So, to mark the launch of the New Year and lots of great vacations, here’s a . . . → Read More: Best Travel Apps for iPhone]]>

My prior post about Top iPhone apps for 2010 got me thinking about top travel apps. I am always planning my next sun and sand getaway, and some cool iPhone apps could probably help me along the way.

So, to mark the launch of the New Year and lots of great vacations, here’s a list of my top apps for travel:

Lonely Planet: Never get lost again! The Lonely Planet guides show you the top sights, plus where to stay, eat, drink, shop and party. The experienced authors at LP have road tested each destination extensively and tell you where to go if you love or hate tourist traps, and make the most of your holiday time. The maps work offline, so you won’t need to rack up enormous roaming charges either!

WiFi Finder: Possibly the most useful of all the apps to have on holiday, WiFi Finder lets you avoid paying massive data roaming fees by locating WiFi hotspots in 135+ countries. Free to download, it shows you the places where you can use all the other apps without racking up a huge bill.

Beach Finder:  This one is for North America only.  It has North America’s largest searchable database of beaches (over 5,300). Start working on that tan!

Currency: Provides you with up-to-date currency exchange rates, so you can always know how much your money is worth. Currencies are provided for over 100 countries, so you will always be able to find out the value of local money when you are traveling.

iTranslate: Over 7 million users have downloaded iTranslate for iPhone and made it the most popular translator on the App Store. A simple and elegant user interface, offline voice support and much more make iTransalte a must have app.

Perfectly Clear: While on vacation, it is always so fun to send pictures to your friends slaving away at work, right?  That is why I love the Perfectly Clear app and its ability to edit your slightly blurry, slightly too dark iPhone photos into professional shots (ok, maybe not quite that good, but the improvements are amazing). An absolute must-have if for uploading photos onto Facebook or Twitpic, or just emailing to the poor suckers back home.

Facebook:  As stated above, it’s fun to keep the peeps back home informed of what an awesome time you are having on vacation.  Be sure to upload the latest update to this insanely popular app before you head off to paradise.

Oh, and don’t forget a cute flip flop, summer vacation inspired iPhone case!