The holiday is a chance to get some much-needed rest and relaxation. Of course, that means something different for everyone. It could be a quiet week away at a secluded beach, an adrenalin-filled adventure, or spending your nights hopping from one nighttime hotspot to the next with your crew.
Whether it’s calling a car to pick you up from the airport through Uber or booking where you’ll be staying through AirBnB, there is an app for practically all your travel and holiday needs these days.
But while AirBnB and Uber are known to even the most un-tech-savvy among us, there are a plethora of other technological innovations and apps out there that are just waiting to help you have the holiday of your life.
Google Maps
Whether checking it out for potential traffic jams on your commute or just getting around your hometown, this is probably an app that you make use of on a regular basis. But it’s also got some nifty not-so-hidden features perfect for a holiday when travelling. We’ve all heard horror stories of people coming home from a lovely foreign holiday only to find themselves hit with a massive roaming data bill. With Google Maps you can lower the chance of that happening. When travelling to a location you’re not familiar with, simply download the map for that location ahead of time and access it when offline, and you’ll have the main functionality of Maps without incurring data costs.
Guides By Lonely Planet
The Lonely Planet is famous for their guide books, but they haven’t let the app revolution pass them by. Taking all the expertise that they’ve gained over the years, their nifty app takes you through points of interest and gives you the best local travel advice found in the traditional guidebooks. You can decide which of the more than 200 city guides to download. The guides are split into sections such as where to stay, where to eat, and highlights like art, parks, gardens, wildlife, history and views. Having this info ahead of time saves precious time for taking holiday snaps.
Mogli.mobi
If you’re looking to hit up some of the best parties and events in South Africa over this holiday period, then Mogli.mobi is the app you have been looking for. The first black-owned and developed South African nightlife app, it essentially bundles up a number of other technologies we’ve become familiar with into one simple seamless service. As s user, you'll be able to find the hottest events taking place in your area, book your tickets, tables, and even pay your bar tab by using the app. While doing that, you will also be earning loyalty rewards based on what you spend which can then be redeemed through the app. It's pretty much the Uber of the entertainment industry and will make nights out on the town super convenient, whether you're having a refined dinner for two or getting lit with all your friends at the hottest clubs.
TripAdvisor
The social media age has elevated the voices of ordinary people. The website for a restaurant you want to try out in a new city may be wonderful, it could have best reviews when you’re Googling it, but nothing can beat hearing what a person just like you has to say about their experience. That’s where TripAdvisor comes in handy. TripAdvisor is one of the most best online sources for travellers, particularly because it has in-depth reviews of hotels, restaurants, and sites to see. Photos uploaded by other users are also helpful for getting a glimpse of a place from an unbiased point of view. TripAdvisor’s massive and active community of users means you’re guaranteed to get opinions about a place or something you’re interested from many different perspectives to help you make an informed decision.
TripCase
For many, travelling is all about discovering what there is to be found and discovered. But for others, that’s a description of the most nerve-inducing experience. For those people, an app like TripCase is perfect. If you book your itinerary in advance of your trip, TripCase allows you to forward all the confirmation messages you receive via email about your upcoming trip and then arranges them into one tidy itinerary. So for the super-organised traveller, everything you need is available in one place.