Whether you’re a backpacker, a flashpacker, or a jetsetter, chances are you’ve got a smartphone in your pocket. While the travel bug has infiltrated our office with the launch of 7x7’s May Travel issue, we asked our staff about their favorite travel apps, here’s what they like best:

Planning

HotelTonight - Wildly popular among 7x7 employees, users can find last minute hotel deals the same day.

Kayak – Book flights, cars, and hotels at your fingertips. Simple layout and easy to use.

TripIt – Organizes all of your travel info together automatically into one easy to manage itinerary. Allows users to streamline loads of confirmation emails and keep plans in one spot.

Hipmunk – Claiming to make travel “funner-er,” this cool app is a flight and hotel search site that lays your options out on a timeline.

Weather Channel – Well, you have to know what to pack for your destination, right?

TripAdvisor – Peruse user reviews of hotels, B&B’s, and hostels

AroundMe – Helps you find the nearest movie theater, gas station, bank, hospital, etc. to your current location. You can also share info via email.

On the Go

Flightboard – Helpful if you are notorious for missing flights

Yelp – Love it or hate it, Yelp user reviews help you find restaurants, bars, and live music venues, (among other things) with a variety of category filters like price, neighborhood or cuisine type, for example.

FlightTrackPro -- One of the pricier apps ($9.99), but gets you real-time flight updates and provides push alerts for changes to your itinerary. A must if you're a frequent flier.

HopStop - Gives you detailed walking, biking, and public transit directions for cities in the U.S., Canada, and Europe.

iPee Address - Self-explanatory! Directs you to the closest bathroom in your vicinity.

Communication

What’s App – Text for free to anyone (who also has the app), anywhere else in the world, from anywhere in the world for only $0.99. Saves you a bundle on international texting.

Skype - Free calls, even face-to-face, need we say more?

Lonely Planet Phrasebooks - Well-designed, the LP Phrasebooks have dozens of audio phrases for travel basics.

For Fun

Rdio - Once you sync your album collections and playlists to your phone, no online connection is needed to hear all of your tunes, nor does it drain the battery.

Amazon Kindle App - Downsize by leaving the Kindle at home and syncing all of your books to your phone. One less portable electronic device to turn off on the plane.

What are your favorite apps when traveling? Tell us in the comments.