6 of the Best Apps to Download for Your Cruise

As the traveling legend Anthony Bourdain once said, “It seems that the more places I see and experience, the bigger I realize the world to be. The more I become aware of, the more I realize how relatively little I know of it, how many places I have to still go, how much more there is to learn.”

It’s a big world full of opportunity. There are endless sights to take in, people to meet, and lessons to learn.

While most of us won’t manage to explore every continent on earth, what a wonderful journey it is to see as many places as we can — and there’s no better way to do it than with a cruise.

In order to soak in as many experiences as possible, it takes detailed planning. You’ll need to decide where you want to go, what you want to do, and how to make each step of the way as stress-free as possible.

That’s where cruise apps come in handy. Every app in the list below can help you quickly and easily plan the details of your trip — everything from how to navigate your ship to how to catch secret excursions, and even ways to make some friends!

Keep reading and rest assured you’re getting as much out of your next cruise as you possibly can with these cruise apps.

1. Cruise Picker

Between all the beautiful ships, excursion options, and amenities, it can be hard to choose the perfect cruise. If you’re experiencing choice overwhelm, your first download should be Cruise Picker.

Cruise Picker is a user-friendly search and planning app that has an expansive database of options, with every filter you need to determine the best fit for you.

You can include every detail you’d like, whether it be kid-free or kid friendly cruises, or only cruises that have spas, without having to wait on hold on customer care lines. From there, you can make a shortlist of cruises that appeal to you by saving them to your favorites.

Once you’ve favorited a cruise, you’ll receive notifications on any price changes or other updates that might affect your booking.

Cruise Picker is available for download on all Apple iPhones >

2. Cruise Shipmate

The Cruise Shipmate app is a go-to for over 2 million travelers. And t’s no wonder, because somehow the creators managed to cover basically every planning need a cruiser might have.

The MyCruise feature includes all the trip essentials you need, such as your full itinerary, ship maps, and excursion details. You can even see who else is going on the trip and chat with them!

Before you get on board, enjoy a virtual tour of your ship, including reviews. You’ll be a ship whiz in no time!

Make the most of every excursion with Cruise Shipmate’s cruise port information. This includes photos, testimonials from others, and hot tips about the area. You’ll even find secret excursion options not offered by your ship.

Cruise Shipmate is available for download on all Apple iPhones here >

3. Tripit

Tripit good with the Tripit and Tripit pro apps.

Tripit is an itinerary manager that condenses hours of trip planning into just a few minutes, thanks to its accessible interface and expansive database.

As you receive confirmation emails for your cruise, flight or hotel, you can forward it to the Tripit email they provide. All the important details you might need later will automatically be added to your app information.

Once all your information is uploaded, Tripit creates a master itinerary you can link to your calendar app.

You’ll also have the features of other apps all in one, such as navigation, maps of airports and flight statuses, nearby places and a neighborhood safety rating.

With Tripit Pro, you can also get some help planning the details themselves with features like seat tracking to see when prices drop or your reward program tracker that lets you know when you can use your reward points for the trip of your dreams.

Download TripIt via iTunes or Google Play via their website >

4. Wi-Fi Finder

You know that doomsday stress dream where you’re stuck in another country, with no Wi-Fi and no maps to show you how to get back to a familiar area? Say goodbye to that nightmare forever with the Wi-Fi Finder + Map app.

This handy app helps you find Wi-Fi access anywhere in the world. You can also download detailed maps of your destinations to use if you need them to get to the internet-friendly areas.

Download WiFi Finder on GooglePlay or Apple App Store >

5. Tripcoin

Sometimes you may be ready for a vacation well before your finances are. Save yourself the post-trip stress of going over your expenses by taking a few minutes to update them on Tripcoin, your personal vacation finance assistant.

Tripcoin is a multi-use app that saves you time, money, and stress by keeping the important numbers sorted. On Tripcoin, you can view all your trip expenses (broken down by day when needed), graphs and statistics to show where your biggest spends are, and full trip reports you can export to Excel or PDF.

And there’s no internet connection required, so it’s a great app to use in those no-service areas.

Tripcoin is available for download on all Apple iPhones here >

6. Cruise-Specific Apps

Most major cruise lines like Princess and Carnival have their own apps that include many of the features you’ve seen listed above.

On each of the apps, you’ll be able to access full ship maps, detailed itineraries, and all the information you need to guide you all the way from packing to leaving the ship for home.

You can also even them to make reservations at spas or restaurants, or manage your tab!

Enjoy Your Journey

Two of the biggest challenges to traveling around the world is the stress of planning and dealing with unexpected occurrences. Luckily, we live in an era of technology where most needs can be supported by the click of a button.

From picking a cruise to trekking your way through excursions to making sure your finances stay on track, there’s likely an app to support you.

Any combination of these cruise apps is guaranteed to help build your traveling confidence and ensure every detail of your trip is taken care of, even when things don’t go as planned.

One thing these apps can’t help you with is choosing what to pack out of your favorite clothes and accessories. But we can!

Check out our guide to packing for a cruise >

Get Travel Deals Today!