Mom’s best apps for vacation

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and Walmart Family Mobile. All opinions and best apps for vacation recommendations are mine alone. #Tips4Trips #CollectiveBias

Moving across the country with two little ones means it seems like we’ve been on vacation for the last 4 months. And in many ways we have. We have been in two hotels and now a house, we have driven endless miles around the area, explored new food and places to visit, and been on one really long vacation! So over the last 4 months, I feel like I have a pretty good grasp on the best apps for vacation and family travel to help fascinate smooth planning, relaxing, and enjoying of your trip.

Disclaimer: All prices for phones and plans included in this post are accurate as of the date of posting; however, these prices are subject to change. Please refer to http://cbi.as/frw8 or your local Walmart for current pricing.

My Family’s Recommendations – 14 Best Apps for Vacation

Here are my top 14 app recommendations for family travels and the best part is that they’re all free! Feel free to comment with more of your own favorites. Signing up for Walmart Family Mobile and getting everyone in the family an LG Leon means that everyone is accounted for when you start exploring while vacationing. The plan only costs $29.88/month for the first line and includes Unlimited Talk, Text & Data service plan which includes up to 1G of 4G LTE data.

Plan your trip with Trello & a Shared Gmail account.

Ok so technically there are 2 apps here, but most of us already know about gmail. Go ahead, sign up for both trello and gmail and make some shared boards on trello and then have the shared email with Google. The trello board allows you to easily share ideas, collaborate, and plan your vacation without having to haul around a notebook from writing everything down. When you’re booking rooms, flights, and making other reservations, go ahead and do them in your shared email account so it doesn’t get lost or forgotten.

Best of all with both apps? You both have it.

Book where you’ll stay with Airbnb.

Maybe you need to find a place that’s kid friendly, or maybe you want something that has a full kitchen and is a full home, Airbnb has you covered! It’s easy to define search parameters of family friendly and also really easy to dictate price and place, while you search the lists or map for the perfect place. Plus, add in the extra amenities you want. It makes traveling a little more comfortable too.

Keep track of reservations, times, and even links with TripIt.

While trello and gmail are great for planning and exploring the initial activities, list it all in TripIt for an easy and visual itinerary. You can even list links to websites and other important information in each activity, making planning your days and following a schedule easy! Running late? Good thing you saved their number in tripit. 😉

Try out the places locals care about with Localeur.

Our family personally love supporting local, especially when I travel. It means that I am supporting the economy of the place I am visiting. Localeur allows you to both support them and find those places that you may otherwise not have found.

Pick lunch and dinner spots with Zomato.

Whether you’re indecisive, want to find something to eat that’s nearby, or want something with awesome reviews, Zomato is the app for you. Tell it your taste preferences, price preferences, and location and let it help you decide where to eat without the fuss.

Edit your photos for printing or instagram with a professional flare with VSCO.

I have taken so many pictures with my phone and edited them to look much more professional and ready to print with VCSO. I am very impressed with this app and pleased with the results. Plus it means I don’t have to lug around a giant camera if I don’t want to because I can get quality shots and edits with my phone.

Find the cheapest gas with Gas Buddy.

There have been so many times while traveling that we ran very low on gasoline simply because we didn’t know where the next station was. This app allows you to search by distance and on a map, plus it give you the best prices as reported by fellow users like you.

Navigate the city and get the fastest routes with Waze.

Traveling through and living in Boston especially, we did not know the roads and would get stuck in the worst traffic. Waze will get you there. It helps give you the most direct route. And if you have a co-pilot, they can report potholes, construction, police, detours, and more.

Entertain young travelers with Magic Fluids.

This is such a simple app idea, but one that my toddler actually begs for sometimes. It’s mesmerizing and always buys us some time when we need it. It’s great for parents and children of all ages.

Brush up on your foreign language skills and learn while you play Duolingo.

If you’re planning on crossing the border or going into an area that has a larger population where English is the second language, go ahead and brush up on your language skills and learn something like Spanish or Italian by playing Duolingo.

Make video calls home with Google Hangouts Dialer.

If you’re calling a US number, it’s easy to make free video calls to another mobile phone or to a laptop by using Google Hangouts. the kids can see who they’re talking to and you can even show off the beautiful views from where you’re staying.

Engage and enjoy fun trivia with your kids while playing the Brain Quest Apps.

Especially on long road trips, brain quest and other educational and fun apps help engage the whole family in some fun during the long ride.

Help keep everyone safe and accounted for with Life360.

Even the youngest members of the family can be added to your Walmart Family Mobile plan very easily and inexpensively, even just for the month of your vacation. Get them a phone and add Life360 and you can do regular check-ins on the app to report where you are or for your kids (if old enough to be by themselves) to report where they are. Prior to traveling, teach your child how o checkin and how to  hit the panic button if they’re lost and can’t find you. It not only send out an immediate alert with location, it even calls everyone in the family. This has even come in handy when we were all in the same park, but couldn’t find each other by talking on the phone. we kept checking in until we were within several feet of each other!

And just for fun, watch this quick funny video about how some of these apps have helped our family. 

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