Travel Tuesday Part 3: Smartphone Travel App Reviews: Packing
Welcome to our Travel Tuesday series where we share the best travel apps available today! We've already covered booking your travel and lodging accommodations, but what to wear?!
Will you really need your parka? Is it optimistic to bring your bathing suit? Instead of stuffing everything you own into your suitcase in hopes of not running out of appropriate clothing, why not get down with one of these packing apps?
Packpoint
Using the Packpoint app could not be any easier. Upon opening the app, you choose your trip destination from their database of stateside and international locations. While the exact town
you plan on visiting in Ghana may not be there, the database seems to have at least a few major cities in every country, and almost every city and tiny town in the US. After you choose your location, you pick your travel dates, and then tell the app whether you are going for business or leisure. The next page of the app has a list of activities you might participate in – running, fancy dinners, snow sports, motorcycle riding, etc. Once you pick your activities (this includes an option to select whether your work wear is formal or casual), you can pick whether you would like to pack to repeat only some basics, or you have access to laundry 
facilities. The app factors in the weather for your trip, a huge convenience, and generates a packing list broken down by activity, and then a general list of essentials. This app is not without its flaws. Being a freelance writing female in my 20s, I'd likely not pack 5
suit jackets with me on any trip, let alone wear a suit to a fancy dinner (I'd prefer a dress, thank you!), but the suggestions are just a jumping off point. Using this app, it is very easy to customize your list by adding and deleting items, or updating the quantities of items you wish to bring. The list is also organized so you can check off items once they are packed. Once your list is complete, it's easy to share via text, email, and (I'm not quite sure why, but) social media. One of the best features is that you can have multiple lists running at the same time, and you can save your custom lists for other trips. Best of all, this app is free.
Packing Pro
At $2.99, I'm not sure this app even competes with the totally free Packpoint App. The app 
itself isn't without merits, but it's a lot less intuitive, and a little less aesthetically pleasing than its less expensive cousin. One of the best features is that it has a handy catalog of lists you can update. For example, under “medical” you will find 4 categories: pills, creams, bandages, and prevention. In “Pills” you can update “headache pills” to your favorite brand, or add those anti-malarial pills you have to take for your trip to Southeast Asia. While it is helpful to have this catalog, it was less time consuming to update lists inline using Packpoint. When it is time to create a packing list, you can choose to start a list from scratch, meaning you go into your catalog and select items one-by-one, or start from one of their sample lists, which include categories like: female, male, family, super light, and business. One of the main features I'm missing in this app is the ability to take the weather into 
account. When you generate a sample list with this app you will get sweaters and stockings added to it, even if you are going to New Mexico in August. This app is excellent for
those who like to plan and be in control of every detail, and would prefer to add items to their list one-by-one. For someone who wants the general work done, and the ability to customize from there, I'd go with Packpoint.
Other Articles You May Enjoy:
Travel Tuesday: Smartphone Travel App Reviews: Booking Transportation
Travel Tuesday Part 2: Smartphone Travel App Reviews: Booking Accommodations
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