Never do I appreciate easy access to the internet more than when I’m stuck in a foreign country, trying to find a coffee shop with wifi in my area so I can see where I am on Google Maps. Some countries and airports make it super easy to get online, with cheap sim cards loaded with data available as you step off the plane (if you’re ever in Mumbai, Bali or Athens) but most often I’m relying on wifi at accommodation or restaurants.
Did you know that you can actually use Google Maps offline? Now they’ve created an even better solution to using Google while you’re travelling and without wifi; Google Trips.
How awesome and convenient does that look? I can’t wait to try it the next time I travel – it would have been SO useful when I was running around Bali looking for coffee shops and restaurants I’d read about on blogs.
Google Trips is available on iOS and Android.
A few of my favourite travel apps
1. Tripit
Basically, Tripit keeps all your travel plans in one place. Flights, hotel bookings…all there. All you have to do is forward your confirmation emails, and Tripit puts together a master itinerary that you can access from any device.
2. Google Play Music
I don’t keep much music on my phone, mainly cause I still can’t figure out how to use iTunes. But with Google Play on my phone, I can literally pull up any song I think of, any time. And yes, you can download the music to your phone to access offline. My favourite feature is the daily curated playlists, from “working in a coffee shop” to “working out”. I also love the radio station feature, which streams artists similar to the artist you select.
3. FlashAir
You can turn any camera into a wifi camera with a FlashAir memory card. I got my 8GB Wifi card for about R300 and now I can easily send images to the FlashAir app on my phone straight from my camera, using the card’s built-in wifi. Then I can edit it in Snapseed and upload it to Instagram or even my blog without having to open my computer.
