Travel smarter with these apps at your fingertips!

Timeshifter

Planning a big trip across time zones? Eliminate or significantly reduce jet lag with this easy to follow plan. Developed using the science of our circadian rhythms, the Timeshifter app creates a schedule to follow that is based on exposure to light, caffeine intake, and sleep/wake schedules.

I don't sleep very well on planes. I'd traveled from Tokyo to Boston once before, and felt the effects of pretty severe jet lag for a week after returning. On my most recent trip, I was determined to improve that experience, so I tried this app. It was easy to follow, starting a few days before departure and ending a few days after. The app suggests when to avoid bright light, when to use or avoid caffeine, and when to go to sleep and wake up. The app also suggests melatonin to encourage sleep. Even if you cannot follow all the suggestions, you'll probably enjoy reduced jet lag. I know I did.

Enter in your typical sleep schedule, plus details about your flights and destination, and an hour-by-hour plan tailored for you is created. The first complete plan is free, so give it a try.

Mobile Passport

This official US Customs and Border Protection app is a fantastic way to skip the lines at major US airports (including Boston) and cruise ports. You enter your passport information in the app, choose your port of entry, and answer the questions typically found on the paper customs forms. Submit the information in the app, look for the Mobile Passport dedicated line, and check in with the officer before quickly moving through. I have never waited in line using this app, and highly recommend it. You don't need to be interviewed as you do for TSA Pre-Check or Global Entry, and there are no cards to carry or identity numbers to remember.

The Mobile Passport Plus option allows you to store your passport details in the app, so you don't have to enter them every time. The Plus option does have a cost.

XE Currency Converter

Math was never my strongest subject, so I love the ease of calculating prices, tips, and exchange rates on the XE Currency app. Select up to ten currencies at a time, and move easily between them.

Flightview

Track flights by route or flight number, get delay and airport gate notifications, plus current weather in your destinations. Flightview is easy to use and accurate.

Hopper

We all would like to know the best time to book our flights and the best prices we can expect to pay. Enter your route and dates, and Hopper's algorithms will crunch the data to give you a prediction based on historic price patterns. You can refine the search by specifying non-stop flights, length of layovers, and preference for type of fare. The app will advise you that you should buy now or wait to buy, but keep in mind that these predictions are for published rates only. The bulk and consolidator airfares can often be a better deal.