Using your mobile pohone to make travel easier

Your mobile phone can make travel easier

App developers for your mobile phone have created lots of apps to help you when travelling here in Australia, and overseas.

It can make complicated aspects of travel, such as keeping track of your tickets and bookings, seamless and organised.

Find apps on Google Play or the App Store

There’s an app for almost anything you can think of to do with travel. Airlines, taxis, weather, and much more!

Many of the things you can do with apps - such as checking in for a flight - you can also do using a website, but apps are optimised for your mobile phone, meaning they can be used anywhere.

For more on how to download and install apps, check out the Useful apps topic.

eSafety tip

Only download apps to your smart device from either the official App Store for Apple devices, or the Google Play Store for Android devices. Before downloading the app, check its authenticity by looking at the:

• App’s publisher
• Star rating given to the app by others
• Reviews written by those who have downloaded the app.

Airlines: Early check-in

One of the best ways to use your phone for flights is to take advantage of early check-in.

Up to 24 hours before your flight (for most airlines) you can log in to the airline’s app, provide your booking number, and check in to your flight, saving you waiting time at the airport.

Many airlines will then let you choose your seats on the plane, which you can double-check on seatguru.com (to see how comfy they are).

Checking in for your flight early means you can just drop your bags at a special counter when you arrive at the airport, which usually has a much shorter line!

Booking airport transfers

Getting from your hotel (or home) to the airport on the day of your flight can be much easier if you use an airport transfer service. This can mean you don’t have to worry about parking or bothering someone else for a lift to the airport.

You can book these over the phone, but it’s also convenient to use an app and your mobile phone. Just sign in and tap when you want to be picked up. Remember that for international flights, you usually need to arrive at the airport three hours before the plane is due to depart.

Using ride share apps

A ride share app lets you book a car to take you to your destination, and pre-pay for the trip. This can be more convenient than a taxi, which you need to pay for at the destination.

Ride share services are often more available than taxis and can also be cheaper too.

You can book a ride share trip using an app such as Uber. This app will let you rate the driver too, so there’s incentive for them to keep their cars clean, and to be punctual.

Sign-up to get travel advisories

You can sign up to the Australian government’s SMS travel advisory service to get updates about your planned destinations.

If something happens that changes the government’s advice on how safe it is to travel, you’ll receive and official SMS to your phone.

Visit https://smartraveller.gov.au to enter your details for this service, including your mobile phone number.

Well done!

This is the end of the Using your mobile phone to make travel easier activity.

Next up, if you have registered and are logged into the Be Connected website, you’ll now be able to take a short quiz to finish the course. If you're not registered, you are now at the end of the Booking travel and accessing your finances online course.