Five Essential Apps for Travelers

Summer travel is in full swing and between packing our suitcases, finding a dog sitter, and booking sightseeing tours, it’s easy to skimp on the details. Luckily, there’s an app for that. For everything from learning phrases in the local language to finding the best bakery in town, our five favorite travel apps may help make your vacation the most relaxing one yet. 

Parlez-vous Google?

Avoid some of the mysteries that go along with foreign travel with Google Translate. A new feature allows you to point your phone’s camera at text and have it instantly translated. Google Translate is especially helpful for reading menus and deciphering directions.
Free
4 ½ -star user rating
Requires iOS 9.1 or later
Compatible with iPhone, iPad, iPod Touch, and Android.
Apple or Android

Eat like a local

Like a more curated version of Yelp, The Infatuation collects restaurant reviews from trusted critics, instead of crowdsourcing opinions from sometimes less-than-credible sources. The to-the-point reviews and 10-point rating system help you locate delicious bites in over 17 destinations, both in the United States and abroad, including Cape Town, Mexico City, and Barcelona.  
Free
5-star user rating
Requires iOS 9.0 or later
Compatible with iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, and Android. 
Apple or Android 

Stay in touch

We all start our trips with the best of intentions of sending postcards home. Now TouchNote makes it easy to send cards from wherever you are in the world. All you do is open the app, snap a picture, write a message, and include an address. The team at TouchNote handles the rest, printing and then mailing your customized postcards to your family and friends. 
Free
4 ½-star user rating
Requires iOS 9.0 or later
Compatible with iPhone, iPad, iPod Touch, and Android.
Apple or Android

Don’t forget to eat your vegetables

This international restaurant guide is every traveling vegetarian and vegan’s best friend. Finding meat-free eats in Portland, Oregon, is easy. It’s more of a challenge in Taiwan or Paraguay. Happy Cow has been compiling a list of restaurants with vegetarian and vegan options since 1999, which means they have a huge collection to offer. You can view and organize restaurants through the Happy Cow app before you begin your trip. 
Free on Android, $3.99 on Apple devices.
4 ½-star user rating
Requires iOS 8.0 or later
Compatible with iPhone, iPad, iPod Touch, and Android.
Apple or Android