Whenever I talk about my travels, I get a lot of questions about how I manage to get around, find friends and plan everything. Truth to be told, I don’t always. But with every country, I learn new things and find new, helpful gadgets. In this list, I’ll tell you about my favorite apps. I’ve used most of them for every trip I took so far and even if it might sound like it, I do not get money for recommending them. My goal writing about them is to make your travellife easier as well. Let me know in the comments, if you have your own favorites! Maybe I can use them as well for my next trip 🙂

Accommodation

• Hostelworld: Since I discovered this app, it’s my all time favorite. It’s perfect for travelling, as you get all the offers for hostels on one app without having to filter. The booking process is easy, you get all the informations about the hostels and you have plenty reviews from other travellers. They also have a great support team, whenever I had a problem, they got back to me super quickly – which is an important factor while you’re travelling.
• booking.com: A lot of you might already use it and it sounds obvious but sometimes they really do have great offers and while using the mobile app, you might even get a bigger discount. If you use it regularly, you can also benefit from their genius-program (discounts, money-back, other great offers).
• Couchsurfing: For this one, you have to pay a small amount per year, but for me it was worth it. It’s not for everyone though, but if you don’t mind sleeping at a strangers house, this is the one for you. Although I’d recommend you to really take your time for the decision process, if you don’t have a good feeling about your host, it’s not worth it. Read the reviews carefully and take your time in getting to know them. I usually send a personal request and try to talk to them on the phone afterwards as well. Don’t be afraid to be considered complicated, it’s your safety and wellbeing!
• Airbnb: Usually this is not your best option if you are travelling on a budget, but in some countries it pays off. It’s also a great option if you are travelling in a group and share the costs.

Transportation

• Rome2Rio.com and 12go.com: I came across these websites by hazard, but now I use them all the time! They show you all the options on how to get to your destination. They tell you the travel time, an estimated price range and the type of transportation. Especially great for all the travellers who are like me and try to avoid flying. When you pick your route, they also redirect you to the sites for booking. PS: I prefer Rome2Rio…
• Citymapper: Especially great when you have a local sim-card. You can choose the city you’re in and it shows you all the possible routes to your destination with public transportations. Of course you can also use google maps for that. 🙂
• Apps for ride-hailing – Uber, Grab, Bolt: Uber is probably the most known, but the others are great (and cheaper) alternatives. They are not availbale in every country, so the decision on which ride-app to use also depends on where you are. In Thailand for example you can also book motorbikes with Grab/Bolt instead of cars – cheaper, but also more dangerous.
• Whenever I travel by plane I compare the prices. Usually I use Google Flights and most of the times I also book my flights there right away. But I know a lot of people who also use Skyscanner and Skyplagged, so comparing there might bring some benefit as well.
• Turo, peer-to-peer car sharing: I especially used this app in the US. My car rental was an absolute disaster and with this app I easily found a great alternative. There are mostly private people who rent out there cars.

Safety

• Whenever I’m travelling, my parents are worried about me and to be able to stay in touch with them, I try to get a local sim if possible. A great alternative is Airolo, you can get eSIMs for the countries you’re travelling and stay connected. Usually I prefer to be off the grid while travelling. But it’s great to know, that you have the oppurtunity to communicate with someone and call for help, if needed.
• Nowadays there’s a lot of security apps for women. Luckily I only had to use it once but my experiences with Soli were really good.