5 Transportation Apps Revolutionizing Trip Planning

Getting lost is a quintessential travel experience. It’s charming and whimsical to wander for a few hours in a new city, without no particular direction or motives. Then there are the classic travel moments where you are truly panicked and lost. We’ve all been there- wandering, physically exhausted and weary from trying to find locals who speak your own language. These five, innovative transportation apps come to the helpless traveler’s rescue. The best part? They enable you to plan ahead while building a trip itinerary. Whether you like to spend a little more money for convenience or you’re looking to stretch your dollar with the most economical transit options, these apps give you complete control of your travel plans.

Rome2Rio

www.rome2rio.com

When you’re just starting to plan your trip stops and how to travel between destinations, it is easy to get overwhelmed. Rome2Rio tells you all of the possible modes of transportation between any two addresses in the world, along with accurate costs and travel times. The brilliance of Rome2Rio lies in the side-by-side comparison- you can decide within minutes if you want to pay a little extra to save an hour of travel time. The app also automatically directs you to the transportation company’s booking website, so you can officially book all of your tickets in advance.

Availability: Worldwide

Turo

http://www.turo.com

With peer-to-peer car renting like Turo, you can forget the headaches, risks, and steep prices of traditional car renting.  Turo is like “Airbnb for real people’s cars,” allowing people to temporarily rent out their vehicles to travelers. The rental car can come to you via personal delivery by the car owner- no more waiting in long lines at the airport when you’re jetlagged and exhausted. The cars are dynamically priced by Turo according to demand, season, and the type of vehicle you choose, making the costs a lot more reasonable than those of traditional rental agencies.

Availability: US, Canada

Moovit

Moovit has literally thought of every problem travelers can have while taking public transportation in a foreign country and provides beautiful solutions. Supporting over 1200 cities worldwide, this sophisticated route planner can plan your transit from door-to-door, break down your itinerary into walking, waiting, and travel components, GPS guide you along the way, and provide “get-off alerts” so you won’t ever miss your stop.

Availability: Wordlwide

Hopper

When you’re visiting a large country, sometimes a cheap, short flight is the best way to maximize your time spent on the ground exploring. Airfares are notoriously difficult to predict- one day you can see an amazingly low fare and a few hours later, prices shoot up to above average. Hopper provides accurate data for the cheapest date to fly, the best time to purchase, and alerts you the moment prices drop. Because it’s only available as a mobile app (as opposed to older booking sites like Expedia), the user experience is elegantly simple; you can receive an alert on your phone when your fare drops and purchase the flight right in the app.

Availability:Worldwide

Bla Bla Car

www.blablacar.com

Bla Bla Car is a cultural experience in itself, allowing you to book a seat on a road trip with a local driver. Their slogan is “connecting people who need to travel with drivers who have empty seats.” Imagine Uber or Lyft for long-distance rides meets carpooling, and you’ve nailed the Bla Bla Car concept. The carpooling app is a popular way to get around the European Union and has also hit Mexico, India, and Brazil. Bla Bla Car works best between big cities and even works for international trips in the European Union. Routes become available as drivers post them, as opposed the regular routes and established timetables of bus companies. If you are traveling between two main cities or hubs in a country, simply search the platform for your desired route and see what comes up. The prices are usually comparable or competitive with bus ticket prices and the intimate, cultural experience adds infinitely more value.

Availbility: EU, India, Mexico, Brazil

Unique American Road Trip Ideas for Summer 2017

A great American road trip is about as essential to your summer plan as a Fourth of July barbecue. Summertime provides the ideal backdrop for those perfect road trip memories- an impromptu ice cream stop, a dip in a snowmelt river, meeting the warmest people in tiny towns. The downside to summer, of course, are crowds both on the road and in the country’s most popular attractions. For all you eager road trip planners, we have some devised these summer road trip ideas to be a little bit less predictable- and far less crowded- than the route 66.

Chill Out in the Pacific Northwest

Redwoods National Park, Crescent City, California – Portland, Oregon- Hood River, Oregon

Oregon’s scenic coastal highway and breathtaking Columbia River Gorge are often overlooked because of the glamorous, iconic California to the south. However, the stretch of coast from far northern California to the mouth of Oregon’s Columbia River is every bit as glorious as California’s. Oregon contains such a variety of landscapes, it is an absolute paradise for outdoor enthusiasts and nature lovers, and the people are famously kind. Start off gazing at the redwood giants in Redwoods National Park and then continue north, enjoying an uncrowded pacific coast highway experience and quaint seaside towns. Savor the rich, diverse culture of Portland before winding along the Columbia River Gorge and check out the breathtaking waterfall trails along the way.

Sample Deep South Barbecue

Columbia, South Carolina – Raleigh, North Carolina – Virginia Beach, Virginia

There is no shame in planning a road trip around food. While the midwest has its own unique styles of barbecue, this trip focuses on the deep southern states, where the culinary tradition was born. The Carolinas and Virginia focus on whole hog barbecue, but vary widely in their seasonings and sauces, each establishment fiercely proud of its unique style. Sweet tea and succulent pork isn’t all this trip has to offer- the deep south has some of the most romantic natural scenery in the USA. Don’t miss a hike in the Blue Ridge Mountains to work off all that pulled pork, and end on a high note with the classic boardwalk and Amusement parks of Virginia beach.

Fall in Love with the Southwest

Flagstaff, Arizona – Telluride, Colorado

There are few places as enchanting as the Southwest, with its sculpturesque rock formations, desert sunsets, and strong Native American presence. You don’t need to cover a lot of mileage on this route, so instead take your time and soak up the desert energy. Starting in Flagstaff, head east on the Interstate 40 and savor the desert views in Petrified Forest National Park. Dive into the Navajo nation as you drive through Monument Valley, and don’t miss the best preserved cliff dwellings in the region in Mesa Verde National Park. End up in the small, quintessential ski town of Telluride and enjoy the free ski gondola up to the peaks that protect the town.

Dive into the New England Countryside

Portsmouth, New Hampshire – Acadia National Park, Maine – New Haven, Connecticut

Not only is New England home to some of the most historic American cities and Ivy League universities- is has some of the most peaceful countryside in the US. This route is a mix of cozy, traditional cities and scenic mountain byways. The Acadia National Park is the place to see the first sunrise to hit the United States, then you can explore the White Mountain range and cruise westward on the scenic Kamcamagus highway. Enjoy the famous dairy of Vermont  in Burlington, home to Ben and Jerry’s ice cream. After that brief city stop, criss cross the quaint rural valleys of the Route 100 through the Green Mountains, ending in New Haven, Connecticut, one of the oldest cities in America.

Seven Habits of Highly Effective Trip Planners

Every group vacation needs a heroic trip planner- someone in the group who is willing to do the leg work of building the perfect trip itinerary. Without a little framework, group trips can turn into messy, chaotic affairs full of complaining kids, indecision, and hangry (hungry meets angry) travel companions. Vacation planning for a group doesn’t have to be daunting.  If you practice these seven habits of highly effective trip planners, you will build a travel itinerary that keeps your crew happy and engaged.

1. Listen to Travel Bloggers Over Guidebooks

Personal travel bloggers are like your well-traveled best friends. Unlike guidebooks, bloggers write opinionated travel content, helping you qualify your trip ideas and choose the most worthwhile activities and sites for your trip itinerary. Every travel blog is subjective, so you should explore a variety and find travelers you align with in terms of taste and interests. You can use travel blogs to explore general or specific topics by searching:

[Your topic] travel blog

For example:

Tokyo travel blog

OR

Budapest baths travel blog

2. Know Your Group’s Threshold for Sight-Seeing

One of the most common pitfalls of vacation planning for groups is overscheduling. This leads to weary, cranky travel companions and stress from constant time constraints. Every day of your trip plan, balance scheduled activities, like tours, with “flexible” activities, like a visiting a museum. Don’t be afraid to leave an entire day or two unscheduled. Spontaneous, unexpected experiences while traveling create some of the best memories.

3. Find Accommodations That Suit Your Group Dynamic

With house sharing platforms like Airbnb, there is a wealth of lodging choices available to people traveling in groups. Vacation homes offer more opportunities for your group to connect and spend time together during down time, while hotels offer more privacy and services, like daily cleaning. If you are on a budget and won’t be spending a lot of time in your room, many hostels offer private family or group rooms that are clean and conveniently located near popular attractions.

4. Find Food Worth Traveling For

It’s no secret that unique, delicious food keeps travel companions happy and engaged. Get some ideas for local restaurants before you touch down in our vacation destination. Try to build a restaurant list so you have can visit one recommended eatery per day.

5. Include Plenty of “Down” Time in Your Trip Itinerary

Thinking that every transit and transition between activities will go smoothly, is a recipe for disappointment. Remember that on vacation things move slower and processes that are quick and efficient at home can be long and frustrating in different countries. Factor in ample time for relaxing, eating, and transit  between activities in your trip itinerary.

6. Be Aware of Travel Seasons When Vacation Planning

Don’t make any assumptions about the weather or tourist seasons of any destination- always check the weather for your vacation dates before deciding on dates of your trip. The best weather months usually align with larger tourist crowds, or high season. It’s always best to book your trip for the season when good weather meets low crowds – this is typically known as shoulder season.

7. Know When to Book a Tour Guide

It’s happened to all of us- visiting a crowded yet important historical site without a guide and leaving disappointed because you didn’t learn anything from the experience. Even though you are practicing the habits of a highly effective trip planner, not every trip can be one hundred percent DIY. Hiring one of Guiderr’s knowledgeable, local guides will help you maximize your experience of popular attractions and connect deeper with the local culture.