November 22, 2015

Android Apps for Travelling

Posted in Uncategorized tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , at 11:30 pm by Eon Strife

Nowadays smartphones and tables are sophisticated enough to be our digital swiss army knife for various purposes, such as travelling. I list here some useful Android apps for when we visit various places in the world. I made this list to serve as a reminder for me which app to reinstall if I visit these places, as right now I am deleting some apps in my Android device in order to clean it up a bit.

There are some widely known apps, that can be used ‘almost’ worldwide, such as Google Maps, Google Translate, Uber, Skype, Rebtel, which are installed in most Android devices. However, some general apps, as I say, general, might not be comprehensive enough for some places. For example, Google Maps told me to take wrong bus while I was in Copenhagen or to wait for bus at the wrong spot in Osaka. Hence, I suggest to use apps that are specialized to the places in addition to the general apps.

I only list down Android apps here as I only own Android devices. I think the list is applicable too for iOS platform as some of the apps here have their iOS counterparts.

As for Windows Phone platform, I hope it could catch up. Anyway, I own a Windows Phone as my main phone for communication, social media, and photo taking (it is Nokia Lumia 1020 after all).

If you have suggestions for additional apps and additional countries or cities, feel free to write it down in comment and I will try to incorporate your suggestions into the list.

And, here is the list.

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA

STATE : CALIFORNIA

  1. 511 Transit : Shows bus and train schedules around the SF Bay (including San Jose and other nearby cities in San Francisco). Route (including walking) is also provided.

SINGAPORE

  1. Singapore Map : Comprehensive map of Singapore city.

JAPAN

WHOLE JAPAN

  1. Japan Travel Guide With Me : Contains comprehensive travel information for many places in Japan. Actually it pulls its content from travel wiki. You might want to skip ahead to use web browser to check the contents in travel wiki.
  2. Japan Travel Guide by Triposo : Alternative to the app #1 above. They also provide separate apps for each city.
  3. NAVITIME for Japan Travel : We can use this to search for bus and train transit for the whole japan. This is a great free alternative to Hyperdia app which is not free.
  4. Gurunavi : Provides eating establishment suggestions near to our location (included information such as average price, English-friendly, type, etc.). Despite the official name to be “Tokyo & Osaka Restaurant Guide”, the app worked while I was in Kobe. Hence I put it in the “WHOLE JAPAN” category

KOBE

  1. KOBE Official Travel Guide : All information you need about sightseeing, eating, transit, etc. in KOBE. I think it is provided by official KOBE municipality

TOKYO

  1. Tokyo Subway Navigation : For navigating subway trains in Tokyo. It also provides suggested exits for tourist spots

Additional notes :

  1. Android does not come with a QR code scanner by default. It is helpful to install at least on barcode scanner app in your device. Some places might offer additional information if you scan the provided QR code. For example, in Japan the company Sekai Menu provides menu translation service for foreigners. You will see QR codes in some eating establishments, which upon being scanned, will direct you to a webpage where you can see the menu name in English.