{"id":173041,"date":"2025-08-25T00:50:14","date_gmt":"2025-08-25T00:50:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/173041\/"},"modified":"2025-08-25T00:50:14","modified_gmt":"2025-08-25T00:50:14","slug":"this-is-the-one-travel-app-i-cant-afford-to-forget","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/173041\/","title":{"rendered":"This is the one travel app I can’t afford to forget"},"content":{"rendered":"

Over the years, I\u2019ve traveled to numerous countries, including France, Spain, Serbia, Poland, and China. I\u2019ve always been diligent in filling my suitcase with the necessary clothes, toiletries, and snacks, but I\u2019ve been equally thoughtful about which apps are installed on my phone.<\/p>\n

One of the apps that I forget at my peril is Google Translate<\/a>. I can speak a little bit of French, Spanish, and Mandarin, but beyond that, my grasp of foreign languages is pretty much nonexistent. I\u2019ll try my best in shops and restaurants, but it takes me an inordinate amount of time to read menus, check labels, and communicate with locals on a level they\u2019ll understand.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

It is for these reasons that I\u2019m absolutely indebted to Google Translate. Not only has the app gotten me out of and through some tricky situations, but it\u2019s also made traveling through foreign countries so much more enjoyable.<\/p>\n

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Homescreen heroes<\/p>\n

This is part of a regular series of articles exploring the apps that we couldn’t live without. Read them all here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Now, I\u2019m sure the app needs no introduction, but I wonder if you\u2019re using it to its full potential. You might know that it can translate text you type into the engine, but did you know that it can also translate images, websites, and even whole documents? This is one of the best translation apps around, and if you\u2019re holidaying in a foreign country this summer, then I highly recommend downloading it.<\/p>\n

\"Google<\/p>\n

(Image credit: Future \/ Paul Hatton)Translating text with ease<\/p>\n

At the heart of the app is a text translation service. With support for over 130 different languages, you\u2019re bound to find the translation help you need in whatever country you find yourself in. All you have to do is type your text into the box, and Google will effortlessly translate it for you. It\u2019ll even do the hard work of detecting the language that you\u2019ve typed.<\/p>\n

The app will translate as you type, which means you\u2019ll benefit from real-time updates rather than having to wait till you\u2019ve finished typing a whole section. This is ideal if time is of the essence and you need to make yourself understood sooner rather than later.<\/p>\n

In reality, I don\u2019t make much use of manually typing my requests in because Google Translate has an unbelievably good voice dictation feature that can accurately translate spoken words and phrases. I find this to be so much quicker than relying on my fingers!<\/p>\n

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This feature can also be used to translate spoken words from a foreign language into words you\u2019ll understand. So, if you\u2019re getting a tour guide in a native language, interacting with a waiter, or trying to check into your hotel, just make sure your phone can hear their voice, and the app will do the rest.<\/p>\n

\"Google<\/p>\n

(Image credit: Future \/ Paul Hatton)Translating images like a pro<\/p>\n

Aside from text translation, I have found the app\u2019s ability to translate text in images the most useful feature. I\u2019ve used this to bring meaning to menus, road signs, books, labels, accessibility instructions, and more. This feature has been invaluable at those times when I\u2019ve either been physically lost or unable to properly access or travel through a space.<\/p>\n

The feature can be used in two different ways. The first is to instantly translate whatever you point your phone camera at. The second is to translate the text that is contained within a previously captured photo.<\/p>\n

The camera option is useful for on-the-go translation. If you turn up at a venue or park and you\u2019re presented with a map or set of instructions, then being able to simply point your camera at the sign and see the foreign words change to English (in my case) is an absolute lifesaver. The fact that these are overlaid on top of the image your camera is capturing makes you feel like you\u2019re accessing the space in a very similar way to all the natives.<\/p>\n

Translating text in an image is helpful at those times when a friend sends you a photo or when you don\u2019t need to take in the translated information at that specific point in time. The functionality works very similarly to the camera option in that it overlays the translated text on top of the original.<\/p>\n

\"Google<\/p>\n

(Image credit: Future \/ Paul Hatton)Free translation at your fingertips<\/p>\n

Google Translate is 100% free, which is incredible given the features and quality that it delivers. If you\u2019d like to explore other alternatives, then you could take a look at either DeepL<\/a>, Reverso<\/a>, or Yandex<\/a>. These offer very similar functionality, but in my experience, Google Translate provides the best user experience for everyday users.<\/p>\n

Google Translate also has the largest language database, supporting over 130 languages. This is significantly more than any of their competitors. If you\u2019re traveling to countries or regions with less common languages, then Google\u2019s offering should serve you best.<\/p>\n

So, if you\u2019re traveling somewhere soon, why not give it a try? Download Google Translate for free on iOS<\/a> or Android<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Over the years, I\u2019ve traveled to numerous countries, including France, Spain, Serbia, Poland, and China. I\u2019ve always been…\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":173042,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[22],"tags":[745,158,67,132,68],"class_list":{"0":"post-173041","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-computing","8":"tag-computing","9":"tag-technology","10":"tag-united-states","11":"tag-unitedstates","12":"tag-us"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@us\/115086663759622762","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/173041","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=173041"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/173041\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/173042"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=173041"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=173041"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/us\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=173041"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}