Summer road trips are among the most popular types of travel in the U.S. This year, almost 90 percent of American adults will take a summer road trip, up from 83 percent in 2014, according to surveys by Bridgestone.
Planning for a road trip, and being prepared while you're on one, is different from planning and preparing for other kinds of travel. Your car could break down, or bad weather might prevent you from reaching destinations on time. You might have to take unexpected detours. And as much as I love to plan where I'm going to eat during any vacation, mapping out every meal along the way is usually impractical. On road trips, you have to be ready to roll with the punches.
These 13 mobile apps, listed in alphabetical order, will help you plan ahead for your road trip and stay flexible while it's happening. They help you navigate traffic, get directions, make last-minute changes to even prepaid hotel bookings, find interesting things to see along the way, and keep your tummy full of good food. Best of all, they won't add a penny to your travel budget, because they're all free. Note that I'm not recommending that you use all these apps while driving. Some of them are for use ahead of time, and some are definitely better suited for use by someone sitting in the passenger seat.
Field Trip (by Google)
The Field Trip app by Google looks for sites of interest around you, based on categories you select and your location, and it pops up cards on your phone when you're near something interesting. If you're driving and have a connected Bluetooth audio device, you'll hear the alerts instead. Field Trip taps into recommendations from travel and lifestyle publications, such as Thrillist, Zagat, and Sunset, as well as Songkick and Flavorpill for finding local music.
Available on: Android, iOS
GasBuddy
When it's time to refuel, you'll be happy to have GasBuddy on your phone. This app and website helps you find gas by location and price. If you can save a couple of bucks by cruising a little farther down the road, GasBuddy will let you know. While many of the travel apps listed in this article are for iOS and Android only, GasBuddy is also available for BlackBerry and Windows Phone.
Available on: Android, BlackBerry, iOS, Web, Windows Phone
Gogobot
Gogobot is a social travel app that helps you find places to stay, eat, and play. Gogobot's globetrotting community of users upload photos, information, and ratings for the sites, while also tagging them based on different interests, such as family, foodie, local, outdoor, budget, and adventure. You can explore an area ahead of time and save points of interest to a list in the app. Photos taken by other users help you get a better sense of what you might find at different places of interest.
Available on: Android, iOS, Web
Google Maps
I can't even imagine driving without Google Maps. Turn-by-turn directions work well (okay, they still occasionally tell you to get off the highway and right back on again), but the real time-saver is that Google Maps detects upcoming traffic, accidents, or construction and automatically offers you a quicker route. It's a great in-car GPS navigation system, right from your phone.
Available on: Android, iOS, Web
iExit
The iExit app tells you what services are available at upcoming highway exits. Using your location, iExit looks at the upcoming exits and gives you a list of restaurants, hotels, gas stations, rest areas, and more. If there's a particular restaurant chain or other service you love, you can mark it as a favorite and iExit will tell you if it's coming up anytime soon on your route. You'll never kick yourself for getting off the highway too soon and settling for a greasy spoon when better food options were just around the bend.
Available on: Android, iOS
Maps.Me
The Maps.Me mobile app lets you browse around the globe, zoom in on any region or city, and download a detailed map of that area to use offline. You'll see an option to download just the map or the map with directions enabled to get you from point A to B without an Internet connection. What I like about Maps.Me is the great level of detail on maps for even very remote places.
Available on: Android, Amazon Fire, BlackBerry, iOS
Roadtrippers
Tell Roadtrippers your starting location and destination, dates of travel, and what kinds of things you're interested in finding along the way, and this app will plot your journey for you. Roadtrippers can find offbeat attractions, restaurants, museums, amusement parks, camp sites, and more. When you find a site you like, just add it to your trip, and Roadtrippers will redraw your travel map accordingly.
Available on: Android, iOS, Web
Roomer
We all know we can save a good deal of money by booking hotels in advance. The problem, especially on road trips, is that we don't always get to the destination in time for the reservation, and if you've paid ahead, you're out of luck. Not so if you use Roomer. This app and website (roomertravel.com) helps travelers sell their prepaid reservations to people who can use them to recoup some of that otherwise lost cost. If you need a hotel in a pinch, you can also see if anyone on Roomer is trying to offload a hotel room in your desired location. Everyone wins.
Available on: Android, iOS, Web
Triposo
Driving through the desert or deep into mountains, you can't be sure you'll have Internet access. Triposo puts offline maps and travel guides onto your phone so you can use them even in dead zones. Before you download maps and guides for any destination, Triposo tells you how much space they will take up on your phone, too. When you pull up a destination on Triposo, it offers top sightseeing suggestions, a weather forecast, and more ways to explore the destination.
Available on: Android, iOS
TV Food Maps
A friend turned me onto TV Food Maps after she raved about its value on her last big U.S. roadtrip. This interactive app and website finds restaurants and eateries that have appeared on various television food shows, such as Bizarre Foods American, Top Chef, $40 a Day, Restaurant Impossible and (groan) Diners, Drive-ins, and Dives. What could be more American than eating your way through a road trip?
Available on: Android, iOS, Web
Wanderu
If you don't drive but still want to take a road trip, try Wanderu. This app and website is a search aggregator and price comparison tool for bus and train tickets. Enter the dates you want to travel, plus your beginning and ending point, and Wanderu will look for fares on Amtrak, Greyhound, MegaBus, Bolt Bus, TrailwaysNY, BestBus, and other bus and train carriers.
Available on: Android, iOS, Web
Waze
Waze is a community-driven app for traffic and other information about the road, including police speed traps, potholes, and accidents. While Google Maps tells you about major reported road problems, Waze knows the nitty-gritty. You can even see the speeds at which cars are traveling in congestion. In cities, it's popular among taxi and car service drivers, but it's equally useful on highways. Beware, though: Waze needs to use your location information all the time, even in the background, which will take a toll on your battery.
Available on: Android, iOS, Windows Phone
Yelp
The beauty of Yelp, an app that offers user-generated recommendations for businesses, is that it's used widely by a lot of people. If you show up at a destination and want to find the closest cup of decent coffee, Yelp will probably do the best job. While some other travel apps have plenty of recommendations from other travelers, Yelp is more likely to be used by locals. It's especially good with restaurants, but Yelp can also help you find auto repair shops, health clinics, and other places you might need to visit unexpectedly while on a road trip.
Available on: Android, BlackBerry, iOS, Web, Windows Phone
For more recommendations, see 15 Best Travel Apps.