Being a solo traveler can be lonely: many days or even weeks on the road can take its toll. Reaching out to people in a foreign city can be difficult, especially if you don’t know where to start. While there is an abundance of social media apps these days, none are really geared towards travelers. If you’re like me and want to find fellow travelers nearby, then the new “Find” app is for you.
“Find” simply and quickly connects nearby travelers. Just login with Facebook, and immediately see a list of nearby travelers.
Find only requires your location while using the app
You can search by male, female, or both.
You can also further refine your search by age and relationship status.
Then just tap on a photo of someone, and start a conversation.
“Find is a network of like-minded travelers looking to discover new friends. Find allows you to search for travelers with similar interests passing through your hometown, or in your destination city. With Find, you can make friends in your next stop before you even get there!” – excerpt taken from the site.
Personally I think meeting locals are the best way to get to know a city – they always have the low down on the best places to visit. Many times they’ve introduced me to new restaurants, trendy bars, and local festivals that were never on my itinerary. In fact, some people that I’ve met in my travels have become my closest friends to this day. I still remember one of my first trips to London, in which my newfound friends and I wandered through the city, stopped at a cozy pub, checked out the local exhibit at the National Gallery Museum, swapped bawdy travel tales, and laughed heartily. To this day, I always visit them whenever I am in town for a reunion. There is something to be said about creating friendships abroad, and the strong bond that is formed as you explore a city together.
Since this is a new app, smaller cities may not have as many users, but its user base is growing quickly. I hope future versions expand to include profile options such as Hometown, and Languages. I know for me, I would love to be able to find fellow Deaf travelers. So being able to search for languages such as American Sign Language would be incredibly useful.
As I mentioned previously, Find will show people who are closest to you. You can just as easily search for people near your upcoming destinations.
Find was created by fellow Semester at Sea alumni (and my friend) Tom Houge. Former Semester at Sea alumni’s have gone on to promote cultural understanding, excelled in tech fields, founded start ups such as Quicksilver, Kiva, and even Crocs! Not to mention established charities (such as Pencils of Promises, etc), and gone on to find success in film/music industry. It comes as no surprise that Tom created the FIND app after being inspired from our Spring 2011 voyage around the world. The app is free on iOS, and will be available for Android soon. Future versions will offer a in-app feature where you can book flights, hotels, and more. Part of the proceeds from the optional extra features will be donated to Semester at Sea’s scholarship programs, helping fund those that want to experience the life-changing experience the voyage holds for its students.
“The Spring 2011 voyage of Semester of Sea instilled in me a desire to change the world and I had an idea on the voyage that led me to found the companies FacedYou and Fipeo with a shipmate, Jeff Lucas. These failures taught me that small, bootstrapped, teams can take on multi-billion dollar corporations. Conversations with Sam Jablonski onboard a 377 foot yacht, Pelorus, that I was working on as a Deckhand led me to explore previous ideas from a fresh perspective. My vision was later guided by a conversation with Jimmy Ku at The Battery in San Francisco. With Find I have finally combined my passion for travel with a sense of purpose. Find is changing the world, one traveler at a time. I owe all of my success to Eyal, Matan, Oren, Omri, Ofer, Guy and the rest of the team at Moveo Software in Tel Aviv” – Tom
After using the app for the past week, I really appreciate Find’s streamlined focus on connecting people abroad and creating friendships. Personally I think the app will shine amongst the sea of social media apps in its simplicity. Find makes it easier than ever to find a new travel buddy.
Download Find here.
For more information, visit http://www.findiosapp.com/
Like their page on Facebook.
Disclaimer: Even though I received compensation from Find in exchange for reviewing the app, all thoughts and opinions are my own.
Photo credit – Unsplash. Artwork – Over app.
1 comment
That does sound like an useful app. There are times while traveling when I notice the locals just want to stay local and more often than not it’s the out of towners who end up reaching out to connect.
But your comment regarding seeing ASL being added to the list of languages…..
I can’t write enough about this. I agree with you. If you could find ASL-friendly events, would that make a difference for you?