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| How to Use Google to Plan Your Trip | How to Use Google to Plan Your Trip |
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| Google Maps revolutionized how you get from point A to point B. Google Trips aims to to do the same for how you vacation. | Google Maps revolutionized how you get from point A to point B. Google Trips aims to to do the same for how you vacation. |
| The smartphone app, released on Monday, uses what it already knows about you, based on data it has collected from your Gmail account, and combines it with established features from its other offerings, like Destinations, and its large database of crowd-sourced reviews. The goal, as Google puts it, is to create a “personalized tour guide in your pocket.” | The smartphone app, released on Monday, uses what it already knows about you, based on data it has collected from your Gmail account, and combines it with established features from its other offerings, like Destinations, and its large database of crowd-sourced reviews. The goal, as Google puts it, is to create a “personalized tour guide in your pocket.” |
| “We wanted to reduce the hassle and help travelers enjoy their hard-earned vacations,” Stefan Frank, the app’s product manager, wrote on Google’s blog. | “We wanted to reduce the hassle and help travelers enjoy their hard-earned vacations,” Stefan Frank, the app’s product manager, wrote on Google’s blog. |
| The app can do a lot, probably equal to what four travel apps could do, but it can’t do everything. Here’s what you need to know before setting off on your first Google trip. | The app can do a lot, probably equal to what four travel apps could do, but it can’t do everything. Here’s what you need to know before setting off on your first Google trip. |
| It’s All-Inclusive (Only if You Use Gmail) | It’s All-Inclusive (Only if You Use Gmail) |
| After setting up the app using your Gmail account, you can create your first trip — simply search for the destination city and put in your dates. If you’re hitting multiple cities, you can add those as well. | After setting up the app using your Gmail account, you can create your first trip — simply search for the destination city and put in your dates. If you’re hitting multiple cities, you can add those as well. |
| If the app has enough of your data, you may already have the trip listed. In that case, you do not have to create a new one, just jump into the existing trip and make changes as you see fit. | If the app has enough of your data, you may already have the trip listed. In that case, you do not have to create a new one, just jump into the existing trip and make changes as you see fit. |
| The app has complete guides for more than 200 major cities, and each of those has six main features: Reservations, Things to Do, Saved Places, Day Plans, Food & Drink and Getting Around. There are guides for most other cities as well, but you won’t get Day Plans and Getting Around options for those smaller locations. | The app has complete guides for more than 200 major cities, and each of those has six main features: Reservations, Things to Do, Saved Places, Day Plans, Food & Drink and Getting Around. There are guides for most other cities as well, but you won’t get Day Plans and Getting Around options for those smaller locations. |
| Reservations will show you the flight, hotel and car rental information that it collects from the Gmail account you registered with. You’ll need to forward any reservations made using your work email to your Gmail account if you want those to show up. It’s also worth noting that you cannot make reservations directly from the app — it shows only the reservations you already made. I had nothing definite planned, but for testing’s sake, I tried out a hypothetical trip to Boston. | Reservations will show you the flight, hotel and car rental information that it collects from the Gmail account you registered with. You’ll need to forward any reservations made using your work email to your Gmail account if you want those to show up. It’s also worth noting that you cannot make reservations directly from the app — it shows only the reservations you already made. I had nothing definite planned, but for testing’s sake, I tried out a hypothetical trip to Boston. |
| Things to Do is a good place to start. It recommends destinations broken down by category, from the simple “Indoors” vs. “Outdoors” to city-specific labels like “Newbury Street Shops” and interest-specific ones like “Selfie Spots.” If you see something you like, hit the star icon and it’ll add it to your Saved Places. This breakdown and the ability to save will look familiar to anyone who has used Gogobot. | Things to Do is a good place to start. It recommends destinations broken down by category, from the simple “Indoors” vs. “Outdoors” to city-specific labels like “Newbury Street Shops” and interest-specific ones like “Selfie Spots.” If you see something you like, hit the star icon and it’ll add it to your Saved Places. This breakdown and the ability to save will look familiar to anyone who has used Gogobot. |
| Day Plans are suggested themed itineraries. For example, Historic Boston has 10 sites mapped out, each one including all of the information you’d see if you found it on Google search (reviews, open and close time) and the travel time between each stop. | |
| Food & Drink will give you a basic overview of the area’s specialties, and then suggest establishments based on categories like “family-friendly,” “food with a view,” “cocktail specialists” and many more. | Food & Drink will give you a basic overview of the area’s specialties, and then suggest establishments based on categories like “family-friendly,” “food with a view,” “cocktail specialists” and many more. |
| Getting Around has all the transportation information you could think of. You get all of your airport options, from public transportation directions to costs of taxis. | Getting Around has all the transportation information you could think of. You get all of your airport options, from public transportation directions to costs of taxis. |
| It’s a Data-Saver | It’s a Data-Saver |
| You’ve probably already saved some dough by using the offline feature on Google Maps. | You’ve probably already saved some dough by using the offline feature on Google Maps. |
| You can do the same here by downloading each trip to your phone. And all the information will be accessible even if you’re not connected to the internet or to cellular service. You won’t need to eat into your data with Google Trips, or be stuck if your vacation is in a remote location with no cell service. | You can do the same here by downloading each trip to your phone. And all the information will be accessible even if you’re not connected to the internet or to cellular service. You won’t need to eat into your data with Google Trips, or be stuck if your vacation is in a remote location with no cell service. |
| Using the app with a data or Wi-Fi connection does have a few perks. If the weather takes a turn for the worse, the app will suggest indoor activities. It’ll also show whether a place is open or closed in real time. But you’re not missing much in offline mode. | Using the app with a data or Wi-Fi connection does have a few perks. If the weather takes a turn for the worse, the app will suggest indoor activities. It’ll also show whether a place is open or closed in real time. But you’re not missing much in offline mode. |
| It’s Customizable | It’s Customizable |
| If you’re strapped for time, the suggested Day Plans seem to have something for everyone. But you can also customize each recommended plan by adding or deleting stops, or create one from scratch. | If you’re strapped for time, the suggested Day Plans seem to have something for everyone. But you can also customize each recommended plan by adding or deleting stops, or create one from scratch. |
| The app will also suggest places to visit based on what it knows about you (which, by now, is a lot). It had Fenway Park on the top of my “For You” list, since it has rightfully concluded that I’m a baseball fan. Then again, “Boston With Kids” was another suggested Day Plan and I don’t have any of those. | The app will also suggest places to visit based on what it knows about you (which, by now, is a lot). It had Fenway Park on the top of my “For You” list, since it has rightfully concluded that I’m a baseball fan. Then again, “Boston With Kids” was another suggested Day Plan and I don’t have any of those. |
| It’s Kind of Creepy | It’s Kind of Creepy |
| Before you create your first trip, you’ll see some of your previous trips that you didn’t even share. That’s because it has already pulled in information from your Gmail account, so it knows which hotels you stayed in and where you rented a car from and stores this information under Reservations. This could be useful if you plan on returning some day. But if you’d rather not have the stroll down memory lane, you can delete previous trips quite easily. | Before you create your first trip, you’ll see some of your previous trips that you didn’t even share. That’s because it has already pulled in information from your Gmail account, so it knows which hotels you stayed in and where you rented a car from and stores this information under Reservations. This could be useful if you plan on returning some day. But if you’d rather not have the stroll down memory lane, you can delete previous trips quite easily. |
| It’s also not perfect. Occasional suggestions miss the mark. Also, I recently returned from a weekend away and it had this week blocked off for me as a trip to New York, which is where I live. | It’s also not perfect. Occasional suggestions miss the mark. Also, I recently returned from a weekend away and it had this week blocked off for me as a trip to New York, which is where I live. |
| It’s Free | It’s Free |
| There is no fine print here. As long as you don’t consider the fact that Google now has a new way of collecting your data as a price to pay, there is no monetary charge for using the app. This is significant if you compare it to similar travel apps like TripIt, which costs $49 per year for its premium service. | There is no fine print here. As long as you don’t consider the fact that Google now has a new way of collecting your data as a price to pay, there is no monetary charge for using the app. This is significant if you compare it to similar travel apps like TripIt, which costs $49 per year for its premium service. |