Using your smartphone whilst travelling
The way we plan our holidays and travel the world has changed dramatically as mobile technology has developed. With lots of people using smartphones and the variety of Apps available to download, it’s no wonder that the way we use our smartphones has changed the way we travel. There are many ways of using your smartphone whilst travelling, whether you’ve got a gap year or just a few weeks away in the sun here are some Apps to make your travelling abroad experience easier.
If you’re going to be away for a while, then the Skype App is highly recommended for you. This allows you to talk face to face with your friends and family at home for free over Wi fi saving you money for all the sightseeing and buying gifts. The Skype App is available to download for iPhone, Android, BlackBerry and Symbian users, so it’s definitely worth making the most of.
When you’re in that amazing foreign destination that you’ve been dreaming of, there’s nothing more useful than a translator. For iPhone users we recommend the **PicTranslator**App. When using your smartphone whilst travelling abroad you may need things like menus and street signs to be translated. With the PicTranslator App you can take a picture of any printed foreign text and the App will translate it for you. It’s highly useful, especially with things like restaurant menus so you can be sure that you’re ordering some food that you like!
If you fancy learning more about the country you’re visiting such as the language, you can make use of the free Google Translate App. This lets you translate between over 50 languages so it’s great for learning new phrases and it also gives you dictionary results, making it even more useful.
**TripAdvisor**have a free App that lets you check out reviews and opinions from other travellers on the best hotels, restaurants and tourist attractions. This is a very useful App to have whilst on the go as it helps you decide where to eat or stay based on customer reviews. So there’s no need to wander around looking for a restaurant when you’ve gotTripAdvisor on your side.
If you’re travelling around different countries over a period of time, you may want to book your hotels as you go along.Booking.com has an App that allows you to find and make hotel reservations from your phone. It’s fast and easy to use and lets you book hotels all over the world. Better still Booking.com is a free App and is available to download on the Android market and iPhone App Store, making it a great way of using your smartphone whilst travelling.
Another useful App is the FXware’s Currency Guide. This App can convert over 160 currencies using the latest foreign exchange rates – perfect whilst you’re out shopping abroad, so you can double check the price of what you’re buying and not over-spend!
Check out these great Apps that come in useful when using your smartphone whilst travelling abroad and let us know below if you have any Apps that you would recommend other fellow travellers.