Trip It, the Travel App

Yesterday I booked a flight to Rome. Roma here I come!

Actually that is not the only trip on my horizon. I have a really exciting lineup of travel this summer spanning over three continents. And as I book my flights and make my accommodations I need to get organized.

I usually create a Word document where I write all my itinerary details. I print it out along with my boarding pass and anything that has a bar code – like car rental confirmations.

But this time, I’m finally trying something new! And that is the app and online resource called, Trip It.

I’ll admit, I’m a little behind the curve when it comes to adopting mobile technologies. And this morning, as I build my itinerary on the app, I am amazed at how simple this thing is.

Here’s the workflow:

You can download the app and/or sign up online. It is free and all you have to do is type your email and a password, confirm your account and you are ready to go.

Then from your email inbox, you forward all your confirmation emails to plans@tripit.com. Instantly, when it receives your forward, it recognizes your email address and it presents all your travel information in an organized and chronological manner. So there is no typing of departure dates, arrival times, airports, or flight numbers. Just simple forwarding of emails.

This is such a luxury!

If you do happen to book a hotel or anything that doesn’t send you a standard email confirmation, you can type in the details. And based on the dates it will order the bookings accordingly.

I downloaded the free version of the app. But apparently, if you upgrade for $3.99 it will also give you real-time updates if your flights are delayed. With that version, you can also track your frequent flyer points. And on both versions you can connect with friends to coordinate your itineraries.

I think this app is great. And I’m not the only one. According to this article on Tech Crunch, Trip It was acquired early last year for $82 Million.