This is the age of modern travel. People rarely leave their smartphones at home when they venture abroad, and while many would grumble around about this, it's good to get with the times and realize the benefits to this approach.
Even though, yes, bringing your smartphone along is in contrast with the spirit of the wanderlust-ridden, ever-moving true traveller, it's a great way to go. First of all, unless you're positively made of money, you'll have your data off for the day while you're exploring, so it's not like you'll be mentally chained to your office desk.
Also, not only does travelling with a smartphone mean that you no longer have to lug around (and worry about losing) an expensive camera to capture the indescribable moments of your trip, it also means that you can use some incredible apps to smooth out some of the kinks of travel.
These apps have been truly designed with travel in mind. They'll help you every step of the way, from booking to boarding to bunking.
Hopper
Hopper is a flight-booking app that tells you exactly when to buy your flight for the cheapest price. Create simple, ad-free, fee-free price alerts that let you know when a price has dropped. Then, you can book right in the app. "Since Hopper launched, our data-science team has collected a huge historical archive of trillions of flight prices. We analyze that data to share with our users through insightful predictions that consistently perform with 95% accuracy," Hopper explains.
Urbanspoon
Hungry while on the road? Of course! Travelling and exploring is one of the most hunger-inducing activities out there, and finding good food is one of the best parts of discovering a new place. However, subpar, expensive tourist trap restaurants exist all over the world, but Urbanspoon can help you avoid them.
TripAdvisor
This is where the no-holds-barred reviews live. Before you press "book" on an accommodation, type it into Trip Advisor. Take everything with a grain of salt, because people can be way too picky or way too lax, but take a look at the distribution of ratings. If it's got three horrible reviews, 45 good, and 1 excellent, it's probably a good bet. If you're looking at 20 horrible, 5 good, and 1 excellent, keep looking.
Google Translate
An obvious suggestion, but this app is a lifesaver. Its translation abilities are constantly updated and improved by native speakers of more than 100 languages. If you're stuck in a jam and can't communicate, Google Translate can help.
Tripcase
This app is the place where all the nitty-gritty details of your trip will live. "TripCase gives travelers a single place to manage and organize their trips. Connected to powerful technology and travel companies, TripCase is an itinerary management app that delivers the right information at the right time," Tripcase explains.
