If you’re equipped with a smartwatch running Android Wear, it’s helpful to know that it can serve as a useful travel companion. Whether traveling to a foreign country, or somewhere closer to home, a smartwatch can act as a supplement to or near replacement for a smartphone. Because it’s always accessible on the wrist, an Android Wear smartwatch is excellent for travel when you don’t want to keep digging your phone out of a suitcase, purse or pocket and can access information at a glance. Try these 5 recommended travel apps for your smartwatch.
1. Duolingo
This wildly popular language learning app also supports limited Android Wear functionality. You can brush up on vocabulary for the particular language you’re learning by testing yourself with flashcards right on your smartwatch. It never hurts to learn a few words in the local language in the event you need them or just to understand the culture better.
2. 1Weather : Widget Forecast Radar
You’ll never be caught off guard by changing weather conditions with this app. You simply input your location and the current weather is updated and displayed on your wrist in real time. Changing locations is easy, so you can set it to wherever you’re traveling to and get immediate updates on the local weather.
3. Hotels.com
If you’ve made a booking for lodging through Hotels.com, the app now has full support for Android Wear. You can view the full smartphone app remotely from your smartwatch or you can see important information like your booking data, hotel address, and notifications. With so many things to juggle while traveling, having that information right on your watch can save precious time and frustration.
4. Glympse
With Glympse, you can share your GPS location instantly with friends, family and trusted colleagues. Not only is it great for informing others of your current location, you can use it as a safety precaution to make sure you don’t get separated from others while traveling or to find each other in the event that you do. GPS functionality is right at home on a smartwatch and this is an amazing application for it.
5. ViewRanger GPS – Trails & Maps
Another great app for GPS, ViewRanger GPS provides you with detailed maps and route navigation, both online and offline. The ability to access map information without a data connection is absolutely vital, especially in areas where you might not have reliable data access. The route navigation and planning is first class as well, and is incredible for hiking, cycling, or general travel. A digital compass arrow provides direction and distance to location, right from your wrist. You can also share your location with others which can be very useful for both social and safety applications.
These apps can make any trip just a little bit easier and maybe even a little bit more fun. Give them a try if you’ve ever wondered whether your smartwatch can also improve your travel experience.