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Back Road Ramblers

small towns, back roads, and outdoor adventures

  • Home
  • About
    • Work With Us
    • Freelance Writing
      • Writing Portfolio
    • Contact
    • Privacy Policy
  • Adventures
    • road trips
    • hiking
    • winter activities
    • camping
    • canoeing and kayaking
    • Traveling with Dogs
    • exploring towns and cities
  • Destinations
    • United States
      • US National Parks
      • New England
        • The Best Glamping in New England
        • Vermont
      • Mid-Atlantic
      • Midwestern United States
      • Western United States
      • Pacific Northwest United States
      • Southwestern United States
      • Southeast
    • Canada
  • Travel Tips
    • food
    • organization
    • Camping
      • Camping food gear and clothing travel tips hacks Kids money organization travel with dogs
        Camping

        How to Create Your Own Camping Spice Kit

        January 19, 2021

        Camping

        Our Best Hot Drink Recipes for Cold-Weather Adventures

        October 27, 2020

        Camping

        Planning the Perfect Backyard Glamping Staycation

        October 5, 2020

        Camping

        10 Useful Apps to Download Before Your Next…

        July 16, 2020

        food

        How to Create Your Own Camping Spice Kit

        January 19, 2021

        food

        Our Best Hot Drink Recipes for Cold-Weather Adventures

        October 27, 2020

        food

        Vegetarian White Bean Tomato Soup for Camping

        May 20, 2020

        food

        Vegetarian Quinoa Patties for Camping

        May 9, 2020

        gear and clothing travel tips

        Our Best Tips for Skiing and Snowshoeing with…

        January 3, 2021

        gear and clothing travel tips

        Affordable Gifts for Kayakers and Canoeists: 2020 Edition

        December 8, 2020

        gear and clothing travel tips

        Affordable Gifts for Teens Who Love the Outdoors:…

        November 24, 2020

        gear and clothing travel tips

        30 Days of Hygge in the Outdoors

        October 26, 2020

        hacks

        Everything You Need to Know About Snowshoeing with…

        December 21, 2018

        hacks

        Your Amazing Car Camping Kitchen

        December 4, 2018

        hacks

        Expert Travel Tips: Packing a Small Car for…

        April 6, 2018

        hacks

        Tips for Road Tripping on the Cheap

        October 19, 2017

        Kids

        What You Need to Know About Bird Watching…

        January 21, 2021

        Kids

        Affordable Gifts for Teens Who Love the Outdoors:…

        November 24, 2020

        Kids

        The Best Winter Layers for Babies and Toddlers

        October 9, 2020

        Kids

        Audiobooks Will Save Your Family Road Trip

        June 14, 2020

        money

        Tips for Road Tripping on the Cheap

        October 19, 2017

        organization

        How to Create Your Own Camping Spice Kit

        January 19, 2021

        organization

        The Winter Road Trip Survival Guide

        January 4, 2021

        organization

        Roadtrippers: The Perfect App for Planning Your Next…

        July 21, 2020

        organization

        10 Useful Apps to Download Before Your Next…

        July 16, 2020

        travel with dogs

        Our Best Tips for Skiing and Snowshoeing with…

        January 3, 2021

        travel with dogs

        Perfect Gifts for Dogs who Love Adventures

        November 17, 2020

        travel with dogs

        5 Dog-Friendly Adventures for the Best Summer Ever

        May 24, 2020

        travel with dogs

        Avoiding Ticks that Carry Lyme Disease While Hiking…

        June 1, 2019

    • Kids
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CampingorganizationTravel Tips

10 Useful Apps to Download Before Your Next Camping Road Trip

by Tara Schatz July 16, 2020
July 16, 2020
A truck camper driving through the desert

Please don't travel until it's safe to do so! Our travel posts are great for making future plans or dreaming about your next escape. Please check with each state/destination for its current COVID-19 guidelines before planning a visit. Also, please note that this post may contain links from which we earn a small commission.

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That road trip you’ve been dreaming of —  It’s not going to plan itself! And while I can do all in my power to help you along the way, these apps are the real lifesavers. I’m declaring these the 10 most important apps to download before your next camping road trip. These are the apps I use the most when I’m planning a road trip, and also when I’m in the middle of a road trip. 

If you’re a planner, you likely get the most use out of these apps during the planning stages, but you’ll want to access all those plans en route as well. If you are more of a spontaneous road tripper, then you’ll find these apps irreplaceable for finding campgrounds, hikes, and cool attractions on the fly. 

This overview assumes you already have your map app of choice. We love Google Maps for planning miles and times and creating loose overviews of where we’re going, but we actually like Apple Maps better when we’re driving. We have them both – just in case.

A curvey road sign with a text overlay that says: 10 Apps to download for your next camping road trip

These are the Road Trip Apps that We Use the Most When Camping

No matter what type of road tripper you are, I guarantee that you will use these road trip apps. They are the apps that I use on every single trip. Most of the ones that I’m recommending are free, providing immeasurable benefits for the cost of your time to download and learn the app. A few of them offer a premium subscription with additional benefits. If I think it’s worth the upgrade, I’ll let you know. 

Roadtrippers: The Perfect App for Planning Your Next Adventure

A screenshot of the Roadtrippers app in action

Before I used the Roadtrippers app, I fell in love with the Roadtrippers website. It’s chock-full of information on every type of road trip stop you can imagine, from quirky hotels and historic sites, to amazing parks, scenic areas and campgrounds. I often get lost on the Roadtrippers website, spending way too many hours planning trips that I’ll likely never take. 

You’ll be happy to know that the app is a bit more streamlined, and while it’s still a comprehensive database of amazing places, it’s easy to use on the go. The free app allows you to create an itinerary with up to five stops. I HIGHLY recommend upgrading to plus so that your itinerary and corresponding map can be as long and detailed as you want it to be. You can even download your map so it takes you where you want to go even if you don’t have cell service. 


Read how to use Roadtrippers to plan your next camping road trip, or head straight to Roadtrippers.com to sign up for your free account. Bonus: Save $5 on your Roadtrippers Plus subscription by using the code BTR5QTP.


The Dyrt: Find the Best Camping Spots for Your Road Trip

An open tent with an overlay of an iphone with The Dyrt Camping app open.
The Dyrt is the largest campground review site in the USA!

The Dyrt is the most comprehensive campground search and review app out there, and it’s also the most used, with over a million user-generated reviews, updates, and photographs. Using the map or the search feature on The Dyrt, you can find public and private campsites, read reviews, and get contact info for booking. The free app is plenty for most people, but the pro version lets you access reviews and maps offline so you’re not gobbling up your data. 


Read about how to use The Dyrt app to find awesome campgrounds or head straight to thedyrt.com to create your free account. 


Alltrails: Find Hiking Trails Along Your Route

If you enjoy racking up miles on your feet as well as your vehicle, then you won’t want to head out without first downloading the Alltrails app. With it you can search for hiking trails, read reviews, and check out trail maps so you’re prepared for any adventure. You can even add trailhead information to your itinerary on Roadtrippers. 

The free Alltrails app is great for finding hiking trails and getting directions to the trailhead and is perfectly fine for casual hikers. If you want to have access to offline maps, record your tracks for future use, or collect statistics on your hikes, you will want to purchase Alltrails Pro, which is $29.99 for an annual subscription. 

Spotify: The Best Music App for Creating Your Road Trip Playlist

A screenshot featuring the Spotify app and its many features
Bring on the road trip tunes!

Wait, is Spotify really the best app for creating a road trip playlist? I don’t actually know, but it is the only music app I’ve ever used, and I love how easy it is to make awesome playlists before I hit the road. I usually try and create a new playlist before each big road trip, but I have a general road trip playlist as well. 

With Spotify Premium, you can download your favorite playlists to listen to even when you don’t have cell service. Worth it? 100% yes! You can even download my favorite road trip playlist (heavy on folk on classic rock). 

A Mobile Banking App: The Most Boring App on Our List

Just about every bank has a mobile app these days. Downloading your bank’s app is critical for times when you have to deal with finances while you’re traveling – yuck! Even if you don’t do mobile banking right now, it’s worth figuring out the logistics before you head out on your road trip so you can quickly check your balance and pay your bills as you go. 

Audible: Because Every Long Road Trip Needs a Story to Go With it

screenshots of the Audible app
A endless supply of audiobooks on Audible

I have to say, I don’t miss the days of books-on-tape, or even books-on-CD. Packing said books was always fraught with anxiety. There were missing discs to find, cases to procure, and the issue of where to store all of our media in our tiny car.

With Audible, we can bring our whole library on our road trip and listen to whatever we’re in the mood for. An Audible subscription allows you to download one book a month to keep forever, plus you have access to their library of free titles. Over the years, we’ve collected all the Harry Potter Books, some Tolkien, and even some road-trip worthy poetry. 

An Audible subscription will set you back $14.95 each month, but any books you download are yours to keep. Start your free trial of Audible before your next trip, and get one free audiobook selection, plus a rotating selection of Audible originals. 

Need some audiobook inspiration? Here are our favorite family-friendly audiobooks for road trips. 

Geocaching: Embark on a Road Trip Treasure Hunt

Screenshot showing how to use the Geocaching app
Geocaching is Addictive!

Did you know that there are hidden treasures all around you, just waiting to be discovered? Geocaching is the perfect road trip activity for nature lovers. If you don’t know what the heck I’m talking about, read this overview of Geocaching first. Then come back and download the Geocaching app. 

Now, whenever you hike a trail, visit a historic site, or pitch your tent, you can check the Geocaching app to see if there’s a nearby treasure you can score while you’re exploring. 

Start with the free version of the Geocaching app, and if you become a Geocache addict, you can upgrade for $29.99 for an annual subscription. I’ve been more than happy with the free version of Geocaching since I downloaded it three years ago.

Airbnb: Find Glamping and Camping Spots Along Your Route

You may have a love/hate relationship with Airbnb, or perhaps you’ve never tried it and are wondering what the fuss is about. What you probably don’t know is that you can find some crazy-cool camping and glamping spots among the villas, condos, and spare bedrooms that are available of the platform.

Using Airbnb for our Vermont road trips, we’ve found a three-season open-air cabin on a flower farm, a luxury treehouse with an outdoor shower, and a cozy yurt on a therapeutic horse farm. Signing up for a free account and downloading the app before your trip will make managing reservations and contacting your hosts incredibly simple.

Hipcamp: More Private Camping and Glamping Spots

A screenshot of the Hipcamp app features

 Similar to Airbnb, Hipcamp is entirely dedicated to camping and glamping, and they’ve got private campsites that you won’t find anywhere else. We use both Airbnb and Hipcamp when we are road tripping and public campgrounds are booked. It’s also nice when you want more seclusion than a regular campground can provide. 

Hipcamp has more regular campsites than Airbnb, but you’ll also find Airstream rentals, yurts, houseboats, and cabins. Download the free Hipcamp app before heading out on your trip (scroll to the bottom of the page to find download info). 

Recreation.gov: Reserve Public Campsites at State and National Parks

Another camping database that is worth having at your fingertips, Recreation.gov allows you to search for and book campsites at thousands of destinations, including national parks, Army Corps of Engineer sites, national forests, and national recreation areas. 

Using Recreation.gov, you can easily use the map feature to find available campsites and cabins near you. When you sign up for an account, you will have access to all of your upcoming camping reservations. With Recreation.gov, you can also enter lotteries for permits and purchase tour tickets of federal historic sites. 

While we don’t use Recreation.gov on every road trip, we’ve found it extremely useful when travel through areas with an abundance of federal lands. Visit the Recreation.gov website to create an account and download the free app.

I’m not kidding when I say that these are the most invaluable apps for camping road trips. They make life on the road so much easier!


Road trip tip: We’ve created a free, printable checklist of our favorite road trip apps for camping. Download our checklist and remember to download these 10 apps before heading out on your camping road trip.

Need help planning your big road trip? Check out these posts:

  • Audiobooks will Save Your Family Road Trip
  • The National Park Guide for People Who Hate Crowds
  • The Winter Road Trip Survival Guide
  • How to Pack a Small Car for a Big Trip

Bonus: Check Out our Most Loved and Used Camping Gear

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Tara Schatz

Tara is a writer and photographer from Vermont with a passion for outdoor adventures. Her goal is to help people connect with the world and each other by stepping out of their front doors and embarking on journeys big and small.

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