Times are changing and travelling changes even more. Without a mobile phone many people nowadays cannot imagine going outside to buy a pack of cigs not mentioning going on a journey. Here there is some apps that you may find useful during the latter.
Social/where to go app.
Maybe the most important thing while travelling is finding people to hang out with and places to go to. There is three apps I would deem interesting and that I’ve tried myself.
The first is a newcomer to the club. Spottly is a travel app which allows you to look through places tagged by others like things to see, restaurants etc. Seems to be pretty cool only apart from the fact that it’s not exactly viral therefore it’s only useful in mainstream locations and it’s only for iOS users so far.
Vayable is another interesting one. It enables people to put tour offers online and while you are travelling use local guides to get a tour around the city. It’s for sure a better alternative to standard tour agencies but still I don’t like the idea that you actually need to pay for it… well some people may still find it interesting.
Of course king in the castle is again Couchsurfing – you can get basically the same as from vayable but for free and you are getting it from a person who is actually willing to show you around or take you out. It of course requires being proactive so if you have a “fat wallet” then maybe vayable could be better.
When it comes to accommodation…
My first bet will usually be searching on Couchsurfing.org. However if you are not so okay with giving the control of your life to somebody else you should check out Airbnb. The idea behind the two is quite similar however. for Airbnb you have to pay what basically changes everything and your guest all of a sudden becomes a customer . It’s still interesting though and at least sometimes I will use Airbnb myself choosing it above crazy or picky couchsurfing hosts.
Your final option if you are really not into staying with strangers under one roof you should check up Hostelworld. It gives you access to a database of hostels with prices, locations and generally speaking everything.
File sharing App
This is not something that you might expect at first but a good file sharing app is a sine-qua non for travelling. If you want to share or backup photos or even get some data/files from another traveler in a hostel then file sharing apps will be your way to go. My favorite app in this category will be Xender which allows you to transfer files between phones and from your phone to computer without internet access with an acceptable speed. You can even send the app to another person without internet access using Bluetooth. There is some other apps like Airdroid or Zapya however their functions are sometimes limited or they try to annoy you in some other way.
Dictionary
Obviously again the answer that you will expect is google translate. However it’s not the only app available on the market and other dictionaries with more specialized features may be actually suited to your needs much better. Like if you are looking for a Chinese dictionary, Pleco will probably be your main option or if English is not your first language then a good dictionary of English language will be probably really useful. (Yes I know your English is perfect but still…:). I could recommend you trying dictionary.com app.
An app for multilingual translation that I came across could be for example “quick dic” which even in spite of its funny name seems to be quite useful since it also works offline. Still generally it’s difficult to beat GT.
Maps
Of course google…..(maps)…. again. However since Google maps doesn’t work everywhere or you may simply dislike it, an alternative to google maps could be for example HERE Maps developed by Nokia. In China the most popular app will be Baidu maps which is basically a bad copy of Google maps. I’ve tested a few apps however most of them are worth the time and transfer you spend downloading them.
Currencies
Don’t think that you don’t need to know what is the exchange rate if you always use your card. One zero at the end of the bill may prove to be deadly for your budget. Sometimes especially if you move a lot it’s easy to confuse Japanese Yen with Hong Kong dollars. A decent currency calculator is “XE Currency” which is the most popular one.
Taxi!
It’s really worth checking for local taxi apps what can make your life much easier when you get lost. Uber is of course the most used one internationally but locally you can find some other which could be actually cheaper and easier to use. You need to do the research online. In China the cheapest one is probably Kuaididi.
And…
There is of course a variety of small apps which will help you do everything. I’ve come across apps like dude where is my car? (which helps you find your car in the parking lot) or Find my tent which will do the same for your tent. Metro maps, city bikes stations etc etc. Most of them are really basic and do the same old thing under different names and in different contexts but if you learn how to get a hold of them well, the effects can be quite impressive.
Actually the easier usually also means the better.
Written by Jan Piatkowski
Original click: Alternative Life
No comments:
Post a Comment