Best Things to Do at Your Destination? These Travel Apps Help Organize Your Visit, Save Money on Attractions, Experiences

BY KAREN RUBIN TRAVEL FEATURES SYNDICATE GOINGPLACESFARANDNEAR.COM

There are many apps and websites to help you get to a destination (skyscanner, kayak, expedia, momondo, googleflights, flighthub, travelocity, cheapflights, flightfinder, hotwire, cheapoair) and apps and websites that help you find a place to stay (hotels. com, booking.com, trivago, agoda, airbnb, vrbo, glampinghub), but which can help you plan what to do when you get there?

GoCity

Go City sells passes that let you experience as many attractions as you want in a city at one set price. You can purchase the pass for an unlimited number of visits for the number of days you want to, and use the pass to choose which attractions (museums, etc.) you want to visit, seek out experiences based on whether you are a couple or family traveling, or find “hidden gems”. Or you can purchase an “Explorer Pass,” that lets you access four or five attractions (you don’t have to choose in advance and have 60 days to visit).

In New York City, the Go City pass offers 100 different options in all five boroughs. The two-day all inclusive pass, giving access to as much as you want/can do from among 105 attractions is $134 – regardless of how much the actual attractions charge.

Go City offers 1,500 attractions in over 30 destinations from major metropolises like London and New York to oceanfront oases like Sydney, Cancun and Oahu. Among the newest entrees: Madrid and re-launching Hong Kong. .

The app is helpful because you can see the full list of attractions, heart/ star the ones you are interested in or want; it will notify you if the attraction requires advance booking or recommend purchasing the ticket in advance, and you can do that on the app – like a sunset view from an observation deck.

Go City, which began as Smart Destination, then Leisurepass, has been around for 25 years.

In some cases, the pass provides experiences that are exclusive to Go City customers– such as behind the scenes experience to Yankee Stadium–and can give you ideas that you might not have considered – like the Top Observation decks, a Central Park bike rental; an East Village walking tour; a food tour in Williamsburg. The app also provides an interactive map, so that while you are walking around, it can highlight some interesting attraction – like the Whitney Museum – that you might decide to check out even for a short time (it’s included!).

“A lot of people say they did something that wouldn’t have otherwise.”

It’s very likely you will save money if you take full advantage of the pass (you can compare costs). The app also offers sample itineraries, and you can compare the price of going a la carte or purchasing the three-day all-inclusive.

Prices are based on adult or child (a family pass is under consideration). And the passes can be sent as a gift.

“A lot of cities have a family friendly option, so teenagers can split off and do their own thing.”

More information at GoCity.com, 800 887 9103.

TourRadar

TourRadar claims to be the world’s first Adventure Booking Platform, where you can effortlessly book private, group, and tailor-made multi-day organized adventures worldwide.

Founded in 2010, TourRadar was among the first to transition multi-day tours to an online marketplace. In 2021, TourRadar introduced the Adventure Booking Platform, connecting travelers, operators, and travel agents to organized tours through one, easy-touse platform. Whether booking directly with TourRadar.com or through your trusted travel advisor, you can access large and small operators providing a broad spectrum of experiences. TourRadar works with 2,500+ operators to offer 50,000+ adventures in 160+ countries.

It offers a live inventory, so you can book on line at tourradar.com –whether river cruises, biking tours or bird watching, seeing llamas in Colorado, self-guided trips, or if you are planning to go solo.

“There is an artificial intelligence component – a robust search engine,” said Lisa Verbeck, head of marketing. Solo trips are now 40% of travelers. “People are traveling on their own independently. We have a department that will put together a curated trip – Italy for a week, wine tasting in Tuscany.:

Tourradar’s inventory includes everything from big-name operators like Trafalgar, Cosmos, Globus to the smaller specialty companies like Intrepid, river cruises in Europe, hiking, biking, sailing.

“We are an aggregator, an Expedia for multi-day tours.”

One of the best features is access to a whole category of self-guided trips – for example self-guided bike tours where a tour operator has laid out an itinerary, mapped out the route, booked accommodations (such as innto-inn), picks up the luggage each day and delivers to the next inn, but you go at your own pace rather than with a group, guides and support vehicle. It’s ideal for couples, families, or your own group of friends.

You can also use TourRadar to customize, tailor or craft a tour espe-