Top 7 Travel Apps to Save your Wallet

Money is tight these days and RV travel sure isn’t getting any cheaper! Fortunately, for those looking to continue on down the road, there are apps that will help find the best deals when it comes to cheaper gas prices, free boondocking locations and best priced RV resorts. Additionally, there are apps to pinpoint unique roadside attractions and hiking/nature trails in the area you might be passing through one day.  Check out this list of the top seven apps every RVer should have on their phone. 

1. Campendium

This app was created by campers, for campers. With over tens of thousands of RV parks and free boondocking remote locations listed, it won’t be difficult to find the perfect place to park for a night or two. 

Each location is vetted by a team of full-time travelers, and also receives honest feedback and reviews from the large pool of over 750,000 members. Likely the largest review app available today, RVers can trust this travel app to give detailed insight into virtually any lodging location. 

The features also include map overlays for cell phone coverage, as well as for public lands. This will ensure remote camping is legal, and safety will be ensured with a working cell phone. 

Use the keyword search bar to find lists of national and state parks, along with locations of dump sites within locations, and filter down to free places to set up camp as well. National forests and free campsites are also searchable. For even more insight and info, there is a Campendium blog that shares pertinent information on a regular basis. 

Once you sign up, be sure to start leaving your own reviews, photos and favorite locations for other RV travelers to rely on. 

The best part is the price. Is free cheap enough? Travelers can gain insight into where to park, what to expect and more with Campendium. 

2. iExit

iExit is probably the best app for days on the road in the RV, as well as for everyday use. This travel app pinpoints your location on interstates and provides insight as to what is nearby. As mentioned above, gas prices are more expensive these days and this travel app knows all the gas prices throughout the United States and highlights the station with the cheapest gas, at every single offramp on every single interstate. Best app available to keep money in your wallet. 

Also, good to use for finding a place to eat. The app will show what fast food and restaurants are available at the upcoming exit, plus it will also provide a list of the next several exits as well. In fact, search the upcoming 100 exits for all sorts of businesses: Starbucks, KOA campgrounds, Cracker Barrel,etc. Find upcoming places with free WiFi, free playgrounds, or rest areas by searching the powerful app. 

For those skeptical of trying new mom and pop diners, the entries are tied to yelp reviews, so you will know whether to give a local location a chance or not.

This app is great for in-the-moment driving if you are looking to stop for gas or food soon. But, more than that, it can also be used to see everything at each exit. Not just gas stations, but shopping centers, banks, and hotels. 

A travel app this impressive sounds like it should come with an expensive monthly subscription price tag, but similar to the Campendium app, it is also free. The app is crowdsourced, and states that users upload over 350,000 updates each month.  This free travel app is definitely one to add to the travel app folder of your phone. 

3. All Trails

For those who love to take in the scenery while staying active, this is the perfect travel app to add. Whether it is for hiking trails, biking trails, running, or snow sports, All Trails will pinpoint the perfect path for your location. 

Registration is required, but the basic level is free. There are features that are only available at the subscription level, which is called AllTrails+. 

The free app offers maps of more than 400,000 trails and allows you to track your progress through the hike. During your hike/bike ride, the interactive map will show you where you are within the trail, and how much further the trail lasts. 

The app easily lets you search for dog-friendly trails, wheelchair-friendly, trails and kid/stroller-friendly trails, allowing you to get the most out of your vacation travels. 

The upgraded subscription plan, AllTrails+, allows you to search by distance from your location to find the closest trails, offers a live route planner that details things such as air quality, light pollution, and pollen. Maps working offline, trail maps in 3D, and receiving satellite weather updates in real time are a few other perks of the paid subscription. 

For those wanting to know where the winding trails might lead without spending a monthly fee, the basic All Trails app option will provide plenty of information for a great walk, bike outing or mountain climbing adventure. 

4. Roadside America

For those looking to add some flair to an RV trip, or just to brighten up a weekend, this travel app is where it’s at! The Roadside America app gives tipster reports that shine a light on less traveled places that are accessible through the upcoming exit, as well sharing fun stories and interesting pictures from other travelers. 

Find a location or destination that sounds interesting on the app and gain insightful knowledge such as more information on the location, where it is located, driving directions, the cost and hours of operation. There is also a listed phone number for any questions travelers might have. 

Searching can be broken down into categories such as ‘the best’ ‘major fun’ and ‘worth a detour’.  There is also an alphabetical listing that houses groups such as irrational geographics, monsters, music, mysterious, and nature, among many others. 

The app ensures that a traveler will never miss a weird statue, odd museum, or a giant pumpkin along the side of the road. The travel app is free, with extras available for a small purchase. The app includes one of seven U.S./Canada regions, with an in-app purchase of $6.99 to unlock all remaining regions. For just an additional region or two, a purchase of $1.99 per region is available a la carte. 

The on-the-road app map offers 15,000+ offbeat attractions, along with point-to-point places and exclusive research targets.  The only downside to this app is that it is currently only available for compatible iPhone, iPad, and iPod touch devices. 

5. iOverlander

This free travel app is available on iOs, Android and web browsers. The feature that sets it apart from other similar apps is the offline option. If you find yourself with dropped service, options and maps will still be available, so no worries about getting lost to or from the must-see attraction. 

iOverlander is perfect for the RVers searching for any type of camping setup. There are locations to be found for wild camping/boondocking, informal campgrounds, and RV resorts. Search and filter to find campgrounds that are of interest and then view all the offered amenities offered. Filter for must-haves such as pet-friendly, Wi-Fi options, or big rig accessible. 

Other RV travelers and campers leave feedback, allowing you to know about road conditions, how recommended the location might or might not be, along with other pertinent information, such as check-in, check-out times, etc. 

Further information provided includes where to access amenities. Where to fill water tanks, propane fill up spots, laundry facilities and dump sites can easily be located for each campground within the app.

The app is free and there are no plans to change that. The creators of the app do ask that travelers who benefit from this travel app leave a review of their chosen destination, to help ensure the app reviews stay updated, reflecting the most recent information. 

6. Accuweather

Being in a new location on vacation can leave you uncertain of specific weather conditions and patterns a region might hold. Not knowing what the day has planned in terms of wind, rain or snow can be frustrating. That is why all travelers should add the free Accuweather app to their phone’s travel app folder. 

Be in the know, no matter where you are. Type in the zip code of your current location and gain access to hour-by-hour forecasts, air quality, and week-long forecasts. For coverage of severe weather, watch live through the app to see where the storm might be hitting.

This travel app is just as practical for daily living as it is for traveling purposes and for a free download, it can’t be beat.

7. Sanidumps

This free app from Sanidumps gives access to the largest up-to-date RV dump station available. Quickly locate where dump station locations are, for access to dump gray and black water holding tanks. 

All search results are displayed within Google maps, allowing step-by-step driving directions. The distances and directions are displayed in your choice of kilometers or miles.  Travelers can search for nearby dump stations based on GPS or they can run a search by city name. 

The free version provides users with driving directions to one favorite dump station site, while the premium version allows for 20 favorites. The premium version also provides GPS coordinates for each site. 

There’s a Travel App for you!

So, in closing, these seven travel apps can work together to help save money at the pump, save time (and gas) by finding direct routes to wherever you are headed, and provide free access to hundreds of thousands of off-the-wall, unique, never-heard-of places to view items, take on nature at hiking/biking trails or find the nation’s best slice of meatloaf. With all seven of these travel apps downloaded to your phone, you will possess the power to travel like a rock star (without the rockstar price tag).