by Penne Cole

Created on: August 10, 2010   Last Updated: November 03, 2011

The iPhone has truly changed travelers’ perception of the world. Apps like Layar allow you to add layers of metadata to the world before your eyes with a clever combination of your phone’s GPS and camera. Handy apps allow you to keep track of different currencies or time zones. Portable audio travel guides and useful information on the world’s customs and cultures can be accessed with a tap on your iPhone. With the latest in free apps, your iPhone will transform itself into a passport to the world. Just watch out for those

roaming charges!

OANDA currency convertor

As any frequent international traveler will tell you, keeping track of currencies and exchange rates can be a hassle, particularly if you’re travelling to multiple countries with different currencies. Fortunately, OANDA, one of the best known and used currency convertor websites, has created an iPhone app that allows users to convert over 180 different currencies and even four metals. The app even allows you to specify which rate you want to use, whether it is the Interbank rate, or a credit card rate. This app is also available for the Blackberry and Android operating systems and can be downloaded for free here.

HearPlanet (Lite)

Don’t bother bringing that heavy guide book along with you. With HearPlanet’s Audio Guides, the world is at your fingertips, or in your ears, as the case may be. If you love the audio guides in museums, you’ll love this free iPhone app which covers thousands of locations around the world, with smart Geolocation abilities that will get you instant information on your surroundings. The Lite version is free here but for just $4.99, you’ll be able to access HearPlanet’s entire database of cool audio travel guides.

Layar Reality Browser

As the information on the software says, Layar is ‘a tool to browse the world.’ Combining the iPhone’s GPS, compass and camera features, Layar allows you to add layers of metadata, thus augmenting the real world that’s in front of you. Find popular eateries, shops and entertainment spots with one touch. You can locate the nearest metro station and even play interactive games with this cool tool. Download it for free here.

World Customs & Cultures

Perfect for globetrotters, this free iPhone app provides essential reading on your destination’s customs and cultures. Read up on the country’s taboos, laws, communication style, gender issues and more to make sure you don’t inadvertently put your foot in your mouth or offend your host. The app contains information on more than 165 countries and is available for free in the iTunes store.

Frommer’s Travel Tools

If you want one app that’s got it all, you have to download Frommer’s Travel Tools. Combining nine handy apps in one, Frommer’s Travel Tools iPhone app allows you to convert not just currencies but also temperatures, distances, weights and volumes. It also has a handy packing list, with built in suggestions, a tip calculator, a time translator that’s useful for keeping track of the different time zones, travel trivia, and best of all, city guides packed with restaurant recommendations and more. The coolest part? It includes a built-in flashlight that will stay lit for up to 30 minutes. Get it here. 

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