Hiking Apps: The Magnificent Seven

Apps can be very useful for those who love trekking. They provide routes with full details, including difficulty levels. They provide updated weather information. They suggest alternative routes if necessary. And they can even trigger an alarm if they're connected to a 24-hour emergency service. But what are the best apps for trekking ? How much do they cost? And how do they work?

Index of topics

Wikiloc

It offers over 50 million outdoor trails worldwide, and lets you track your itineraries, including scuba diving . It's available in both a free and premium version (€4,99 for 3 months; €9,99 for 1 year), which also lets you send your routes to your Apple Watch and other GPS devices (for iOS and Android, it.wikiloc.com).

Komoot

After registration, it provides you with routes for a variety of disciplines (from hiking to e-bikes to mountaineering). The free version is joined by a premium version, which costs €59,99 per year and allows you to plan multi-day adventures, share your location, and use the World Pack, which allows you to view maps across the globe offline (for iOS, and Android, it can be used on desktop: komoot.com).

Photo Pixabay

Georesq

It can save your life . In the event of an accident, the "Alarm" function lets you send a call for help and your location to the 24-hour emergency response center. The operator will contact you and notify the nearest emergency facility. It also provides essential details such as your current coordinates and the nearest location shown on the map (free, for iOS and Android: website georesq.it)

Locus Map

Locus Map, a GPS app for mountain biking and the outdoors, also comes in two versions: a free version and a Pro version, which you can purchase for €7,50. The menu is almost completely customizable to your preferences, and data management is very intuitive. It provides a breakdown of online, offline, and WMS maps. The variety of online map resources is interesting (for iOS and Android, locusmap.app).

Photo by Simon English on Unsplash

Outdooractive trekking & running

Easy and intuitive, Outdooractive Trekking & Running is an app that lets you create a route in just a few simple steps and inspires you to find the destination you're looking for, whether it's near you or thousands of kilometers away. Routes , experiences, places to visit, refuges, accommodations, and events are all just a click away (for iOS and Android, outdooractive.com/it/mobile-app.html).

Terra Map

Useful for better orientation while hiking , cycling , or off-roading. Among the features most appreciated by users is the ability to display not only the names of streets and roads, but also the terrain characteristics and the indication of cycle paths. Terra Map is free for both iOS and Android (terramap.app/it).

Photo by Eric Sanman via Pexels

Alpine Quest

Last, but not least, is the Alpine Quest app . One of its major advantages is that it allows you to be located in real time on the map. There is a free and a paid version, but the advice is to invest a few euros (11,99) to avoid having to "suffer" the limitations of the first, which are not few. Such as the fact that you cannot import or create tracks or the limited choice of maps. The Pro version allows you to perform many more operations (including access to static maps). (alpinequest.net)

Trekking Apps: The Magnificent Seven