Before we get into the juicy stuff, we need to point out that what works for us might not work for you. But if you’re the kind of motorhomer who’s fuelled by adventure and would rather spend your diesel money than splash out on luxury campsites, then I think these apps will work for you.
Plan Smarter with Essential Travel Apps
Have you ever joined a Facebook group and asked, “Hey guys, does anyone know where we can stop over for the night on our way back from the Lake District?“… only to be told this question has been asked a thousand times and to use the search function?
Yeah… we’ve got a name for those kind of people too, but it’s probably best I don’t say it here… 😉
Well, these apps have never let us down. With a little bit of time and patience, you’ll soon find the perfect stop-off while feeling safe, secure and, more importantly, connected to the outside world.
Support Local Businesses with Brit Stops
We must admit, we love Brit Stops… or at least the idea behind it. After a long journey across country, it’s nice to break up the drive, find yourself a nice Brit Stop, grab some food and settle in for the evening. It’s also a great way to park up and explore places you would’ve otherwise driven past on your way to or from your campsite.
We like the not knowing of travel and love exploring new locations before finishing up on a campsite with all the amenities. It gives us the opportunity to get hooked up, empty the poop box and recharge… both ourselves and the electric.
Put simply, Brit Stops is an app that lets you search over 1,100 unique stopovers up and down the country, mainly at local businesses that benefit from you staying there. The only catch is you’re expected to buy something… whether that’s a drink, a meal or a few bits from the farm shop, depending on where you’re staying.
Membership is around £44 a year, and when you compare that to the cost of a campsite, we think it’s good value. With that said, it doesn’t always work out cheaper. If you buy a meal for two with drinks, you can easily spend over £50 just to stay the night.
If you’d like more information on Brit Stops, you can do so by visiting the britstops website
Pitchup – Discover 6,426 hidden campsites.
Although Pitchup doesn’t have a dedicated app, we’ve included it because we’ve saved the website to our phone for easy access. Plus, we think it deserves a place on this list thanks to its simple filter feature.
Pitchup provides loads of information, along with a great review section, so you know exactly what you’re booking. For us pitch up is perfect for booking on the road, as I said we’re adventurers not planners so this Web app is perfect for anybody who find’s themselves wanting a quick site at affordable prices.
Pitchup seems to make its money by adding around 15% to the pitch price, but it’s all hidden and included in the total you pay. For example, if a pitch costs £30, Pitchup would take around £4.50 as their booking fee.
I’m not really sure why I’m telling you this… other than to say the price you see is the price you pay. No hidden surprises when you get to the checkout.
We love Pitchup and wouldn’t hesitate to recommend it to our fellow freedom seekers. Although, I suppose if we had hesitated… it wouldn’t be on this list.
The only negative is that there’s no dedicated app. We could be wrong… but I doubt it! Pitchup Now
Park for night, not for the weekend.
Park4Night is the lottery app of park-ups. It’s a fantastic, community-driven app that’s constantly being updated by fellow motorhomers and van lifers.
We find the free version good enough and, who knows, maybe we’ll pay for the premium version at some point. We’re still figuring out what works best for us and our adventures, but at the moment it’s Brit Stops and Pitchup.
That said, if you do want to pay for it, it’s only €9.99 a year. This gives you offline access, advanced search filters, no adverts and a few other useful features.
The app uses an interactive map, so you can search the area you’re currently in. If you ever get stranded, this app could cum to your rescue. The only concern is whether you’ll be sharing that car park with a bunch of doggers after something more than a cup of tea 🤣… Park4night.
See what we did there? 😜
Search for sites anywhere in Europe.
Search for Sites is basically all the apps we’ve mentioned rolled into one… only this one covers Europe too. It claims to have over 50,000 places to stay (50,917 to be exact), all of which can be integrated into your SAT NAV.
If you prefer using your phone, it’ll ask for the dimensions of your motorhome before searching, which we think is a great feature and one all the other apps should pinch.
The app also has a location search function, so if you fancy staying somewhere in particular, just click on the map and it’ll show you everything you need to know. It really is that Simple.
The app is FREE for 3 days, which I presume is just their way of saying, “Go on then… have a play.” After that it’s only £7.99 a year, and, even better, it doesn’t auto-renew.
That’s not bad when you compare it to Brit Stops at £44 a year… although we do have both. I never was any good with money! 😬 Search for sites.
AllTrails Hiking App
We absolutely love the AllTrails hiking app. No matter where we are, we can pull it out and find a trail to hike. It’s as simple as opening the app, selecting Navigate, and seeing what walking routes are nearby… then it’s time to lace up your boots and get walking.
We quite often find ourselves getting over-ambitious and regretting every life decision, but one feature we do like is the elevation graph. It gives you a good idea of just how much you’re going to regret your choices before you’ve even set off.
To unlock extra features such as 3D terrain and unlimited map downloads, you’ll need to pay £35 a year. But, as you can imagine, paying for all these apps soon adds up, so we just use the free version and find it’s more than enough. Happy hiking. AllTrails
what3words - never get lost again.
We can’t begin to tell you how many times this app has saved our lives. OK, that’s a slight exaggeration… it’s not like we’ve been lost in the Amazon rainforest. But, in all seriousness, this app has got us back safely more than once, and without it… well, you probably wouldn’t be reading this blog post.
It’s simple to use. Just open the app and it’ll generate a unique three-word address. Click Save, and it’ll remember exactly where you are… or, more importantly, where you started. Forget to do that and the app is practically useless… unless you need the emergency services, and in that case, you’ll be very thankful you have it.
Now, let’s imagine we really are lost in the Amazon rainforest. As long as you remembered to save your three words before setting off, you can simply press Navigate and it’ll take you straight back to where you started.
Genius, right?
Again, as always, there’s a yearly fee of £29.99, but unless you’re scaling mountains or trekking across deserts, I’d stick with the free version. what3words
