During 7 months of backpacking through Southeast Asia, we relied on a variety of travel apps. Whether you’re navigating a new area, booking accommodation or exchanging currency, there’s an app for that.
Here are 5 useful travel apps for backpacking Southeast Asia:
Maps.Me
Maps.Me allows users to download maps to be used offline. It’s incredibly handy for rural areas with limited cell service, and it single-handedly saved us from getting lost many times. Whenever we departed for a new country, we made sure to download the area’s map prior to arrival. Maps.Me is critical in getting from the airport/bus terminal to your hostel because you are unlikely to have cell service upon arrival. Every country has a different cell carrier, so a SIM card from the previous country won’t work at the new location. We used Maps.Me to bridge the gap between carries.
Another great feature of Maps.Me is that it often includes locations that aren’t marked on Google or Apple Maps. Users also have the ability to pin locations for future reference during their travels.
iOS Link: Download Here
Android Link: Download Here
Grab
Grab is the Southeast Asia equivalent to Uber of Lyft. Like those apps, it enables users to book rides via the app for a predetermined price. One of the main differences between Grab and its equivalents is that users can pay drivers in cash.
While traveling Southeast Asia, you will often have a variety of taxi drivers seeking your business as soon as you arrive at a new location. Grab is a great way to make sure you’re paying a fair price. Instead of officially calling a Grab, we would often open the app, see the price listed for our destination and then negotiate for that price with the Taxi drivers on location. If they weren’t willing to work at that price, we would call a Grab.
Note: Grab is restricted from most airports and busy destinations in Southeast Asia. These locations are limited to taxis exclusively, but you will still be able to check the Grab app to find the approximate cost.
iOS Link: Download Here
Android Link: Download Here
Hostelworld
Hostelworld is the go-to app for finding hostels all around the world. Southeast Asia is no different. For those unfamiliar with Hostelworld, it’s incredibly useful for researching hostels and reading reviews from other backpackers. You can sort hostels by a multitude of factors, including location, atmosphere, cleanliness and security.
During our trip we noticed that many hostels have a surcharge on Hostelworld compared to Booking.com or Hotels.com. We recommend doing your research on Hostelworld before booking on another platform whenever possible.
iOS Link: Download Here
Android Link: Download Here
Splitwise
Splitwise is a useful app for splitting charges between a group. A big part of backpacking is meeting other travelers and going on group excursions. With that, it can be hard to split up costs.
With Splitwise, you can enter all of the costs among the group and it will tell you how much everyone owes one another at the end. Groups can be pre-set and charged together, or you can charge only certain people in the group depending on the transaction. Overall, it’s easily the best app we found for splitting up group charges.
At the end, you can settle up via the app, or by using cash. Whatever you prefer.
iOS Link: Download Here
Android Link: Download Here
xCurrency
XCurrency is our preferred app for tracking exchange rates. You simply set your home currency and then specify which other currencies to display. You can add up to 6 currencies to the homepage at a time, so it’s a great way to keep track each currency in relations to others you used during your trip.
Based on xCurrency, we used the exchange rate listed to find a fair window to exchange cash whenever we switched countries. Keep in mind, ATMs/banks usually offer the best exchange rates. However, you won’t always have access to these options, so it’s good to know a fair rate when seeking out local exchange service.
iOS Link: Download Here
Android Link: Download Here
