Everyone in the car is probably going to have a phone on any road trip.
The trick is keeping everyone from spending the whole trip scrolling through the same old apps.
Before heading out for Labor Day weekend, consider downloading a few apps that can help with the drive, entertain the kids, and even make it easier to save memories from the trip.
GasBuddy can help drivers find cheaper gas along the way.
The app relies heavily on crowdsourced information, with users reporting and updating prices at gas stations. That means prices can change, but the information is often more current than simply driving.
Google Maps isn’t just for driving. Its live feature gives walking directions. Use your camera to see where you’re going, and what you’re looking at.
Young kids might like Splat, a coloring app that turns any photo from your trip into a digital image they can color with their fingers.
Older kids might like Coverstar. It looks like TikTok with short videos and challenges. It’s designed for kids and doesn’t allow private messages.
For everybody else in the car, there’s Netflix. Download a few before you leave so you’re not using your data plan or depending on a good internet connection.
Trip Tunes builds custom playlists to give road trips a soundtrack. Enter where you’re going and what for, and choose some genres and TripTunes will create a digital mixtape with songs you might not have thought of.
And when you get where you’re going, TripMemo lets everyone add photos and memories from the trip into one digital journal. Rather than having to share a lot of photos with others, everyone can open the TripMemo app for a digital scrapbook.
Phones are going to be making the trip anyway. Best to find some apps you don’t always use when you’re home.