Don’t Leave Home Without It

If you’re not using travel websites or smartphone apps to plan a vacation, you could be missing out on a lot of the fun. While many travel apps help you find great deals on airplane tickets and hotels, some actually do a lot of the work that a travel agent would do.

Roadtrippers doesn’t do all of the work for you but it certainly can help find cool off-the-beaten-path spots and schedule them on an itinerary.

Simply begin planning a trip by entering your destination and, unless you’ve given the app permission to access your location, your starting point. Quickly, Roadtrippers will map out the best route for you to take by automobile. Along the route, Roadtrippers puts an icon to mark interesting places, hotels, parks, historical monuments, sporting event arenas, etc. You choose which site category you’d like to be on your map.

You can plan the trip either within the app or at the Roadtrippers website (www.roadtrippers.com).

Roadtrippers also has suggested trips based on your location if you’re just looking for a spontaneous adventure.

The app also will make suggestions based on where you are at the moment and the time of day. When I opened the app at 10 in the morning, it suggested places nearby for coffee or breakfast.

Not every historical site is listed in the app. In fact, I found the app missing quite a few and it is unclear how, or even if, users are able to add or edit locations.

I do like the fact Roadtrippers works well with GPS apps Waze, Google Maps and Apple Maps. Since most people will use their phones for directions and guidance, seeing the stops you’ve selected along the way pop up, along with traffic information is very helpful.

Roadtrippers is a free app for iPhones and Android devices. There is a paid version with bonus extra features such as accessing maps offline, the ability to pin or select up to 150 waypoints or sites along the trip route, dark and light screen mode and the removal of ads.

 

Bonus tip: Parents with a kid in the backseat, don’t miss Waze’s special voices for directions