Travel apps are lighter, cheaper and more portable than most guidebooks, and enable travellers to carry around a whole host of travel information without adding any extra weight to the luggage. There are specialised apps written by enthusiasts, like a Chicago Gangland Tour or Boston by Mountain Bike, and more general apps which might, for example, give you an Essential Guide to New York City or to San Francisco.
Apple's Apps store carries many free travel apps, but even the travel apps you have to pay for usually have very cheap price tags starting at $0.99 and with most costing only $1.99 or $2.99.
Here are some of the best travel apps for the UK and Ireland, covering London, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Dublin, and Ireland.
Best London iPhone Apps
The very best things to see and do in London, chosen by writer Paul Murphy and including all the main museums, markets, fun stuff like Speaker's Corner in Hyde Park, pubs, brewery tours, places to eat and all the other essential London information. The Best of London has 275 entries and over 1500 photos, and is one of many excellent travel apps published by Sutro Media.
Does what it says on the tin – brings you London's best freebies and biggest bargains, including free museums, free concerts, fee live gigs, cheap eats, cheap theatre tickets, free lectures and all kinds of other stuff to enable you to see London on a budget.
London is one of the greenest cities in the world, with acres of space given over to parks, gardens, squares, commons, and even cemeteries and urban farms. This app shows you how to enjoy the best of them and is written by Abigail Hole, a London-born-and-bred travel and guidebook writer.
Covers over 160 shops chosen by author Ferne Arfin, illustrated with 900 photos to show what you can buy in some of the best but not always best-known shops in London. You can search for fashion, food, books, music – whatever you want to buy, and London Shophound will tell you what's nearby, what's further afield, and how to get there.
The best of alternative London from London resident and travel journalist Helen Ochyra, covering museums, music, nightlife, pubs and bars, shopping and much more quirky London stuff besides. It tries to take you away from the obvious and busy tourist spots to the places where the locals go to enjoy a quiet stroll or a good night out.
Best Ireland iPhone Apps
Georgina Campbell has a comprehensive Ireland website which includes hotels but is really strong on Ireland's restaurants, cafes, bars and other eating places. Version 1.0 was free and covered the best restaurants, cafés, pubs, wine bars, hotels, country houses, castles and B&Bs in the country. It was voted one of the Top 5 Irish Apps by the Sunday Business Post and one of the Top 20 Best iPhone Apps by the Irish Independent. Version 2.0 carries a small annual fee of €2.39 and adds several more categories including golf courses, gardens, festivals/events, special offers and articles about Ireland to read.
Compiled by Susan Byron who runs the Ireland's Hidden Gems website, and who is herself from Dublin, this app introduces visitors to her city and is one of several free apps about Ireland that she gives away on her website. This one includes things like the Top Ten Dublin Attractions, and Dublin's Top Ten Hidden Gems.
This Ireland app is also by Susan Byron (see previous entry) who tells the true story behind the blarney of St Patrick's Day – its history, the story of Irish traditional dancing and music, the street parades and plenty, of course, about food and drink.
Best Scotland iPhone Apps
Author Andy Hayes is a travel writer based in Edinburgh and his app about the city was recently included as a Number One in the Apple Store's What's Hot selections. It covers the best shopping streets, places with great views, the main attractions, restaurants that are the best without always being the most expensive, and other insider local tips for enjoying a visit to Edinburgh.
The company GPSMyCity.com have produced walking tours to cities all over the world, and this Glasgow app is typical. There's a free Lite version which has all the walks but without detailed mapping, while the $4.99 full version includes detailed route maps and turn-by-turn directions. Walks included are:
- Places of Worship
- Top Nightspots in Glasgow
- Best Shopping Destinations
- Glaswegian Museums
- Specialty Shops
- Popular Art Galleries
- Landmarks Of Glasgow
- Other Landmarks in Glasgow
- Family Fun in Glasgow
- Famous Architecture
- Daily Life in Glasgow
- Sauchiehall Street
Best Travel Apps
These are just a few of the better UK and Ireland travel apps around. To find others, visit Apple's iPhone Apps store and start searching (though the search engine isn't very user-friendly). Some tourist boards are also providing free apps to download from their websites. So these days when you travel, it's definitely a case of Don't Worry, Be Appy.
Mike Gerrard - Mike is an award-winning travel writer who has worked for National Geographic, the London Times, and many other clients. ...
