Apps We Love: Transportation

📍GENERAL:

Google Maps: An indispensable  tried and true savior for orientation, cataloguing where you’d like to visit, and for getting around. Unfortunately there is no real alternative, but despite its faults here and there, including suddenly limiting our pins to only 3,000 in 2024(!), we can’t do without it. There are far too many tactics for using Google Maps with your travels to get into here but to name a couple, if you are in doubt about your internet connectivity when arriving somewhere new be sure to download an “offline” map of your destination ahead of time. Also, many cities now have now fully integrated public transportation options with Google Maps making sorting out public transit a breeze… simply enter or tap where you want to go, tap directions, then the transport icon and you get detailed public transportation instructions, along with route info, and sometimes even the cost. Some cities are so detailed they will even tell you which exits to take within metro stations, which is a super helpful when you’re in massive cities with multiple exits shooting in all directions.  

Rome 2 Rio: Great for route planning in completely unfamiliar or more obscure places around the world. Rome2Rio does a fantastic job displaying all transport options to get from Point A to Point B…AND can be used in urban or rural settings worldwide. If you click through its recommended options often it will also name particular transport companies and with a little sleuthing on your part you’ll discover links to that bus, train and ferry line website which Google may have failed to find. Overall, though we’ve found it’s better as a planning tool than for definitive information on departure times or prices.

✈️ FLIGHTS & AIRPORTS:

Flighty: Flighty is a great organizing tool for air travel and stat nerds to keep track of flights (past and future) in one place. The free version also creates great maps, provides helpful flight updates like gate information, changes/delays, baggage claim info and even industry-first features like finding out WHY your flight is delayed. We’ve been very impressed with its functionality.

Flight Connections: This app and website provide a unique overview of all flight routes worldwide, as well as flight schedules and timetables for every airline in the world. We have used this to get an idea of which airports are likely to offer better flexibility in flights and airlines or when tracking down that elusive budget airline that doesn’t show up in flight searches in more obscure places. Thus, it’s a terrific tool for travel hacking and planning.

Kiwi: This app is ideal for finding unique, multi-airline travel routes and has a terrific to “ANYWHERE” search tool which pulls up inexpensive flight connections from any city you wish to depart from. Yes, Google Flights has this too, but Kiwi does much better at including budget airlines in its search results. It also has some rather clever budget features included in its search called “travel hacks” which let you select options such as self-transfer, throwaway ticketing, and hidden cities.

PointsYeah: Not an app… yet, but we have to include it as a resource here. Points Yeah is a travel points and miles search tool that helps find award flight (and hotel) availability using your airline miles or bank rewards. It supports most credit card loyalty programs and a growing list of airline and hotel programs. Set alerts and filter to find the best “value for points.” It can be especially helpful in displaying particular any points transfer bonuses, you might have otherwise missed, or in making the clear connections between the various alliances and rewards programs. Sign up for the free version to unlock searching. Offering similar functionality but additional rewards programs, Award Tool, should be used in concert with Points Yeah to uncover a wider swath of program redemptions and routes.

Priority Pass: Priority Pass is a worldwide membership-based airport lounge network which is included through our Capital One Venture X credit card (referral link). The Priority Pass app lets you search for lounges by airport, check amenities (Wi-Fi, showers, working space, food & drink), view hours, location, and even use a digital membership card for quick and easy access.

Skiplagged: This app and website will show you flights that other search engines won’t include hidden city flights, and arbitrary round trips. A hidden city flight is a flight where you get off at the layover rather than the final destination.

Timeshifter: This app is terrific for trans-oceanic time jumps to prepare and adjust your body to jet lag. After plugging in your flight, it tells you when to drink caffeine, when to take melatonin, when to sit in a darker room and when to expose yourself to light. It helped significantly when we flew from the US to Japan last year.

🚂 🚌 TRAINS AND BUSSES:

Moovit: A all-in-one must for urban transportation including subways, buses, trains, bikes, and ferries. And everything is in REAL time, which seems to make it much more reliable than Google. Moovit has worked well for us in some surprising destinations.

12GoAsia: A terrific app for booking buses, trains and ferries. Works best in Southeast Asia, in our experience.

FlixBus: Inexpensive buses across Europe, and a few other places including certain regions of the US

🚕 TAXIS:

Global: There are a whole slew of taxi apps around the world and it really depends on the city which ones are available and most effective. Taxi apps tend to come and go, and occasionally you’ll come across some random and obscure taxi app in a country; only use it that one time and never again… looking at you Brunei. They’re all relatively the same, although some are cash only. The most available worldwide is Uber. Here are a few others we’ve used when Uber is unavailable.

Bolt: strong presence in Europe and LATAM, also in Africa and the Middle East. Almost always cheaper than Uber.

In-Drive: a “name your price” ride app which we’ve used in Latin America. We’ve heard it’s also great in countries that do a lot of bartering.

Others we’ve used that seem to be country specific and are sticking around have included: Cabify, Didi, 99, Lyft, and TaxiMe.

🚗 CARS/RIDESHARE:

BlaBla Car: BlaBla Car is terrific for picking up rides with drivers who are already driving from place to place and are looking to share the cost of fuel, and make connections with travelers. It is based on a review system which ensures transparency and gives you peace-of-mind. We’ve used it multiple times in Western Europe and have loved it every time! You get to meet great people and it’s often much cheaper than the train or bus. Our Tip: If you are an English speaker, when first registering for BlaBla Car put your home country as UK if you want the app to display itself in English. This also indirectly lets any prospective drivers/rides know that you are an English speaker.

Incidentally, BlaBla Bus is also a great option for getting around Europe by bus when you can’t find any rideshares.

Imoova: Imoova is not an app, yet. It’s a vehicle relocation service that moves cars, or camper vans from one city to another, typically at the cost of $1/day. It lists relocation options in the US, Canada, Europe, Australia, New Zealand, Japan, and South Africa. You typically pay for the fuel although they may give you a stipend. We used imoova in Australia and New Zealand and were extremely happy with it and are excited to use them again when we get the chance.

🦶ON FOOT:

Mapy.com: Our tried and true hiking and trail map has forever been Mapy. It offers several features superior to Google Maps such as contour lines, more accurate displays of attractions or notable features, public toilets, water fountains, alleyways and footpaths. Further, entire countries can be downloaded at once for offline use. In short whenever we need more detail we go to Mapy. We’ve tried Maps .me and others, but have not found one we love as much as Mapy.  

Apps We Love: Accommodation

Seriously…how did we manage in the world before smartphones? Thanks to them, and all the great apps available today, traveling is easier than ever before. Here are some of our favs organized by theme.

✌️ If signing up, we really appreciate you using our referral links below. 

AGODA: loosely affiliated with Booking.com for booking hotels and guesthouses. We don’t love the functionality of the app, but occasionally their prices and targeted discounts are better than others by a few dollars, especially once you get to “Platinum” status. They also have more of the market share in Asia and some other parts of the world.

AIRBNB: apartments/guesthouses around the world. We have a kind of love/hate relationship here. We are using it less than ever before because of the price gouging and short-term housing market manipulation happening in many countries, on top of their less competitive pricing. Recently, however we have discovered a few hacks which has made Airbnb more appealing to book with… getting two British Airways Avios points, or one Delta SkyMile per dollar spent coupled getting 5x Citi bank Custom Cash credit card cash back (points) on up to $500 monthly. Further, anytime you are booking for more than a week it never hurts to politely ask for a small 5-10% discount from the host.

BOOKING: Our favorite for all types of accommodation, including apartments, all around the world. Pricing is always very competitive, and once you attain “Genius Level 3” there’s lots of incentives like free upgrades and breakfasts. To sweeten the pie, pair your booking with Capital One Offers which consistently has 2x-4x (or more!) points cash back.  

COUCHSURFING: For arranging (free) stays and cultural exchanges with locals. Don’t read too much into the name… no, we’re not sleeping on couches. Just like any other platform there is a range of options available to you, we usually seek out listings with a private bedroom and look at couchsurfing as a unique opportunity to connect with a local somewhere and build a bond over just finding a place to sleep for a night. The Couchsurfing community also has regular in-person travel meet-ups all around the world too, which can be great for meeting others when you’re in a fixed place for longer.

HELPX: For booking volunteer-based stays exchanging culture, know-how, or time for (free) accommodation and, often food. At this point, it’s still only a .net website but it has been a uniquely valuable resource for us.

HOPPER: For booking hotels, guesthouses, and vacation homes. We’ve also used it for flights via the Capital One travel portal, which also offers 10x on accommodation bookings. They sometimes offer very steep discounts and slightly better functionality in their app, making it worth comparing with the others or against your results in the CapOne travel portal, particularly with accommodations. Get 10% off your first hotel booking by using our link… maybe more than one; it’s unclear 😉

IHG: These hotels are all part of the International Hotel Group, and include chain hotels like Holiday Inn, Intercontinental, and Candlewood. We got 80,000 points when signing up for the IHG One Rewards credit card, and are slowly chipping away at it four nights at a time. IHG offers the unique perk of giving the 4th night free after booking three nights with points. As nightly stays can be as little as 5k points, this perk can be an exceptional bargain for multi-night stays, particularly in otherwise expensive cities for accommodation. Further, IHG routinely has lucrative points earning offers and sales where you can buy more points with a 100% bonus, or spend you way to points multipliers by stacking offers on paid stays, etc..

iOVERLANDER 2: When we have wheels, iOverlander is invaluable for finding (free and paid) campsites or peaceful places to park around the world. We’ve used it in Oman, Australia, New Zealand and the US to score some epic parking spots.

TRUSTED HOUSESITTERS: We’ve already written about it but, THS is a fantastic option for exchanging pet and housesitting, for accommodation. It’s still our most comfortable and favorite way to travel, which continues to pay dividends and an absolute game changer for allowing us to explore more expensive countries. If you use our link to join, you get 25% off your annual membership.

WORLD OF HYATT: This is quickly becoming a fan favorite way we’re amplifying our boug-ometer. We “afford” to stay at the Hyatt by transferring points from our Chase Sapphire Preferred credit card, booking multiple nights in swanky five star hotel suites, for just 5,000 points a night (the equivalent of $50.) An amazing value which occasionally also included breakfast, netting at least .03 cents per point compared to the room rate. Resort fees are also waived on points bookings, making our out of pocket cost…$0.

Food: Our Spice Cabinet

Most people assume one of the easiest ways to save money on the road is by avoiding eating out all the time, and this holds true almost anywhere in the world. For long-term travelers or anyone with food allergies, eating out regularly can wreak havoc on your gut and overall health. You lose control over ingredients and end up consuming unhealthy oils, fats, salt, and sugars that local cooks often use but you’d likely never add when cooking at home.

That said, no matter where we go, we try and make cooking meals for ourselves a priority not just for our health, but also to stretch our budget. Having access to a kitchen as often as possible is an essential element which we prioritize in choosing to our accommodations. But another, is our invaluable spice bag, which has been with us since 2018, although we have continued to refine it from the spices we keep in rotation to the packaging, now we keep our spices in flat smell-proof mylar envelope sleeves which allow for easy labeling and keep them fresh.

Of course, everyone’s preferences will be different, but here some general tips for assembling your own spice kit:

• Have something like the mylar sleeves or sealable containers for the spices themselves and bring extra. Smell-proof is critical, and you need to make sure they can seal well. Plastic baggies can work for awhile, but they can get worn pretty quickly and are not good as a long-term solution… you will need to have a stockpile of zip-top baggies in your luggage to replace regularly because they are surprisingly not something that are available globally.
• You also need an outer bag with a zipper that is collapsible and packable. Find a bag that is wipeable on the inside and not cloth. Lunch bags can work well. You will have spills. This happens, so be prepared. The last thing you want is a bunch of turmeric spilled in your luggage. Also, don’t get a translucent bag, as the UV can degrade the spices faster.
• Liquids! Find two small ridged travel-sized bottles, preferably with large openings, to be liquids bottles and with tight screw—not flip-tops.
• If you’re heading to a spice-rich destination, consider stocking your spice cabinet at the local markets. The quality and price will be worth your while. Plus, it’s exciting to buy spices out of massive tub instead of an overpriced plastic bottle! Just know that 100 grams is probably more than you need. We’ve found the best spices can be found in: Turkiye, Sri Lanka, India, Georgia, Mexico, Indonesia and Malaysia.
• A toothbrush. This is to get the finer spices out of the zipper seal if it clogs. It’s also helpful for cleaning in general.

Here are the items we’ve found are the most versatile to carry:

• • • (Quality) Sea/Rock Salt
    • Black Pepper
    • Cinnamon
    • Cocoa Powder
    • Paprika
    • Curry Powder
    • Cumin
    • Red Pepper Flakes
    • Rotating, based on the region and opportunity to grab something special like Georgian or Za’atar spice mixes

With liquids, we prefer to keep olive oil in one, and the other is rotating typically between honey, a vinegar, coconut oil, mustard, soy, or a hot sauce (usually depending on where we are in the world or what we need to use up after buying a bigger bottle.)

The last item is bouillon cubes. If you’re interested in a low sodium version, we highly recommend getting them in advance because they’re quite difficult to find. Unless anybody is heading to Brazil… the only country we have ever seen sodium-free bouillon on the shelves! This is one thing we always buy in the States when we visit.

Note: you might notice that garlic/ginger is not on the list. These are available most places, so we buy it fresh and just have a clump of it in the bag. We also buy herbs as we go, depending on what is local, so we can have them fresh. This can include parsley, basil, cilantro or mint.

CHASE SAPPHIRE* CREDIT CARD

The Chase Sapphire Preferred (CSP) has long been one of our top travel rewards credit cards to keep in our wallet and use long-term. While our enthusiasm for it has dipped a bit over the years, it still offers multiple sweet spots that make it well worth holding—despite the $95 annual fee.

Current Bonus: 75,000 Points

You can earn a 75,000-point sign-up bonus (previously 60,000) after spending $5,000 in 3 months.

Thinking of going bigger? The Chase Sapphire Reserve (CSR) currently offers a massive 125,000-point bonus, but beware: it comes with an equally massive $795 annual fee.

We appreciate your support if you decide to apply through our referral link below. 🙏

Learn More

What Makes CSP Valuable?

1:1 Point Transfers

One of the most powerful perks of CSP is point transferability.

Chase partners with over a dozen airline and hotel loyalty programs, letting you transfer points 1:1—including Hyatt, possibly the sweetest spot to transfer your points!

For Example:

You’re 10,000 points short to book a flight in your United account? Just transfer from your CSP into your United account.

The $95 Annual Fee? Actually, Just $45

The CSP comes with a $50 annual hotel credit (booked through Chase), effectively dropping your out-of-pocket fee to $45.

Here’s what else you get for that:

• Excellent travel insurance
• Chase shopping portal cashback offers
• Lucrative referral bonuses
• Access to transfer bonuses and partner transfers
• Increased point multipliers:
  • 3x on dining
  • 2x on travel
  • 5x when booking travel through Chase

How We’ve Used Our CSP:

$50 Hotel Credit (x2)

• Tokyo in February
• Singapore in June (pre-booked)And kept our hotel spend under $25/night

30% Bonus Transfer to Virgin Red

• Transferred 42,200 UR to Virgin for a Seattle-to-Tokyo flight to get 54,860 miles
• Paid just $11.20 in fees for TWO tickets
• Virgin also partners with Delta, by the way

45,000 Points → United Airline Miles

• Combined our points with unused United balance
• Booked two tickets from New Zealand to the US
• Scored lowest redemption rate—zero miles left unused

Two Tickets: Paris to Montreal to Evansville Indiana, Using Points

• Only 20,500 points total, no fees

Rental Car Bookings

• CSP provides primary rental car insurance (huge perk)

Yes, You Can Get Another Sign-up Bonus

You are eligible to earn the sign-up bonus again if…

it’s been at least 48 months since your last Chase Sapphire bonus AND, you no longer hold the card. To help you read between the lines, if you are currently holding a CSP and it has been more than 48 months since your last bonus you might want to consider not holding the card for a short time by downgrading to the Chase Freedom Flex, see below for more.

CSP vs. Airline Cards: Superior Transfer Flexibility

Chase Ultimate Rewards can be transferred to:

• Airlines: United, Southwest, JetBlue, Virgin, British Airways, etc.
• Hotels: Hyatt, Marriott, IHG, etc.

Want to Avoid the Annual Fee Later?

Downgrade your Sapphire… keep your Ultimate Rewards alive by switching to the Chase Freedom Flex*:

• No annual fee
• 5x points on rotating categories like groceries or gas stations… which, incidentally also sell gift cards should you feel the need to max out your 5x spending opportunity for whatever reason.
• $200 sign-up bonus after spending just $500 in 3 months
• Apply through our referral link for the Chase Freedom Flex here.

Note: *not ideal for international travel due to foreign transaction fees and the $1,500 cap on the 5x bonus category spend.

In Summary

This isn’t our absolute favorite travel card—but it continues to be one of the most valuable for:

• Its transfer perks
• Its ease of use
• Its ongoing offers and bonuses
• Its broad point utility

*Note: Card only available for those with a U.S. residence, or U.S. based LLC.

Got questions? Ask us in the comments—we’re happy to help you get the most out of your points.

TRUSTED HOUSE SITTERS

This Behind the Budget luckily applies to anyone worldwide and is our favorite way to save money on accommodation while also staying in incredible locations, meeting and making new friends, and gaining a uniquely intimate experience into a life in some tiny corner of our world… ah yes, no surprise, this is house sitting. Quite literally a game changer for making our nomadic lifestyle sustainable.

We’ve officially been housesitting for seven years on the Trusted Housesitters platform. It’s taken us across the globe from the Americas to Europe to Asia, and provided us with so much more than free accommodation.

It is travel on a whole other level. It fills our hearts with a feeling of home and love, provides us with opportunities to make local friends, can give us a sense of stability and all the creature comforts (literally) of a home, and of course, the chance for cuddles with new companions is a major perk.

The best part? It’s a win-win-win for all sides:

• The pet owner gets (free) pet sitting by someone they’ve vetted.
• Their pet stays safely at home with their routine intact, avoiding the stress of boarding.
• Their home is cared for while they’re away, giving them peace-of-mind to truly enjoy their vacation.

If you’re thinking about joining Trusted House Sitters as a sitter… here’s the things we recommend considering:

💲 Membership Cost & Value

• Two annual plans: $169 (standard) and $259 (premium)
• We’ve only ever used the standard plan — and it’s been more than enough
• Don’t be put off by the fee… it pays for itself fast
• Example: One night in a windowless hotel room in Singapore cost us $75. But we scored a one-week housesit in a beautiful 2-bedroom flat — just two nights of that sit paid for the entire year’s fee.
• P.S. our code below saves you 25% off your first year too!

📝 Applications & References

• Your application will either be accepted or rejected — first impressions count
• Be professional, stand out with a thoughtful profile
• Start with 3–5 personal or professional references to increase your credibility
• You are likely competing with other (possibly more experienced) sitters

🌍 Getting Started Locally

• Apply for sits near your current home and offer to meet in person
• This helps you get your foot in the door and build reviews
• We did this with 6 local sits around Portland before going international
• If local options are scarce, take a long weekend trip to a more active market
• The US, UK, France, and Australia are great for starting out

🚗 Location & Transport

• Pay attention to location and nearby services
• Make sure you know how you’ll get around before you arrive
• Sometimes a car is included with the sit — or can be arranged if you ask
• Sits with a car or good public transport usually rise to the top of our list

🐕 Pet Care Expectations

• Know the pet and the level of responsibility required
• Daily dog walks? That’s a bigger commitment than feeding a cat once a day
• Your schedule will depend on the pets’ needs — plan accordingly
• Example: In Bangkok, we chose to explore only our local neighborhood between pet care instead of running across the city — and it was so much more intimate and rewarding

🎥 Do a Video Interview

• Request a video call before confirming a sit
• It’s a chance for both sides to ask questions, clarify expectations, and build trust
• Remember: you’re interviewing them too!
• Everyone wants a great experience — clear communication sets the tone

If you have additional questions about the process or anything related to housesitting, please let us know!

And if you decide to join, we greatly appreciate you using our link. We’ll get two free months, and you’ll get 25% off your annual subscription.

Again, win-win!! 😻