App Smart: Find Your Way Through the Airport Maze

As I planned our summer vacation this year, one of the critical issues I considered was how to shepherd two young children through the different airports where we would need to change flights.

Apps came to the rescue.

The iFly Pro app is probably the most widely known app of its kind. The app, which is $7 on iOS and Android, bills itself as an all-purpose airport guide for “the informed traveler.” It contains an airport guide for airports around the world — from Aalborg through Zurich — as well as flight timing data and other airline information. Inside the United States, it even alerts you to airport status, including departure delays and closings.

I used London Heathrow as a test case because it’s one of the most crowded and confusing airports I’ve ever been in, and the Olympics will probably increase traveler traffic even more.

The app’s clean, simple interface provides live information about flight arrivals and departures, and its terminal maps show in which direction the gates lie. But in terms of actually helping you navigate the warren of corridors and concourses, you’re on your own; the map of the building is a blue blob. But you can plot your location on the map and, using your phone’s GPS function, drop data on the map from a list of amenities, which helps find their approximate location.

The iFly app also tells you which airlines fly from which terminals and includes a comprehensive list of shops. It also provides information about A.T.M.’s, playgrounds and places you can eat. Its comprehensive parking and transportation guides include prices.

But for “layover ideas” at Heathrow, the app is less helpful. It suggests you “obtain pamphlets and information about Central London” at the airport’s five terminals, which isn’t useful for planning your trip.

The app works a little better for a giant airport like Chicago O’Hare or Newark because it offers layover ideas and a bit more detail in each section. That’s the app’s main difficulty: it seems quality of information isn’t consistent. For the airport nearest my home, iFly lacks maps for the entire second terminal.

Some advice: make sure you use the app before you set off, exploring each subsection and terminal map you’re going to need. This might be necessary because it downloads some of its content from a server, which could be a problem if you’re in an airport with no data connection or only paid-access Wi-Fi.

IFly is also available free without live flight data.

One alternative is the free iOS and Android app, GateGuru. While this app does have simple maps for some, but not all, airports, it’s less about helping you navigate. Instead it tries to be a portal for crowdsourced reviews of services offered by airports and a guide for wait times at check in and security.

Though this information may be more useful because it is timely, it’s dependent on people actually using GateGuru to review cafes and report delays. Right now, the page for Los Angeles International tells me there’s an average wait time of 10 minutes at Terminal 5, which would be handy if I were going through that particular terminal, but there is no data for the other terminals.

The makers, aware of this, have tried to encourage users to submit data by making a game of it; a leader board ranks “highfliers” who take part. You may even find it fun to fill in the data yourself as you’re waiting, bored, for your flight. You’ll even be helping other travelers.

The GateGuru app is more aesthetically pleasing than iFly, and even has a flight tracking section where you can bookmark a one-glance summary of flights you want to keep an eye on. But the app’s navigation can be a bit tricky, an important factor when you’re stressed and struggling to get to your departure gate on time.

If airport maps are all you’re after, try Airport Maps, which is newly updated and free on iOS. It’s far less polished than the others, but it has more details on some airports’ facilities. You can pay to download more as the makers add them to the database.

Quick Calls

I joked about Frankfurt, but there’s a slick app just for this airport on Windows Phone for $1.29. For whiling away the hours in the airport, one of the simplest and most addictive games for Apple iOS devices, Tiny Wings, has just been upgraded to Version 2. It’s an upgrade so big, the maker could have sold it as a new app, but instead made it free for existing owners. Check it out for $1.