John Golicz, Executive Editor, 1000TravelTips.com in collaboration with Fast Cover | December 3, 2015

We are living in a time when travel essentials, from travel planners and itineraries to maps and guides, are all storable in pocket-sized smartphones. Over the past decade or so, developers have designed numerous travel apps to make traveling simpler. “There’s no longer a need to carry maps the size of billboards or try to decode street names” said Dean van Es, the Managing Director of Fast Cover travel insurance. “Once you’ve organised your travel insurance, you can check out some of these handy apps to plan and organize the details of your trip.”

WorldMate

This travel app may be the closest thing you’ll find to a personal assistant while traveling. And you don’t have to pay a thing! All you do is forward your travel confirmation emails for flights, hotels, car rentals and restaurants to trips@worldmate.com and the travel app creates your itinerary for the trip. Or pay a small fee to upgrade to premium and the travel app will generate alerts to tell you about flight delays and gate changes. The price alerts and counter offers feature will also automatically review hotels in your upcoming trips and give you a better price for the same room or a better price at an upgraded hotel nearby.

Available on iPhone and Android (free)

TripIt

Another travel app to consider is TripIt. TripIt will automatically create a master itinerary for your trip so you can access all your travel plans at any time on any device. The Pro service will also receive mobile alerts about flight delays and cancellations, check if you can refund your flights, alternative flight options and will automatically update people of your choosing about your travel arrangements.

Available on iPhone and Android (free)

XE Currency

This freebie currency convertor will allow you to keep on top of your spending and make sure you’re only paying what you should! The travel app uses live currency rates as well, so you can be sure it is accurate.

Available on iPhone and Android (free)

 Skyscanner/ Kayak

Both of these travel apps are among the greatest flight deal hunters. Skyscanner aggregates fares from airlines and travel sites so you can find a good deal. You can also pin your search to your start screen to keep an eye on price changes.

Kayak will also help you search for flights as well as hotels and booking rental cars. You can compare deals and manage your itinerary. It’s a fantastic way to organize getting around on your trip!

Skyscanner available on iPhone and Android (free)

Kayak available on iPhone for $0.99

TravelSafe

This travel app acts as a database of emergency service numbers for many countries around the world. If you pay for the pro version you can also receive embassy details and the option to pin the contact details of some services to the home screen of your phone so you are only a tap away from contacting local authorities while overseas.

Available on iPhone + Android for $1.49

CityMapper

In busy areas CityMapper will keep you oriented. Large cities are made simple to understand and you can create simple itineraries with the journey planner feature. You also can get updates on traffic and weather to ensure you don’t walk into an unfavourable situation.

Available on iPhone and Android (free)

Maps.Me

This map travel app saves you data by saving your maps offline. They are also recognised as being more accurate than Google Maps in lesser known areas! But remember if you download these detailed maps they take up quite a bit of space on your phone, so pick the maps you’ll need most.

Available on iPhone and Android (free)

Google Translate

This is the unbeatable translation app. Besides giving you a translation for the phrases you want to say, the Word Lens tool allows you to point your camera at a foreign word and have it translated.

Available on iPhone and Android (free)

WhatsApp/WeChat

Both of these cross-platform messaging systems are making text messages and emails a thing of the past. You can send pictures, videos, sound clips and GPS tags as well as tags using your data, so if you’re connected to WiFi, it’s free! This travel app lets you send messages across the globe in little time and they’ll be received immediately.

Available on iPhone and Android (free)

Hostelworld

Searching through hotel listings looking for a place to stay, which is simultaneously cheap and not mosquito infested can be a painful experience. That’s why Hostelworld is fantastic. 35,000 budget hotels around 170 countries are placed at your fingertips and there are over 3.5 million user reviews, minimising your chances of a shocking night in a dingy room.

Available on iPhone and Android (free)

Air Sharing

 If you’re the kind of person that pains to think of all the work you could get out of the way on your flight, this was invented for you. Though a bit pricey compared to the range of free travel apps available, the app turns your phone into a wireless hard drive so you can upload your documents at the airport and fix them up on the plane.

Available on iPhone $4.99

Uber

The cheaper option to a taxi, with an app right on your phone so that even after a night out, finding a ride home is easy!

Available on iPhone and Android (free)

WiFi Finder

There is nothing more terrifying than realizing how much loading those few emails or a few photos while travelling costs you. Finding WiFi will be a primary goal throughout your trip. This travel app will show you to the nearest source of wireless internet and you can download maps before you go so you can access the maps offline.

Available on iPhone and Android (free)

FlightTrack

Keep track of international flights with maps and up-to-date information on flights, including delays and cancellations.

Available on iPhone and Android ($4.99)

This article was written by John Golicz, Executive Editor of 1000TravelTips.com in collaboration with Fast Cover. 

Fast Cover is an Australian travel insurance company that has been providing cover to Australians of any age since 2010. Their aim is to make getting travel insurance simpler. The company has experienced rapid growth due primarily to the philosophy of making travel insurance easy to understand, quick to get and of the quality travellers deserve.