top 50 travel tablet apps

About The Luckie 50

The Luckie 50 is an annual report on the best, newest and all-around handiest digital tools for today’s traveler. The report, now in its fourth year, has evolved with technology, moving from a primarily website-focused list to an app-centric one today.

This year, we at Luckie & Company are dedicating our entire list to the emerging field of tablet apps, which has seen explosive growth in recent months and will no doubt continue to expand in the years to come.

The Authors

Edward Bowser, Community Manager [email protected]

David Griner, Director of Digital Content [email protected]

Whitney Massey, Communications Planner [email protected]

State of the Tablet

In April 2010, Apple launched the iPad, selling more than 15 million units in one year and ushering in the true Tablet Era. Less than a year later, the iPad 2 was released, adding two cameras and a gyroscope — both of which opened up tremendous new opportunities for travel apps.

State of the Tablet (Cont.)

As of July 2011, travel-related apps made up more than 10% of the nearly 100,000 iPad applications available from Apple’s App Store.

The competing Android platform announced a tablet-optimized version called "Honeycomb" in May 2011, though relatively few apps have been upgraded to make the most of it.

In this edition of The Luckie 50, only Honeycomb-optimized applications are listed as Android apps.

So without further ado, we present The Luckie 50 for 2011:

Organization TripIt FlightTrack Pro FlightBoard Packing Pro Essential Travel Checklist Springpad

Reservations Hipmunk Kayak HD American Airlines HD Booking.com

Learning Fotopedia Heritage TRVL Magazine Couch Traveler Endless Vacation Jetsetter Tour Wrist Rough Guides World Lens Lonely Planet Discover eBooks 50 Places of a Lifetime

Discovery Yelp Urbanspoon Trip Advisor Goby Wikihood Where To Go?

Maps Point Inside AllSubway HD UpNext 3d Cities Google Earth Maplets World Travel Atlas Glympse RV Parks MapDroyd iExit

Resources XE Currency for iPad Free Wi-Fi Finder World Clock Weather Channel Max Cabulous Call a Taxi OpenTable myLanguage Park’n Find GEICO GloveBox Disaster Alert Survival Pocket Reference Disneyland/Disney World Wait Times Trip Splitter Trip Viewer Top Pick

Category: Organization

1. TripIt

Having trouble keeping track of all your upcoming trips? Just forward your confirmation emails to TripIt, and it can serve as a central hub for flights, car rentals, dinner reservations and lodging.

While there's still room for improvement, especially in how you create and save local maps for your trip, you definitely get a lot from a free app.

Platform: iPad Cost: Free

2. FlightTrack Pro

Get up-to-the-minute information on almost any flight in the world with FlightTrack Pro, which can even sync with your TripIt account to import itineraries.

This app gives you a freakish amount of info on a flight: current altitude, remaining flight time, you name it. Pro version isn't vital, but it has a few neat bells and whistles such as push notifications.

Platform: iPad, Android Cost: $9.99 (Pro) $4.99 (Standard)

3. FlightBoard

When you're in a rush, hunting for the departures/arrivals screens at an airport is a real pain. FlightBoard lets you pull up the current info for any airport. Minimalistic, accurate and useful in a pinch.

Platform: iPad, Android Cost: $3.99

4. Packing Pro

If you're both OCD and forgetful (a rare combination, admittedly), then you'll love this checklist app for all your packing needs. Also includes pretravel necessities like buying tickets and setting your out-of-office email, but for these tasks, we preferred the Essential Travel Checklist app on the following slide.

Platform: iPad Cost: $2.99

5. Essential Travel Checklist

While similar in form and function to Packing Pro, this app has a different interface that some will prefer. We found it a bit more streamlined for pretravel tasks that required more explanation than just "get dogsitter."


6. Springpad

Whether you're planning a trip or just trying to organize your goals and discoveries, Springpad is a fantastically flexible app.

Create "notebooks" by adding everything from your own notes and photos to information from scanned bar codes and Yelp reviews. The Clipper browser extension is a great way to add snippets you find online, too.

Platform: iPad, Android Cost: Free

Category: Reservations

7. Hipmunk

Hipmunk’s easy-to-read grids makes finding the perfect flight a cinch. The app even sorts flights based on "agony," which incorporates factors such as how long you’ll be traveling and how many stops you’ll make.

Once you pick your flight, you can book it from the iPad app, email it to someone else or book it using the Hipmunk website.


8. Kayak HD

Kayak has long been one of our favorite sites for booking flights, and its iPad app doesn’t disappoint.

Users can narrow search results by airline, number of connections, airport, flight times and price. You also get to pick which site you want to buy from without leaving the app. Kayak simply pulls it up within a browser


9. American Airlines HD

Not only can you book flights with American Airlines’ app, but the tool also saves your mobile boarding pass, shows you terminal maps, provides gate and seating details, and even lets you play a game of Sudoku to pass the time.


10. Booking.com

Access more than 135,000 hotels from across the world. Pricing, photos and ratings are readily available to help users make a selection.


Category: Learning

11. Fotopedia Heritage

Fotopedia Heritage offers more than 25,000 amazing photos from World Heritage sites around the planet.

The app provides brief descriptions of destinations, via UNESCO and Wikipedia. Users can bookmark their favorite sites and access them through TripAdvisor for ease in travel planning.


12. Couch Traveler

Couch Traveler combines Google satellite images with Wikipedia entries to explore different landmarks throughout the world.

Click the Master List tab to see a selection of landmarks — including bridges, mysteries and theme parks — and a satellite image will give you a view of the locale. Tap the description field to learn about the location via Wikipedia.


13. TRVL Magazine

Check out photos, videos and articles from across the globe through this fully digital magazine, staffed by a community of travel buffs.


14. Endless Vacation

Endless Vacation shares articles featured in the print edition of the magazine, along with breath-taking photos, destination guides and tips for making your travels more memorable.


15. Jetsetter

Using Jetsetter, users can search vacation destinations, view photos and read reviews by travel experts. By using the app to make reservations, you can reportedly save on accommodations at select destinations.


16. Tour Wrist

One of our favorite apps for learning about destinations around the world, Tour Wrist lets you use your tablet as a window into incredible scenes.

The app uses high-resolution panoramic photos, which you can browse by touch. And for maximum coolness, you can turn your iPad in any direction to see more of the location.


17. Rough Guides World Lens

A truly stunning app to peruse, Rough Guides World Lens showcases hundreds of photos by professional photographers. Images feature cultural events, architecture and scenic vistas. Users can share images, mark them to return to later or download as wallpaper.


18. Lonely Planet Discover eBooks

When it comes to making the most of travel ebooks, Lonely Planet is leading the pack.

Currently available for five countries — Great Britain, Ireland, France, Italy and Spain — the Lonely Planet Discover eBooks are thoroughly interactive, linking easily within the book or to external websites. A vast majority of content is stored on your tablet and available offline.

Platform: iPad Cost: $14.99 each (through iBooks app)

19. 50 Places of a Lifetime

Published by National Geographic, 50 Places of a Lifetime highlights top destinations around the world.

The app features photo and video galleries, maps, facts and tips for each destination. The "Personal Places of a Lifetime" feature allows users to note "Places I Want to Visit" or "Places I've Been."

Platform: iPad Cost: $1.99 each

Category: Discovery

20. Yelp

While not the prettiest app on the planet, Yelp is our go-to tool for finding great restaurants, coffee shops and more in any city.

Business profiles go far beyond star ratings by including helpful info such as whether a restaurant is kid-friendly or accepts credit cards.


21. Urbanspoon

Best known for its (rarely very useful) slot-machine tool that lets you find random restaurant picks, Urbanspoon is actually more useful as a place for reviews.

Unlike Yelp, Urbanspoon profiles also include links to related blog posts and articles across the Web.


22. TripAdvisor

Long considered the gold standard for hotel reviews, TripAdvisor these days is a comprehensive and content-rich tool for either planning a trip or finding fun destinations while you're in town.

Leaving your own review is also a snap, especially now that the iPad 2 has a camera, allowing you to share pictures. Platform: iPad

Cost: Free

23. Goby

While most apps of its kind focus on locations, Goby adds the ability to find "things to do" based on upcoming events, concerts, tours and more.

While events may be the priority, the app's place finder is highly visual and is just as helpful for finding food and lodging as it is for finding live music and art shows. Platform: iPad

Cost: Free

24. Wikihood

Despite having an interface that's far from intuitive, Wikihood features an incredible array of info about neighborhoods and institutions, organized as Wikipedia-style articles. You'll get much more context about communities than through typical review apps.


25. Where To Go?

If you want a stripped-down app that uses your GPS to find nearby points of interest, Where To Go? is worth checking out.

The ability to zoom in for walking directions, coupled with the massive number of location types you can search for, makes this a handy and minimalistic tool for the traveler, even if it is one of the few paid apps within its category. Platform: iPad

Cost: $2.99

Category: Maps

26. Point Inside

Point Inside is a complete directory of maps for more than 100 U.S. and international airports and more than 750 shopping malls.

It features a pull-down menu for services such as eateries, restrooms, elevators and ATMs. Information can be accessed via a pop-up without pulling you away from the map. Platform: iPad

Cost: Free

27. AllSubway HD

No Internet connection is needed to view AllSubway’s system of maps, providing immediate access to 137 mass transit systems at all times. Which is good, since you’ll probably be using the app underground.

The bad news? This is truly a no-frills app. AllSubway essentially is an image viewer, with no other features.


28. UpNext 3d Cities

Maps of New York, Chicago, Philadelphia, Boston, Portland, Washington, San Fransisco and Austin are featured in full 3-D glory, letting you visually tour shops, restaurants, nightlife, recreational spots and landmarks. You can also tap a building to see which offices are based there.


29. Google Earth

Global satellites and aerial imagery put the world at your fingertips. Type any location into the search field and watch Google Earth track it down. The auto-tilt feature can change the terrain from flat to 3-D as you explore locales around the world.

The large screen of a tablet makes it a truly beautiful display.

Platform: iPad, Android Cost: Free

30. Maplets

Need a map? Maplets features more than 4,000 maps from around the world. National and state parks, bike maps, ski resorts, college campuses, zoos and theme parks are all included.


31. World Travel Atlas

World Travel Atlas features not only a collection of maps from across the globe, but also information files on individual countries. Use the fact files to browse through categories ranging from people, wealth and climate to World Heritage sites.

A free version is available, but the most interesting content requires an upgrade to Premium.

Platform: iPad Cost: $2.99 (Premium)

32. Glympse

Glympse is a quick and private way to share your location with friends and family. Touch the Send tab and you can email details of your location to anyone you desire. (You can also tell the app when to deactivate your locator.)

It’s a fast way to let people know where you are and how quickly they can reach you, and the recipient doesn’t even need to have the app.


33. RV Parks

One of the most avid subcultures in U.S. travel is the RV crowd, so it’s not too surprising that they have an app of their own.

RV Parks features maps and info for more than 19,000 recreational vehicle parks nationwide. Parks can be found on a map or searched by city, state and ZIP code. Visitors can upload their own photos and reviews from their stops.


34. MapDroyd

Google Maps are great — until you're roaming or otherwise out of signal range for an online connection. MapDroyd lets Android phone and tablet users download detailed maps and use them offline.

While technically not tablet-optimized, this app scales well and serves as a nice stopgap until Google launches its own offline maps support, which is supposedly in the works.

Platform: Android Cost: Free

35. iExit

On the road and wondering where you can find a decent cup of coffee? iExit lets you know in real time what’s coming up as you drive on an interstate.

The "Select Favorites" tab allows you to pick your top chains, such as Starbucks, and be notified when they’re close by. The Deals tab even lets you know which locations are running promotions. Obviously, 3G access is a must for this app.


Category: Resources

36. XE Currency for iPad

Need to figure out the dollar’s current exchange rate anywhere in the world? Well, XE Currency has your back. Real-time rates for 180 currencies are available whenever you have Internet access.

Users can save up to 10 of their most-used currencies for convenience. Platform: iPad

Cost: Free

37. Free Wi-Fi Finder

Free Wi-Fi Finder locates Internet hot spots worldwide. Users can search "near me" to find wireless based on current location or a specific place you plan on going to.

You can even download the entire database for offline viewing, as long as your device has 26 megabytes of space to spare.


38. World Clock

World Clock converts time for more than 230 countries and also provides information on daylight savings transitions.

The app can display up to 24 different clocks and set specific alarms for each travel destination.


39. Weather Channel Max

The Weather Channel Max offers detailed, location-aware weather information, maps featuring radar with past and future views, as well as weather alerts.


40. Cabulous

Need to hail a taxi? Cabulous makes it easy by letting you find and track rides in your vicinity.

Taxi drivers must download the app and register in order to be found by the app, which means it’s mostly just useful in San Francisco for now. But the developers are actively pursuing growth in other markets. Platform: iPad

Cost: Free

41. Call a Taxi

A bit more rudimentary than Cabulous, Call a Taxi is (for now) a more practical solution if you're looking to hail a ride.

The app finds cab and limo companies based near your location instead of actual nearby cabs. It's essentially just an easy way to find a phone number, but it's a lot faster than plowing through most online directories.


42. OpenTable

OpenTable helps you get a meal reservation by finding restaurants that have availability for your date, time and party size.

After picking a restaurant, you can review menus, browse reviews or book your reservation directly from the app.


43. myLanguage

myLanguage translates more than 50 languages and offers specific dialects based on the area where the language is spoken.

One nice feature is the audio version that users can listen to in order to get the pronunciation right.


44. Park'n Find

Finding where you parked your car – especially in a new city – can be a headache. Park'n Find records both where and when you parked. You can even follow the map directly to your car instead of just the general area.

The app’s parking meter reminder will send alerts when you’re running out of time. Platform: iPad

Cost: $0.99

45. GEICO GloveBox

GEICO continues to make good use of its apps. GloveBox helps you record vital information from an accident scene (including photos), find the nearest auto service center when your car breaks down, or call a taxi.

The app also offers how-to guides for minor auto emergencies such as flat tires or getting a jump-start.


46. Disaster Alert

Disaster Alert by the Pacific Disaster Center provides a list and map of current hazards around the world. Disaster information can be viewed and shared with others. Alerts can also be set for specific areas or regions.


47. Survival Pocket Reference

If your travels take a turn for the worse – or even the catastrophic – this app could be a literal life-saver.

Based on U.S. military field guides, the app walks you through everything from first aid and emergency shelter to surviving a nuclear explosion. Handy!


48. Disneyland/Disney World Wait Times

The Disneyland and Disney World Wait Times apps are must-haves for vacations that include a stop at either coast's Disney theme park.

The apps estimate wait times based on park crowd levels and feedback of other app users. They also use GPS to help users see nearby rides and their wait times.

Platform: iPad Cost: Free (Disneyland) $0.99 (Disney World)

49. Trip Splitter

When you're traveling, splitting the tab for meals and expenses can create a bit of friction, often because it's so hard to keep track of who paid what.

Trip Splitter is an easy way to track every group transaction (lodging, gas, supplies, food and more), then settle up at a convenient time.


50. Trip Viewer

Trip Viewer offers a modern spin on travel scrapbooks as it documents your vacation routes, primarily through photos and videos taken along the way.

The "replay" feature is a great way to relive your favorite journeys or let your friends and family share in the experience.


The Luckie 50 is compiled by

Luckie & Company a digitally focused agency specializing in destination marketing, financial services, telecommunications and consumer packaged goods.

To learn more, visit Luckie.com

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