On this page you will find useful travel tips and tools to navigate life on the move in a foreign country. I've explained some of the apps and their uses, as well as what to use them for when overseas. Click on the side of each title for drop down information.
E-SIMS and Unlocked Phones
When traveling in a different country, having a reliable means of communication is essential. Arguably the most important and useful piece of equipment you can bring is a cell phone. Now, there a couple of really important things to think about before you bring a US cellular device overseas. I've traveled with people who just used their local US carrier, like AT&T, but remember to look at the cost of this. Usually, it's $10/day, so using your phone for a week in Spain is now a $70 ordeal. If you're gonna be gone for a couple weeks or more... well, you get the drift.
There are far better ways around this. The first one, is the use of an E-SIM. This is a downloadable SIM card that allows you to use overseas carriers. You should check if your phone is compatible with E-SIMS. While it does cost a little more, it is extremely convenient in that it should integrate with the local system quickly. Just check on-line if your particular phone model can work with an E-SIM, and if the country you are going to has a service that provides it. For example, Orange is a huge company in Europe and Morocco, and provides service in over 100 countries. If you are looking for quick integration and immediate use of your phone when you are in a foreign country, an E-SIM will probably be your best bet.
The next best thing is to have your phone unlocked by your carrier, or buy an unlocked phone which will allow you to use a foreign SIM card. Remember how US carriers charge $10/day for service overseas? You can get an Orange SIM card at a local street shop in Spain for $10, and have 10 gigabytes of data and 200 minutes of local and international calls. Also, WiFi is available in a lot of public places, and most of the coffee shops and restaurants I visited in Spain. It's more hit or miss in places like Morocco, but it's worth the ask. Also, so far every major airport I've been to has free WiFi, so it's a good place to get your maps up and running before leaving the signal range. A lot of carriers will have a kiosk at a major airport to buy their SIM card, but I've found these to cost about double if not more than buying it from a normal store, which is No Bueno.
WhatsApp and Skype
The next things I'm going to cover are WhatsApp and Skype. WhatsApp is a free message and calling app that now falls under the Meta umbrella. It allows you to call and text other people and businesses with a WhatsApp account, and while it's gaining traction in the US, it's a lot more popular and widely used overseas. So long as you have data or Wifi, you can use WhatsApp to voice and video call, send text, pictures, voice messages, and even location share, which is really useful when you're trying to find someone or vice versa.
Another useful app to have for communications is Skype by Microsoft. You can make free voice and video calls and texts to other Skype accounts, but you can also add money to your Skype account to make regular phone calls. Since WhatsApp still isn't as mainstream in the US as it is overseas, Skype will allow you to call someone's cell or landline like you were making a normal call, but there is a by the minute charge, which still isn't that much. I usually have like $10 of Skype credit for emergencies, buy Skype does not charge for calls to 800 or 877 numbers, which has come in clutch a few times for things like calling banks or other US customer service lines.
Google Translate
Now, one of the most fun, free, yet wildly useful apps available is Google Translate. It's use is very self-explanatory, where you input text in one box, select the language to translate to, and the result is translated as best as possible. It also allows you to download select languages, which I HIGHLY ENCOURAGE. Should you find yourself in a situation where you are out of signal range or just run out of data, you can still use Google Translate, which can be invaluable. Google Translate also has a talk back feature that sounds out the translated text, which can be very useful, for example, if you want to tell a taxi driver where you want to go, or in some cases, if the person you are trying to communicate with does not read. Had this happen to me with a cab drive once, which really worried me. Another cool feature is the camera app. This allows you to point your camera at words like on a package, and it will display the translation on your phone. This comes in really handy reading restaurant menus and package labels at grocery stores. You may find yourself using this app daily, so don't forget to download the languages of all the places you are going to visit.
Online Cards
When traveling to different countries, it's really important to research how to pay for things. I shot myself in the foot a couple of times in this regard, so I had to get creative with my workarounds. Had I the foresight to look up this information beforehand, I could have saved myself a couple of wildly inconvenient events. So, for example, if you were to go to Spain, you would find that you could pay for most things with your phone or the NFC (tap) feature of your card. Taxis, metros, buses, corner stores, pretty much have this convenience, so I carried very little cash when I was there. Now, where I screwed up was when I went to a little town in Portugal called Albufeira, thinking that this would be the case as well. It was not. Not even the ATMs had the Tap feature enabled, so I ended up striking out trying to use my phone to get cash. Later that trip I went to Morocco, and here, even in the city of Marrakech, I could not find an ATM with the Tap feature. Also, Morocco is a cash economy, so I found it best to exchange or withdraw a bunch of cash, and take just what I wanted to spend that day out with me, leaving the rest at my place.
With that being said, in some places, it was definitely nice to go anywhere and pretty much just have my phone one me. Things like Google, Apple, or Samsung Pay make life a breeze, and it's nice not having to carry a wallet. There are places like Barcelona where pick pocketing is rampant, so it's nice to be able to operate with just your phone, but also make sure to secure your phone with something like a lanyard or a front facing shoulder pack. While it may not be as fashionable as some people would like, fashion takes a back seat if your phone gets stolen and your finances are compromised.
Revolut
Revolut is kind of like an online bank. You can link your account to existing banks and cards, but also direct deposit to it (you get routing and account numbers). You can also send and receive money like in cash app, but internationally. You also get issued a physical debit card, and through the app get one time use virtual cards, which increases your account security if that card number is ever stolen. This is a great app to have in your arsenal as it is on line, so if you forget to add travel plans in your bank and your card gets shut down, you can always fall back on your Revolut card, or even use it as your primary when on the Go.
Money Gram
Now, I mentioned earlier that I had a couple of gdammits that forced me to get creative with how to get cash to myself without my physical card because the stores and restaurants only accepted cash. Enter Money Gram. Now, we have Money Gram in the US, and I usually go to WalMart when I have to use it from the US. However, there is also a website and an app, from where you can send money to yourself for physical pick up at a Money Gram location. Many corner stores in both Europe and Morocco operate with Money Gram, so if you put yourself as the recipient and pay from your bank account (via your debit card numbers), you can pick up the cash at these locations. At the time, there was a tiny little fee that was less than using the ATM, so it was a bonus. Sometimes also in remote areas, your US ATM card might not work for security reasons, so this little trick is a handy one to have in your back pocket.
Travel Smarts: Travel Apps, GPS, and Getting Around
GPS
Most phones will come with some kind of GPS app built in, like Google Maps or Apple Maps. If you do not have at least one of these, download one from your app store. Google Maps is what I use mostly, and it's super useful because even if you don't have a working SIM card yet, so long as you have WiFi at your starting point, you can look up your destination, plug it in, start your route, and it will keep you on track even once you're out of WiFi range. Cool huh? Just don't deviate from the route or it will look for an alternate route that it won't find because it's out of signal range. Now, GPS apps aren't always 100% accurate, so if you are going to return to a certain place, like your hotel, or AirBnB, drop a waypoint on your location so you can find it even if putting the address in takes you somewhere else. So make sure that your Google Maps, Apple Maps, or Waze is installed and calibrated, and it doesn't hurt to put in some useful waypoints ahead of time.
Omio
Omio is a cool and simple app for finding schedules for things like planes, trains, motorcoaches, and rideshares. You can also buy train tickets in Europe on the app, and it will display and can be used for boarding. Very cool and very handy for quick trips in and out of airports and between cities. This one is can come in clutch when trying to find a way to smaller towns without major airports, or if you just want to take the scenic route and go by train instead of flying.
Tripit
This is a neat app that my friend Jackie turned me on to that has been invaluable in organizing my transportation. Now before, I would write all my trips and minor details on a notepad app... flight, time, duration, destination, and maybe if I had to get to another gate in a hurry because of a connecting flight. Now, when you travel, sometimes you get sleep deprived, and thinking gets a little blurry, you forget things, and end up missing flights or trains. This little guy gets your trip details from Google and displays it in an easy to read linear graphic, which will allow you to plan your moves and lessen the gdammits. I've found that preparing as much as you can ahead of time actually allows you to travel more relaxed and confident as opposed to stressing out and anxious. But maybe it's just me.