Hank's Travel Best > Apps

By Hank Leukart
April 8, 2013

Best Russian Metro navigation app

Metropolitan by Aleksey Dodonov (Moscow, Russia)

T

he enormous Moscow Metro can be confusing, but it’s easy to navigate with Metropolitan, a free interactive metro map for iOS. The app calculates the fastest route between any two metro stations, and, most importantly, it allows you to see station names in both Russian and English: essential for any English-speaking Russian tourist. As a bonus, Metropolitan provides not only the Moscow Metro map, but the map for seven Russian cities, three Ukranian cities, and five other cities in former Russian republics. WB

Metropolitan is a free app for iOS. itunes.apple.com.

To read more about a trip on which I used Metropolitan by Aleksey Dodonov, read: A palpable history — Exploring Russia's past in a famous McDonald's, the Moscow Metro, and a Cold War bunker.

0

The Moscow Metro map in Metropolitan

The Moscow Metro map in Metropolitan

Food and Drinks

Coffee Commissary in Burbank serves the Burbank Biscuit breakfast sandwich, the best in Los Angeles.

Best breakfast sandwich in Los Angeles

Burbank Biscuit at Coffee Commissary in Los Angeles, Southern California

Food and Drinks

Gong Cha

Best bubble tea in Hong Kong

Gong Cha in Hong Kong, China

Food and Drinks

La Fundación Mezcalería

Best mezcal bar in Mérida, Mexico

La Fundación Mezcalería in Mérida, Mexico

Gear

CM4’s Q Card Case

Best wallet phone case

CM4 Q Card Case

Trips

The Delta Sky Club the roof of New York’s JFK airport lets fliers watch planes take off from the runway.

Best US airline business class

Delta One

Food and Drinks

The bar in the Woodstock Inn Station & Brewery

Best place to grab a beer in the White Mountains

Woodstock Inn Station & Brewery in North Woodstock, New Hampshire

Gear

The Virgin America Safety Dance

Best flight safety video

Virgin America Safety Dance

Food and Drinks

Atchafalaya’s Shrimp and Grits

Best shrimp and grits in New Orleans

Atchafalaya in New Orleans, Louisiana

Food and Drinks

Sitar restaurant

Best butter chicken in Fiji

Sitar in Nadi, Fiji

Food and Drinks

Bulaccino Cafe

Best western-style café in Fiji

Bulaccino Café in Nadi, Fiji

Trips

A mural of famous Portuguese Fado singers adorns the Fado Museum in Lisbon’s Alfama neighborhood.

Best place to discover Fado, Portuguese guitar music

Museu do Fado in Lisbon, Portugal

Trips

A classic BMW Isetta, “the lovable bubble car,” sits in the BMW Museum in Munich, Germany.

Best place to ride in a classic BMW Isetta

BMW Museum in Munich, Germany

Trips

The Krasin Icebreaker ship sits in the water in St. Petersburg, Russia.

Best tour of a Russian icebreaker ship

Krasin Icebreaker in St. Petersburg, Russia

Food and Drinks

Rick’s Cafe is a restaurant meant to evoke the feeling of 1930s Morocco.

Best place to watch the classic film Casablanca

Rick’s Cafe in Casablanca, Morocco

Trips

A woman soaks clothing in a blood-filled stream adjacent to the temple of Kali, Shiva’s bloodthirsty consort. (photo by Brian Leukart)

Best temple for seeing mass animal sacrifices

Dakshinkali Temple in Kathmandu, Nepal

Trips

The entrance to the Kroller-Muller Museum sits in the middle of Hoge Veluwe National Park in Apeldoorn, Netherlands.

Best bicycle ride to see Van Gogh art in a forest

Kröller-Müller Museum in Apeldoorn, Netherlands

Food and Drinks

Musicians play folk music in the Hammond Cafe in České Budějovice, Czech Republic.

Best bar for hearing Czech folk songs

Hammond Cafe in České Budějovice, Czech Republic

Food and Drinks

Trdelniks roasting

Best dessert in the Czech Republic

Trdelníks in Prague, Czech Republic

Gear

ExOfficio Give-N-Go Boxer Briefs

Best men’s backpacking underwear

ExOfficio Men’s Give-N-Go Boxer Briefs

Guides

A woman climbs The Egg in Yángshuò, China.

Best climbing guides in Yángshuò, China

Insight Adventures in Yángshuò, China

Trips

Ben Kweller of Death Cab for Cutie plays at the Showbox at the Market in Seattle, Washington.

Best rock concert venue in Seattle

The Showbox at the Market in Seattle, Washington

Trips

A model of an opium den in Thailand’s Hall of Opium

Best opium-smoking simulation

Hall of Opium Museum in Golden Triangle, Thailand

Trips

Arcadia Round Barn in Arcadia, Oklahoma

Best dance lesson in a round barn

Arcadia Round Barn in Arcadia, Oklahoma

Food and Drinks

Afrigonia

Best African-Patagonian fusion restaurant in Chile

Afrigonia in Puerto Natales, Chile

Hotels

A tourist sits outside his luxury tent at Khem Villas near Ranthambore National Park, India.

Best luxury hotel for seeing a wild tiger in India

Khem Villas in Ranthambore National Park, India

Gear

Mountain House Freeze-Dried Meals

Best freeze-dried backpacking food

Mountain House Freeze-Dried Meals

Gear

Camelbak Antidote Reservoir

Best backpack water reservoir

CamelBak Antidote 3.0L Reservoir

Food and Drinks

Bergsson Mathús

Best breakfast in Reykajvik, Iceland

Bergsson Mathús in Reykjavik, Iceland

Trips

Tokyu Hands

Best department store in Tokyo, Japan

Tokyu Hands in Tokyo, Japan

Trips

Agua Verde Cafe and Paddle Club

Best romantic date in Seattle

Agua Verde Cafe and Paddle Club in Seattle, Washington

Guides

Tour guide Seva describes the view from a rooftop in St. Petersburg, Russia.

Best rooftop tour in St. Petersburg, Russia

Vsevolod “Seva” Mitrofanov in St. Petersburg, Russia

Apps

Google Translate

Best translation app

Google Translate

Food and Drinks

Or2k

Best cafe in Kathmandu, Nepal

Or2k in Kathmandu, Nepal

Food and Drinks

Mount Nelson Hotel entrance

Best high tea in Cape Town, South Africa

Mount Nelson Hotel in Cape Town, South Africa

Trips

Upright Citizens Brigade

Best improv comedy club in Los Angeles

Upright Citizens Brigade in Los Angeles, Southern California

Guides

Útila Dive Center’s dock and boats

Best place to learn to scuba dive

Útila Dive Center in Útila, Honduras

Food and Drinks

Kex Hostel Bar

Best low-key bar in Reykjavik, Iceland

Kex Hostel Bar in Reykjavik, Iceland

Hotels

Quinta do Vallado wine hotel view

Best wine vineyard hotel in the Duoro Valley, Portugal

Quinta do Vallado Wine Hotel in Duoro Valley, Portugal

Gear

Before Sunrise

Best romantic train travel movie

Before Sunrise

Food and Drinks

Himalayan Hotel in Pheriche

Best grilled cheese on the way to Everest Base Camp

Himalayan Hotel in Pheriche, Nepal

Apps

Cleartrip

Best app for buying train and flight tickets in India

Cleartrip

Food and Drinks

Das Auflauf in Wurzburg, Germany

Best casserole lunch in Würzburg, Germany

Das Auflauf Restaurant in Würzburg, Germany

Hotels

The Izaak Walton Inn in Essex, Montana

Best hotel for a railfan

Izaak Walton Inn in Essex, Montana

Trips

A basketball game at the Museum of Soviet Arcade Games in Moscow, Russia

Best place to play vintage Soviet arcade games

Museum of Soviet Arcade Games in Moscow, Russia

Apps

Hipmunk

Best flight search app

Hipmunk

Food and Drinks

Panorama Pizza Pub

Best pizza near Denali National Park

Panorama Pizza Pub in Denali National Park, Alaska

Gear

The MSR HyperFlow Microfilter

Best camping water filter

MSR HyperFlow Microfilter

Food and Drinks

Gad restaurant in Cairo, Egypt

Best fast food in Cairo, Egypt

Gad in Cairo, Egypt

Apps

Couchsurfing

Best way to meet locals

Couchsurfing

Apps

The Moscow Metro map in Metropolitan

Best Russian Metro navigation app

Metropolitan by Aleksey Dodonov in Moscow, Russia

Gear

eBags Packing Cubes

Best way to organize a suitcase

eBags Packing Cubes

Hotels

Sofitel Legend Metropole Hanoi

Best hotel in Hanoi, Vietnam

Sofitel Legend Metropole Hanoi in Hanoi, Vietnam

Food and Drinks

Snow City Cafe

Best breakfast in Anchorage, Alaska

Snow City Cafe in Anchorage, Alaska

Gear

The Joby GorillaPod

Best travel tripod

Joby GorillaPod

Gear

The Garmin Oregon 450t

Best hiking GPS

Garmin Oregon 450t

Trips

A kayaker paddles in front of Yukon Island in Homer, Alaska.

Best kayaking day trip from Homer, Alaska

Kachemak Bay to Yukon Island in Homer, Alaska

Trips

A view from Navajo Loop hiking trail in Bryce Canyon National Park.

Best hike for seeing Bryce Canyon’s orange hoodoos

The Under-the-Rim Trail in Bryce Canyon National Park, Utah

Trips

Hikers look out from John Muir Trail onto Garnet Lake in the Ansel Adams Wilderness in Northern California.

Best island-filled lake in California

Thousand Island Lake, Ansel Adams Wilderness in Ansel Adams Wilderness, Northern California