Finding places to stop and rest while on a long road trip can be challenging. You want to take breaks to use the restroom, get gas, grab a snack, or just stretch your legs, but it’s not always obvious where the nearest rest stop or gas station is located. Fortunately, there are several handy apps that can help you easily find rest stops, gas stations, restaurants, and more along your route. With these apps, you’ll never have to drive endlessly searching for a place to take a break again!
Apps That Show Rest Stops
Here are some of the top apps that let you know where upcoming rest areas, gas stations, restaurants, and other stops are located along your drive:
GasBuddy
GasBuddy is a very popular app for finding gas stations along your trip. While its main focus is helping drivers find cheap gas prices, it also shows the locations of gas stations, which are often good places to quickly use the restroom or grab a snack.
You can enter your destination in GasBuddy and it will map out all of the gas stations along your route. This makes it easy to identify where you can stop to fill up your tank and take a short break from driving. The app provides useful amenities information for each station as well, such as whether they have restrooms, convenience stores, and food options.
Rest Area & Service Plazas Locator
As the name suggests, this app specializes in showing upcoming rest areas and service plazas along major highways. It provides the locations, amenities, and estimated distances to rest stops in the US, Canada, and Europe.
The app lets you search for rest areas along your planned route or current location. You can filter rest stop results by the amenities available, such as restrooms, gas, food, lodging, and more. This is useful for finding stops that will have the facilities you need.
iExit Interstate Exit Guide
iExit is an app focused on helping drivers locate exits along the interstate by providing information on what services and amenities are available at each exit. This makes it easy to identify which upcoming exits will have gas, food, lodging, or restroom facilities so you can plan where to take a break.
The app covers interstate exits across the entire US. You can view recommended stops, search for specific amenities, or view a list of what is available at each exit. Ratings and reviews from other users help identify the best stops.
Rest Areas
The simply named Rest Areas app allows you to find rest stops and areas along US highways and interstates. It provides locations and detailed amenity information for upcoming rest areas based on your current GPS location or a selected route.
Some key details provided for each rest area include parking availability, picnic areas, pet areas, WiFi, handicap accessibility, and more. You can filter rest areas based on the amenities you need or search for specific rest stops by name.
SaniStops Restroom Finder
SaniStops is focused exclusively on helping travelers find upcoming public restroom locations. This makes it useful when nature calls and you need to find a restroom quickly.
The app shows bathroom locations along your route for rest areas, gas stations, restaurants, stores, and other facilities. You can filter results by amenities, ratings, distance, and more. Advanced features include the ability to save favorite restrooms and add custom restroom locations.
Key Features of Rest Stop Apps
When choosing which app may work best for your needs, here are some key features to look for:
Real-time GPS tracking
The app should identify your current location using GPS and be able to provide real-time updates on nearby upcoming stops as you drive. This allows the app to adjust to any changes or detours in your route.
Custom route planning
You should be able to enter your planned road trip route or destination ahead of time and have the app map out rest stops along the way. This allows you to identify stops in advance to plan out ideal places to take breaks.
Rest area and gas station locations
The app should provide locations, distances and estimated travel times to upcoming rest areas, gas stations, and other stops where you can pull over. This helps you identify your options and plan stopping points.
Amenities filters and details
Look for apps that offer amenity filtering and detailed information for each stop, such as restroom availability, restaurants, lodging, pet areas, and more. This allows you to find stops that fit your needs.
Ratings and reviews
User-generated ratings and reviews of rest stops can be extremely helpful for identifying which places are clean, safe, well-maintained, and best suited for taking a break from the road.
Saving favorites and custom locations
Some apps allow you to save preferred rest areas as favorites or add custom restroom locations. This provides a convenient way to tag stops you like and improve information for other users.
Real-time alerts and updates
Opt for an app that provides real-time alerts to notify you when you are approaching a rest stop or if there is a change, like a closure, at an upcoming stop. This keeps you informed in real-time.
Benefits of Rest Stop Apps
Using a rest stop app on a road trip offers many helpful benefits:
Prevents aimless driving
You won’t have to blindly drive for long distances hoping to come across a viable rest stop. The app provides peace of mind that stops are ahead.
Saves time and effort
Easily identify upcoming optimal rest stops without having to search endlessly online or drive around at exits. The app simplifies planning.
Allows better trip planning
Map out rest stops in advance to plan out the perfect spacing for breaks to stay refreshed and avoid fatigue.
Provides flexibility
If you need to change your route or take a detour, the app can adjust in real-time to find new rest areas along the way.
Offers amenities information
Know exactly which stops will have the amenities you need, whether it’s restrooms, gas, restaurants, lodging, or specific facilities.
Provides ratings and reviews
Don’t waste time at dirty or unsafe rest stops. User ratings help identify the best-maintained and highest-quality rest areas.
Saves your favorites
Easily access preferred rest stops again and again by tagging them as favorites in the app.
Improves safety
Safely plan out rest breaks to avoid drowsy driving risks. The app allows you to stay alert by perfectly timing stops.
Factors to Consider When Choosing a Rest Stop App
Here are some key considerations when selecting a rest stop app for your needs:
Locations covered
Make sure the app covers rest stop information for your destination location. Some apps focus on US interstates while others cover the US, Canada, Europe, or worldwide.
Most needed amenities
Consider which amenities are most important to you, such as pet areas, clean restrooms, restaurants, lodging, or particular facilities. Then choose an app that enables filtering by amenity.
Real-time updates
Look for an app that actively updates based on your GPS location to provide a live look at upcoming rest stops. This ensures stops haven’t closed.
Ease of use
Find an app with an intuitive and easy interface. You don’t want a rest stop app that is difficult to navigate and use while driving.
Platform availability
Make sure the app is available on your smartphone platform, whether it’s iOS, Android, or other options. This ensures you can access the app.
Price
Rest stop apps are typically free or have a minimal cost, but always double check. Assess if paid features are worth the price or unnecessary for your needs.
Ratings and reliability
Read app store reviews and look for high ratings. Also research the app’s reliability and track record for providing updated and accurate rest stop information.
Ads and pop-ups
Aim for a rest stop app that provides a seamless experience without excessive ads and pop-ups which can be distracting and dangerous while driving.
Conclusion
Using an app to locate upcoming rest stops, gas stations, and other places to take a break can make road trip planning and driving much simpler and less stressful. The top apps provide real-time maps and information on optimal stop locations based on your route and desired amenities. Key features to look for include GPS tracking, custom route mapping, detailed rest stop information, user ratings and reviews, real-time alerts, and the ability to save favorite locations. With the convenience of a rest stop app, you’ll be able to easily identify safe, clean, and convenient places to pull over when you need to use the restroom, fuel up, grab some food, walk your dog, or just take a quick breather from driving. Taking just a few minutes to download one of these handy apps can make a big difference in staying refreshed, alert, and enjoying smoother travels on your next long road trip.
| App Name | Platforms | Key Features |
|---|---|---|
| GasBuddy | iOS, Android | Gas station locator, real-time maps, gas price comparisons |
| Rest Area & Service Plazas Locator | iOS, Android | Rest areas, service plazas, amenities filters |
| iExit Interstate Exit Guide | iOS, Android | Interstate exit information, amenities and ratings |
| Rest Areas | iOS, Android | US highway rest areas, amenity details |
| SaniStops Restroom Finder | iOS, Android | Public restroom locator, filters and maps |