Travel Apps
The smartphone has become our indispensable companion while traveling, a real lifesaver that can significantly ease life in a distant country thousands of kilometers from home. It can do this even more effectively thanks to several specially selected apps for all occasions that can come in handy.
Traveling Economically
1. Couchsurfing
An international project that allows travelers to find new friends willing to host them for free and introduce them to their city.
2. Staydu
An equivalent of the previous service, where a nominal fee or help with household chores may be expected in exchange for accommodation. Conditions and requirements are discussed in advance.
3. Workaway.info
This service allows you to find volunteer work with accommodation in more than 135 countries around the world. This can range from simple help with house cleaning to hard labor on a farm.
4. Worldpackers
A similar portal for volunteers, supplemented with a large number of articles and stories about stays in various countries. There are also convenient mobile apps.
Booking Flights
5. Aviasales
A fast and convenient flight ticket metasearch engine that can also search for accommodation options in hotels around the world.
6. Momondo
A universal service for searching for flight tickets, booking hotels, and renting cars. The website's blog always features valuable tips from experienced travelers.
7. KAYAK
This is a real "combine" that can not only find flights, hotels, and cars but also link all of this in a visual planner. Additionally, the service has a price forecasting feature for tickets, which can also be very useful.
Booking Accommodation
8. Booking
The largest online hotel booking service worldwide. Fast, reliable, with good support and bonuses for active users.
9. Trivago
A more universal service for searching hotels and comparing prices online. Data is collected from 238 booking sites, allowing you to quickly find the best offer without lengthy searches.
10. Hostelworld
A convenient service for booking hostels worldwide. Its database includes about 35,000 accommodation options for every budget.
11. Airbnb
The most well-known online platform for renting and offering private housing. A great option for those who do not use tour operators.
Searching for Excursions
12. Tripster
This portal helps you find a local guide who will arrange a private tour for you. You can also get answers to your most pressing questions before the trip using this service.
13. izi.TRAVEL
A guide and Russian-speaking audio guide in one. Before the trip, you can download all the necessary routes and choose the most interesting attractions.
Planning Routes Independently
14. Sygic Travel
A convenient planner with popular tourist routes, offline navigation, and a wealth of supporting information. It has everything you need, from calculating walking time to weather forecasts.
15. Wikiroutes
A universal guide to public transport worldwide with the option to propose your own route. The database already includes over 1,500 cities with fare information, schedules, and traffic features.
16. Citymapper
Another useful service for tracking public transport movements, including the metro. The app also allows you to build optimal routes for pedestrians and cyclists.
17. Smorodina
A portal for planning trips across Russia. It offers an extensive list of attractions marked on a map and makes it easy to find nearby cafes and hotels.
18. Redigo
A guide to many countries around the world with a wealth of photos, information about attractions, and a basic phrasebook in six foreign languages.
19. TripAdvisor
The largest online resource with reviews and opinions on more than 7 million objects worldwide: accommodation options, airlines, attractions, and restaurants. The service is useful for choosing hotels and places to visit.
Searching for Cars
20. Rentalcars
An international online car rental service that works with major suppliers in 160 countries. A wide range of cars and various rates are available.
21. Sixt
Another well-known car rental service from a famous German company with thousands of vehicles in 105 countries.
22. Bla Bla Car
The largest international online service for finding carpooling. A simple, fast, and transparent resource for those looking to save on transportation.
Packing Suitcases
23. PackPoint
A convenient mobile app that helps you pack for your trip. You only need to specify where you are going, why, and how long you will be gone, and the service will suggest what items you will need.
What to take with you on your trip →
24. uPackinglist
A similar service for creating packing lists with the ability to integrate notes with a calendar. It also provides a weather forecast for the selected date, allowing you to choose the right clothing and accessories for the trip.
Navigating on Site
25. HERE WeGo
A navigator with traffic information, a guide to public transport routes, and maps that work even without an internet connection.
26. 2GIS
An ideal companion for trips around Russia and beyond. With it, all interesting places, cafes, shops, ATMs, cinemas, and other locations will always be at hand, even offline.
27. MAPS.ME
An alternative offline option with very detailed maps and a navigator that has a route-building function for various types of transport, whether it be a bicycle or a car.
Communicating with Locals
28. Google Translate
One of the best translators that works with 59 languages and offline. It supports instant translation of text using the camera, which can be particularly useful abroad.
29. Microsoft Translator
An equivalent from Microsoft with phrasebooks and a wealth of useful phrases. It also supports simultaneous speech translation in split-screen mode for conversations in various languages.
30. XE Currency
When it comes to money, you will need a fast and convenient currency converter, such as XE Currency. It can track exchange rate changes and perform conversions even without an internet connection, relying on previously obtained data.
31. xCurrency
This is a more modern app with a minimalist interface, themes to choose from, and the ability to identify local currency based on your location.
32. WiFi Map
A locator app that helps you find the nearest Wi-Fi networks. Both free and secured networks are identified, with passwords available in the service's database. The app will be a lifesaver in countries where internet access is a problem.
33. osmino Wi-Fi
A similar manager for automatically connecting to free Wi-Fi worldwide. All nearby access points can be viewed even without an internet connection. Have a great trip!