The 10 must-have apps for road trippers

While Google Maps is your best friend when it comes to ensuring you don’t get lost along the way, a road trip is never about the destination, but the journey. So as well as plenty of snacks, great company and an endless playlist, there are a couple of handy apps that will also make the journey unforgettable. 

Check out these 10 apps that every road tripper needs on their phone!

Heading off on a road trip with mates? Take the hassle out of planning with the Roadtrippers app. Add collaborators and search for interesting places along the route, and easily add them to your trip planner. And if you’re travelling with a furry friend, it even lists pet-friendly stops. It also has free travel guides, and sample itineraries if you need a bit of inspiration!

Whether you’re road-tripping in Australia or overseas, sometimes you simply don’t want to chew up your data (or perhaps you’re in a bit of a coverage black spot). This is where Maps.me comes in very handy. Simply pre-load the maps you need for your trip, and all the features work in offline/airplane mode. So you can search for shops, routes, and even accommodation without a mobile network.

With rising petrol prices, road trips can quickly turn exxy! So save yourself a few bucks every time you fill up by searching for the cheapest fuel in the area with Petrol Spy. Simply load up the map, and search by fuel type to see up to date prices from petrol stations in the area. It lists the big ones such as Shell, BP, 7-Eleven and Ampol as well as independents.

If you're starting to get drowsy, it’s best to pull over and rest for the night. Hotel Tonight lists last minute travel deals (sometimes up to 70% off) on hotel rooms for that night, so you’ll get the best deals while on the road.

If your style is less hotel, more tent, you need to get WikiCamps on your phone. WikiCamps lists campgrounds, caravan parks, rest stops, dump points and much more, with crowd-sourced reviews of every place. Best of all, simply download the content and map when you’re on WiFi and it’ll work completely offline so you don't have to worry about phone signal. You can try it for free for 14 days, after that it’s $7.99 to keep using.

When you’re exploring the great outdoors, far away from the bright city lights, take the opportunity to do a little stargazing. Thanks to the app Startracker, you can point it up at the night sky and easily identify stars, constellations, planets and cosmic events such as meteors.

While the radio is a great way to find out the latest news in the local area, the moment it gets crackly, it’s time to load up Spotify. Choose from great road trip playlists, or even play a game of ‘Name That Tune’ to find out who has the best music memory in the car.

An absolute essential on any road trip is knowing how far you are from the next toilet stop. The National Public Toilet Map shows the location of more than 19,000 public and private toilets across Australia. The map lists location, opening hours and any additional services such as baby change tables.

Whether you’re on a tight budget, or just looking for a great local pub to stop for dinner, you’ll love The Happiest Hour. It lists happy hour specials on drinks, but it also shows steak and parma nights, trivia nights, and other awesome deals at pubs and bars right across Australia.

It’s nice to break up the trip and stretch your legs somewhere that’s not a petrol station occasionally. If you want to discover some off the beaten track sites and attractions, check out the Geocaching app. Geocaching is a worldwide game where people hide small caches, and share clues to help you find them. More often than not, they’re hidden in places that you might not have discovered otherwise!

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