This is for all you bleisure travelers, you that do bizcations, you suitcase entrepreneurs and road warriors.
It’s also for all the wanderlusters with an itch in their feet and a trigger finger for booking those crazy cheap flights just because you can! #amirite ?
If you don’t know TripIt yet, let me first say: how did you even make it so far!?
Secondly: TripIt is awesome & the holy grail of trip scheduling & once you use it you won’t ever want to go back to relying on all those 10 different apps to manage what a single TripIt can do.
WhoIs
In a nutshell: your soon to be favorite online travel itinerary and trip planner.
Your personal travel assistant that stores everything from your flight info, hotel booking to trip reservations – in a single view.
No, is not like Passbook, or like Google Trips. The benefits of TripIt go beyond that. But if your mind went there in the first place, then you get the basic concept.
So here’s how TripIt is different & more:
How it works: you connect TripIt to your email account, or forward your travel itinerary and whenever you book a hotel/flight/tour/etc. using that email, it’ll be automatically stored in the app, where it will be sorted and kept neat for you.
- Planning and tracking
- Storing scan codes for tickets
- Sharing itinerary
The company has been around for over 10 years, evolving and adapting to the online landscape and traveler needs. They were bought by Concur some 5 years ago, then Concur was bought by SAP in 2014. I’m happy that, in their triage of mergers and acquisitions, SAP let TripIt live and thrive.
Why Care?
Here’s why – in a nutshell:
- TripIt connects to tons of sources for travel info
- Automatically organizes your trip summary
- Mobile itinerary info is also accessible offline
- Access to useful & actionable information
- Timesaver + peace of mind
Why I’m Going Pro
Recently, Tripit saved my a$$ big time, when Qatar Airways failed to send the flight changes for our trip to New Zealand. You know, the one I’d been planning for since January.
Apparently, the flight was scheduled to leave 1h30 earlier than initially communicated. However, Qatar Airways failed to notify even their most loyal travelers (my husband has a Platinum status with them). Whoopsie!
Enter: TripIt.
Just a few days before, they had given me a complimentary one month upgrade. So the day before our travel, when I saw a notification in my app saying there are changes to my flight, I was a little bit surprised.
Then my husband checked with his Qatar online account and confirmed the information. Yet, we had not received any email communication…
Had we planned to show up the regular 3h before the flight as we usually do, things might have taken an ugly turn. Obviously, for such a short trip, everything was already paid for: accommodation, buses, trips. TripIt literally saved my trip.
@TripIt thanks for the complimentary 1mo upgrade to Pro!! I’d have missed important schedule changes to my 🇳🇿 flight otherwise (@UpsideDownTrvl) Nov 5
A Long Time Coming
I’ve been a happy user for years. 7 years, to be more precise. TripIt helped me manage hectic schedules and hundreds of booking confirmations – work and leisure – and all in all, was by my side for over 500.000 km of air travel.
But I hadn’t actively considered upgrading, until last month. I guess getting your trip saved really helps put things in perspective. And I have seen the light now! (church organ music in the background).
But really now, I have definitely seen the value. I thought about it, and for the amount of travel I’m doing – both business & private – $49/year is really that not much at all. How many coffees is it worth to you?
- Real-time flight alerts, gate change notifications.. you name it. I’m in.
- Losing a flight? Not anymore.
- Managing Reward points from countless sources? TripIt takes care of that.
TripIt has been with me around the world. It’s time for an upgrade in that relationship.
Still not convinced? Here’s some more seasons for you:
LoungeBuddy
TripIt links to LoungeBuddy and gets you the easiest info on airport lounges. You can check out the photos, amenities, hours, costs and reviews from travelers for more than 2,500 airport lounges worldwide.
Also, TripIt Pro customers receive a complimentary $25 LoungeBuddy credit. I’ll take that, thank you.
CLEAR Security Fast Pass
CLEAR is the stress-free way through airport security, with dedicated members-only lanes. They’rs currently only available at 30 Airports in the US, so not really interesting for me, but hey, it may speak to you.
With TripIt Pro, you get a 4-month free trial of CLEAR and then a discounted annual membership.
AirHelp
TripIt has partnered with AirHelp to make it easier for you to claim flight compensation for long delays or cancellations. You can also find out if any of your flights to/from Europe from the last 3 years qualify.
AirHelp takes a 25% service fee from your compensation amount, and only if the claim is successful. It’s incredibly easy to use too! To quote CNN: “Since it launched, AirHelp has been doing the dirty work on behalf of its customers, and it’s not afraid to take airlines to court.”
Travel Documents & Contacts
TripIt can store your travel documents, but because you’re usually logged into apps by default, there is an extra layer of protection and TripIt encrypts and stores confidential information such as passport numbers behind a 4-digit PIN.
My Take? TripIt & See
If you’re a frequent traveler and don’t know TripIt, you’ve honestly been missing out on a lifesaver! Especially if you don’t have a personal assistant or travel agent to sort things out for you.
The app is used by 14 million travelers globally. Try it out and you’ll see: it’ll become your indispensable partner in travel in no time. But hey, don’t take only my word for it:
Bonus Feature: Airfare Refund Alerts
First time for everything! @TripIt alerted me to a lower fair on a flight I had previously booked! Got the refund! @paulstorms Nov 29, 2017
Note: I’m in no way affiliated with TripIt, simply a happy customer. It had to be said.