It's like holiday planning in your pocket
App: Travelex Trip Planner
Price: Free
Available On: iPhone, iPad, iPod
What is it:
This app will assist you with your travel planning to ensure you make the most out of your trips abroad. Add and create your trip with the handy and easy-to-use interface functions. Type in where you’re going and the dates of travel then let Travelex Trip Planner do the hard work. The app gives helpful information and reminders ahead of your travels, with packing tips, weather info and travel guides and alerts too. For example, I created a holiday to Dubai for next week and Travelex immediately provided tips for me under the ‘useful information’ tab including telling me about Dubai being a Muslim country and information about local laws and customs. The app aims to help travellers in the run up to a trip, often the most stressful time for holidaymakers, by listing the essential things to remember, book, order or take in their luggage, and then prompting the user to take action in the weeks before a break.
Traveller Benefits:
There’s no need to go out and buy a stack of travel guides for your holiday destination now because once a
travel location is selected, the app also gives a travel guide to that destination, with details on restaurants, nightlife, hotels and shopping to both help with planning – and to make things easier when at the holiday destination.
Based on the user’s interests, the app is also smart enough to let users know of events that are happening in their destination countries, like gigs, festivals, exhibitions or family activities – and sends alerts when the events are due to start.
It even lets you order currency direct from Travelex, and ensures you are kept up to date with exchange rates with iPhone alerts at preselected dates or rate thresholds. Foreign currency can then be collected in cash or on a prepaid card from the airport or delivered to the user's home ahead of the trip.
A live link to the foreign office offers travel warnings, vaccination advice and visa requirements – ideal for planning ahead of a trip, or for those travelling through a number of countries.
We love:
The clever app really can take the stress and worry out of pre-holiday prep. It’s great in the planning stages for all sorts of breaks from family summer holidays to romantic trips and even girly nights away. For example, if you select romantic weekend in Paris from the app’s option lists, it suggests you might want to take rose petals and chocolates, as well as giving practical information on the current Euro exchange rate and whether it’s worth packing an umbrella. It provides precise information from weather forecasts to currency updates based on the destination country which, for last-minute travellers as well as pre-bookers is the most efficient and timely source of reliable information on basic travel essentials.
Downfall:
The app is only available across a range of Apple products which means that a big majority of smart phone users are not catered for. However, if you have a friend or family member with an iPhone, iPod or iPad, then check the app out on their device and see how it works for you before your travels. Also, the guides on the app, which are packed with great information, cover continents as a whole or major world countries, it would be good to have a further selection of guides on more remote or unusual destinations.
Verdict:
For anyone too busy to make lists, read travel guides and make a currency exchange run, Travelex is guaranteed to be your best friend before you jet away. This app is essentially a holiday planner in your pocket. It does exactly what it says and that is making it easy for you to get ready for your trip, ensuring you take everything you need and that you’re in the know about everything happening in your destination of travel. For its easy-to-use functions and informed planning and travel guidance we give Travelex a travel-tastic 4/5.
Are you using Travelex? Tell us what you think of the app in the comments below or tweet us @FemaleFirst_UK
FemaleFirst
Shabana Adam @Shabana_FAM