Planning a vacation with family or a solo trip is an exhilarating experience, however, you always have to consider your budget while planning. Having to restrict yourself to stay within the budget can get frustrating because traveling is all about unwinding and not stressing.Â
This is where we start searching for the best apps that can help us save a few bucks here and there. Next thing you know, you have already spent a lot of time surfing different travel websites and apps to find the best deals. A travel planning experience should be fun not stressful. Also, keeping your travel bookings and activities within your budget shouldn’t be a challenge.
Therefore, to help you with a seamless travel planning, booking, and a great travel experience, you need to have the best apps and also know about some of the best luxury holiday destinations to visit on a budget. Here are the 10 best apps you can use to save some bucks while traveling.
10 best travel apps to save money
- Airbnb
If you want luxury but not at the cost of booking expensive hotels. Airbnb is the perfect app for you. You can book an entire apartment, individual rooms, or couches from locals on Airbnb. Airbnb is the in-between of hostels and hotels if you can’t afford the luxury of hotels and are reluctant to stay in hostels. In fact, Airbnb offers an advantage of meeting local hosts and getting some insider tips on places to visit in the city.
- Kayak
Flights can be the most expensive part of your whole trip and you should use the best app that can help you save on flight bookings. Kayak is one of the best flight comparison tools that offers the latest information on the cost of flight tickets. The app also compared prices for hotels and displays room prices from multiple travel booking sites. It gives you a good idea of where to book the best and most affordable hotel. Â
- TripAdvisor
Isn;t it a relief when you can read reviews from real people about a place, hotel, or an attraction without wasting money on a worthless trip? TripAdvisor is a great travel app that will actually save your money from being spent on bookings that aren’t worth it. It helps you steer clear of restaurants, hotels, services, activities, etc that aren’t worth your time and money. However, you should trust the average reviews, not the overly positive or negative ones.
- Couchsurfing
A lot of solo travelers travel on a strict budget and are more than willing to explore and interact with the locals. Many of them want to experience the life of a local or simply don’t have a budget to afford hotels, Airbnb, or hotels. For travelers like these, Couchsurfing is the best bet. The app lets you meet and connect with locals who offer an accommodation for free. You may either get a couch to sleep on or your host may be generous enough to give you a room.Â
- Triposo
If you are looking for an app to plan your travel as per your budget, Triposo is the perfect one. It is a virtual guide for your travel vacation where you can enter the destination you want to visit, your budget, your interests, and the app creates an itinerary for you. Of course, the itinerary is made as per your budget and other considerations such as weather and attractions.
- Getaround
If you prefer driving instead of taking cabs when you are at your travel destination, Getaround is a great app to rent a car. It is a peer-to-peer car sharing service which can be used to rent a car for a few hours. You can rent cars starting as low as $5 per hour and also get roadside assistance. Renting a car on Getaround doesn’t involve completing any paperwork. Moreover, the rental insurance is also covered in the hourly cost.
- Urbanspoon
Spending on restaurants and cafes while traveling is an expected cost. However, Urbanspoon is one of the best apps that will save you some bucks while dining. The app displays all restaurants in your location, offers menus, reviews, and also gives a price range for dining at each restaurant. It can help you find luxury dining experiences as well as inexpensive shops to eat at.
- Trail Wallet
When traveling on a budget, you definitely need to track your spendings. Trail Wallet helps you do just that. The app supports over 200 currencies and let’s you set your budget on the app while traveling. You need to feed in every purchase you make on the app and it helps you stay within your budget and avoid overspending at places.
- Gasbuddy
If you find yourself renting a car to drive around the chosen travel destination, you also need to know about the app that can help save on gas costs. Gasbuddy is the best app to find the lowest deals on petrol when you are on short or long trips. The Gas Estimator feature also maps your trip and calculates the amount of gas you need based on the vehicle and the distance to be covered. Moreover, you can also join a free membership program of Gasbuddy and receive a discount of 5 cents per gallon.
- Hostelworld
Lastly, if you are a backpacker or simply want to travel on a budget, you can also consider staying in hostels. The Hostelworld app offers filters, descriptions, and reviews to search for a hostel at a preferred place. The app also provides an interactive map to view the points of interest near the hostel you have shortlisted.
The Bottom Line
You may think you would have to download a lot of apps to plan just one trip, but that’s not the case. Many of these apps can also be accessed as web apps where you can make your flight and hotel bookings. You can download the other apps based on your requirements when you are traveling.
There are various other travel apps that can save you some bucks while traveling, however, you will have to research and find the best deals for yourself. The above 10 best apps will certainly cut down the expense of your trip significantly and you can easily plan more trips with those savings.
Author Bio
Vijaya is a content writer who loves traveling and writing. With a background in finance and a passion for writing, she has made her passion for writing her profession. Her endless desire to learn new things developed her interest in writing for different genres. She enjoys writing and learning in the process as she believes there is no end to gaining knowledge.