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Top 15+ Android and iOS Apps for Trip Loggings

Kateryna toniuk | may 06 2021.

When you are traveling or experiencing a new place or activity, no one wants to stare at their phone or tablet the whole time. However, you want the memories of your trips and travel to last forever, and you want to share those memories with friends and loved ones back home.

The best travel logs combine both worlds with stunning features and interfaces to document your memories, photos and videos of the places that you visit and simple, easy-to-use design. These 15 trip logging apps let you easily capture the memories, so you can get back to enjoying it in the moment.

In order to use all features of these travel logging apps to the fullest and never miss a single route or memory of your trip, it’s better to take care of instant connectivity services when you are abroad. Using DATA SIM card or a portable WiFi router on the  Lifetime plan  from Keepgo, you will never go offline whatever destination you choose for your next trip.

1. Evernote

For those little notes that you want to tuck away for yourself, whether it is reminding you of the sweet café that you visited in Paris or how you felt when you first stepped off the plane in Brazil, Evernote is the app to use. You may already use Evernote to jot down your to-do lists, recipes and document anything else that comes to mind. However, it also the 21st century alternative to carrying around a leather bound travel journal that will take up space in your suitcase and could be lost during your trip.

Journi is one of the most versatile travel log apps available. You can take photos, share them with friends and family and send them automatic updates about your travels in a few clicks. Plus, the app can syndicate your posts to Twitter and Facebook. You only need to share an update once or you can choose to keep it private and only send your messages to a private group of friends that you create on the platform. The app is available for free on  iOS  devices.

3. Bonjournal

Bonjournal combines a simple, easy-to-use interface with a beautiful minimalistic trip logging design. Users can keep track of each of their trips and organize them into personalized photo albums. Blogging on the app is super simple. If you don’t want to type out big blocks of text on your smartphone or tablet, the app syncs to a website with your own travel blog URL. You can share your travels by just sharing the link. You can test the app out with a free download on the Apple store .

Minube is a bit of a newcomer to the travel app game, but it has a lot of impressive features that make it one of the fastest-growing players. It acts as a travel planner and organizer, and you can even book hotels on the app. It also suggest more places to visit based on your location and interests. You can keep track of the places that you visit as well with photos that will be automatically tagged and added to your trip log, which you can also share as a guide for other travelers. The free mobile app can be downloaded on both iOS and Android devices.

5. Tripcast

If you are traveling in a group or participating in a volunteer project, Tripcast is one of the best trip logging apps to use. You can create shared photo albums, so that every member in your group can add the photos that they take on their phone and save them in one place. Everyone can view photos and share them with loved ones to keep in touch. The app will create a map for you based on photo geotagging, and you can see where you’ve traveled. Plus, you can use it on the web as well as on iOS and Android devices.

Perhaps the greatest feature with the trip logging app Momento is the power to connect all of your posts to a wide range of networks like Instagram, Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, Spotify and even Medium. It’s so versatile that it doesn’t only have to be for when you travel. It serves as a journal to chronicle everything that you can imagine from pregnancy, work and daily life journals. However, the app is only available to download on iOS devices and you must pay a small price to enable some features.

7. Geospike

For those that don’t really care too much for writing but still want to capture their trip moments, Geospike is the app for you. The app, which you can download on  the Apple  store for free, allows user to log their trips with photos and an interactive map. It doesn’t have all the “bells and whistles” as some of the other travel apps, but its strengths are its impressive mapping features and simplicity. It has almost zero learning curve, so anyone can use it to log their trips. Plus, you can syndicate posts to Facebook, Twitter and Tumblr quickly.

Day One is another easy-to-use trip logging app. One of the biggest benefits for users is that it can serve as a way to journal daily life or around a specific event, activity or trip. You can check the weather and tag your location, as well as other posts to search for them in the future. All of your logs can be accessed later and saved or exported in a PDF file, and you can add an extra layer of security with your own passcode to unlock your log. But, it is only available on iOS devices and will cost you between $5 and $10 to download.

9. Polarsteps

Polarsteps is an easy and intuitive travel log application for Android and iOS . Once installed and activated, it automatically tracks all routes and places that you have visited. It tracks your trips shows your routes by means of a colorful map. All that a traveler needs to do to make the app work properly is to carry a smartphone in the pocket and make sure there is instant Internet connection wherever they travel. 

Also, it lets you add stories and calculate statistics of the countries that you have visited. The app is integrated with popular social media platforms, thus letting you share your achievements with your followers. By means of your location-tagged photos, the app can create a travel log, which you can further print as a memory about your journey.

10. Journey

Journey is Google Editors choice of the best travel log applications. The application is used by millions of users worldwide. This is a travel diary that will help you keep your travel memories for a lifetime. The application lets you add your photos and videos that you took during your trip and attach audio files or text notes. The app can also add weather and location details to your journal entries. Additionally, the app lets you export your diaries to DOCX and PDF files to share your entries or just save them to your hardware. The app is available for both Android and iOS .

Penzu app isn’t built for travelers specifically. This is a journal app for Android and iOS users. With its help, travelers can make notes in both online and offline modes. At the same time, it provides free syncing opportunities across the web and multiple mobile platforms. It lets you create fully customized journal covers, add photos from your trips in travel logs, and categorize them with custom tags.

Similar to Penzu, Diaro app features an intuitive interface that can work flawlessly in the online and offline modes. It’s easy to categorize your content and bring better structure to your travel notes due to the app’s support of custom folders and tags. Additionally, it allows you to create diary entries featuring geotagged photos and maps. 

Being available for Android and iOS , the application offers multi-lingual support and a number of data sharing options that let you export your travel logs and benefit from cloud syncing opportunities.

13. Diarium

Diarium application is only available for Android  and iOS users. With its help, you can create journals in a calendar interface. The app lets you attach drawings, audio files, write stories, tag several entries for a day, as well as include a sitemap with the location where a certain event was recorded. Along with your journals, the app displays your calendar events, weather info, fitness data, and other data.

Diarium supports the possibility to export your journal entries together with their media attachments in DOCX and HTML formats.

14. LifeTales 

LifeTales works as a free life journal where you can archive your personal stories or travel journeys in a private, safe environment. It also includes an option to share stories and selected journals with selected groups of people. You can also add the story behind the pictures by text or audio. If you travel with family or friends, the app also lets you collaborate on stories with other people.

LifeTales app is available for web browsers, iOS, and Android.

15. Travelopy

Travelopy is a free travel journal app. It lets you create create entries, auto tags entries with location tags, and group entries into a Journey. The app lets you discover places in Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, Japan, Taiwan & South Korea based on recommendations by fellow travelers and influential bloggers.

16. TripLog Mileage Tracker & Expense Log

TripLog app lets you save time and money by automating mileage and expense capture you maximize your mileage tax deductions and reimbursements. It’s one of the most popular applications suited for individual and corporate use. It provides accurate mileage tracking for tax deductions and mileage reimbursement for every type of business, big or small. The application offers diverse options that can suit every user, ranging from self-employed driving a car for their business to enterprises offering mileage reimbursement to their employees. 

Driftr app will come in handy for planning, booking, recording, and sharing your adventures on a single platform. It’s designed as a social network who enjoy spending a lot of time on the road. The application supports photos and videos. It welcomes travelers to share their advice and experience (especially from secluded locations) with fellow vacationers. Driftr keeps you connected on any device, anywhere in the world, and can even be used offline to manage moments and experiences from secluded locations.

The Driftr app is available for iOS and Android devices.  

Although some trip logging apps offer offline saving, don’t risk losing your precious trip moments. Finding reliable WiFi connection when you’re traveling can often be challenging, and data roaming charges are incredibly expensive. Instead, you can document your travels with Keepgo’s fast, inexpensive and reliable international mobile SIM cards and mobile WiFi hotspots .

Top illustration by  Storyset

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Best Road Trip Apps for Android in 2022

There are few things better than hitting the open road on a cross-country road trip. Whether you're heading out with your best buds or loading the kids into the car to visit relatives a few states over a little app prep will make sure the trip goes as smooth as is possible.

More: The best phone car mounts for any phone!

Android Auto

Google trips.

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If your car doesn't have Android Auto functionality built into its stereo system, it's worth checking out Google's app for staying connected in your car. It's now available on any Android phone , so you don't need to buy a brand new car or upgrade your car stereo to take advantage of the convenience — it'll just run right on your phone and can be configured to automatically launch when connected to your car's Bluetooth or a Bluetooth FM transmitter .

Android Auto is the safest way to access your phone while driving, giving you one-touch access to navigation, music controls, and recent calls. As you'd expect, there's great support built in for Google Assistant including the option to have incoming text messages read out loud (admittedly not the best option if you're in a packed car with friends or family).

Android Auto lets you navigate with Google Maps, listen to playlists or podcasts from your favorite apps, send messages via voice, and more while eliminating the other ways your phone can distract you on the road. If you're hitting the road this summer, you should absolutely have this app download on your phone.

Download: Android Auto (Free)

While Google Maps remains the most popular navigation app for Android (largely due to its inclusion as a stock app on most Android devices), Waze is a great option to consider for all your GPS navigation needs.

Waze users get the benefit of all the information gleaned from other Waze users on the road, from real-time traffic information including accident reports, police traps and other hazards seen on the road. You're also encouraged to add your own updates and contribute to your local Waze community as well. Using all that data, Waze will automatically reroute you to avoid any upcoming hazards, and also has really smart features for finding the cheapest gas stations along the way as well as ways of keeping family and friends in the loop on your ETA.

Download: Waze (Free)

Google Trips is a great travel planning app that helps with some of the mundane aspects of traveling like keeping track of your reservations, while also helping to plan out your days in a new city by suggesting cool things to do based on your interests and available time.

If you're planning to make a pitstop on your way to your final destination, plug the city into the app and see what it generates! It's also available offline, so if you planned out your pit stops ahead of time you can keep in the know even if your phone's data konks out.

Download: Google Trips (Free)

When you're exploring a new city trying to figure out what's worth checking out, you're best off checking in with the locals. Yelp is one of the most popular apps for reviewing restaurants and businesses with over 100 million reviews posted by users just like you.

When you're in a pinch for a roadside bite and need to know what's good, Yelp will help you find the perfect restaurant to fuel up and get back on the road.

Download: Yelp (Free)

Fuelling up is often one of the biggest expenses you'll incur on a road trip. GasBuddy helps you find the cheapest places to fill up along the way. Not only is this an app that you'll want to use on a road trip, but you might end up becoming an everyday user once you see the savings for yourself.

All the data is user-generated, so if you see a cheaper gas price not listed in the app, you can report the price in the app and contribute to the GasBuddy community.

Download: GasBuddy (Free)

What's a road trip without some kick-ass driving music? Or maybe a podcast is more your speed? Regardless of what you prefer to listen to on your long distance drives, Spotify is the best streaming service you should be using in 2018.

Spotify has improved its free, ad-supported mobile app with "made for you" playlists that are curated based on the songs and bands you listen to. With a premium subscription, you get full, unfiltered access to streaming access to over 40 million tracks along with a wide range of curated playlists, so the music won't ever stop, even on the longest of drives. Spotify also includes podcasts, and with Spotify Premium you can download songs and podcasts to your device for offline listening during those times on your trip where cell reception might be lacking. It also plays real nice with Android Auto allowing for hands-free control of all your music while you're on the road.

That is, unless your co-pilot has already claimed the role of in-car DJ…

Download: Spotify (Free)

Best Streaming Music Apps for Android

With its latest update allowing for offline viewing on mobile devices, Netflix suddenly became the go-to app for parents hoping to distract the young ones in the back without having to worry about all that data.

There's a large amount of kid-friendly content available to be downloaded for offline viewing, which should help keep the shouts of "are we there yet?" to a minimum. Load up a phone or tablet with your kids' favorites and look forward to the quietest road trip you've ever enjoyed. It's also a great option for keeping adults quiet, too. A subscription is required, of course, but if you don't already have one you for sure know someone who does.

Download: Netflix (Free)

Where are you headed?

How do you plan for your road trips? Any apps that we missed? Let us know in the comments!

Update June 2018: Updated some of our picks for the Summer of 2018. Drive safe out and have fun!

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Marc Lagace was an Apps and Games Editor at Android Central between 2016 and 2020. You can reach out to him on Twitter [ @spacelagace .

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The Best Road Trip Apps That Help You Find Cheap Gas, Avoid Traffic, and More

Download these before you hit the highway.

Elizabeth Rhodes is a special projects editor at Travel + Leisure , covering everything from luxury hotels to theme parks to must-pack travel products. Originally from South Carolina, Elizabeth moved to New York City from London, where she started her career as a travel blogger and writer.

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Technology has revolutionized the way we travel in countless ways. Paper maps and GPS navigation systems have been replaced by Google and Apple Maps, old-school CDs by music streaming services, and guidebooks by apps that can notify road-trippers of roadside attractions in real time. One thing is certain: the smartphone has made road trips infinitely easier and, arguably, cheaper.

Whether you need a digital road trip planner to map out your next journey or something to help you avoid traffic jams, here are 11 of the best road trip apps to download ahead of your next adventure.

Roadtrippers

Roadtrippers is one of the most practical and popular road trip planning apps out there. Maybe you want to see national parks or the quirkiest roadside attractions. Perhaps you want to stop for the night at an iconic or underrated hotel. You can plan your stops right in the app, adding up to three waypoints for free or 150 with a Roadtrippers Premium account. There are also Basic and Pro memberships that allot you 20 and 50 waypoints per trip, respectively. The higher-tier memberships allow you to collaborate with friends and family and use navigation. The app features lodging, sights, outdoorsy destinations, restaurants, activities, shopping, fuel, and more all around the U.S., Canada, Australia, and New Zealand.

The app is free, but you have to upgrade to a membership plan to enjoy all the bells and whistles. The Basic plan costs $40 a year, the Pro plan $50 a year, and the Premium $60 a year. It's available on iOS and Android .

Google Maps

Every road-tripper needs a trusty navigation app in their arsenal, and Google Maps is consistently one of the most — if not the most — downloaded in the U.S. every year. Its dominance can be attributed to how comprehensive its data is, which allows it to generate the very best directions based on distance, road conditions, and traffic patterns.

Google Maps gives you route options and provides accurate estimates of how long it takes to get from A to B. Plus, you can plot several waypoints along your route — be it a mid-morning coffee stop or a hotel for overnighting (you can see reviews right in the app).

Google Maps is free and available on iOS and Android .

Waze is another one of the top navigation apps. With real-time updates that help you avoid traffic jams, construction, and more, it will have you navigating new cities and unfamiliar streets like a seasoned local. It's perhaps a little more proactive than Google Maps in changing up a route when problems arise, and that means Waze users should prepare for their drive to be a little unpredictable.

No one wants to spend hours sitting in traffic instead of exploring, so the fact that Waze collects data from other drivers to streamline the driving experience is a huge help. The app is free and available on iOS and Android .

Paying for fuel can eat up a good chunk of your road trip budget, but GasBuddy can save you a few bucks. The app crowdsources up-to-date fuel prices for more than 150,000 gas stations around the U.S. and Canada. The app also tells you how recent the submission is so you know whether it's outdated.

GasBuddy is not just helpful for finding cheap gas but also for finding gas stations in general (and parking), which can be difficult in foreign territory. The app is free and can be downloaded on iOS and Android . While using it, be a good road-tripper and submit gas prices you see as you travel.

Roadside America

Barry Winiker/Getty Images

The offbeat and kitschy roadside attractions you can find throughout the U.S. are often some of the most delightful parts of a road trip. The Roadside America app helps you find the most unique attractions worth stopping for, like the large sculpture of a cartoon mouse holding a cheese platter in Plain, Wisconsin — where else? — or the decidedly odd larger-than-life-sized three-way electrical plug that rests on a lawn in Philadelphia. The app features museums, murals, tours, quirky restaurants, and photo ops.

Roadside America costs $3 to download, which gets you access to one region in the app. You can purchase more regions for $2 or get access to all of the U.S. and Canada for an extra $7. The app is available only on iOS .

iExit Interstate Exit Guide

Knowing where to stop for road trip snacks, a drive-through latte, or a public restroom can be challenging with all the exit signs whizzing by at 70 mph, but iExit Interstate Exit Guide takes the guesswork out of it. The app will list which exits are coming up on your route, what's there, and what they offer — including food, lodging, fuel, and even hospitals. It pulls fuel prices from OPIS (the Oil Price Information Service) and displays Yelp reviews for businesses.

The app is free to download. Find it on both iOS and Android .

HotelTonight

Even if you've planned out all your stops ahead of time, you might find that you need to pull over for a night unexpectedly. Driving is tiring, and unplanned naps can be life-saving. HotelTonight can help you find accommodations in a pinch. The app offers day-of deals on unsold rooms, and the user-friendly interface means you can book a discounted room in minutes. There are well over 1,000 properties to choose from in cities all over the world, from Mexico City to Jakarta (in case you happen to take your road-tripping global).

It's free to download and available on iOS and Android .

If staying in a tucked-away A-frame cabin, a yurt, or a private guest house in someone's garden is more your travel style than bouncing between hotels, then Airbnb is the ticket. On the Airbnb app, you can search properties (millions in the U.S. alone) on a map and read reviews before you book, which you can do in advance or at the last minute.

The app features not just vacation homes but also activities, so if you're keen to experience a city like a local you can do so via a pottery class or a guided walking tour, for example.

The Airbnb app is free. You can download it on iOS or Android .

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Travelers who dream of camping out under the stars should download The Dyrt , a free app that helps you find tent, RV, and cabin sites across the U.S. One of the top camping apps on iOS and Android , it has more than a million registered users who submit reviews, pictures, and tips. On The Dyrt, you get real intel on campsites and a built-in community that makes camping on a road trip especially fun and safe. You can even book some of the campsites right on app.

The app is free, but there's a premium version for $36 a year that allows you to plan trips and search campsites while offline — convenient for remote regions.

What is a road trip without a perfect playlist? Whether you're keen to create a soundtrack of nostalgic singalongs, modern pop songs, or music inspired by your destination, you'll find even the most obscure tunes on Spotify , a catalog of more than 100 million tracks. When you tire of Taylor Swift, you can turn to podcasts or an audiobook to keep you company. Road trips are a great opportunity to delve into a docuseries like "Serial," an all-time favorite.

Spotify is free to download and listen to, but the ad breaks are annoying and streaming can chew through your phone data. A better option is to purchase a premium membership for $11 a month. It's ad-free and you can download music to listen to offline. The Spotify app is available on iOS and Android .

Electric vehicles are increasingly commonplace and great for more environmentally friendly road-tripping. The problem is often finding charging stations, as most EVs can go 100 to 300 miles before they need to be plugged in. PlugShare lists 700,000 charging stations across North America, Europe, and beyond. Users share their reviews of the stations, helping to guide EV drivers to the best, fastest, and most reliable charging spots.

PlugShare is free and available to download on iOS and Android .

20 Essential Travel Apps for Awesome Road Trips

By Jason Barnette | Travel writer and photographer with 15+ years of road tripping experience

• Last Updated on November 1, 2023
• Published on August 14, 2020

This post may contain affiliate links. Read my Affiliate Disclosure here .

When I was a kid on family vacation, I sat in the backseat of the car with nothing more than a paper map and a pen to trace our route. I always knew where I was, and where we were going, but nothing else. Today’s world is different; road trips are dominated by mobile apps and GPS devices meant to connect us to the world before we even arrive. But which apps do you really need?

These are my favorite apps that I use almost daily when road tripping. I’ve had most of these for years now, but I’m always looking for something new to develop. Here are my favorite apps for road trips.

Road Trip Planning

Every great road trip needs to start with a plan. That plan may be nothing more than a route from Point A to Point B. But sometimes, a road trip plan needs to include business hours of attractions, various routes to drive, and things to do along the way. That’s where these next few apps come in handy.

Roadtrippers

Roadtrippers is the ultimate planning resource for any road trip. The app contains thousands of user-generated points of interest like parks, museums, attractions, and restaurants. The user interface is pretty simple: launch the app, search a map of your current location, or use the search bar for another destination. With the app you can save POIs, create routes, and plan entire road trips.

The app is free to download, and the free account allows you to search, save, and plan your road trip. For $29.99/year users can subscribe to Roadtrippers Plus that allows you to design longer routes and download maps for offline use.

iOS (iPhone and iPad) | Android

Google Maps

Google Maps is my favorite tool for planning the route of a road trip. I begin the process on my laptop by entering a starting and ending point for a road trip, then I click to drag the route to include other destinations along the way. Once I have a route established, I begin scouring the mapping tool for POIs. My Maps is a way of creating fully customized road trip routes and itineraries you can then access through Google Maps.

The app is free to download and use. My Maps is also a free utility by Google.

Roadside America

Roadside America is one of the most fun apps for road tripping. The app is filled with listings for quirky roadside attractions like largest fire hydrant, oldest tree, and a cellphone tower in Mississippi designed to look like the Washington Monument. The app uses your current location to show a list of nearby attractions, or you can manually search for an upcoming destination. Details for each listing include GPS address for directions, hours of operation, and what to expect when you arrive.

The app is free to download and users are allowed to select one region for free. The app divides the US into six regions with each region costing $1.99 to unlock.

iOS (iPhone only)

Fantastical

For the longest time I was just like so many other travelers who kept a loose itinerary scribbled on a notepad. Eventually, I got frustrated with arriving at a museum five minutes after it closed or a restaurant on the one day a week it wasn’t open. I started taking notes in the calendar app and planning itineraries.

Fantastical is without a doubt the most powerful calendar app I have ever used. Using Cloud storage, the app flawlessly links the calendars on my phone, tablet, and computer for easy planning. I can create multiple calendars; I have a calendar for travel times, places to explore, and lodging. It’s also really easy to drag and drop to move items around so I can still be spontaneous, but have a bit of a plan.

iOS (Mac, iPhone, iPad, Watch)

During the Road Trip

There is no greater travel feeling in the world than hitting the start of a road trip. But the moment the trip starts, so do the necessities. Where is the next gas station? Place to eat? What’s the weather doing tomorrow? These next few apps will help you keep the road trip going once you’re on the road.

Once upon a time I was one of those people who would spend thirty minutes sitting in gridlocked traffic to get to the other side of town so I could save three cents per gallon on gasoline. I’m not quite that picky anymore, but I do still use the GasBuddy app when I’m traveling.

Just two clicks after opening the app will load a map with my current location and all the gas stations nearby. GasBuddy is user-generated content, so someone needs to have inputted the gas prices for you to see that price as you scroll the map. But in my experience about 70% of the gas stations will have a price. It is without a doubt the easiest way to find a gas station and check the price while traveling.

iOS (iPhone, iPad, Watch) | Android

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My Golden Rule for Road Trips is to never travel an interstate highway. However, I realize that’s not always possible or desirable. For those times you find yourself driving hours on the interstate, iExit is a great way of finding food, lodging, and gas.

Think of iExit as a preview of all the interstate highway signs you’ll pass. The app uses your current GPS location and heading to create a list of exits ahead of you. Each exit lists an icon for gas, food, lodging, transportation, and so much more. Click on the exit number and you’re given details of all the businesses along with websites, phone numbers, and even gas prices!

Everybody needs a little music for a road trip! I have been a big fan of Pandora almost since the app first debuted years ago. Although I have tried Spotify in the past, and it has a huge following, I have found Pandora to be the better app for road trip music.

For $4.99 per month, the Pandora Plus plan, which is the plan I use, you get an ad-free experience, unlimited skipping, replaying songs, and higher quality audio. For $12.99 per month, Pandora Premium also allows you to search for particular songs to play on demand. And for those times in the mountains where you inevitably lose cellular signal, both plans allow you to listen to music on four channels in offline mode.

AccuWeather

I once watched a document about how meteorologists generate their predictions for the weather forecast. I couldn’t help but laugh when I realized there were almost two dozen models and basically the person standing in front of the camera just picks one.

Over the years, I have found AccuWeather to be the most accurate for predicting the weather. The radar loads pretty quickly, even in low-signal areas, and the hourly forecast is usually pretty close to accurate. It’s on the first screen of my phone because it’s one of my most-used road trip apps.

One of my favorite features of the app is the weather alerts. Severe weather such as approaching thunderstorms, tornado warnings, and heat are pushed to devices as soon as they are issued. On my Apple Watch, I’ll receive a notification so I’ll know if I need to duck for cover on a trail.

iOS (iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch) | Android

Finding Things to Do on a Road Trip

Even with all the meticulous planning and research, being spontaneous is still a great feeling on a road trip. These next few apps are great at helping you find things to do based on your current location, so they’re actually better to use on the road than sitting at home.

It was love at first sight when I discovered this app. AllTrails is my go-to app for finding hiking trails, but there is so much more to the app than just a search engine. This app has grown over the years to be a fantastic planning and recording tool for outdoor adventures.

The app syncs smoothly with their website so you can begin the planning from the comfort of your computer, but hopefully not while you’re at work. The website and app has a search feature to quickly find a specific trail, state or national park, or destination you want to hike. You can also search via map if you know the route you are driving and want to find something interesting along the way.

With the app on your phone and smartwatch, upgrade to their AllTrails Pro plan for the option to download hiking maps for offline use. With their free plan, you can create lists to easily find particular trails later and you can record your hike for posterity!

iOS (iPhone, Watch) | Android

The Outbound

When I first came across The Outbound, I realized I had stumbled upon more than just an app for finding outdoor adventures. It was a community of travelers who thrive in the outdoors, create stories of their adventures, and share points of interest for others to find.

The app has a pretty amazing search feature, and you can also use your current location to search for adventures on a map. The adventures include information on how to get there, where to park, admission if applicable, and photos of previous users who have taken the option. It’s more than just hiking trails; The Outbound is all about getting outside, so the app includes parks, trails, waterways, beaches, pretty much anything that puts the sun on your face.

Google Maps is a great tool for finding business nearby, but what about the menu at a restaurant, ratings at the bar, and photos to get you inspired? Yelp is my absolute favorite tool for finding food, museums, and shopping as I travel.

It’s user-generated content so you know you can trust the reviews, although a few false Yelpers have snuck onto the platform over the years. The greatest advantage of the app is the access to information like photos of the menu, hours of operation, website address, and phone number. Be sure to sort the reviews in order of rating instead of Yelp’s built-in suggestion for the most accurate picture of what to expect.

I was never a big fan of Groupon until I came across the Powder Magazine in Charleston, South Carolina. I was visiting for a week and wanted to check out some of the museums. When I walked into the two-room museum, the manager asked if I had the Groupon discount. As it turns out, for just two dollars more than general admission I could have an annual pass! I used it twice that week and saved money.

The Groupon app uses filters based on your interests to help find discounts on admissions to museums and attractions, discounts on meals (especially for families), and opportunities for discounted packages for travel. I have found guided tours through the Groupon app not listed anywhere else that led to some wonderful times!

Where to Stay on a Road Trip

Sleep in your car, grab a hotel room, or park your RV, everyone needs to sleep at some point on a road trip. I prefer to sleep every night. These next few apps are my favorites for finding a comfortable and safe place to get some sleep, and some of these apps have perks I quite enjoy.

Trucker Path

I discovered Trucker Path during my three years of road tripping in a camper van. The app is designed for truckers, but it works just as well for people who sleep in their vehicle. The app locates truck stops on a map and lists details such as number of showers, current gas prices, and other amenities.

With filters, uses can narrow the list to particular chains of truck stops or even Walmart’s that allow overnight parking. Reviews of the stops are also helpful, even for non-truckers, in deciding if it would be a good place to spend the night.

There are a lot of apps for finding and booking hotel rooms, but I have always used Hotels.com for one simple reason: book ten nights and you get one free. The one free night is worth the average of the ten previous nights, so don’t expect to spend a free night at a five-star resort, but you’ll still get a good deal.

The app has a wonderful search feature using your current location with filters for whittling down the list to find exactly what you want. Details on each hotel includes amenities, types of rooms, and nearby attractions. Sometimes, the app includes discounts for getting a few dollars off the price of a room.

I have booked hotel rooms while sitting in the parking lot and walked inside to find the reservation already registered. It’s usually pretty fast, and after ten years of using the app I’ve only had a reservation lost once.

Pro Travel Tip: Hotels usually do not list every room on third-party booking websites like Hotels.com or Expedia. If you’re browsing a booking app and the hotel doesn’t have any vacancies, it’s possible they still have rooms – just not on the app. Give the hotel a call and see if they have any available rooms.

Using the Airbnb app during a road trip can get a bit tricky. Airbnb has grown as the world’s top resource for short-term rentals, otherwise known as a place to spend a vacation that is owned by an individual instead of a company.

When planning ahead, Airbnb can lead to fantastic lodging options in places you otherwise could not afford. Sometimes the rental includes only a bedroom in an occupied house, but quite frequently the lodging has a private entrance or includes the entire property.

The only downside to using the Airbnb app while traveling is spontaneity. Owners of properties must approve renters, and sometimes that takes a day or two. If the owner does not live on site, it can also be difficult to get access with less than a forty-eight hour notice. When using the Airbnb app to book lodging, plan ahead.

Capturing Memories on a Road Trip

How often do you use your cellphone to capture photos and videos on a road trip? Cellphones have become the most common way to capture memories during all sorts of travel. Although I’m still a DSLR photographer, I use several apps and features with my phone and tablet to capture better photos and videos to remember my trips.

The Photographer’s Ephemeris

The Photographer’s Ephemeris has been my favorite travel app for years. It’s a bit overkill for the average road tripper, but I have it to be essential. The app uses Open Street Maps to find your location and then shows lines depicting the direction of sunrise, sunset, moonrise, and moonset.

I use the app constantly while road tripping to determine the best place to see a stunning sunset. When I get close to the last hour of sunlight, I use the satellite image option of the map to begin looking for a scenic overlook with a view of sunset.

I would label this an essential app for anyone traveling through national parks, scenic byways, and coastal areas. Everybody enjoys a great sunset, right?

GoldenHour.One

I use the GoldenHour.One app with a grain of salt, but it’s still useful. At the very least, the app displays sunrise and sunset times along with Golden Hour and Blue Hour times for great photography.

The one feature I use the most is the Weather feature. The app uses local weather reports to determine the chances of seeing a brilliantly colorful sunrise or sunset. On a scale of 1-10, the app will announce opportunities like, “Decent chance to catch a good photo.” However, I will admit the app’s fortune telling are wrong as often as right, but it’s still a good tool.

Have you ever wanted to take manual control of your cellphone camera? For most people, this answer would be an emphatic no. But for those who would like a little bit of control for better photos on road trips, I highly recommend the Camera+ 2 app.

The app allows the user to take manual control of the ISO, shutter speed, and white balance of photos. The user can also manually pick where the camera focuses, especially useful when you want the subject off-center.

The app comes with several pre-defined shooting settings like Portrait, Macro, and RAW. The RAW feature is the one of the best because it allows users to fully edit a photo later for better results.

Pro Camera by Moment

Moment is a company founded on a simple principal: help people capture better quality photos and video on a cellphone. They started with a series of high-quality lenses that screw into custom phone cases, but since then they have expanded with a rather wonderful app.

The Pro Camera app is better camera app than the one that comes with your phone. The app is set for automatic camera settings by default, but more advanced photographers can set custom values for ISO, exposure, and focus. The app also comes with presets for custom settings on demand for special effects. Since buying the full set of lenses, the Moment camera app has become my go-to for photography on the road.

Even the best of photographers need to post-process their images, and don’t let them try to convince you otherwise! The Snapseed app is the best mobile image editing software I have used, and that includes the cumbersome Lightroom.

With Snapseed, it is simple to open the most recent image or quickly browse for a previous photo. The app has the ability to process DNG files captured in RAW format. A full suite of tools are available including levels, crop and rotate, white balance, and about a dozen other tools for special effects. When you’re done editing, you can save a copy or overwrite the original, all within seconds of capturing the photo.

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The 10 Best Road Trip Planner Apps for 2024

Save time, money, and energy with these apps so you can focus on the fun instead

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We love road trips! Planning them can be fun but, let's be honest, also stressful. The right road trip planner apps can take some of that stress away by helping you plan, organize, and manage travel before and during your trip. We've researched and tested these apps to help give you peace of mind so that you can spend more time enjoying your trip.

The Ultimate Map App for Planning Your Route: Roadtrippers

Access to free and convenient travel guides.

Share-ability so friends can join in on the planning process and suggest places to visit.

The app can use up the battery life of your device quickly. Take a car USB charger with you.

Built for travelers, Roadtrippers helps you create your route while allowing you to discover great places as you plan it out. Add a new place to your itinerary to work it into your trip.

The app features an easy-to-use interface. In addition to covering the U.S., it also covers Canada, Australia, and New Zealand.

Download For:

Automate Your Trip Planning and Organization: Google Travel

Automatic trip organization via Gmail integration. 

Offline access so you can see your trip information even when you don't have an internet connection.

Limitations with customizing some day trips exactly the way you want.

You can count on Google to make your trip planning a breeze. Pre-constructed day plans are available for hundreds of the world's most popular destinations, which you can customize to your liking.

It's one of the most versatile travel planner apps out there, giving you one convenient place to see your hotel, rental car, and restaurant bookings.

Find and Book a Last-Minute Place to Stay: Hotels.com

A fast, easy-to-use booking feature.

For every 10 nights you book through Hotels.com, you get one night free, provided it's the average daily rate of those 10 nights.

No option to easily cancel if you change your mind.

Whether your road trip itinerary changed, or you haven't decided on a place to stay yet, Hotels.com can help you find a place and book it when you're on the go, even when it's super last-minute. You can sort and filter hotels, see the amenities they have to offer, compare prices, and catch a glimpse of how many rooms are available.

This is the app you'll want to have handy if you want to see in-depth hotel details at a glance and need to find a place to crash ASAP without breaking the bank.

Find Local Restaurants, Read Reviews, and Make Reservations: OpenTable

Lots of great filter options and suggestions.

Access to gorgeous, high-quality images of menu items and informative reviews from other users.

Reported problems and inconveniences with their built-in reward system.

Searching for specific restaurants is more difficult than simply looking at what's around in the area.

Deciding on a place to eat in a new area is quick and hassle-free with OpenTable. See what's nearby, filter restaurants by cuisine, see photos of what's on the menu, make reservations, and get personalized recommendations based on your preferences.

OpenTable is known to be one of the top  location-based food apps  available, so you know you can trust its information when you're dying for something to eat.

Navigate Like a Local: Waze

Hands-free navigation with voice commands.

Alerts-only mode for road hazards and police.

Share up-to-date ETA with friends.

Spotify and Apple Music widgets get in the way.

Cluttered maps can be confusing.

Higher battery usage than Google Maps.

Waze  is a community-driven travel app that shows you the shortest possible route to your destination. Like Google Maps, Waze makes real-time adjustments for traffic jams and other obstacles—but Waze is often more accurate since it caters specifically to drivers.

The app syncs with your Google Calendar and can tell you when you should leave for appointments based on traffic. There's also a cool option to record your own voice and use it for directions .

Know Exactly When and Where to Make a Pit Stop: iExit Interstate Exit Guide

Access to detailed summaries of what's at the next exit (including gas prices at nearby gas stations).

Search for the next 100 exits from your location.

The app can only be used on major U.S. exit-based highways.

No offline access, so you'll use your data plan while you're on the road.

Making a pit stop for food, gas, or a bathroom break is easy when you have the iExit app. Using your device's GPS, the app offers helpful suggestions for when and where to stop based on your location along the highway.

Whether you're looking for well-known franchises like Starbucks and Walmart to convenient amenities like free Wi-Fi and truck or trailer parking, this app has you covered.

Find the Cheapest Fuel Nearby: GasBuddy

An in-app gas payment feature.

Opportunity to save 10 cents per gallon on your first fill-up and five cents per gallon on every fill-up after.

The app can take up a lot of data and battery life as it runs in the background.

GasBuddy is an app specifically designed to find nearby gas stations and save money on gas. Use it to find the cheapest gas in your area and filter gas stations by amenities like car washes, restaurants, and bathrooms.

It's the app you want to have if you're serious about finding the cheapest gas around. Information comes from users like you, so you have the most up-to-date prices.

Download For :

Never Forget an Item: PackPoint Premium Packing List

Access to a built-in library of items to pack with the ability to add or remove items as needed. 

An elegant, intuitive app interface.

Can't input multiple destinations for a single trip.

Not a free app.

PackPoint helps you make sure you have everything you need based on where you're going and what you're doing. In addition, the app takes into consideration the length of your trip and the expected weather conditions. Perhaps best of all, this app turns a mundane chore into something that's actually quite fun.

Find Out Where to Park and How Much It Will Cost: Inrix ParkMe

ParkMe is the only app that also includes street parking and parking meter rates where available, in addition to parking lots.

Real-time updates on available parking spots.

Rates and hours may be inaccurate in some areas.

ParkMe claims to be the world's largest and most accurate parking database. It allows you to purchase your parking spot through the app and compare prices across parking providers to help you save more money.

If you're road tripping around major cities in the U.S., Canada, or Europe, this app can be a huge help. You can even compare parking options and prices so that you always get the best deal.

Automate Your Itinerary: TripIt

Automatically creates itineraries from your inbox.

Widget displays trip details on your home screen.

Annoying amount of alerts by default.

If you're planning a trip, you'll likely have a lot of confirmation emails for hotels, appointments, restaurants, and attractions. TripIt syncs with your inbox and uses that information to compile an itinerary so that you don't have to scramble for it.

The free version is fine for road trips, but if you ever fly, the premium version gives you the option to upgrade seats and track reward miles.

In addition to your phone, laptop, and tablet, other travel tech essentials include chargers, headphones, travel adapters, cameras, luggage trackers, and off-grid communications

Yes. You can use Google Maps as a trip planner through the “Places” and “My Maps” features. Both the Google Maps website and app let you save locations to lists and get directions.

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Best apps and sites to plan, record and share your trips

Nov 25, 2013 • 5 min read

Dreaming up a trip is the easiest part of every journey. All you need is a working imagination. The other bits before you go? Not so easy, or so much fun. You’ve got to book tickets, worry about accommodation, work out budgets, apply for visas…then you’ve got to plan your itinerary. And what about recording memories for sharing during the trip itself? It can be hard to keep track of the many aspects of a holiday via scraps of paper and a jumble of emails.

Here are some websites and apps to help plan, track, record and share your holiday in an easier and more organised fashion. Try them and pick the ones you’re most comfortable using: keep it lean and only use the sites/apps which are truly useful to your travel patterns or risk being caught in a paralysing loop of app agony.

Red eye by Marcin Wichary . CC BY 2.0 .

If you’re a fastidious planner and need to religiously track all your itineraries, TripIt ( www.tripit.com ) is a life saver. Just email your confirmation emails (car hire, hotel bookings, airline tickets, restaurant reservations, etc) to [email protected] and voila, you have an instant itinerary. The basic app is free (with ads) and paying $49/year gives you real-time flight alerts, seat tracking, frequent flier tracking and other goodies. iOS, Android, Blackberry and Windows Phone apps available.

Gogobot ( www.gogobot.com ) is like Tripadvisor in that it has reviews and recommendations (hotels, sights, restaurants). Where it differs is the ability to plan trips, connect with friends who have been to destinations (to get their advice), and find like-minded recommendations by similar ‘tribes’ (ie. interest groups). It’s good for planning, connecting and getting recommendations. iOS and Android apps available.

Lonely Planet’s Thorn Tree forum

Lonely Planet’s Thorn Tree forum is an old-school web way of canvassing the thoughts and opinions of fellow travellers. You’ll find every conceivable topic covered: destinations, language, activities, travel technology, biking, hiking, packing, etc. You’ll find fellow forum users a passionate bunch and quick to respond to any and all sorts of queries you might have.

Roadtrippers

Road trip by Tim Lucas . CC BY 2.0 .

Planning a road trip through North America? Map it out on Roadtrippers ( roadtrippers.com ). Punch in your start and end points and the website maps your route and suggests sights, restaurants, and more along the way. Select the points of interest you’d like to see and add them as waypoints on your journey. ‘Guides’ with content contributed by other travel websites add thematic elements and ideas for your trips. Save and share your trip and download the app on iOS to access your itineraries on the run.

Mygola ( www.mygola.com ) presents slick-looking ‘curated’ list of itineraries which users can use as a base for planning their own trips. Start by typing in a destination. Suggested itineraries pop up. These can be customised, or you can create your own trip from scratch. You can then access and tweak the trip on a calendar page: add or remove elements such as sights or restaurants. Add notes, view the trip on the map and share the itinerary with people (and collaborators). When you’re done, there’s even a ‘book’ function that lets you book accommodation and buy tickets.

Other similar itinerary planning apps include the easy-to-use and ‘does it all for you’ Plnnr ( plnnr.com ), which has a handy ‘print itinerary' function, and Tripomatic ( www.tripomatic.com ), which creates a pretty nifty infographic of your trip). The latter has iOS and Android apps that also double as (paid) city guides with offline maps.

The Traveler

This free Android app ( play.google.com ) was originally developed by Ball State University for students to record field trips but it has since generated some buzz in the travel field. Users can create trips that use Google Maps and a GPS location to track travel paths. Add notes, videos, audio and waypoints and put it all together as a trip journal. You can then review the path in Google Maps and Google Earth. The developers have been adding new features and have been most responsive to user feedback. It takes a bit of experimenting to understand how it works and all its functions, but it’s a great free travel app.

You could also consider using free extended note-taking apps such as Google Keep and Evernote ( evernote.com ) to keep track of your trip. These apps save data in the cloud so you can sync information across devices.

Exchange money by epSos.de . CC BY 2.0 .

Making sure you don’t blow your budget is part and parcel of every holiday. Ditch your notebook or Excel spreadsheets and check out the iOS-only Trail Wallet ( voyagetravelapps.com/trail-wallet ) and Travel Budget App ( travelbudgetapp.com ) or the iOS/Android Bon Voyage app ( itunes.apple.com ). These apps track your expenses while you’re on holiday. Standard features such as setting budgets, changing currencies and, of course, checking whether you’ve blown the budget or pinched pennies (shown as a percentage on an infographic) are all there.

Capturing and sharing moments

Facebook and Twitter are great for keeping up with the news from home and staying in touch with friends and family, but when you’re on holiday, you really want to be spending more time recording moments and sharing them instead of hearing about how Man Utd fared over the weekend. For sharing vignettes of your trip, the top choice would be Instagram, which now does short videos too ( instagram.com ). iOS-only options include Hipstamatic and Oggl ( hipstamatic.com/oggl ). For photographers who want more editing capabilities in addition to social sharing, try VSCO Cam ( vsco.co/vscocam ).

All these apps are great at linking with other social networks and blogs. You can kill several birds with one stone and autopost your photos and short videos to Facebook, Twitter, Tumblr and Flickr streams.

Shawn Low has been planning, tracking, recording, and sharing his travels throughout Southeast Asia, China and Australia for Lonely Planet. Follow his tweets at @shawnlow .

Travel smart, stay safe, and make the most of your time on the road with Lonely Planet's Best Ever Travel Tips.

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10 Best Travel Journal Apps to Organize Your Travel Memories

As a digital nomad or frequent traveler, you likely want to keep a log of your travel activities. But what and how you record is a very personal experience.

You may want to write extensively about your experiences and feelings and keep them private. If so, you are probably better off with a paper journal and a pen.

Or maybe, you want to log the most important moments, photos, and travel routes and share them with your family and friends. In that case, a digital travel journal makes more sense.

Perhaps you’re an Instagram Influencer or blogger and want to keep copious notes for future posts/reels.

No matter your reason, if you’re looking for a travel journal app to maintain a digital log, this list of the 10 best travel journal apps will help you find the one that suits your needs.

Let’s start!

Table of Contents

10 Best Travel Journal Apps

1. day one journal.

With a Twitter-like interface, the Day One Journal is about capturing the important moments of your trip. The app can collect data such as location, weather, and music, for your travel photos and videos.

You can use this app as a digital diary and write using your finger or Apple Pencil and quickly comb through the entries using photos, timeline, or calendar. It even accepts voice commands.

This travel journal app can record fine details such as temperature, moon phase, weather, address, etc.

A free version is available, but upgrading to the premium version gives unlimited journal entries, photo storage, cloud sync, audio recording, and 25% off on book printing (if at some point you’d love to create a printed book of your adventures).

Platforms Supported:

• Apple Watch
• Safari and Chrome browser extensions

Cost: $2.92 per month billed annually.

Perfect for: Anyone looking for an online version of a standard journal that can also include images, voice recordings and track your locations

2. Find Penguins

One of the top digital travel journals, Find Penguins uses GPS tracking and AI to automatically track your journeys.

It also updates temperature, weather, altitude, etc., giving you a quick snapshot of the conditions on a particular day.

All the data that the app gathers is then displayed in a fun way on an interactive map as a trail and posts.

Find Penguins refers to those posts as footprints that are essentially blog posts where you can attach photos, videos, and texts as diary entries.

If you want, you can order a printed photo journal complete with maps, photos, and footprints.

Cost : Free with in-app purchases. You can buy a monthly or yearly subscription for $4.99 a month or $29.99 a year respectively.

Perfect for: Anyone who needs the best travel journal app for automatic journey tracking.

3. Polarsteps

If you need a completely free travel journal app that not only helps you to plan and track your journeys but also doubles up as a digital travel diary, Polarsteps is one of the top travel diary apps you can find.

It comes complete with an editable itinerary planner and transport planner. It even plots and automatically tracks your path on a digital world map.

You are free to add thoughts, videos, and photos. If you want, you can leave tips for the traveling community, or retrace your steps by scrolling through your travel stats, photos, and places.

The app also supports printing a hardcover travel book with just a touch of a button. The best part? It works offline and allows you to manually add journal entries that can later sync when the internet is available.

Perfect for: Anyone looking for a free travel tracker app that can track the travel route and keep the family informed!

Momento is more than just a travel journal app. It can double up as a project/work journal, pregnancy journal, or private journal.

This app can organize and streamline your social network activities from 11 social platforms. You can add photos & videos, tag your fellow travelers and places you visit , and even record your pregnancy journey!

Momento can also give daily, monthly, or yearly visual summaries, and allow you to explore past timelines.

Cost: Free with in-app purchases for paid upgrades.

Perfect for: People who need a multi-purpose digital journal that works not only as an online travel journal but also as a private and/or work journal.

5. Journi Blog

Journi Blog is a unique photo journaling app that you can use to record your travel experiences as timelines and maps or even have them printed as a photo book to show off to your friends and family members.

Whether you have a travel blog where you write about your vacations and travels, or whether you are maintaining personal travel diaries or recording your kids’ photo album, Journi Blog helps to capture all the moments and stories.

With this travel diary app, you can create a public travel journal or create a private journal entry.

Cost : Free with in-app premium membership purchase options. Membership costs €9.99 for one month, €43.99 for 6 months, and €53.99 for one year.

Perfect for: Those who want a photo journaling app.

Penzu isn’t particularly designed to be a travel journal app. In fact, it is more of a reflective journal meant for note-keeping and milestone tracking. However, it can be used as a pregnancy journal, a food diary, and even a travel diary.

It will give you the feel of maintaining an online travel blog with the ability to add images, add photos, and write your travel stories. You can use custom tags to categorize your travel logs.

Penzu has an incredibly simple interface where you can record beautiful memories of your entire trip.

Cost : Free, Pro for $19.99 a year, and Pro+ for $49.99 a year.

Perfect for : Anyone who needs a private online journal or a digital diary with syncing ability across the web and multiple mobile devices.

7. Tripcast

Tripcast is one of the favorite travel journal apps for many users worldwide. The app is perfect to keep your friends and family members updated about your journey.

With Tripcast, you can create shared photo albums where your fellow travelers can upload and share photos they click and store them in a single place.

The app uses photo geotagging to create a map of the places you visit.

Cost: Free!

Perfect for: Those who are on a group vacation, or participating in volunteer projects.

8. Journey: Diary, Journal

Journey was listed as the Google Editors’ choice in the best travel apps category. Just like other travel diaries, Journey will help you to maintain a travel journal complete with texts, audio files, images, and videos.

You can also use this dedicated app to add location and weather details to all your journal entries.

If you want, you can download and keep your entries private on your computer. Alternatively, you can export them as PDF or DOCX files for easy sharing.

Journey is not just a simple travel journal app. It is a multi-purpose app that allows users to record anything they want such as a stress management journey, sleep journey, better habits development journey, and so on.

Cost : Journey is a free app, but there is an in-app membership purchase option for $3.99 a month or $29.99 a year.

Perfect for: Those who need a multi-purpose journal app that can also be used as a digital travel diary.

Diarium is another great app that allows maintaining a travel journal using a calendar interface.

You can quickly attach texts, audio files, and images, and even tag multiple entries in a single day.

There is an option of adding a sitemap with location info. Plus, the app will display a wide range of data including your fitness data, weather info, and calendar events.

You can easily export entries in HTML or DOCX formats. Journal entry is possible using a laptop, PC, mobile, or tablet.

Cost: Diarium is free, but offers in-app purchases. You can purchase a lifetime pro version for $5.99.

Perfect for : Those who want a travel journal app without committing to a monthly or yearly subscription.

10. Worldee Trip Planner & Journal

Worldee is a popular digital travel diary that not only allows you to organize and store your travel memories.

You can mark the countries visited on an interactive world map, add timelines, photos, and maps, and even share your trips.

You can share your stories with other travelers or you can keep everything private. The app will also help you to plan your next trip using the integrated trip planner.

With the trip planner, you can set your itinerary and travel map on the same screen and then share your trip details with your travel partners.

Cost: The app is completely free to use.

Perfect for: Those who want a completely free digital travel journal.

More Journal Apps to Consider

1. trotter it.

Trotter It is a digital travel journal app that allows you to create and share travel stories with travelers across the world. It also doubles up as a social networking app for travelers. The app is available only through Google Play Store and is completely free to use.

2. Jauntlet

A mix of a travel journal and a free travel blog, Jauntlet allows you to present your trips in a neat timeline. The app connects with Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter, and imports photos from different profiles.

You can add the location to a post to add it to the map and write your story. Jauntlet is a web application that offers a platform-independent mobile site.

3. Esplorio

A beautiful and interactive travel journal app, Esplorio can record trips even without a data connection. You can choose what to share publicly and what to keep private.

It easily integrates with social platforms to retrieve previous journeys. The app is free but there is a pro plan available for $49.99 per year. It is available on iOS devices and through a web app.

4. Traverous

Traverous is an automated travel journal application that uses GPS data to track and record your trip. It also records media and location to create a personalized animated travel diary. The app is free to use but to unleash its full potential, you will need a premium account that costs $4.99 a month or $54.99 a year. The app is available for both iOS and Android devices.

How to Choose the Best Online Journal App

Choosing the best online journal app can be tricky. They’re all so good and you need to pick one that does everything you want it to.

Here are a few tips on choosing the best online journal app:

• Ease of use : The app you select should be straightforward and easy to use. An overly complex app will only make your life difficult.
• Mobile apps : Since you will mostly be traveling with your phone or ipad, the app must have versions for either iOS or Android or both. However, digital nomads traveling with laptops can always use web apps.
• Social features : The app you select must be able to integrate with social platforms. If the app has a built-in community feature, it is even better, especially for group tours and backpackers.
• History : The company developing the app must have a proven history of offering digital journaling services. You will not want to use it only to see that it is no longer under development.
• Cost : The app you select must be cheap. Expensive subscription plans can put budgetary pressure.
• Security: If you want your journal entries to be private you need to ensure the app has end to end encryption services.

Best Travel Journal Apps FAQs

Is there a free journaling app.

Yes, there are a few free travel journal apps available today. While some are dedicated digital travel diaries, others are all-purpose digital journals that can be used for keeping travel records.

Day One Journal has a free version, Polarsteps is completely free, Penzu has a free version and Tripcast is free. Try them out and see which one you like the best!

What’s the best app to track everywhere I’ve traveled?

Most of the digital travel diaries listed above can track every place you have traveled . Apps like Day One Journal and Find Penguins can not only track the places you visit but also add additional data like weather, temperature, altitude, address, and more.

Best Travel Journal Apps Summary

Digital travel diaries or journal apps are immensely beneficial (and fun) as they help to organize your travel experiences and keep your memories stored in a single place.

They will allow you to add written notes, images, videos, audio files, tags, etc., and help you to easily share your experiences with friends and family, or other users.

For digital nomads or influencers, some come with customizable layouts for enhanced personalization and some will even allow you to blog automatically and share moments of your trips with your readers.

Try a few out and select the one that is within your budget and meets your needs the best. Hopefully, this list of the best travel journal apps will assist you in finding an awesome journal for your travels! 🙂

Disclaimer: Please note this post may contain affiliate links, from which, at no additional cost to you, I may earn a small commission. Also as an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. I only recommend products and services I’ve used or would use myself. If you choose to purchase from any of my links, thanks so much for your support! 😊

Packing Light; 24 Expert Tips to Travel Light (From a Fellow Traveler)

35+ hilarious road trip games for couples & digital nomads.

How-To Geek

How to use your android device as a road recorder with tasker automation.

Have you ever wanted to get more out of your Android convergence device? How about using it as a hassle free video recorder for your car trips? HTG explains how you can accomplish this with just "off the shelf" components.

Quick Links

Why would i do this, why would or wouldn't i use my smartphone instead of a dedicated device, what do i need, the tasker profiles and tasks.

Image by Ernest , dinglisch , rubberbigpepper , Svet Ivantchev & Aviad (a.k.a. Hotfortech) .

Many people have asked me, why do you record your trips? Why is that interesting? And what do you do with all of this data?

My answer is that it started because there was a famous local story(Israel) , where a cop pulled over a driver and gave him a ticket for "not stopping at a stop sign" when he did...

But the real upshot of doing this, is that the audio in the car is captured. That means that everything that's being said in the vehicle is recorded. All those precious family moments are captured for posterity.

But leaving all of the above aside, there is always the possibility that you would capture something like:

The Flash object here has been removed as Flash is no longer supported by modern browsers.

Or even ( 9gag ):

As for what I do with all of that data? I keep it, because I personally would like to have more memories stored than less. I am willing to invest the required resources in doing so (future article), but that is a personal choice.

It's not that we at HTG are dismissing the merits of a dedicated device, but If you're like us (a geek at your core), you want your convergence device . You don't want multiple devices and have your data dispersed between them, forcing you to manually synchronize them. Needless to say, this manual procedure gets real old real fast, and if you use your Smartphone, you can take advantage of many applications specifically written to alleviate this issue.

With the above said, if you're going to be using everything your device has to offer, such as shooting 1080p video, GPS, BT and with the screen on (mostly), for a prolonged period of time, you may encounter some hurdles:

• Battery consumption -- If you don't have a device like the S4 that can actually charge while doing all of the above , you might find that even connecting your device to a power source isn't enough and you'll finish the road trip with less power than you started, even though you were plugged into a charger. Personally, I've been doing this since I got my S2, and as long as you connect the phone to a decent power plug that can drive the 1000mAh of power the device can draw for charging, you shouldn't have an issue. At one time, I've even used a first generation Galaxy tab with a 4100mAh battery for 40 minutes a day without connecting it to power at all, and had a sufficient amount of juice to finish the day.
• Heat -- Using/pushing your device to this work regimen may be a tad more than the manufacturer planned for, and considering that the device will be mounted above the dashboard (so it has a line of sight to the road), where it is usually more exposed to the sun... May A) Make it very hot when you arrive at your destination, and some people wouldn't like that feeling in their pocket and B) May shorten its life span. Personally, I think that is what the 2 year warranty you get with the Galaxy devices is for... but as always, that is a personal choice.
• Device slowdown -- Because you now have this background workload, you may find that if you want to use something in addition to the above, like a navigation program (for example Waze ), the device reacts more slowly than it would without it. In addition, depending on your device's grade and resources, this may lead to the Android system deciding that your RAM is too low and close apps "for you". If your device is really low in CPU power and RAM, these may become deal breakers. Again, personally, I've been using this since my S2, and I've found that the slowdown is bearable.

As everything in life, it is a trade-off. It is only you who can decide for yourself if its worth it or not.

You will only need a couple of things that are easily obtainable.

A video recording program

While there are countless programs on the market to do this, since I did the round up to find one way back in my S2 days, I haven't come across anything better then VideoReg .

Yes, it is a paid app, but its features IMHO are unmatched by any other free app. Beyond the common features: recording the video at full HD resolution, shooting a picture by a proximity sensor trigger, setting the amount of temporary data allocation, overlaying GPS information, etc., this app (unlike other apps) records the GPS information as a standard subtitle file that you can play with any subtitle supporting application. It can also overlay the video you're shooting to the "desktop" so you don't have to be in the app to see what it is recording. Last but by no means least is that it can also receive Tasker triggers to perform specific actions like start/stop recording, which makes it the ideal candidate for what we are trying to accomplish.

I also have it on good authority that the applications' creator is working on enabling the "dual-camera" feature of the S4 so that not only audio is saved. So go and support its development by getting VideoReg from Google Play .

An event handler program

What we are trying to do is to save you from having to tell the Android device that you are in your car. We want to automate this procedure, so all you have to do is mount the device in the car mount and the rest will happen automatically. We will use Tasker to automate this action, but you may use any other automation program of your choosing.

You can, and should, get Tasker directly from the applications' developer site .

A USB cigarette lighter power plug

Even if your car comes with a USB connector for it's sound system, you don't necessarily want to use it mainly do supply power. These sort of systems are usually unable to push the amount of power that the Android device needs. I've found that some systems push as low as only 200mAh. Needless to say, that if you want to take advantage of the 2000mAh ability of the new devices like the S4 or even just the 800mAh like the S2, that would not do.

There are numerous options for where to get this sort of an adapter (the below is just an example). If you can get one that has the "2.1A + 1A" (2100mAh + 1000mAh), like the one in the picture, that would be preferable. We would suggest you don't get anything that doesn't have a 1 year warranty, as this single tiny thing can destroy your expensive device.

A Bluetooth capable car system (optional).

In this guide, we will show how to use a Bluetooth connection as the "state" indicator for Tasker (even though it is by no means the only way to do this), for two reasons:

• First, using a BT connection makes it so you can get phone calls as well as any other audio function from your car's sound system (like play music from your device), which is exactly the way you would want your convergence device to work.
• Second, the current crop of Android devices aren't always compatible with car stereo systems that have USB connectivity, as the phones don't always show up as a regular "mass storage device", making it so the sound systems are unable to use them.

If you don't have a BT capable car stereo system, and you don't want to shell out the $$$ to get one installed, don't fret, HTG has got you covered. You can get a BT->to->Radio converter and have your phone hook up to it using BT and have it broadcast the BT content to your car stereo as a regular Radio station. I have personally used the JABRA CRUISER , and while I did eventually replace it with a "real" car stereo system after 2 years of use, it did a decent enough job.

While there is a seemingly endless variety of car mounts available, we suggest you consider the following points:

• Don't get one that is suited for your device exclusively. These mounts, are A) usually unusable if you get/have any sort of protection on your device (like a case or skin), and B) are unusable for the next device you do get.
• Do invest more then the bare minimum. While it seems like you can just order one "off of the net" and be done with it, we have found that the "net ordered" crop of holders seem to be " designed for the dump ", and don't last too long. This leaves you with the inconvenience of having to replace them. That is why we suggest you invest the time and effort to get one that can give you at least a 1 year warranty.

A Lens (Optional)

This may be totally overkill for almost everyone, but just in case you're into it and you haven't heard about it, there are lenses for camera phones that can widen the "angle of view". You would want one of these because it would make more of the road visible in the video, which may be crucial if something is happening outside of the dead ahead center. A set/kit of these goes for $5.50 on eBay.

Personally, I use a 180 degree lens (fisheye) for the road, because I like the 160 degree one for regular shooting:

To make this all happen, you need some Tasker magic. You can either import our simple project or advanced project , or follow the instructions below to create everything from scratch.

The simple project includes all of the below explained profiles and tasks. The advance one adds A) a profile that sets the "Media" and "BT" volumes to the maximum; B) a delay after a phone call has happened before the video recording is resumed; C) the ability to create a toggle widget; and D) severs the connection between the BT toggler and the VideoReg profile, so that you can have a "car mode" profile, because maybe you want the BT connected and have the phone do other "car mode" stuff that is not VideoReg related.

We need to create a profile that would be the "start/stop recording" on car mode and another that (unless you're the type of person that simply leaves the BT device running) would trigger the BT device.

The V4C profile

To get you started, we will walk you through adding the "BT state" to the profile; you can add more triggers to it on your own.

Add a "State".

Select the "Net" category.

Select the "Bluetooth Connected" sub category.

When asked for the name of the BT connection, make sure that BT is enabled on your device and click on the search icon. Then select the relevant BT connection name for the car's BT system.

Optionally, also select the MAC of the device, so that if another BT device with the same name, goes near you, the profile won't be triggered.

The end result should look like this:

Here, we have changed the default name to be "v4c" (which stands for VideoReg For Car) so it would be shorter in the status bar. We have also added that the profile can only be triggered if there is more than 6% of battery power, so in extreme cases, the phone would not try to kill it self by triggering its most hungry of power hogs.

In addition (though this is optional), we have also made it so if a call is in progress, the profile will be disabled. This is because sometimes the way the camera is restarted while there is a phone call in progress is less than ideal and is disruptive to both ends of the call.

When asked to create/select the entering task, create one and select the "Misc" category.

Select the "Send Intent" action.

In the "Action" text field, put in "rubberbigpepper.VideoReg.StartRecord" (without quotation).

Then create an "Exit" task that does the same, only has "rubberbigpepper.VideoReg.StopRecord" in the "Action" field.

The BT trigger profile (semi-optional)

This may be unnecessary if you never turn your BT off, but as most of the people we know do, here is how to create a BT toggler that would:

• Turn the BT device on if the android system is connected to a power source.
• Wait for 15 seconds to give the pairing time to take place.
• If there was a pairing, leave the BT device on, and if not, turn it off.

Select the "Power" category.

Select the "Power" option.

Select the "Any" type.

The "Save on 3" Profile (optional)

This profile was created because in VideoReg you can only choose one action for the proximity sensor. But what if you wanted to both save a photo and a video?

To answer this question, I've set VideoReg to take a photo on proximity trigger, and have Tasker issue a "save video" if the proximity trigger is on for 3 seconds.

To create this profile, add a state and then select the "Sensor" category.

Select the "Proximity Sensor".

Leave the settings as they are, and continue to create the "Task".

The "Task" should start with a 3 second "wait" and then send an "intent" of "rubberbigpepper.VideoReg.RescueVideo".

Then scroll down to the end of the "Intent" action and add the "IF" condition that this is only to be triggered if the "profile" of "Save at 3" is still active.

The end result should look like:

That's it, you should be all set to connect your device to the car's power, have it trigger the BT to look for pairing, and once it's paired to start the road recording.

In case you've missed them, here are the HTG simple profile and HTG advance profile .

Its a very rare person, someone who's mistaken for what he truly is...

If you Rev it, REVER it.

Your search for the best roads, race tracks and off-road trails ends here with a motorcycle trip planner built for adventure. Uncover more than 3,000 motorcycle road trip maps around the world with the REVER motorcycle route app.

Record your activities anywhere in the world with an accurate motorcycle ride tracker. Map my motorcycle ride features require no cell service.

Route Planning Made Easy

The REVER motorcycle route app highlights every epic road for easy reference. Create the perfect ride with a motorcycle route planner and automatically sync it to the REVER App for easy navigation and sharing.

Your expensive GPS has met its match. Get everything you need in a motorcycle GPS app and more like offline maps, turn-by-turn directions, and voice guidance to get you where you're going.

Live Friend Tracking, Challenges, and much more to keep you motivated, safe and connected while exploring motorcycle riding routes near you.

The Word Is Out

Never ride alone again with live friend tracking, challenges and more. Stay motivated, safe and connected with the REVER moto trip planner .

love tracking my rides with Rever . This app does this and a heck of lot more. There is a ton of single track moto rides where I live and the tracking system/gps is very accurate. I like the new feature of auto pause and of course I like to see how fast I ride as this app gives me my highest mph which I can compare with my friends. Before Rever came along I would use Map my ride but this was not a motorcycle specific app. Now I track all of my rides and can share them with my friends. Great app!

KTMColorado

I had planned over 20,000 kms of rides after I had discovered this app. The wife and I are riding 29 states and 3 provinces after I complete a 24 border to border run to Mexico. Planning the trip was easy and with the Butler map overlay completely changed the route we are taking. I was having no luck with the mobile app however... Turns out the email address I used to sign up for facebook was used to log in. Hadn't used that one in years. The found it and it works awesome now! Wicked customer service!

Charles Lott

I love this app , there response to questions and issues are excellent, very prompt and courteous.

Shawn Peters

I ride everyday and this App helps me track my milage , great app...

Steven Pena

I like the record ride feature & I can easily create rides on website , and then use the app on my phone to ride the route.

Dave Dyczewski

The answer then, to my initial question of "Have they really made it better?" would be yes. And as an alternative to other, motorcycle-specific maps, my wife Judy, who is our chief navigator, spent a lot of time comparing several and concluded that the Butler maps are the best.

Ken Bingenheimer

If there is a road not on the map it's probably not worth riding.

Motorcyclist Magazine

The word from the navigator is very clear: The Butler Maps Colorado map is the best .

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How to Record a Road Trip: A Simple Guide 

• Date: December 31, 2021
• Time to read: 6 min.

Documenting a vacation has a lot of benefits, keeping those memories alive will reduce stress for months to come. You may record a trip to share the videos on social media or with your family. 

To record a vlog style video while on a road trip, set up a tripod on the dash of your car. Action Cameras are often waterproof and can also be mounted on the outside of your car. If you want to have continuous video of the road while you are driving, consider a dash cam.

There are a lot of reasons to record your trip, some people want to record their drive for safety reasons, dash cams are designed to record for hours whenever your car is in motion. 

How do you vlog a road trip?

Depending on your equipment there are many ways to vlog while you are on a road trip. 

Vlogging on a road trip is easy with a GoPro or other action camera, your normal vlogging camera, a dash cam, or even with your phone. The key is to select the correct mounts and sound recording equipment. Whatever setup you use, be sure to practice in a safe place before you take it on the road. Sound is a very important thing to consider while in the car. 

Try getting a windshield mount for your normal vlog setup, camera, phone or GoPro and then move on to sound. 

Get an external mic, the easiest option is a wireless lav mic. 

Many travel vloggers rely on GoPros to get the amazing action and drone shots that make the channels so stunning. 

Camera Mount

Dash cams are designed to be installed in a car to record continuously while you drive. 

Professional drivers use these to protect themselves legally in the event of a crash. My husband is a truck driver and these are common in that profession. 

Dash cams are capable of producing beautiful, high quality footage that would be suitable for travel vlogging. 

I found this really great comparison video of a few dash cams and their performance on a road trip. 

Dash cams can be had at every price point from $30 to well over $300. 

This is the camera you want if you want to set it and forget it. They are mounted to the windshield and the cords can be tucked in around the windshield and it is a slick, permanent installation. 

There are added benefits to using a dash cam to record, they have cloud backup, parking mode, collision alerts and they add lots of security to your vehicle. 

The cloud connected models can alert you if someone breaks into or hits your car while you are away. Super helpful in a new area. 

They are legal to operate while you drive, and they will not be distracting while you get down the road. 

When you think about recording while driving, you probably thought about the GoPro, or another action camera like this one on Amazon . 

These cameras have endless accessories for you to mount the camera anywhere. 

Start with a windshield mount and play around with different positions and modes with the GoPro, I also though this setup with a magnet and sticky pad, to be a really versatile mount setup. 

Be sure to use the ultrasmooth mode for recording while driving. 

If you are going for some very smooth footage, invest in a gimbal mount. You can attach these mounts to other harnesses or mounts to get smooth interesting footage from lots of angles. 

Be careful and practice in a safe area.

This couple shows you their exact setup with a GoPro Hero 8, all the settings and what they use to get high quality sound while recording in the car. 

Phone Mounts 

I do not drive and record, but I do record lots of videos while sitting in my car. 

I record with my phone 90% of the time, and I love this mount on Amazon , it is inexpensive and versatile. It can be used in many situations and it fits my phone pretty well, but I do have to remove my phone case for the phone to fit. 

I have also used this mount that suctions to the dash and holds the phone while the phone is in motion. 

I do not record myself with my phone while I am driving , I think it could be done safely with a GoPro or a camera with an app that could connect to and control the camera easily. Dashcams are another great way to get footaa

Many states have laws against using your phone while driving, so I am not sure it is worth the risk. 

Documenting Road Trip Memories 

If you are looking for more creative ways to document your trip and you are not looking for video footage, we have found some other great ways to commemorate a great adventure. 

Family Journal

My favorite way to document all our family adventures is with a family journal. 

We use a simple Family Book that is just a simple spiral bound notebook. 

This is available to anyone who wants to add to the book. I encourage my family to add any memories, things they notice or how they are feeling about day to day life or trips in the book. 

I hope that it will become a record of our family history. 

We only have 3 writers in our family so this idea will hopefully grow with my family. I dream of my teenage kids sharing their memories and emotions in the family notebook. I’ll check back and let you know how that goes! 

Family Collection

If writing is not your thing, start a family collection. 

We love to collect little items on our trips, my husband is really into coffee mugs. We have a great one from Cirque that is actually his favorite mug. 

If you choose to collect something natural like rocks or flowers, be sure to follow all local laws about removing natural items. Many places do not allow tourists to take rocks, so don’t break the law. 

Christmas Album

I am sure you are already taking photos on your family vacation, print those out and give everyone an album at Christmas. 

There are a lot of reasons I like this method. 

We know that shared memories help build strong families. So Christmas morning can be a great time to remember all the wonderful things you have done as a family. 

Spend some time together reflecting on what the year was like, laughing and smiling. 

You can go to Walmart.com or walgreens.com and build a photo book right on the site, or you can go low tech and buy a photo album from Dollar Tree and put about 24 photos in the book. 

I made these for my kids to look at when I was leaving them with my mom for a few days, just a little reminder of everything we love as a family. 

If you want more interesting ideas for documenting family trips, I have 11 more ideas in this post. 

Is it legal to record while driving?

There are no specific laws about filming while driving at the time of writing, but there are 24 states that have laws against hand held phone use. So, if you choose to record yourself while driving, do not use your phone. 

In my opinion the safest way to record yourself while driving is to mount a camera in a secure way, and press record before you start driving. 

I like to record while I am parked. Then I get the road trip vibes without being distracted while driving. 

If you are looking to get footage of your travels, invest in a dash cam and record while you drive, I was surprised at the quality of these cameras. They are a great addition to a vlogging setup for a road trip. 

If you choose to go with a dash cam be sure to install it in compliance with local laws. Some states, like Alabama, require that it be mounted to the dash not the windshield. 

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How old do you have to be to go on a road trip.

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21 best Apple CarPlay apps every driver needs

Looking for CarPlay compatible apps? Here are 21 you shouldn't miss.

• Podcasts & Books
• EVs & Parking

Apple CarPlay is an invaluable tool for drivers, taking all the best iPhone apps and features and making them safer to use while you’re driving. Whether you want communication, music, podcasts or just need to figure out where to go, CarPlay can put the essential apps front and center. So long as you know which apps actually work with it.

There are a lot of apps out there that work with CarPlay, but not all do, and not all apps that are CarPlay-compatible are worth it. So, to save you that hassle, these are the top Apple CarPlay apps every driver should be using.

Your iPhone already has a bunch of Apple apps installed when you take it out of the box, and a lot of them are available on CarPlay when you're driving. While you always have the choice to use third party apps, these cover most of the basics and should prove to be valuable tools out on the road.

Phone: Possibly the one Apple app you'll use the most with CarPlay is the phone app. Phone calls are the best way to communicate with the outside world safely, since it means you can call anyone (or vice versa) and speak to them without the hassle of back-and-forth messages. 

The Phone CarPlay app has access to your full contacts list, favorites, recent calls, voicemail and your keypad. You can even talk to Siri and ask her to make a call for you, so you can keep your eyes on the road and avoid messing about with a touchscreen instead of concentrating.

Messages: If phone calls aren't your style, then Messages can step into help. The Message CarPlay app lets you see all the messages you receive, and tapping them means Siri reads them all out to you — so your eyes don't deviate from the road. You can also ask Siri to send messages to your contacts with nothing more than a voide command.

Apple Music: With more than 100 million songs, curated playlists, original content and access to digital radio stations, Apple Music is a great companion to have in your car. There's even Dolby Atmos spatial audio support if you're lucky enough to have a car  that supports it. The only thing Apple Music doesn't have is Podcasts, which can be found in the Apple Podcasts app. 

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Just make sure you have a valid subscription, whether it's Apple Music or the Apple One bundle.

Apple Podcasts: If you're more a fan of podcast hosts over radio DJs, then Apple Podcasts has what you need. You'll be able to listen to your favorite series as well as find new ones thanks to personalized recommendations and top charts in almost every category. Apple Music subscribers will also have access to exclusive premium content.

Audiobooks: This is a version of the Apple Books app on your iPhone, but it cuts out everything with written words in favor of literature that's read to you. Because we all have hectic lives, and that backlog of books isn't getting any smaller, and there's no better time to make progress than when you're stuck in the car. 

Unfortunately there are no subscriptions here, and you'll need to purchase each individual title.

Apple Maps: It had a rocky start but  Apple Maps  has evolved into one of the best navigation apps around. Better still, you don't need a separate user account, and Siri voice controls are enabled by default. Plus, with the  addition of offline navigation with iOS 17 , you should be able to find where you need to go no matter what the local cell signal is like.

Spotify: The big name in music streaming offers more than 100 million songs, either with ads or without — depending on whether you're willing to pay to subscribe or not. With personalized recommendations and sharable playlists, it's one of the better options if you'd rather get your music from someone who isn't Apple. There are also audiobooks and podcasts built-in, too.

Tidal: If you're more interested in high-fidelity streaming, then you probably know about Tidal. The idea here is that subscribers get access to music in much higher quality than you would on other platforms, with up to 80 million songs on offer. Tidal also claims to pay better royalties to musicians than its rivals — in case you want to better support your favorite artists. 

YouTube Music: If you have YouTube Premium to escape the never-ending adpocalypse, then you have YouTube Music Premium thrown in as well. That means you don't need to subscribe to Apple or Spotify to listen to some ad-free tunes on your daily commute. Over 100 millions songs are available to listen uninterrupted, offline and while your screen is locked.

VLC: If you're not into subscriptions, streaming and personalized features, then there's always VLC. It's the perfect app for listening to music and other audio files offline, without having to pay for ongoing access. The only downside is that you need to have sourced the files from some other source, be they ripped from CDs or purchased from non-Apple stores.

Google Maps : The biggest name in mobile navigation, and with good reason. Google Maps has just about everything you could want when you're driving. Real time traffic updates, offline navigation and the ability to search for businesses and locations along your route. It even works with Siri voice commands, albeit not quite as sleekly as Apple Maps does out of the box.

Waze: Waze is a popular navigation choice thanks to its uniquely aggressive way of getting you around. The app may not be quite as data rich as Google Maps or Apple Maps, but its popularity stems from the fact will do everything it can to get your ETA as low as physically possible and actively changes your route to avoid as much traffic as it can find.

Podcasts & Audiobooks

Audible: Amazon's audiobook service has a lot, especially if you have a subscription. Not only does that get you 1-2 audiobooks per month (depending on your plan), there's also a whole range of free podcasts to download and listen to. Plus-tier subscribers also get access to a library of free audiobooks with their plan, which means you shouldn't be running out of stuff to listen to in the car anytime soon.

Overcast: Overcast is a great platform for those of you with an existing playlist of podcasts you love, but also want to discover some more. The app also feature Smart Boost to skip over silent spots and a Voice Boost feature for consistent sound throughout each episode; there's nothing more frustrating than having a host and guests who whisper interspersed with booming ads. 

Google Play Books : If you're a recent Android convert, you may still have some audiobooks tied to your Google account. Thankfully those are available on iPhone and CarPlay as well. Of course, like Apple Books, you'll be denied access to any print books when you're driving — which is definitely for the best.

Castro: Designed to make it easier to keep on top of your favorite podcasts and new episodes, Castro uses an inbox-style system to deliver new episodes as and when they arrive. From there you set up relevant episodes in your queue, and the app will make its way through them all until you rearrange everything.

Spotify : Spotify isn't just about music; the app offers a huge range of podcasts and audiobooks for you to listen to as well. Podcasts are free to listen to, but audiobooks will require a Premium subscription. 

Weather on the Way: Any weather app can give you a forecast for your destination, but what about the weather you’ll experience along the way? Weather on the Way, as the name suggests, can do it.

Not only will weather affect road conditions, it may also change the way you’re driving. If you’re going to drive through a serious patch of rain or snow, you can make sure you’re prepared to handle it all. CarPlay support means you can keep tabs on the upcoming weather as you drive.

MyRadar Weather Radar: This is the kind of app more suited to meteorological nerds with the kind of data you just don't see in a typical weather app. MyRadar shows off high definition radar maps of the weather headed your way, so you can see what you need to be prepared for when you're in your car. It also features alerts for rain and storms, alongside more serious threats like tornadoes, earthquakes, wildfires and hurricanes.

Charging and Parking

Plugshare: If you’re an electric car owner, you know there’s going to be a time when you need to hunt down a charger. PlugShare features a map of EV chargers across the United States, offering charging stations from a multitude of different charging companies. It doesn’t have every charger, but if you’re in a pinch you can hunt down a compatible charging station from your center console. It even has a trip planner, just in case your car can’t do that automatically.

SpotHero: Parking can sometimes be a real hassle. But  SpotHero  is an app that lets you reserve parking in major cities ahead of time. Not only does this mean you know there’s going to be a spot available for you when you arrive, it can work out slightly cheaper that way. The app listing includes parking garages, lots and valets across the U.S., and the fact it’s compatible with CarPlay means you (or your passenger) can sort out a parking spot mid-journey.

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• sequential video recording of defined recording time
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• background recordings
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Pro-Palestinian demonstrators shut down airport highways and key bridges in major US cities

Pro-Palestinian demonstrators shut down both directions of the Golden Gate Bridge Monday snarling traffic for hours.

Pro-Palestinian demonstrators blocked a freeway leading to three Chicago O’Hare International Airport terminals Monday morning, temporarily stopping traffic into one of the nation’s busiest airports and causing headaches for travelers.

A passenger walks on the highway as he carries his luggage to at O’Hare International Airport in Chicago, Monday, April 15, 2024. Pro-Palestinian demonstrators blocked a freeway leading to three Chicago O’Hare International Airport terminals Monday morning, temporarily stopping vehicle traffic into one of the nation’s busiest airports and causing headaches for travelers. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)

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Pedestrians and bicyclists wait outside the pedestrian gate on the south side of the Golden Gate Bridge while the bridge is closed due to protesters on Monday, April 15, 2024 in San Francisco, Calif. (Lea Suzuki/San Francisco Chronicle via AP)

Heavy traffic is seen at O’Hare International Airport in Chicago, Monday, April 15, 2024. Pro-Palestinian demonstrators blocked a freeway leading to three Chicago O’Hare International Airport terminals Monday morning, temporarily stopping vehicle traffic into one of the nation’s busiest airports and causing headaches for travelers. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)

Protesters calling for a cease fire in Gaza shut down southbound traffic on Highway 880 in Oakland, Calif. on Monday, April 15, 2024. (Bronte Wittpenn/San Francisco Chronicle via AP)

A passenger talks on the her phone as she walks to Terminal 1 at O’Hare International Airport in Chicago, Monday, April 15, 2024. Pro-Palestinian demonstrators blocked a freeway leading to three Chicago O’Hare International Airport terminals Monday morning, temporarily stopping vehicle traffic into one of the nation’s busiest airports and causing headaches for travellers. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)

Passengers walk to a security checkpoint at O’Hare International Airport in Chicago, Monday, April 15, 2024. Pro-Palestinian demonstrators blocked a freeway leading to three Chicago O’Hare International Airport terminals Monday morning, temporarily stopping vehicle traffic into one of the nation’s busiest airports and causing headaches for travelers. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)

Travellers wait for their ride at O’Hare International Airport in Chicago, Monday, April 15, 2024. Pro-Palestinian demonstrators blocked a freeway leading to three Chicago O’Hare International Airport terminals Monday morning, temporarily stopping vehicle traffic into one of the nation’s busiest airports and causing headaches for travelers. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)

Travellers wait for an airport shuttle bus at O’Hare International Airport in Chicago, Monday, April 15, 2024. Pro-Palestinian demonstrators blocked a freeway leading to three Chicago O’Hare International Airport terminals Monday morning, temporarily stopping vehicle traffic into one of the nation’s busiest airports and causing headaches for travelers. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)

TravelLers walk to Terminal 1 at O’Hare International Airport in Chicago, Monday, April 15, 2024. Pro-Palestinian demonstrators blocked a freeway leading to three Chicago O’Hare International Airport terminals Monday morning, temporarily stopping vehicle traffic into one of the nation’s busiest airports and causing headaches for travelLers. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)

Travelers wait for an airport shuttle bus at O’Hare International Airport in Chicago, Monday, April 15, 2024. Pro-Palestinian demonstrators blocked a freeway leading to three Chicago O’Hare International Airport terminals Monday morning, temporarily stopping vehicle traffic into one of the nation’s busiest airports and causing headaches for travelers. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)

Traffic is backed up at O’Hare International Airport in Chicago, Monday, April 15, 2024. Pro-Palestinian demonstrators blocked a freeway leading to three Chicago O’Hare International Airport terminals Monday morning, temporarily stopping vehicle traffic into one of the nation’s busiest airports and causing headaches for travelers. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)

Travelers wait for their ride at O’Hare International Airport in Chicago, Monday, April 15, 2024. Pro-Palestinian demonstrators blocked a freeway leading to three Chicago O’Hare International Airport terminals Monday morning, temporarily stopping vehicle traffic into one of the nation’s busiest airports and causing headaches for travelers. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)

Travelers walk through Terminal 1 at O’Hare International Airport in Chicago, Monday, April 15, 2024. Pro-Palestinian demonstrators blocked a freeway leading to three Chicago O’Hare International Airport terminals Monday morning, temporarily stopping vehicle traffic into one of the nation’s busiest airports and causing headaches for travelers. (AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)

Demonstrators protesting the ongoing war in Gaza, block southbound traffic on Interstate 880 in Oakland, Calif., on Monday, April 15, 2024. Traffic in the San Francisco Bay Area was also snarled for hours Monday morning as pro-Palestinian demonstrators shut down both directions of the Golden Gate Bridge and stalled a 17-mile (27-kilometer) stretch of Interstate 880 in Oakland. (Brontë Wittpenn/San Francisco Chronicle via AP)

CHICAGO (AP) — Pro-Palestinian demonstrators blocked roadways in Illinois, California, New York and the Pacific Northwest on Monday, temporarily shutting down travel into some of the nation’s most heavily used airports, onto the Golden Gate and Brooklyn bridges and on a busy West Coast highway.

In Chicago, protesters linked arms and blocked lanes of Interstate 190 leading into O’Hare International Airport around 7 a.m. in a demonstration they said was part of a global “economic blockade to free Palestine,” according to Rifqa Falaneh, one of the organizers.

Traffic in the San Francisco Bay Area was snarled for hours as demonstrators shut down all vehicle, pedestrian and bike traffic on the Golden Gate Bridge and chained themselves to 55-gallon drums filled with cement across Interstate 880 in Oakland. Protesters marching into Brooklyn blocked Manhattan-bound traffic on the Brooklyn Bridge. In Eugene, Oregon, protesters blocked Interstate 5, shutting down traffic on the major highway for about 45 minutes.

Protesters say they chose O’Hare in part because it is one of the largest airports. Among other things, they’ve called for an immediate cease-fire in the war between Israel and Hamas.

Anti- war protesters have demonstrated in Chicago near daily since Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack on southern Israel that killed around 1,200 people. Israeli warplanes and ground troops have since conducted a scorched-earth campaign on the Gaza Strip.

The Israeli offensive has killed more than 33,700 Palestinians, according to the Gaza health ministry. The ministry does not differentiate between civilians and combatants in its count but says women and children make up two-thirds of the dead.

O’Hare warned travelers on the social platform X to take alternative forms of transportation with car travel “substantially delayed this morning due to protest activity.”

Some travelers stuck in standstill traffic left their cars and walked the final leg to the airport along the freeway, trailing their luggage behind them.

Among them was Madeline Hannan from suburban Chicago. She was headed to O’Hare for a work trip to Florida when her and her husband’s car ended up stalled for 20 minutes. She got out and “both ran and speed walked” more than a mile (1.6 kilometers). She said she made it to the gate on time, but barely.

“This was an inconvenience,” she said in a telephone interview from Florida. “But in the grand scheme of things going on overseas, it’s a minor inconvenience.”

While individual travelers may have been affected, operations at the airport appeared near normal with delays of under 15 minutes, according to the Chicago Department of Aviation.

Inbound traffic toward O’Hare resumed around 9 a.m.

Near Seattle, the Washington State Department of Transportation said a demonstration closed the main road to Seattle-Tacoma International Airport. Social media posts showed people holding a banner and waving Palestinian flags while standing on the highway, which reopened about three hours later.

About 20 protesters were arrested at the Golden Gate Bridge demonstration and traffic resumed shortly after noon, according to the California Highway Patrol. The agency said officers were making arrests at two points on the interstate, including one spot where roughly 300 protesters refused orders to disperse,

“Attempting to block or shut down a freeway or state highway to protest is unlawful, dangerous, and prevents motorists from safely reaching their destinations,” the agency said in a statement.

Oregon State Police said 52 protestors were were arrested for disorderly conduct following the Interstate 5 protest in Eugene, Oregon, about 110 miles (177 kilometers) south of Portland. Six vehicles were towed from the scene.

New York Police made numerous arrests, saying 150 protesters were initially involved in the march around 3:15 p.m., but that number quickly grew. The bridge was fully reopened by 5 p.m.

In Chicago, dozens of protesters were arrested, according to Falaneh. Chicago police said Monday that “multiple people” were taken into custody after a protest where people obstructed traffic, but they did not have a detailed count.

Associated Press writers Janie Har in San Francisco, Claire Rush in Portland, Oregon; Pat Eaton-Robb in Hartford, Connecticut and Audrey McAvoy in Honolulu contributed to this report.

Diamondbacks updates: Lourdes Gurriel Jr. gets a day as Gabriel Moreno returns

SAN FRANCISCO — The Diamondbacks appear ready to welcome catcher Gabriel Moreno back to the lineup following a two-day absence but are giving left fielder Lourdes Gurriel Jr. a breather for the first day of a four-game series against the San Francisco Giants.

Moreno has not started since having a pitch hit off his right thumb on Monday night against the Chicago Cubs. He was in the original lineups on Tuesday and Wednesday but was a late scratch both times.

As for Gurriel, this will be his second time out of the lineup in the Diamondbacks’ first 20 games. Manager Torey Lovullo liked the idea of easing Gurriel’s workload given some of the action that’s come his way in recent games.

“He’s had a lot of volume,” Lovullo said. “Whether it’s running in the outfield or being on the bases, he’s had a lot of sprinting, and we need to make sure we monitor that and get him off his feet whenever I can.”

Pitching matchup for Thursday's series opener in San Francisco

SAN FRANCISCO — The Diamondbacks will open a 10-game, three-city road trip on Thursday night at Oracle Park, where they will send right-hander Ryne Nelson to the mound to face San Francisco Giants ace Logan Webb.

Nelson (1-2, 5.27) delivered one of his better starts of the past two seasons on Saturday against the Cardinals, allowing one run on seven hits in six innings, while striking out four and walking one.

Most encouragingly, he found success with his cutter. Since debuting in 2022, Nelson has displayed an excellent four-seam fastball but has struggled to keep batters off balance with his secondary offerings.

Nelson has had many of his better starts against teams that struggle to hit four-seam fastballs, like the Cardinals. By contrast, the Giants have been in the top third of the league for their quality of contact against four-seamers.

Webb (1-1, 3.80), who led the majors last season with 216 innings pitched, has worked seven innings in each of his past two starts, allowing three total runs. He has logged quality starts in three of his four outings this season.

Webb faced the Diamondbacks four times last season, posting a 3.00 ERA in 27 innings.

What do know about the San Francisco Giants

San Francisco has had consecutive disappointing seasons following its 107-win campaign in 2021. The Diamondbacks’ NL West rivals went 81-81 in 2022 and 79-83 last season, falling out of the NL Wild Card race in the final weeks of the season. They made a pair of big off-season moves, signing Korean OF Jung Hoo Lee to a six-year, $113 million deal and then adding reigning NL Cy Young Blake Snell on a two-year, $62 million contract during spring training. Still, the Giants were widely projected to finish either third or fourth in the division entering the year, behind the Dodgers and Diamondbacks. They have performed to that level, with a 7-11 record entering this weekend’s series. OF Michael Conforto, who has an .897 OPS, has been their only impact bat. Snell has struggled mightily in his two starts, allowing 10 runs in seven innings, while the rest of the rotation has had mixed fortunes. RHP Jordan Hicks has been a reliever for much of his career but has a 1.57 ERA in four starts. RHP Logan Webb has been his typically steady self, with a 3.80 ERA. As a team, the Giants rank 19th in runs scored, 24th in rotation ERA and 26th in bullpen ERA

Friday's Diamondbacks-Giants pitching matchup

DBacks at Giants, 7:15 p.m., Apple TV

Diamondbacks LHP Jordan Montgomery (10-11, 3.20)* vs. Giants LHP Blake Snell (0-2, 12.86).

At Oracle Park : Montgomery will be making his first start with the Diamondbacks, with whom he signed a one-year, $25 million deal just before the start of the season. … Montgomery was viewed as one of the better starters available in free agency but his market did not materialize the way many expected. Montgomery reportedly fired his agent, Scott Boras, after reaching an agreement with the Diamondbacks. … Montgomery made two starts for Triple-A Reno, giving up two runs in four innings in the first and  seven runs in 3 2/3 innings in the second. … He will be facing another pitcher in Snell who, like Montgomery, was repped by Boras only to have his market crater on him. Snell landed a two-year, $62 million deal from which he can opt-out after the first season. … Things have not gone great in his first two starts. In a combined seven innings, he has allowed 10 runs on nine hits and four walks. On the bright side, his pure stuff appears to be fine, at least from a velocity perspective. He still averages 95.4 mph on his fastball, nearly identical to last year. … He faced the Diamondbacks once last season while pitching for the Padres, giving up two runs in six innings in a start in August.

* -- Stats from 2023.

Saturday: At San Francisco, 1:05 p.m., Diamondbacks RHP Zac Gallen (3-0, 1.64) vs. Giants LHP Kyle Harrison (2-1, 4.70).

Sunday: At San Francisco, 1:05 p.m., Diamondbacks RHP Merrill Kelly (2-0, 2.19) vs. Giants RHP Jordan Hicks (2-0, 1.57).

Monday: At St. Louis, 4:45 p.m., Diamondbacks RHP Brandon Pfaadt (1-1, 5.32) vs. Cardinals  RHP Lance Lynn (1-0, 2.18).

NFL draft host cities: Where it's been held recently, 2025 location, history

The NFL draft has been on a decade-long road trip that arrives this year in the Motor City of Detroit.

The league's 32 teams will restock their rosters with new talent while a huge gathering of fans from all across the country cheers (and occasionally boos) the selections. It's an annual spectacle the league is happy to spread around to maximize fun and exposure.

While the draft has been held in many different locations since the inaugural one in Philadelphia in 1936, it was a fixture for 50 years in New York City. In 2015, however, the league began taking its show back on the road.

Where is the 2024 NFL draft being held?

The 2024 NFL draft begins on Thursday, April 25 and runs through Saturday, April 27 at Campus Martius Park and Hart Plaza in downtown Detroit.

NFL DRAFT HUB: Latest NFL Draft mock drafts, news, live picks, grades and analysis.

Previous NFL draft locations

While the NFL draft has a long and storied history in New York City, this past decade isn't the first time the draft has been moved around.

The inaugural NFL draft in 1936 was held at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel in Philadelphia. (Heisman Trophy winner Jay Berwanger was the No. 1 overall pick by the Philadelphia Eagles , but he never played a game for them.)

From 1936 to 1964, the draft moved around to several cities, often for several years in a row. Among the hosts over that span: Philadelphia, New York, Chicago, Washington, Milwaukee, Pittsburgh and Los Angeles.

Starting in 1965, the draft found a rather permanent home in New York City, which hosted the proceedings for the next 50 years.

NFL draft locations, 2015-2024

Starting in 2015, the NFL has taken place in these host cities:

• 2015: Chicago
• 2016: Chicago
• 2017: Philadelphia
• 2018: Arlington, Texas
• 2019: Nashville
• 2020: Draft held virtually due to COVID
• 2021: Cleveland
• 2022: Las Vegas
• 2023: Kansas City
• 2024: Detroit

Where is the 2025 NFL draft being held?

The 2025 NFL draft will take place April 24-26, 2025 at Lambeau Field in Green Bay, Wisconsin.