.

Here are a few tools you can access from the palm of your hand that will help with your planning, navigating, budgeting, and finding what you need while on the road. These apps simplify things for you so you can concentrate on enjoying your journey just as much as the destination.

Whether you’re going for 2 days or 2 weeks, these are the absolute  best apps to have for a road trip :

All of the apps can be download for iOS in the Apple App Store or for Android in the Google Play Store.

Table of Contents

Google Maps – best road trip app for navigation 

Price: Free Availability: iOS and Android

Seriously. How did we ever live without Google Maps?

It is arguably the most popular navigation app – and for good reason – as it’s incredibly reliable and easy to use. Whether you’re walking, biking, driving, or using public transportation, it allows you to see the best route based on distance, road conditions, and traffic patterns. I even used it to navigate the subways in Tokyo, Japan and it worked flawlessly (thank goodness!).

Since we’re talking about road trips, Google Maps is an excellent choice when deciding on your driving route and looking at all your options for stops along the way.

Create and save your entire itinerary and update it as you go, or highlight your favorite places and save them for later. It can also help you find nearby restaurants, parking, or public restrooms in a pinch. 

You can even download maps for offline use, which is an excellent feature for adventures that take you out of cell service.

For a step-by-step tutorial on customizing your Google Maps , visit my guide on  How to Plan Your Road Trip with Google Maps .

Waze Navigation – for navigation with real-time updates 

Perhaps second in popularity to Google Maps, Waze is gaining favor with a lot of drivers.

Waze is a community driven navigation app that provides  the most up-to-date maps, real-time traffic updates, and road closure alerts. It’s also useful for  showing drivers where traffic cops are hiding and and speed cameras are mounted. I think we can all agree that speeding tickets will put a damper on any road trip. 

Drivers can report things along the way, giving real-time, comprehensive updates on road conditions and traffic problems. 

Plus, for those of us who prefer to take the longest route possible, there is an ‘avoid highways’ feature that takes you through the backroads, which is the best way to discover fun and spontaneous stops along your journey.

However, one of the standout features of Waze is the “avoid dirt roads” option, which re-routes you to follow only paved roads on your road trip. This is especially useful for countries like Costa Rica , where it’s all too easy to find yourself driving down some extremely rough and muddy roads.

Roadtrippers – best road trip app to build an itinerary

Price: Free for basic version | $25.00/year to upgrade Availability: iOS and Android

Roadtrippers is one of the best road trip apps because it’s designed specifically for road trips. You can use it to build your own road trip route, find places to see along the way, and even calculate gas mileage. It’s essentially your all-in-one road trip app.

To use Roadtrippers, start by clicking “Plan Trip” and add your departure and final destination. Roadtrippers will display the best route and then you can search for stops and accommodation along the way.

While you can plan basic road trips in countries throughout the world, Roadtrippers works best in the US, Canada , New Zealand , and Australia.

Use the free version to add up to 7 waypoints along your route. If you need more, you can upgrade to Roadtrippers Plus for $25.99/year, which gives you 150 waypoints per trip, offline maps, and different map styles.

Instagram – for inspiration

While not technically a road trip app, Instagram is actually a great resource for finding inspiration, hidden gems, and checking current conditions at locations along your road trip route.

For example, I use Instagram every year to plan my fall foliage road trip ! By searching for most recent posts in a certain area, I can check the foliage and time it to get there when the colors peak.

Here are some other ways you can research your trip on Instagram:

• Type key phrases into the search bar on the explore page
• Visit tourism boards profiles
• Browse the posts under location specific hashtags

Similar to Pinterest, you can save your favorite posts and organize them in dedicated boards. I like to create dedicated boards for each trip.

Join me and over 45,000 adventure lovers over on Instagram , where I share more travel tips, unique places, and road trip itineraries!

Pinterest – for exploring blogs and finding itineraries

If you’re a visual person, you’ll love Pinterest because it’s a search engine like Google, but with pictures.

Pinterest is typically my first stop when I sit down to research for a road trip or start crafting an itinerary. It’s a great road trip app for finding road trip itineraries, travel inspiration, and exploring new travel blogs which you may not have come across in a normal Google search.

You can use Pinterest to research a specific destination or just browse for inspo to save for later. Just use the search bar like Google to search for phrases like:

• Las Vegas to Sedona road trip itinerary
• Best countries to visit in December
• Ecuador travel itinerary
• Florida travel

To stay organized, you can curate separate boards to store itineraries, places to visit during your travels, your packing list and any other tips that might make the road trip more seamless.

Click here to follow me on Pinterest and check out road trips Pinterest board!

Spotify – music, podcasts, audiobooks

Price: Free for basic version | $9.99/month to upgrade Availability: iOS and Android

An absolute prerequisite for a good road trip is a good soundtrack. Long gone are the days of fuzzy radio stations or loading CD decks. Spotify allows you to sync up all your favorite tunes into your ultimate road trip playlist, or the app is happy to curate one for you.  

Although Spotify is first-and-foremost a music streaming platform, you can also find hundreds of podcasts and audiobooks so you can learn and stay entertained on the road.

The app can be used for free, but you will get some advertisements, while premium subscribers listen ad-free. 

Tip: Make a unique playlist for every trip with songs you’ve never heard before! That way, you’ll be reminded of your epic road trip every time you hear those songs.

HotelTonight – to find last minute hotel deals

Maintaining a flexble schedule is part of the joy that comes with road trips. Unforseen circumstances such as traffic, roadside attractions, hunger, or sleepiness can sometimes throw plans off course. HotelTonight compiles last-minute, unused hotel rooms at a discount. So, if you have a flexible schedule or you’re looking for a last-minute hotel room because you can’t handle any more drive time, this is a great app to have handy. 

HotelTonight will use your location to pull up real-time availability and prices. They have about 50 thousand properties in their database in 1,700 cities around the world. 

AllTrails – find places to stretch your legs

Price: Free for basic version | $35.99/year to upgrade Availability: iOS and Android

If you’re a fan of hiking and the great outdoors, you’ve probably used AllTrails once or twice to find a good walking trail. It makes the list of best road trip apps because you’ll definitely be itching to stretch your legs after many sedentary hours in the car. 

In the AllTrails app, you can enter a general location or use the map view to see your current location and find trails near you. Each route is rated by users and marked with distance, time, and difficulty level, so you won’t be left wondering how long your excursion will take.

There are free and paid versions of the app for $35.99/year. The only noteworthy difference in the paid version is that you can download the maps offline. 

TheDyrt – the best road trip app for finding campsites  

If you’re going to be looking for campsites during your road trip, TheDryt helps you find places all over the US where you can pitch a tent, park an RV or even rent a cabin. This is the best road trip app for finding last minute campsites and free places to park overnight, especially when we have a camper van.

It’s the number one camping app in the US, with over a million downloads. Users provide reviews, pricing, and all the nitty-gritty info you want to know before arriving at your camping location. 

TheDyrt app is free to download, but I do recommend splurging on the PRO version if you’ll be off grid. It costs $35.99/year and it allows you to plan trips and search for campsites while offline.

READ NEXT:  5 Compelling Reasons to Take a Campervan Road Trip (+ Essential Tips to Know Before You Go)

Freecampsites.net – find free campsites on public land

Free camping can be hard to find, but  Freecampsites.net makes it easy to find free, dispersed camping outside of official campgrounds. This makes it one of the best apps to have for your next road trip!

Most campsites are located on public land managed by the State Forest and Bureau of Land Management (BLM).

Freecampsites.net is crowd-sourced, so campsite information, tips, and site reviews are contributed by other users.

To find a campsite near you, use the map to search for free, cheap, or permit campsites. Alternatively, use the Trip Planner to pull up all campsites along your route. The campsites can be used for car camping, tent camping, or RV camping.

You can’t book these sites in advance, so I recommend doing some research beforehand and always having a backup plan in case the site is full when you show up.

If you like to plan (way) ahead, use Recreation.gov to book organized campsites cross the country.

iExit Interstate Exit Guide – find the best exit stops

Price: Free for ‘lite’ version | $0.99 to upgrade Availability: iOS and Android

Designed for US Interstates, the iExit Interstate Exit Guide is an easy way to find out what’s coming up at an exit near you.

Missing signs and zipping past each turn-off usually means you miss an optimal food spot or bathroom stop. But  iExit helps you find the best exit for your needs, whether it’s cheap fuel, food, or a comfortable hotel. You can even book a hotel directly through the app.

iExit is free, but there are some added in-app purchases available for a small price. 

Toll Calculator GPS Navigation – estimate tolls on your route

Price: Free for basic version | $5.99/year to upgrade Availability: iOS and Android

Don’t forget that toll roads are an important part of your road trip budget! Fortunately, Toll Calculator is one of the best road trip apps for estimating the cost of tolls along a given route. Originally created for truckers, this app is quickly growing in popularity among all kinds of road trippers.

With Toll Calculator, you can easily plan ahead and choose the best route for your trip, estimating how much toll money you’ll need along the way. It currently works in the US and Canada.

The free version is good enough for estimating tolls along the primary route from point A to B. But you’ll have to upgrade if you want to unlock more features like syncing with Google Maps and comparing prices on alternate routes.

GasBuddy – find the best gas prices along the way

Let’s be honest – filling up the gas tank is probably going to be the most expensive part of your road trip. Luckily,  GasBuddy collects user-generated data to help you find gas stations with the least expensive fuel options on your route. It works for road trips in the US and Canada. 

Once you add your destination, the GasBuddy app will show you all the filling stations along the way and let you compare prices. App users report prices and gain points for doing so. Earning points enters you into drawings for gas money that can go towards your next road trip.

TripIt: Travel Planner – keep your travel schedule organized

Price: Free for basic version | $49/year to upgrade Availability: iOS and Android

TripIt is a travel planner that allows you to keep your travel schedule organized and saved in one place. This means that all your reservations, booking numbers, confirmations, addresses, etc., are neartly organized and at your fingertips.

The best part is that you don’t have to add everything in manually, which is such a time saver. Once you book something online, you can automatically sync your plans into your TripIt schedule. It’s very convenient to have everything in one place.

The free version is super comprehensive so you won’t have to pay for TripIt PRO unless you want the added bonuses real-time flight alerts, reminders and city guides. 

TravelSpend – best travel app for budgeting

If you like sticking to a budget while you travel, TravelSpend is a free app that will track your spending. It’s great for domestic road trips, but you can also use it abroad because you can choose your currency.

TravelSpend’s functionality is pretty basic, which makes it easy to use, even if you’re a finance novice. It categorizes your spending so you can see exactly where your money is going and helps you stick to your budget. 

It can cater to solo travelers, couples, families, groups, or digital nomads. The free version comes with ads, or you can upgrade to go ad-free. 

This wraps up our list of the best road trip apps! I hope you find some of these apps helpful on your next road trip. If you have a favorite, let me know!

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The Best Road Trip Apps That Help You Find Cheap Gas, Avoid Traffic, and More

Download these before you hit the highway.

Elizabeth Rhodes is a special projects editor at Travel + Leisure , covering everything from luxury hotels to theme parks to must-pack travel products. Originally from South Carolina, Elizabeth moved to New York City from London, where she started her career as a travel blogger and writer.

Carmen Martínez Torrón/Getty Images

Technology has revolutionized the way we travel in countless ways. Paper maps and GPS navigation systems have been replaced by Google and Apple Maps, old-school CDs by music streaming services, and guidebooks by apps that can notify road-trippers of roadside attractions in real time. One thing is certain: the smartphone has made road trips infinitely easier and, arguably, cheaper.

Whether you need a digital road trip planner to map out your next journey or something to help you avoid traffic jams, here are 11 of the best road trip apps to download ahead of your next adventure.

Roadtrippers

Roadtrippers is one of the most practical and popular road trip planning apps out there. Maybe you want to see national parks or the quirkiest roadside attractions. Perhaps you want to stop for the night at an iconic or underrated hotel. You can plan your stops right in the app, adding up to three waypoints for free or 150 with a Roadtrippers Premium account. There are also Basic and Pro memberships that allot you 20 and 50 waypoints per trip, respectively. The higher-tier memberships allow you to collaborate with friends and family and use navigation. The app features lodging, sights, outdoorsy destinations, restaurants, activities, shopping, fuel, and more all around the U.S., Canada, Australia, and New Zealand.

The app is free, but you have to upgrade to a membership plan to enjoy all the bells and whistles. The Basic plan costs $40 a year, the Pro plan $50 a year, and the Premium $60 a year. It's available on iOS and Android .

Google Maps

Every road-tripper needs a trusty navigation app in their arsenal, and Google Maps is consistently one of the most — if not the most — downloaded in the U.S. every year. Its dominance can be attributed to how comprehensive its data is, which allows it to generate the very best directions based on distance, road conditions, and traffic patterns.

Google Maps gives you route options and provides accurate estimates of how long it takes to get from A to B. Plus, you can plot several waypoints along your route — be it a mid-morning coffee stop or a hotel for overnighting (you can see reviews right in the app).

Google Maps is free and available on iOS and Android .

Waze is another one of the top navigation apps. With real-time updates that help you avoid traffic jams, construction, and more, it will have you navigating new cities and unfamiliar streets like a seasoned local. It's perhaps a little more proactive than Google Maps in changing up a route when problems arise, and that means Waze users should prepare for their drive to be a little unpredictable.

No one wants to spend hours sitting in traffic instead of exploring, so the fact that Waze collects data from other drivers to streamline the driving experience is a huge help. The app is free and available on iOS and Android .

Paying for fuel can eat up a good chunk of your road trip budget, but GasBuddy can save you a few bucks. The app crowdsources up-to-date fuel prices for more than 150,000 gas stations around the U.S. and Canada. The app also tells you how recent the submission is so you know whether it's outdated.

GasBuddy is not just helpful for finding cheap gas but also for finding gas stations in general (and parking), which can be difficult in foreign territory. The app is free and can be downloaded on iOS and Android . While using it, be a good road-tripper and submit gas prices you see as you travel.

Roadside America

Barry Winiker/Getty Images

The offbeat and kitschy roadside attractions you can find throughout the U.S. are often some of the most delightful parts of a road trip. The Roadside America app helps you find the most unique attractions worth stopping for, like the large sculpture of a cartoon mouse holding a cheese platter in Plain, Wisconsin — where else? — or the decidedly odd larger-than-life-sized three-way electrical plug that rests on a lawn in Philadelphia. The app features museums, murals, tours, quirky restaurants, and photo ops.

Roadside America costs $3 to download, which gets you access to one region in the app. You can purchase more regions for $2 or get access to all of the U.S. and Canada for an extra $7. The app is available only on iOS .

iExit Interstate Exit Guide

Knowing where to stop for road trip snacks, a drive-through latte, or a public restroom can be challenging with all the exit signs whizzing by at 70 mph, but iExit Interstate Exit Guide takes the guesswork out of it. The app will list which exits are coming up on your route, what's there, and what they offer — including food, lodging, fuel, and even hospitals. It pulls fuel prices from OPIS (the Oil Price Information Service) and displays Yelp reviews for businesses.

The app is free to download. Find it on both iOS and Android .

HotelTonight

Even if you've planned out all your stops ahead of time, you might find that you need to pull over for a night unexpectedly. Driving is tiring, and unplanned naps can be life-saving. HotelTonight can help you find accommodations in a pinch. The app offers day-of deals on unsold rooms, and the user-friendly interface means you can book a discounted room in minutes. There are well over 1,000 properties to choose from in cities all over the world, from Mexico City to Jakarta (in case you happen to take your road-tripping global).

It's free to download and available on iOS and Android .

If staying in a tucked-away A-frame cabin, a yurt, or a private guest house in someone's garden is more your travel style than bouncing between hotels, then Airbnb is the ticket. On the Airbnb app, you can search properties (millions in the U.S. alone) on a map and read reviews before you book, which you can do in advance or at the last minute.

The app features not just vacation homes but also activities, so if you're keen to experience a city like a local you can do so via a pottery class or a guided walking tour, for example.

The Airbnb app is free. You can download it on iOS or Android .

Patchareeporn Sakoolchai/Getty Images

Travelers who dream of camping out under the stars should download The Dyrt , a free app that helps you find tent, RV, and cabin sites across the U.S. One of the top camping apps on iOS and Android , it has more than a million registered users who submit reviews, pictures, and tips. On The Dyrt, you get real intel on campsites and a built-in community that makes camping on a road trip especially fun and safe. You can even book some of the campsites right on app.

The app is free, but there's a premium version for $36 a year that allows you to plan trips and search campsites while offline — convenient for remote regions.

What is a road trip without a perfect playlist? Whether you're keen to create a soundtrack of nostalgic singalongs, modern pop songs, or music inspired by your destination, you'll find even the most obscure tunes on Spotify , a catalog of more than 100 million tracks. When you tire of Taylor Swift, you can turn to podcasts or an audiobook to keep you company. Road trips are a great opportunity to delve into a docuseries like "Serial," an all-time favorite.

Spotify is free to download and listen to, but the ad breaks are annoying and streaming can chew through your phone data. A better option is to purchase a premium membership for $11 a month. It's ad-free and you can download music to listen to offline. The Spotify app is available on iOS and Android .

Electric vehicles are increasingly commonplace and great for more environmentally friendly road-tripping. The problem is often finding charging stations, as most EVs can go 100 to 300 miles before they need to be plugged in. PlugShare lists 700,000 charging stations across North America, Europe, and beyond. Users share their reviews of the stations, helping to guide EV drivers to the best, fastest, and most reliable charging spots.

PlugShare is free and available to download on iOS and Android .

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21 of the BEST Road Trip Planner apps to get before you go

Looking for the best road trip planner apps , tools and hacks to help you plan your perfect road trip? Look no further! We’ve compiled all the essential road trip apps you need- including ones to help with planning a road trip , apps to use whilst on your road trip and tools we couldn’t (and wouldn’t) road trip without!

Before we found these tools, road trip planning and organising used to take HOURS. Or even days. Now, we’re a lot quicker- partly because we’ve compiled road trip checklists and gear, but partly because these apps make it easy. Promise.

Whether you’re roadtripping in the USA with friends, exploring Europe in a camper or setting off on a road trip with kids *gulp*- these are the only road trip planner tools you need.

Pssst- want to travel healthily on your road trip? Check out these awesome, easy and HEALTHY snacks for road trip travels! 

JUMP AHEAD TO...

The BEST Road Trip Planner Apps and Tools to plan your road trip

Google maps.

I’ve said it before ( Here in fact ), Google Maps is amazing for planning a road trip . And it’s free. (Actually, many of these road trip planner apps and tools are free- we’re thoughtful like that!)

We use Google maps to put together a visual guide to places we want to visit- and then we use it to plan a route. You can see how we do it here

Another option is using Guru maps for offline navigation

Pinterest is an AMAZING road trip planne r resource! There are destination guides, things to do, road trip kit reviews and everything else you need! I never used to use it for anything other than recipes- what a mistake! Now, it’s the first place I go to look for new ideas when we’re heading off.

You’ll be pleased to know Wandering Bird is on Pinterest too, sharing destination guides, travel tips and yep- road trip planner tools!- You can follow us on Pinterest here

Roadtrippers

This is another site I think we underuse in Europe, but it’s a great road trip planner. Use it in the same way as Google maps, but there are also many other cool features; it estimates how much money you’ll spend on fuel and how far you have to drive, among other things.

Instagram is a road trip planner’s paradise! So many amazing destinations, secret locations and beautiful places are shared every single day. Just search the hashtag #roadtrip or your planned destination and see what comes up!

Facebook might not be your first thought for road trip planning apps, but if you ask a question on a relevant facebook group, you’ll get LOADS of ideas and info to help you plan your trip. I love asking advice from real people who’ve been there- and I find people are more likely to respond on Facebook, rather than Instagram.

You can find us on Facebook too- sharing tips, destination advice or general silliness- check out our page HERE

Road Trip Travel Blogs

Not an app, but travel blogs are a fantastic road trip planning tool. To find one for the area you’re planning to road trip to, just search ‘Road Trip Blog ________’ You’ll find people have road tripped all over the place and you can use their suggestions and favourite places in your road trip planner.

I hope if you’re heading to Europe you’ll find a certain road trip blog especially useful *cough cough * Feel free to sign up to our resource library so you can get useful road trip checklists, travel planning tips and destination guides.

Road trip forums are a great source of information- if you use them correctly and accept that there are many people in there who talk a lot, but haven’t necessarily DONE a lot.

That said, there can be some really good road trip planner advice and info- again, type into Google ‘Road Trip Forum for _____’ or even travel forums if you’re looking for destination advice for a particular location. The only downside to forums is you often have to sign up/ register before you can get access.

Other awesome Road Trip planner tools we recommend

Ok, so you’ve planned your road trip destination and started plotting places into your chosen road trip planner- but now WHAT??

If you don’t have a vehicle for your road trip, check out:

I LOVE this site. What a brilliantly awesome idea to help you plan and cut your costs for a road trip. Basically, people just like you and me list their RVs, campers and even trucks- and other people rent them out! Seriously, there are a HUGE number of vehicles on there, all over the world, available for rent at really reasonable prices.

If you’re looking for low-cost vehicle rental, this is a great place to start! Just please be aware that, as with many sites like this, there is the potential for unscrupulous people to take advantage. If in doubt, pick another van or hire through an approved rental agency.

So, now you’ve got a road trip destination, an overflowing road trip planner and a vehicle! Last planning tip- get some:

Packing Checklists

A packing checklist can be invaluable- especially if you’re roadtripping and moving around regularly. It is SO easy to forget something silly as you travel – so get yourself a packing checklist to make it easier.

You can either use a FREE app like My Trip List, which allows you to customise a packing list.

Useful Road trip planner apps whilst ON your road trip

The fun doesn’t stop just coz you’ve started travelling! Oh no, if you’re anything like us, you’ll keep planning your road trip as you’re on the road! After all, what’s the point in having an adventure if you can’t be adventurous?!?

Navigating is hard enough on a road trip- without getting your camper stuck down a narrow street! This app works on any iPad or phone with GPS and allows you to input the dimensions of your vehicle so you can avoid streets and bridges which are too small. Read our full review of CoPilot here.

>>Looking for other sat-navs. These are the best on the market<<

Google translate app to convert languages.

Road tripping to another country? Get the Google Translate app. This is one of our favourite road trip planner apps- because it’s so darn useful. Just open the app and hold it up to a sign, menu, paper, whatever- and Google Translate will translate the words into your chosen language! This is BRILLIANT for roadtripping Europe where the languages change constantly and we don’t always speak them very well.

Recipe Book

I LOVE this app. I use it all the time and it’s so freaking easy- and FREE!! Find a great recipe on Pinterest or Google, make it, and then save the recipe to your recipe book app, so it’s there for the next time you want to cook it. The app syncs between ipad and phone, which is great- I can grab whichever is closest to hand. I prefer following a recipe from a larger screen, but having the app on the phone is SO useful when I’m shopping and can’t decide what I want to cook for dinner.

DroneAssist

The BEST app in the UK for telling you where you can safely and legally fly your drone. It’s a brilliant and easy-to-use app and we use it whenever we want to get our drone out… or at least we did, until we lost our drone in Lake Annecy *sob* Hopefully by the time you read this we’ll have another one ready to go! We haven’t found a similar app for use in Europe or North America- if you know of one, please let me know and I’ll update this list.

Find fuel with these great road trip planning apps:

If you have refillable LPG gas installed on your motorhome (one of our Road Trip essentials!), this app is brilliant for finding places where you can fill up. Most of the locations are current and the app/ website are updated frequently.

This is one for my American friends- find the cheapest gas along your route. (To avoid confusion, by gas I mean petrol. Or diesel. Not gas for cooking.) I asked my group of road tripping RVers which app they recommend and this one was top of the list!!

Road Trip planner apps to help you find somewhere to stay

If you haven’t booked a campsite or a hotel, you’ll need to find places to stop as you road trip. Here are some of the best apps to help with finding somewhere to stay as you road trip:

If you’re exploring Europe, this is THE app to have to help you find free or cheap parking spots. You can even use this in advance as a road trip planner- find suitable looking spots and add them to your itinerary or Google maps before you go. I’m pleased to see Park4night is now coming to the US and Canada too- more and more overnight spots are popping up.

Campercontact

Campercontact is another overnight stop app, but what I love about this one is that you can set your vehicle height and length in order to find appropriate spots. We use this app a LOT when we have a trailer, as many aires or free spaces are too small for us.

>> Read our complete review on apps for navigation here<<

Allstays has a range of campgrounds, rest stops and free camping spots across the US. I believe most of the free places are only available if you buy the Pro version, but there seems to be a LOT of options on there, which would be a great way to help plan your road trip. iOverlander is another option to find places to stay.

Road Trip planner apps to make the miles go faster!

I have become a huge podcast fan over the last few months. They are perfect for driving- and there’s a HUGE range to choose from. Even better- they’re free! I like educational podcasts- learning things helps keeps me awake as I drive, but there are all sorts of different road trip podcasts to choose from and make the miles fly by. Jump onto your podcast app and see what appeals!

Another awesome app. Find and download audio books, listen to them, then return them! I’m slowly working my way through the Harry Potter books- Stephen Fry’s voice is just magical and it’s one the whole family enjoys listening to. Sign up to Audible here and get a FREE TRIAL!

Spotify/ iTunes

Whether you are a die-hard spotify user or an iTunes convert, I think most people agree that all good road trips need an awesome playlist! This section should probably be in road trip planning- creating the perfect playlist takes time, you know!

Want some ideas to get you started? Here are 150 of the BEST Road Trip songs!

Kindle Unlimited

There are very very few books I can read more than once. Even if it was a good one- once I know the end, it’s dead to me. (Lord of the Rings and Harry Potter are notable exceptions to this rule!)  What I LOVE about Kindle Unlimited is you can read a book and then return it- and there are some BRILLIANT, well-known books and authors on there. It’s a proper library, ready for you to explore, for only a few pounds (or dollars!) a month. See what you could be reading on your road trip HERE (there’s even a 30-day free trial!)

Notes for Budgeting

Yep, notes. This is what I use for all our budgeting and diary for our road trips. Heck, sometimes I use it as a road trip planner before we even leave!

No, it’s not sexy and yes, there are apps out there which do budgeting and diary entries and everything else- but I find it so easy to grab my phone every time we stop for fuel/ shopping/ an attraction and make a quick note on what we spent and what we thought!

I’ve used notes for years to keep track of our spending as we travel- then I can write it up into a spreadsheet when we return or when we’re stopped in one place for a few days. Whatever you choose, definitely get a way to keep track of your spending!

PSSNGR for Splitwise

You’ve heard of Splitwise, right? It’s a brilliant app which allows friends to split the bill on things like meals out, rent, bills, etc. PSSNGR is an extension of that- but it’s designed for car shares. It can calculate and split the cost of a road trip, with fuel costs, snacks, meals etc- perfect for when you’re road tripping with friends!

Accuweather

Does anyone else have 3 different weather apps on their phone… and they look at all of them until they get a forecast they like? I definitely do that, but then I tend to believe what Accuweather says! The app is a great road trip planner tool as it can help you prepare for the weather ahead- essential for road trip safety.

Star Gazing App

One of my favourite things about road trips is getting far enough away from the world so we can enjoy the night sky in all its glory. I have only seen the Milky Way ONCE- and I plan to see it again as often as possible because it was breathtaking.

There are several star apps available, which will show you which stars and planets you are looking at as you gaze in wonder at the sky. There’s also one called Photopills, which will help you line up the perfect shot of the Milky Way (it also works for sunrise/ sunsets.)

Can’t go on your own road trip?

Check out ‘Roads by Porsche’- a road trip app filled with videos of other people driving some of the most beautiful roads on this planet! It’s a perfect road trip planner app- but it’s also a lovely way to while away a rainy afternoon, dreaming about your next adventure!

I hope you find these travel apps useful. Is there one you LOVE which I’ve missed? Let me know! If you enjoyed this and think others would find it useful, please share on Facebook or Pinterest.

Safe travels!

More road trip tips:

Best road trip gadgets you need, amazing destination ideas for a european road trip, how to plan a road trip to europe.

Kat never planned to buy a motorhome. She also never planned to quit her job as an air traffic controller, go touring around Europe in said motorhome, start one of the UK’s largest motorhome travel websites… or get a cocker spaniel.

Find out how she went from stuck in the rat race to being a digital nomad and inspiring thousands of people to have their own epic adventures here.

If you’d like to connect with Kat, send her an email or follow her adventures on social media.

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Nice post! Thanks for sharing this wonderful post with us. These apps sound interesting definitely gonna very helpful planning road trips. I really found this post very helpful for me. I bookmarked this for future. Thanks a lot for sharing.

Absolutely stunning! Thank you on a detailed impressive guide!

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Android Police

The best travel apps you need to use in 2024.

Cut down the time and stress of planning a trip

As you're scoping out your next vacation destination, all that wanderlust can romanticize the realities of travel. This means you need to plan an itinerary, pack a bag, have access to a navigation system, and plan out all those Instagram-worthy snapshots you want to show off at your next family reunion. Sometimes the prep leading up to a vacation can bring on some stress, but keep your eyes on that change of scenery, that beach day with your favorite Bluetooth speaker , and all those sightseeing excursions you planned via Google's toolkit . Don't get too overwhelmed—once you've picked the duration and destination of your getaway, you can use a few helpful apps to help you sort out the rest.

No matter how long your trip, you'll have peace of mind knowing you're totally prepared and can focus on being present in all those memory-making experiences. Ready to start planning? These apps will help you with all the prep you can think of.

1 Wanderlog - Trip Planner App

Planning out every aspect of your trip is easy with Wanderlog, and you can add as many tripmates as needed. Even though the app doesn’t allow you to book flights or make reservations, you can forward the information to the app and save it for reference. A free account offers everything you need to plan the perfect trip, but you can upgrade to an annual Pro account ($49.99/year) to unlock advanced features.

The app lets you create an itinerary by adding specific locations to each day. Plus, you can add accompanying notes and checklists, which is handy for tips, reminders, and keeping track of people you want to visit. Wanderlog might be the perfect travel app because it also helps you stay on budget, lets you split costs, and offers suggestions for new places to explore.

2 TripIt: Travel Planner

Like Wanderlog, TripIt helps you build an itinerary, but you can safely keep all necessary information in a single place. Manually add transportation, navigation, lodging, and other notable details, and, to make things easier, you can connect and sync your Inbox to import emails or forward them to TripIt. If needed, you can invite tripmates and let them edit your trip. The app is free, but you can subscribe to Pro for $48.99 per year to access real-time alerts, notifications, and other advanced features that will come in handy if you’re a frequent flyer.

TripIt gives you a safe space to save all types of travel documents and important contacts that are accessible even when you’re offline. Additionally, in partnership with Riskline, the app includes COVID-19 travel guidelines to advise you about the requirements and restrictions for your destination. What a great way to stay informed, so there are no surprises upon arrival!

How would you like to travel and discover new places all from the comfort of your home? If you're looking for your next dream destination or are already there and want to find nearby attractions, this app can help with both. It has made traveling and discovering new places easier than ever with a user-friendly interface. Framey also allows you to share photos from your travels for others to see and get ideas for their own future trips.

Once you find people to follow, you'll be able to see their posts on your home feed. Here, you can like, bookmark, and comment on posts. The ability to see more information about the location, such as its hours, directions, and nearby attractions, is a very useful feature. This can help you decide if it's a place you'd like to visit. Finally, you can use the search function to look for destinations and attractions all over the world, and you're sure to be impressed by the stunning images you'll find here.

Not everyone wants to stay in a hotel or with friends and family when they travel. Sometimes, you want something that is more affordable, has room for the entire family, and feels like home. Airbnb lets verified users rent out their space (usually a house, cabin, or condo) to travelers. You can explore Stays and Experiences based on location, date, and number of guests (including pets). Plus, many filters are available to help you narrow down your results. In addition, each listing has a photo gallery, and you can add listings to your wishlist for later reference.

While Stays are for those planning their own trips, Experiences are in-person and online activities hosted by local experts that let you learn or try something new. You can customize your budget and even book an experience for a private group. For Stays, you can learn more about the host and included amenities, read reviews from past guests, and contact the host if you have more questions. You can even become a host and rent out your personal space if you’re looking to make some extra income.

5 Polarsteps - Travel Planner & Tracker

This free app lets you plan your trips city by city and keeps track of every place you’ve visited with its optional “Travel Tracker” feature. Polarsteps will automatically track your routes and create a digital travel diary, giving you more time to enjoy your trip. Best of all, enabling this feature won’t kill your battery as it only uses about 4% daily.

For each trip, you’ll get a unique link that you can share with family and friends; they’ll be able to view your trip details but won’t have edit access. The digital maps are where Polarsteps shines — you can switch between Satellite and Street view. Once you’ve added all your planned stops, it will show the best routes and approximate travel time. The app also offers destination guides outlining the best places to visit, stay, and eat in a beautiful slideshow format.

6 AllTrails: Hike, Bike & Run

Trails aren’t just for hiking; they’re excellent for biking, running, backpacking, camping, bird-watching, fishing, and more. No matter your preference, this app will show you information and images of trails near and far. You can also use multiple filters and sorting options to find trails that suit your needs. While AllTrails is free and ad-supported, you can upgrade to AllTrails+ for $35.99/year. If you do upgrade, you can print or download maps, get alerts for wrong turns, find trails by distance from you, and view trail elevation in 3D.

The “Navigate” feature shows you a live map as you journey; it ensures you don’t get lost and keeps track of your activities in the app. You can choose a nearby route or start without one if you want to do your own thing. It also keeps track of time, distance, elevation gain, pace, and speed. As you’re journeying, you can add photos, see how many calories you’ve burned, add a waypoint, change routes, and see detailed navigation info . Lastly, you can connect with friends and other members to see and interact with their activities and discover new trails.

7 Tripadvisor: Plan & Book Trips

This app has a lot to offer, and it’s pretty easy to lose track of time as you discover new places locally or around the world and read helpful reviews from other users. In addition, you can plan trips alone or with a tripmate, save places you want to visit, view your saved places on a map, book hotels and experiences, view your bookings, and leave reviews for places you’ve visited. Tripadvisor is free and ad-supported; however, you can join Tripadvisor Plus for member-only pricing and perks at $99/year.

You can add notes and external links to your trips and see an overview of each city featuring a map, tons of local images, hotels, things to do, restaurants, and nearby popular destinations. Booking hotels is done on Expedia, using the in-app browser, letting you compare rates so you don’t overspend. With hotel booking and trip planning in one app, Tripadvisor gives you the best of both worlds.

8 MAPS.ME: Offline maps GPS Nav

Navigation is a huge part of planning a trip, and that’s where this free, ad-supported app comes to the rescue. You can look up any location and download maps for offline navigation to always have access. If needed, you can add terrain and subway layers to maps. To see additional information about a location, either tap a spot on the map or do a search, and it will show the address, coordinates, and distance away from your current location. Using the ruler feature, you can mark multiple points on a map to find the distance between them, which is excellent for planning daily activities.

You can create routes and choose which type of roads you’d like to avoid, like unpaved roads. If you’re traveling across states or countries, MAPS.ME will give you the option to download additional maps for each area so that it can create the best route for you to navigate ( similar to Google Maps ). Downloading multiple maps can be time-consuming but worth it to get the most out of the app. The power-saving mode is handy and can be set to off, automatic, or maximum. With automatic mode, the app will disable battery-draining features as needed.

Have you ever wondered how long the estimated wait time is at an airport, if there are any flight delays, or what items are allowed in your carry-on and checked baggage? MyTSA puts all the information you need to pack, prepare, and travel in one place. It will show you the closest airports to your current location to help you choose the best one and see important details. You can also add airports to your favorites for easy access. You'll also find an "AskTSA" section where you can get live assistance via Messenger and Twitter.

The "Can I Bring" tab has a full breakdown of the most popular items people may want to bring with them, like alcoholic beverages, bottled water, bug repellent, deodorant, electronic toothbrushes, golf clubs, vaping devices, and much more. MyTSA lets you know if you can have the item in your carry-on and checked bags. Some items have special instructions, which you'll see by tapping "see more details." This is extremely helpful to ensure that none of your items have to be left behind.

10 PackPoint travel packing list

Packing is another essential part of traveling; you want to ensure you have everything you need and appropriate clothing for where you’re going. With this app, packing will be the least of your worries. First, you’ll need to enter a little information about your trip: when and where you’re going, the duration, and the intended activities. PackPoint will then generate a packing list based on the expected weather and chosen activities, and you can check them off the list as you pack. New items can be manually added if needed, and you can swipe to remove items you don’t need.

While PackPoint is free, you can upgrade to Premium for a one-time payment of $2.99. Upgrading removes ads and unlocks custom packing templates, custom activities, TripIt integration, and Evernote integration. PackPoint practically does all the thinking for you when it comes to packing, plus it’s incredibly user-friendly, so you can’t beat the price.

It's the perfect time to start planning a trip

From packing apps to apps that help you find hiking and biking trails, the details of your next trip will all fall into place. Forget the travel agency and plan your lodging, activities, and navigation on your smartphone. While it can seem stressful to plan out every detail of your trip, you'll save money doing so, plus have the apps at your fingertips the entire duration of your journey. If you're really trying to stick to a budget, complement your travel planning with these apps for cheap travel .

The Best (Free) Road Trip Apps to Download Now

If you’re planning a road trip soon you’ll want to download these free road trip apps that always make my road trips a little easier.

1. Roadtrippers

It’s all in the name and of course my first and best road trip app for all things road trip planning. Roadtrippers app is a MUST as it lets you plan almost your entire road trip in this app. But that’s not all, after planning your trip in the app you’’ discover a ton of awesome local places, attractions and things to do along your route making your road trip even more epic. 

The Alternative: inRoute Route Planner  

My primary road trip app for navigation at all times. With the Waze app, I get real-time traffic updates, easy re-route options during accidents or delays, multiple routes if available. This is also my go-to navigation app because of its built-in speed monitor, speed camera notices, and easily links to several music apps. And if you’re looking for gas, parking, or additional locations on along your current route, Waze has you covered. 

The Alternative: Google Maps or Maps.Me  

3. iExit Interstate Exit Guide

When I found iExit it immediately upgraded my road trips and provided more ease. With this app, you’re able to pre-plan which exits and rest stops to take that have more of what you need. If you need gas, food, and a bank all at one exit you’re able to find it without the guessing game of which gas station, how much will gas cost, or what restaurants will be available. 

4. GasBuddy

Ok, so this may not be an exclusive road trip app, rather it’s an app that’s good to have if you drive. Locate gas stations anywhere at any time with brands and prices that fit your wallet. 

The Bonus: Gas GetUpside

5. Tollguru

Most travelers who have never taken road trips before sometimes forget about tolls while on the road. That’s why I recommend to everyone to map your planned route on a GPS. Seeing your route on a GPS can help you determine if you’ll hit a tollway or construction road so you can plan appropriately. I use Tollguru to help estimate toll cost so I’m ready with exact fare in the car to avoid those toll fines. 

6. SpotAngels

Finding safe and ticket free parking can be a headache at times, that’s why I take the guessing game out of finding parking when I travel by using parking apps. My must-have road trip app is SpotAngels for helping me find free parking or parking deals to avoid getting ticketed. 

The Alternative: SpotHero

7. Hotel Tonight

Using Hotel Tonight has always seemed to be my go-to for quick and unplanned getaways. I get great deals on same day or next day hotel bookings when I just need to get away. So using this app for road trips was just as easy to find clean same-day hotel bookings. 

Deemed the Airbnb of the outdoors, Hipcamp helps you discover and book unique places on your road trip. Use this road trip app to rent RV, campsites, cabins, plan hikes, or just book last-minute sites for some overnight rest. 

The Alternative: The Dyrt

9. Couchsurfing

If you’re a spontaneous traveler, love meeting new people, and tend to be low maintenance with your accommodations Couchsurfing may be the road trip app for you. You have the option to meet other travelers or rest your head overnight with local hosts. 

A must-have in my option. Living in and out of the city, working as a freelancer, and attending events I tend to normally be on the road and honestly, it can be hard finding a decent restroom to use so I was happy when I found Flush . This app isn’t perfect but it’s certainly a start to locating bathrooms when there are no hotel or restaurant insight or you need a purchase minimum. 

11. Spotify

I need music! So it’s important to me that I have an amazing road trip app for playlists. Yes, I have almost all the music apps downloaded from SoundCloud to iHeart Radio and everything in between by I keep coming back to Spotify . It links to my navigation system, picks up on Bluetooth, lets me make endless playlists or stations, and has a free option. 

Over the years Yelp has evolved into a directory for various businesses across many cities. I mainly use yelp for those moments I’m looking for great food with high ratings and extra credit if I can book a reservation right in the app. I also use Yelp to bookmark different places I want to visit during my trip and star/review those places that were truly delicious.

The Alternative: Google Maps

13. Groupon

I like to download Groupon for any last-minute activities during times I don’t have anything plan. Groupon’s near me feature makes it great to find discounts on activities, restaurants, or deals close by which makes it another awesome road trip app to download before I leave home.  

14. Google Voice

As a female and an avid solo traveler, Google Voice has come in hand many times. Google Voice is a great road trip app to have for anyone who doesn’t want to give out their phone number. I use my google number for packages, reservations, and even new people I may meet while traveling. 

The Alternative: WhatsApp

PS: LIKE IT? PIN IT NOW!

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The Ultimate Guide to Planning a Road Trip

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Best road trip apps

Take these apps with you when you hit the road

Hit the Road With These Top Android and iOS Apps

Whether it's trips back home or just a drive up to the mountains to enjoy some snow (and maybe a little skiing ), make sure your smartphone is riding shotgun. A number of Android and iOS apps can help with your next road trip by tackling everything from navigation to trip planning. Try out some of these apps the next time you hit the highway to make your next drive a hassle-free experience. ( Photo Credit: Syda Productions/Shutterstock )

Android Auto (Android: Free)

Designed to make it easier to use your apps and phone services while on the road, Android Auto used to be the province of cars with connected dashboard displays, but you can use Android Auto's simplified interface and voice commands straight from your phone's screen. Just mount your Android phone on a cradle or lock, and you're all set. Android Auto is designed to work with Google Maps, Play Music, and numerous other apps to help you navigate, control music playback, answer your phone or send off quick replies without becoming a distracted driver. With expanded Google Assistant controls, Android Auto just keeps getting better and better. A redesigned interface makes  it easier to find the apps you want.

Waze (Android, iOS: Free)

Waze ( Android , iOS ) is a crowd-sourced traffic map and navigation app. Users can check out traffic conditions based on real-time information from other Waze users, complete with reports on road hazards, accidents, speed traps and more. You can also report any incidents you encounter. Best of all, Waze includes guided turn-by-turn navigation that take traffic conditions into account.

GasBuddy (Android, iOS: Free)

Long road trips mean you're going to need to fill up multiple times, so finding inexpensive gasoline and reliable filling stations is a must. Motorists in the U.S. and Canada stand to save some serious change with GasBuddy ( Android , iOS ), a mobile app that helps users track down the cheapest nearby gas station from their present location. As many of the prices are based on user reports, GasBuddy rewards users with points for reporting and updating a station's prices. Those points make you eligible for regular raffles of prizes, like free gas. Brave early adopters of electric vehicles can instead give Plugshare ( Android , iOS ) a try: it lets you look up and review nearby charging stations for your electric car.

TollSmart (Android, iOS: $2.99 monthly)

Road tolls can add an unexpected chunk to your travel costs. TollSmart ( Android , iOS ) is a neat trip-planning app that allows you to quickly look up the price of all toll bridges, roadways, and tunnels from start to destination. The app allows you to create profiles for a variety of vehicles from the family sedan all the way up to nine-axle vehicles to calculate vehicle-based toll rates. The app also includes support for a variety of transponder-based systems like E-ZPass. Users can automatically log in toll rates in the app's TollTracker system for easy expense report logging. An in-app purchase provides you the ability to compare tolls across multiple proposed routes.

TollGuru (Android, iOS: Free)

Another handy trip planning and toll assistant app is TollGuru ( Android , iOS ), which helps users calculate the cheapest and fastest toll routes, as well as estimates of fuel consumption based on your vehicle. Simply set your starting point and destination, and the app can help you figure out the fastest or cheapest route (integrating with other navigation apps), show you the applicable tolls, and even factor in tolls at departure time for peak and off-peak rates, factoring in payment options like cash or transponder tags. Users can save the make and model of their vehicle, edit MPG fuel efficiency rates, and even set fuel prices to estimate their costs. The app covers the USA, Canada, and India.

iExit (Android, iOS: Free)

Need to grab a bite to eat, withdraw some cash from an ATM, or catch some winks before the next leg of your road trip? iExit Interstate Exit Guide ( Android , iOS ) helps you plan your next pitstop, displaying handy pictographs of businesses and amenities in upcoming interstate exits. Users can search for specific businesses, display locations on an on-screen map, view gas prices, or find amenities like Wi-Fi, truck parking or campgrounds.

Drivvo (Android, iOS: Free)

Drivvo ( Android ,  iOS ) functions as a helpful car maintenance logbook, helping users log in details like fuel consumption, odometer readings, and any preventive maintenance measures and repairs. You can record your gas top-ups, expenses, and set reminders for repairs, servicing and regular maintenance. The app also includes a crowd-sourced feature for finding out the cheapest gas prices near you. The app is free and ad-supported, with a premium subscription removing advertising and providing extras like cloud synchronization across multiple devices and data export.

DailyRoads Voyager (Android)

DailyRoads Voyager turns your Android phone into a budget dashcam, allowing you to record video or photos of your trip in the event of an accident or any other unfortunate situation. You can define the video quality, user-defined storage size and cyclic storage (so that your internal memory never fills up). The app offers time-stamping and geotagging of your recordings, along with speed and elevation. The app is ad-supported, with a premium version that removes advertising.

MileIQ (Android, iOS: Free)

Not every drive is a personal trip or vacation. If you need to track your mileage for business trips and tax purposes, check out MileIQ ( Android , iOS ), an automatic mileage-tracking app that takes advantage of your smartphone's GPS and motion sensors to automatically log your trips, complete with map information, destinations, and purpose of trip. The app also provides exportable spreadsheets and reports so you can easily plug them in for your business records and tax purposes. The free tier allows you to log 40 free trips per month, with premium tiers (starting at $5.99 per month) offering unlimited trip logging.

PackPoint (Android, iOS: Free)

If you're going to be on the road and away from home for more than a few days, it helps to make sure that you're properly packed for the trip. PackPoint ( Android ,  iOS ) is a travel packing wizard that provides a checklist of travel essentials that you need to pack, depending on the nature of your trip. Users simply create a trip profile, with their destination, length of stay and purpose of travel. PackPoint then creates a customized packing and luggage checklist that takes into account whether you're traveling for business or pleasure, the type and amount of clothing to pack based on the weather forecast and other factors. The app also comes with premium features, such as TripIt integration for automatic packing list creation.

RoadTrippers (Android, iOS: Free)

Roadtrippers ( Android , iOS ) is another useful resource for road trip planning, helping users find everything from diners and dives to hotels, restaurants, national parks, roadside attractions and other scenic points of interest. Users can plan out trips in the app or its web portal, saving locations and stops into a trip plan which you can sync across multiple devices for easy reference.

Roadside America (iOS; $2.99)

When it comes to tourist traps, oddities, and roadside attractions, America is a country blessed. The Roadside America app is a rich database of the weird and the wonderful sites along the road, from muffler men to quirky museums, scenic vistas, and historical landmarks. Users can explore the map, search by geographic proximity, name, or by theme. Purchasing the app allows you to unlock one of 7 different US regions or Canada, with in-app purchases unlocking more regions or the entire package.

INRIX ParkMe (Android, iOS: Free)

Finding parking spaces in a strange city can be a hassle. Enter INRIX ParkMe ( Android , iOS ), which helps you search for the nearest and cheapest parking options with the help of your phone's location sensors. You can check out parking rates, including daily and monthly rates, set a parking timer so you'll never forget to refill the meter, find out parking space availability where provided by the building or garage and even reserve and pay for a parking slot with your phone.

SpotAngels (Android, iOS: Free)

Another option for on-demand car parking data is SpotAngels ( Android , iOS ), which provides crowd-sourced maps of free and paid parking locations. Included data also features lot rules, known fees, and other parameters that you can search on a map. Users can also book parking with partner parking garages and services when they can’t find a free slot. SpotAngels can remember your car’s parking spot using your car’s Bluetooth or phone sensors, and the app can remind you to move your car during street cleaning hours or whenever other parking restrictions are in place.

Spotify (Android, iOS: Free)

Road trips are an excuse to listen to some great road music. Spotify ( Android , iOS ) can relieve the tedium of the drive and set the mood with on-demand music, curated streams and playlists and a rich library of artists and bands to listen to. You'll want the $9.99-a-month premium subscription, which removes ads, and most importantly, allows you to download music for offline listening so you can skip mobile data charges.

Audible (Android, iOS: $14.95 monthly)

If audiobooks are more your thing, there's also Amazon's Audible audiobook service ( Android , iOS ) to consider. Featuring a library of more than 180,000 audiobooks, Audible is a powerhouse in the field, and the mobile app offers solid playback controls, complete with chapter and bookmark controls, multitasking support for background playback, and the ability to download audiobooks to your device for offline listening.

Pocket Casts (Android, iOS; $3.99)

What about taking your podcasts on the road? Try Pocket Casts ( Android , iOS ), which neatly combines style and function with an attractive design that showcases subscribed podcasts in tile format. Tap on a square to bring up an episode list and download options . A smart playlisting feature helps you sort and categorize your downloaded content for easy listening. The app also includes a variety of library organization features, support for streaming, and the option to download full episodes so that you don't have to use up your mobile data cap while on the road.

HotelTonight (Android, iOS: Free)

Ideally, you've got your accommodations and itinerary planned out on long road trips, but even the best laid plans can go wrong. If you suddenly need to look for last minute hotel rooms, HotelTonight ( Android , iOS ) is going to be a lifesaver, offering users last-minute discounts on vacancies and same night accommodations from top-rated hotels. Users can search by category and quality such as Basic, Hip or Luxe, view information on nearby hotels, and quickly book accommodations from within the app.

Yelp! (Android, iOS: Free)

If you're looking for a place to eat or shop in an unfamiliar town, it's hard to go wrong with Yelp ( Android ,  iOS ), which provides local reviews for more than 135 million restaurants and businesses worldwide. You can quickly check out reviews of nearby restaurants and diners, consult their menus, make a reservation or order delivery, or use the app to find nearby car services that you might need on the road, like a body shop or auto repair workshop.

Flush Toilet Finder (Android, iOS: Free)

The idea of an app for finding restrooms and toilets might, at first blush, seem silly, until you find yourself out on a road trip, about to enter what may or may not be an absolutely filthy restroom. Enter Flush Toilet Finder ( Android , iOS ), an app that uses your location sensors and checks its database of more than 200,000 public and paid toilets worldwide, showing you nearby toilets on a map, with information such as whether the toilet requires a fee or key or includes handicapped access. Neat features include the fact that Flush Toilet Finder functions even when offline; it can integrate with Google Maps to provide directions to a selected restroom.

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22 best road trip apps that are essential downloads

Travel Travel Inspiration Road Trips Best Road Trip Apps

Road trips are the best. Driving down never ending roads without having to follow any deadlines or set path is incredibly liberating. Multiple unplanned stops, literally taking the road unknown, and just generally being free are just some of the delights you can expect on a road trip. But all this freedom and joy come with a certain amount of uncertainty as well.

When you’re on a road trip, there are unforeseen issues you might face on the road like being lost, not having anything to do, absence of gas stations, and more. Equipping yourself with the best road trip planner apps is a great way to alleviate some of the anxiety associated with being on the road. To help make the process easier for you, we have curated a list of the best road trip planner apps for 2021.

1 Roadtrippers

Paid version.

Plan the perfect road trip or find an undiscovered gem nearby with Roadtrippers. The app lists countless places including local eateries and offbeat roadside attractions, must-visit tourist spots in the area, national parks, and even hotels. Need inspiration for your road trip? Choose from fantastic premade trip guides of once-in-a-lifetime routes. Roadtrippers is a free of cost route planner you can use to find the best places to visit and make your road trip truly memorable. You can also upgrade to the paid version, Roadtrippers Plus, which gives you up to 150 waypoints per trip along with a host of other features including exclusive deals, offline maps, collaborating with friends, and custom map styles.

2 Google Maps

Arguably the most popular navigation app in the world, Google Maps makes traveling to new places much, much easier. Both web-based and app service, Google Map provides comprehensive information pertaining to geographical regions and sites across the globe. Along with traditional road maps, the app also provides aerial and satellite views of countless places. With Google Maps, drivers, bikers, walkers, and users of public transportation can find the most optimal route between one specific location to another, with the option of adding more stops. You can also search for the closest restaurants, hotels, parking, and other road trip essentials using Google Maps.

Heading to a place with spotty internet connectivity? Maps.Me is what you need. The app offers quick, in-depth, and completely offline maps with turn-by-turn navigation. Maps.Me is used by over 140 million travelers around the world and helps you save precious travel time with exceptional navigation. You can also make your travels more interesting by utilizing the app’s fantastic readymade travel guides. These guides have been curated with assistance from some of the best travel content creators in the world for countless global destinations. Some of the features that make Maps.Me great include offline search, GPS navigation, and optimized maps that effectively save memory space.

Last-minute travel can be hard to pull off, especially if you’re venturing into the unknown. With Headout, an on-demand mobile marketplace, you can find and book the most amazing tours, activities, events and local experiences in town available for the next 24 hours at great prices. With a single tap, you can explore a host of activities that have been designed to meet the needs of not only last-minute travellers but locals as well. Some of the experiences you can book using Headout include Helicopter tours, Broadway tickets, Hot air balloon rides, Dream World Cruise tickets, Skip the line tickets to the Eiffel, Universal Studio tickets, and countless other remarkable experiences that’ll make your trip memorable.

With over 60 million downloads, GasBuddy is officially the largest community-based fuel app in the world. The app helps drivers save on fuel cost using information provided by a large base of users. With GasBuddy, you can locate the cheapest fuel amongst different types, find petrol stations based on distance and price, and help others find cheap fuel by reporting fuel prices based on your experience. Every time you report fuel prices, you'll earn points and achievements. You can also receive automatic notifications when a new recall is issued by adding your vehicle to GasBuddy. Make your road trips hassle-free by never having to worry about fuel with GasBuddy.

Ultimate Bucketlist Road Trips In The World

Drivvo can be best described as a finance manager for your vehicles including car, motorcycle, bus or truck for both personal or professional use. The app helps you manage fuel, refuelling, expenses and revenues, and maintenance. You can also use the app to manage registration, financing, and fines. With Drivvo, you can easily manage multiple vehicles and calculate gas consumption. The app also offers in-depth fuel efficiency reports sorted by fuel and gas stations, helping you identify which option is best for your vehicle.

7 PackPoint

Packing right is often a requisite for a relaxed road trip. With PackPoint, a free travel packing list organizer and packing planner, you can do just that. Designed for travelers who like to travel smart, the app helps them organize what they need to pack based on length of travel, expected weather at the destination, and activities planned for the trip. After your packing list is built, the app will save it for you and you can share it with family and friends to help them pack better. Details you need to input for the best results include destination city, departure date, and the number of nights you'll be staying there.

8 Flush - Toilet Finder

Finding a working toilet is often a challenge during road trips. With Flush, it doesn't have to be. This fast and simple toilet finder features a classy interface with charming animations and user interface designed for ease of use. Flush boasts a database of thousands of public toilets that is stored on your phone for easy, offline access. Just search for a location on the map and the app will display the closest public toilets to you. To find directions, simply tap on the map to get directions provided by Google Maps. If you need to find a toilet urgently, just tap the directions button and you'll receive directions to the nearest toilet.

9 Hotel Tonight

Find fantastic deals on hotels for the night or the next one using HotelTonight! The app lists hotels that offer discounts on their empty rooms and you get all the benefits. Finding the best rate hotel is no longer a seemingly endless task. A couple of taps and swipes and you’re done! Hotel Tonight offers a truly diverse collection of hotels including the top-rated luxury hotel to charming and unique boutiques. Book a hotel using Hotel Tonight and you’re assured of the best rates and an even better selection of hotels to choose from.

$35.99/year

Ever wondered what an app that helps you camp better looks like? Introducing Dyrt, officially the number 1 camping app of 2021! The app boasts a rich database of over 1 million campsites, tips and reviews submitted by campers like you. Use Dyrt to find the perfect RV, van, cabin and tent spot in the US. The app offers campers free access to all campsite listings in the US including national parks, state parks, county parks, and more. You can also sign up for the Pro version which makes camping easier with trip planner, free camping maps, offline access, and many discounts.

Road trips and highways kinda go together and navigating the latter can be challenging if you’re not familiar with the route. iExit makes driving on highways easier by informing users what's at upcoming exits when you're on the highway. The app uses your device’s exact location to identify your spot in the highway and then displays all upcoming exits in real time. You can also make use of the powerful iExit search which shows the next 100 exits for businesses including KOA Campgrounds, Starbucks, and Cracker Barrel, amenities such as Truck Parking, WiFi, and Playground, hotel deals, and much more.

12 ParkMe Parking

ParkMe is an award-winning app that lets you find and book the closest and cheapest parking around. Use ParkMe to save money and time and guarantee a parking spot. The app even displays the estimated parking cost you’ll have to pay before you park on a particular spot. Since there are multiple parking spots to choose from, you can compare the different options and find the cheapest one. In many cities, ParkMe also displays real-time parking availability and lets you reserve a parking spot at certain lots and garages. Use the app to avoid spending hours finding the right parking spot and make your road trip experience even more pleasant.

13 Gaia GPS

$39.99/year.

Gaia can be best described as GPS for the woods. Make your treks and backpacking trip safes with Gaia GPS. Use the app to join thousands of backpackers, offroaders, hunters, mountain bikers, firefighters, guides, and other outdoor adventurers who use Gaia GPS for work and play. Gaia allows you to hike, hunt, and off-road with optimized topo maps and outdoor navigation tools. The app offers modern maps that are beautiful and easy-to-read along with a host of classic and historic print maps. Use the app to find the best hiking trails, parks, natural places, and addresses, and make your hiking and backpacking trip more memorable.

14 TollGuru

TollGuru has been designed to help you save money by calculating the cheapest routes all across West Malaysia. All you need to do is enter your destination and we’ll find the total toll fares on your route. Some features that make TollGuru a must-have if you’re planning a road trip in Malaysia include display of multiple routes, toll locations on map, breakdown of toll rates by different vehicle classes. Other features of the app include estimated petrol cost for the route, quick and easy search with address auto complete suggestion, and open communication with the app development team by sending them a report of incorrect toll information.

15 Highway Weather App

Being aware of the general weather when planning a road trip is always recommended. Highway Weather App offers weather forecasts for your entire road trip starting from the time of your arrival. The app also features weather alerts, radar, traffic cameras, and plans for rests. The app has been designed to ensure your safety whether you’re on a family vacation or heading to a motorcycle rally. Instead of searching for weather forecasts for each city you’re travelling to, get all the information you need all at the same time, in an easy to understand fashion using Highway Weather App.

A recurring worry when embarking on a road trip is leaving your home unprotected. With Blink’s affordable smart home security cameras and systems, you can monitor your home directly using your smartphone. The app offers multi-system support and a simple setup process, ensuring you can control multiple Blink cameras with a simple app. The Blink Home Monitor app allows you to check in on what’s happening at home at any time from anywhere. The app helps you see your home in HD on your smartphone, ensuring you can see and protect your space even when you’re thousands of miles away.

Staying connected is often a challenge when you’re on a road trip to a location with a spotty internet connection. Use Skyroam to connect around the world with the portable global WiFi hotspot and power bank. Enjoy secure, unlimited connectivity when you’re out and about without having to swap your SIM or pay exorbitant roaming charges. SkyRoam’s Solis app allows you to manage your hotspot account, check data usage, and the status of your connection. You can also enjoy access to advanced features including smart troubleshooting, detailed product information, and the ability to get online faster.

18 Sygic Travel Maps Offline

Discover things to do no matter where you go, plan comprehensive trip itineraries, and make your trip more memorable with in-depth travel guides, all using Sygic Travel Maps Offline. This definitive all-in-one app is built for every kind of traveler and allows users to create a day-to-day itinerary for their trip with a hassle-free trip planner. Use the app for approximate travel times and walking distances to plan your trip better. You can even invite your friends to collaborate on your trips. Get Sygic Travel Premium to use the app even when you’re not connected to the internet, including unlimited offline maps download.

Featuring over 100 million reviews on businesses worldwide, Yelp is amongst the most popular crowd-sourced business reviews apps. Whether you are looking for a coffee shop near you or a salon that’s open at the moment, Yelp is your local guide to finding just the best place to eat, drink, shop, and everything in between. Use the app to search for the closest and best-rated restaurants, shops, and services. You can refine the search by filtering results by rating, neighborhood, price, distance, and what’s open now. Make use of the millions of reviews written by expert locals to find the best recommendation for your needs.

A trip planner that enables users to craft a master travel itinerary and provide them with online and mobile access, TripIt is another addition to the list of the best trip planner apps for 2021. When you book a flight, hotel, car or other reservation, just forward it to [email protected] and the app will instantly add it to your master itinerary. Sync travel plans to your calendar or share them with anyone you choose using TripIt. You can also stay aware of the evolving travel landscape with guidelines, restrictions and requirements that can be viewed via the trip itinerary screen in the app.

21 Route4Me Route Planner

Use the Route4Me route planner to plan unlimited routes and add unlimited addresses per route. One of the most downloaded, multi stop route planner apps in the world, Route4Me offers a host of benefits designed for your convenience. The app is used by countless businesses including those in different industries such as service and delivery planning, grocery delivery, package delivery and more. Route4Me is used both by travellers and professionals for the wide range of features and customizations it offers.

Use Komoot to transform your next ride, hike, or trek into an adventure. Use the community recommendations and knowledge to get inspired for your trip and bring your plans to fruition with the easy-to-use route planner. The app offers the perfect route depending on your chosen sport. For instance, you’ll get only smooth asphalt tracks for road bikes, peaceful cycling paths for natural trails, and singletracks for your mountain bikes. Plan your trip down to the last detail thanks to easy availability of useful information like surface, difficulty, distance and elevation profile.

Lakshmi Menon

Born to parents bit by the wander bug, Lakshmi calls her love for travel "hereditary and habitual". Perpetually ensconced with a book in her hand and a mug of coffee in the other, she has been to over 15 countries in her 23 years of existence and is currently saving miles and money for her solo trip to Iceland. Always hustling towards the least trodden path, she has encountered some wonderful people during her escapades and if you ever meet her, she won't stop gushing about them.

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10 best travel apps for Android

Published on March 5, 2022

Mobile phones are important tools for travelers. You can look up information, book hotels, book flights, find pit stops, and find out all kinds of information in the palm of your hand. More and more people are depending on their mobile phones for travel. Frankly, it’s easier that way. We’d like to help make your next trip easier too. Here are the best travel apps for Android! In the interest of variety, we do not cover any GPS or navigation apps here. We have those linked up below.

The best travel apps for Android

Booking.com, google translate.

• Bonus: Taxi apps

Price: Free / Room costs vary

Airbnb is one of the best independent travel apps. It also has some of the most varied options out there. For those who don’t know, Airbnb allows people to rent out spare rooms to random travelers. It boasts 2.5 million homes across over 190 countries. You can also add events to an itinerary if you’re interested in other stuff. The app has had its problems and its independent nature lends itself to the occasional problem. However, it’s a really fun way to skirt the typical experience and go for a different, often cheaper option. Another interesting and potentially fun option is Couchsurfing .

See also:  What is Airbnb and how does it work?

Price: Free app / Room prices vary

Booking.com is among the most popular and highly rated travel apps out there. Its main feature is having over one million hotels, motels, and other accommodations at its disposal. Additionally, it has info on local attractions, landmarks, and even local WiFi hotspots. There are also some convenience tools like offline maps, paperless booking, adding reservations to your calendar, and more. It’s a good place to start if you’re planning a trip although you may want to cross-check with similar apps before making a commitment. The app itself is completely free to use. It provides a somewhat typical experience in terms of travel apps.

See also:  The best hotel apps for Android to find cheap hotels

Price: Free

GasBuddy is a road tripper’s best friend. Or at least it could be. The basic premise of the app is to help you find the cheapest gas that is also closest to you. Those on the road can find the nearest gas station in case they’re in the need of a fill up. The app is crowd sourced so you can report new gas prices if the ones you saw in the app were inaccurate. That way it helps everybody to help everybody else. Not that it’ll matter much, but they also run a daily promotion for $100 in free gas. The design is good and the whole experience is really easy to use. The app may sell your data , though, so those who value privacy may want to steer clear.

See also:  The best road trip apps for Android

Not everyone has the time to fully learn to speak, read, or write a new language. Those people should probably reach for an app like Google Translate. It features the ability to translate virtually any language into almost any other language. Additionally, there is a camera feature that lets you point your phone at a sign or a menu to get an instant translation. Best of all, there’s a real-time speech translator that can help you talk to people. It’s one of the most essential travel apps out there. It’s also totally free. You absolutely must have this when traveling to other countries.

See also:  How to use Google Translate with over 100 languages

Price: Free app / Costs will vary

KAYAK’s app has been around for a long time. It’s remained one of the more consistent travel apps for years. It’s an all-in-one app that lets you book hotels, flights, and rental cars. Along with that, it has an explore option so you check out where you want to travel. It’ll also let you track your pre-existing travel plans even if you didn’t book with them. It rounds out the experience with things like price alerts, deal alerts, and price forecasts to help you find a better deal. It’s like Booking.com in that it provides a full travel experience with a bit of a normal flair. It does virtually everything you’d need it to do.

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Polarsteps is one of many good travel planner apps. The app has quite a few good features for travelers. They include a guide for many places all over the world, automatic tracking of your trips around the globe, an itinerary planner, a transport planner, and more. In addition, the UI works well and isn’t confusing. This one is designed for people who travel semi-frequently and probably not the best one for people who vacation only once every couple of years, but it is here if you want to try it anyway.

Priceline is one of the most well-known travel apps. We’ve all seen the commercials so you know what to expect. It delivers on almost all of its promises. It features over 800,000 hotels along with thousands of rental car and flight options. The service also features small quirks like Google Wallet support, future reservation tracking, and more. The app’s claim to fame is its various deals, such as the Express Deals, Name Your Own Price, and last minute hotel room deals. That may help with some travel plans, especially impromptu ones or ones where your previous plans may have fallen through. It’s not perfect, but it’s a big name in travel apps.

TripIt is one of only a few decent travel planner apps. Most people use note-taking apps, actual paper, a datebook, a calendar app, or to-do list apps for this sort of thing. However, it’s nice to have an app that works with all of it. This one integrates your itinerary into a single spot. It can also monitor for things like seat upgrades or flight cancellations. This one seems to work better than most. Google Trips is another decent option that has more features but more issues, in our honest opinion. TripIt is completely free so you can try it out without spending anything.

See also:  The best language learning apps for Android of 2021

WIthlocals is a travel app with some excellent discovery features. Basically, you get in touch with people from around the area you’re traveling to and get a tour of the place or some suggestions. It currently supports over 50 cities around the world and the list grows every year. You can also book tours from the app, communicate with the various guides, and more. Most discovery apps just list a bunch of stuff and let you choose what to do. However, this one actually puts you in touch with people and we like the personable nature of it.

Everybody knows about Yelp. It’s one of the top places to go if you want to know information about a business. While traveling, it can help you learn more about the area, find out where the good spots are, and help you avoid the places that aren’t great. The app uses a clean design that also makes it easy to use. You can also find various other services should you need them. It probably won’t be something you use too frequently, but it’s a handy tool should you ever need it. Google Maps is a little easier and has more functionality, but Yelp is kind of the classic name in this space.

See also:  The best food delivery apps for Android

Bonus: Uber, Lyft, and other taxi and ride-sharing apps

Price: Free apps / Costs vary

It’s not necessary to rent a car as soon as you hit the ground in whatever city you go to. These days, there are a variety of taxi and ride sharing apps that help you get around quickly and efficiently. Some of the options include Lyft, Uber, and TaxiCaller. Many cities and countries have their own regional services as well. The rides are usually reasonably priced although surge charging does make things worse sometimes. People all over the world use these services and most of them require a background check before hiring drivers. Unless you plan on driving constantly, a ride sharing or taxi app may be what you want. We have our list of the best ones linked up at the button above.

Thank you for reading! Check this out too:

• How to manage your location data: GPS tracking and more

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The Best (Free) Road Trip Apps

Up your #vanlife game with these apps that help you find camping spots, compare gas prices, and avoid city traffic

Heading out the door? Read this article on the Outside app available now on iOS devices for members! >","name":"in-content-cta","type":"link"}}'>Download the app .

My boyfriend (now husband) and I once circled America in our Sprinter van . We learned a lot in that yearlong road trip: how to find ideal urban camping spots (hint: it involves Zillow and tall hedges), how to pee in a bucket in a moving vehicle, and how to make 27 different one-pan stir-fries. But we also learned how incredibly reliant we are on technology—not always in a bad way. As much as we used the trip as an opportunity to unplug, we relied on our smartphones to plan our routes and figure out where to eat, sleep, and play. Here are the apps that became essential to our road-trip success.

For the Planners

Roadtrippers.

If you like to have a plan before embarking on a long, multileg journey, this is the app ( iOS and Android ) for you. Just enter your destinations, and the app will calculate trip time, mileage, and approximate gas cost. Then view the map of your route and toggle on attractions, restaurants, outdoor recreation spots, camping, vacation rentals, and more along the way. Add any of these to your trip to view relevant information like hours of operation, directions, and reviews.

HotelTonight

If you’re not a camper—or just need a break/shower/air conditioning for a night—this app (iOS and Android ) is great for finding last-minute hotel deals. All listed hotels are at least three stars and are peer-rated and categorized as basic, solid, hip, or luxe. In the Florida Keys, we got a four-star super-fancy hotel (luxe) on the beach for under $200; in Brooklyn, we got an upscale three-star with robes and a view (hip) for just over $100. While we haven’t had a bad deal yet, there is one drawback: You can’t pick your room type, so you might end up with two double beds or a not-so-stellar view.

Traffic Reports

While Apple Maps will tell you if the traffic goes from good to bad, Waze ( iOS and Android ) relies on the community to give you up-to-the-minute, user-sourced information on traffic, accidents, hazards, speed limits, and police warnings. It’s great for finding alternative routes through traffic in unfamiliar cities.

Virtual Adventure Travel Agent

The outbound.

When you’re in a new area and don’t have local recommendations for what to do, eat, or see, this app ( iOS ) steps up with information on hikes, cliff jumps, or stand-up paddle put-ins. Every activity recommendation includes detailed trip reports, trail descriptions, packing lists, mileage, and suggested skill level, all written and submitted by app users local to the area. Users can comment with their own reviews of the trail, beach, or cliff in question. Outbound staff continually fact-check to make sure the info is accurate. It’s a great way to discover new adventures, even close to home.

Before downloading this app ( iOS and Android ), we would use Apple Maps to find gas stations. One day, we were in the middle of nowhere and our tank was on empty. We drove ten miles out of the way to a station, only to discover it didn’t have diesel. Luckily, we made it to the next station, which did. But the experience compelled us to download GasBuddy, which finds gas stations on your route, compares prices, and gives directions. You can also filter to see only those with diesel.

Non-App Honorable Mention

Hipcamp.com.

If you’re in a remote area with nowhere to camp, or all the campsites are full, and you’re willing to pay ($25 and up), try Hipcamp.com . It doesn’t have an app, but the website is worth bookmarking. Like Airbnb for camping, the site lets you search for camping on locals’ properties. Find spots with RV hookups, glamping opportunities, or just a pretty piece of land to pitch a tent for the night. We used Hipcamp to find an urban farm in Detroit to park our van instead of “camping” on the street. We met wonderful people who gave us great recommendations that made it well worth the cost.

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The #1 Road Trip Apps

Start planning your next unforgettable road trip

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This app is beautiful. It isn't enough that it helps you find amazing places—you can also plan a trip to all of them. I see many more weekend trips in my future!

Yes after 5 days of using 3 maps, 5 apps and I found Roadtrippers. I was telling my boyfriend as we sat in the RV and started crying as I described it to him. Lol. Happy days

Fantastic! Really useful with road trips and with finding things in my city I didn't know existed. Seriously I recommend it to everyone, I love it!

I’m planning a 60 day road trip and this app makes it so much fun and far less work!! I couldn’t imagine trying to plan a trip without it now.

Use your saved places on-the-go.

Trying to find that one restaurant or favorite hotel? Access your saved places on-the-go with mobile and never forget a place.

Discover interesting places along your route.

Want to find historic, scenic points on your drive? How about hotels near breweries? Filter the maps to find the perfect place to check out on your trip.

Save, share, get directions, and more.

When you find a special place, you can save it, tell your friends, or get directions and visit right away.

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San Francisco from the Beginning

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The history and people that have shaped the Bay Area, starting with the Miwok & Ohlone.

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Android Auto: How to change or customize your view

H istorically, car infotainment center software has been clunky. In a scenario where you need access to crucial features and functions fast and with minimal distractions, these apps were often bloated with intermediary screens, disclaimers, and splash screens that made them more of an annoyance than a convenience. They're necessary if you don't want to rely on one of the best tablet car mounts or your phone to get directions while driving.

Android Auto takes some of the best ideas of other apps and presents them in a manageable package. It's a great replacement for relying on Maps on your phone for navigation or constantly fiddling with analog radio dials to find music. It's also customizable, allowing you to surface the stuff you use frequently. Here's how to get the most out of one of the best infotainment packages available.

Shuffle your apps for maximum efficiency

One of the first things to do is shift the position of app icons on the apps list so that you can quickly get to the ones you use the most, be it Google Maps, your favorite music apps, or messaging so that you can check your texts and DMs with minimal distraction.

By default, Android Auto surfaces the apps you open the most. If you want quick access to anything else, adjust the order. There isn't an option to adjust app placement in the Android Auto interface. However, it's simple to do on a connected smartphone with the Android Auto app. Here's how to change the layout of the Android Auto apps screen:

• Unlock your phone and open the Settings app .
• Scroll to Android Auto or search for it in the search bar.
• Open the Android Auto settings .
• Select the Customize Launcher option. Close
• Choose Launcher sorting . Close

You can then select a simple alphabetical sorting, which arranges your currently installed apps from A to Z, or create a custom order. Choose Custom to drag the apps into the positions you like. If your phone is connected to your vehicle, the app order updates automatically.

Tweak the appearance of the Android Auto home screen

The Android auto home screen is designed with an emphasis on navigation. Nearly half of it is dedicated to displaying navigation assistance when it's active. The other side houses a drawer of widgets, giving you access to apps and functions without tapping through and navigating the dedicated apps screen.

An update to Android Auto unlocked the ability to choose which side each pane displays on. You can choose whether the widget drawer or the navigation should be closer to the driver. Unlike the custom sorting layout on the app screen, this can be done through the in-car Android Auto interface. Here's how:

• From the Android Auto homescreen in your car's infotainment center, select the app screen in the lower-left corner (the square of dots icon).
• Select the Settings app .
• Choose Change layout .

The following screen lets you toggle between Media closer to driver or Navigation closer to driver . The Media option shifts the widget pane closer to the driver's side of the cabin, while Navigation shifts the map screen to the driver's side.

How to plan a road trip while driving a Tesla

Change your wallpaper for a custom look, or make other visual tweaks.

If you want a quick aesthetic customization to make your Android Auto interface feel a little more your own (or crave a visual upgrade), swapping out the wallpaper can make an immediate impact. You can't use a custom image as the wallpaper, but a fairly robust selection is included in the app, and you don't need your phone to change them. Here's how to switch wallpapers in the Android Auto in-car app:

• Open the Settings app .
• Tap Wallpaper .
• Select the option you want from those displayed, or scroll down for additional wallpapers.

The Settings app also gives you access to other options, including switching between Day and Night mode (or swapping automatically) or whether you want to display Taskbar widgets. The latter, for instance, displays playback controls in Spotify at the bottom of the screen at all times, not only when the widget/ or app is active.

Smooth out your road trip

Android Auto is one of the best ways to get quick directions, play your favorite music, or quickly access your messages with minimal distractions from the most important task: driving safely. You can personalize it with a few handy tweaks to suit your preferences.

It doesn't stop there. Android Auto is packed with handy features beyond app access. Learn how to use Android Auto to find your parking spot in our handy guide.