7 Great Road Trip Apps to Make Travel Easier

(This article appeared previously on Grandparents.com.)

Road trips these days are easier than ever. With smartphones and GPS, the chances of getting lost are slim. Better yet, companies have created apps that help make your trips that much better. If you're looking for a way to find hotels, search for the cheapest gas rates or just need to get to a clean bathroom fast, take a look at these seven handy apps to download.

Choose where you want to go — from point A to point B—and Roadtrippers helps you plan everything in between. It allows you to discover unique attractions, recreation areas, entertainment, hotels and more along the way. Add the stops you’d like to make to your trip, book hotels, share it with friends and save it for viewing along the way. The Roadtrippers website also has helpful trip guides, like interstate highway guides, classic USA road trips, city guides and much more.

Find the cheapest gas in your area with the GasBuddy app. GasBuddy allows search by city, zip code or GPS location plus desired fuel type. GasBuddy relies on drivers to report prices in their area. Members who sign up (it's free) can earn points by reporting prices and completing challenges — points may be used to enter to win free gas. GasBuddy.com also offers features such as a Trip Cost Calculator and gas price charts and maps.

You may have every leg of your road trip planned, but if you just can’t keep driving and need a room right away, try HotelTonight. This app lets you book a hotel room at the last minute in many cities across the nation (and in other countries) at a discount. Hotels want to book as many rooms as possible, and will offer unsold rooms at a better rate. HotelTonight allows you to book for the same day, the next or the next week on their app, available for iOS and Android.

When nature calls when you’re on the road, use SitOrSquat by Charmin to find the closest (and cleanest) restrooms near you. Available on iOS and Android, this free app locates bathrooms near you and rates them — clean bathrooms receive a green “sit” rating, while dirtier ones get a red “squat.” Although you don’t need to connect with your Facebook account to find bathrooms, you do if you want to leave reviews.

Flush Toilet Finder is a similar bathroom finder app, without ratings, but with a higher volume of bathroom locales.

Driving on unfamiliar highways can be tough when it comes time to make a stop. Signs before exits may tell you that there’s food or gas available, but not always which places or how far off the exit they are. iExit’s app finds your location on any highway and alerts you to what you can find on the exits ahead.

Discover restaurants, rest areas, shops, hotels, gas stations and attractions for any exit, plus exactly how far and in which direction you’ll have to drive to reach them.

If you love shows featuring amazing eats across the country, download TVFoodMaps. This app, available for iOS and Android, shows restaurants featured on TV shows like Diners, Drive Ins and Dives, Man vs. Food, Unique Eats and more. Search for a cool spot you saw on a show, or plan a road trip and look for restaurants along your route. The app is free to download but also has a premium version for purchase that includes no ads and unlimited searches.

Triposo is another road trip planning app that scans millions of reviews and websites to deliver unique recommendations. Choose where you want to go and find things to do and see, restaurants, hotels and practical information such as parking and directions.

Or check out Triposo’s city guides for history and information, weather and currency exchange. You can set dates and save trips, and download your selected location’s information to view it even offline.