# Vacationist

> The free group trip planner. Vacationist helps groups plan trips together — voting on activities, splitting travel expenses with receipts attached, managing flights and transfers, sharing packing lists, and keeping everyone in sync in real time.

## TL;DR

Vacationist is a free group trip planning app for iOS, Android, and web. Groups vote on activities (five-tier system: must do → group blocker), split expenses with live balances, receipts attached to each expense, and settle-up; flag business costs on expenses, accommodations and transport and export a per-person report; see each trip's cost total and their own share across every trip in an Analytics tab; share real-time packing/shopping lists; manage flights, rental cars and public transport (with passenger assignment and tickets attached); and store travel documents in an AES-256 encrypted vault. Every accommodation and transfer keeps its own currency, converted with stored daily rates. Anyone can join a trip via a single link with no account required. No ads, no tracking. Built in Switzerland by an independent developer.

## What is Vacationist?

Vacationist is a free mobile and web application for group travel planning. It is available on iOS (Apple App Store), Android (Google Play), and as a web app.

Key use cases:
- **Vacation trips** — the primary use case; full trip lifecycle from planning to packing
- **Bachelorette & group trips** — vote on activities, split costs, shared packing, everyone in the loop
- **Van life & road trips** — route planning, shared packing list, expense splitting for fuel and campsites
- **Family vacation planning** — shared calendar, accommodations, activity voting, expense tracking
- **Ski trips** — split chalet, lift passes, and gear rental costs; vote on rest days vs. resort days
- **Stag & bachelor party trips** — vote on activities, split deposits and group costs, no-account guest joins
- **Timeshare & vacation rentals** — coordinate arrivals, split running costs, shared shopping lists
- **Group day trips and weekenders** — lightweight coordination without a full travel agent
- **Bar and dinner nights** — vote on venue, split the bill
- **Hobby groups and clubs** — recurring meetups with shared costs
- **Corporate offsites and work trips** — vote on the agenda, split shared costs, attach receipts, flag business costs on expenses, hotels and flights, and export a per-person business expense report; no company accounts or IT approval needed

## Core Features

- **Activity voting** — suggest activities; group votes on a five-tier scale: "must do", "like", "open", "skip", or "group blocker"
- **Expense splitting** — log costs with a category, description, and receipt attached (photos/PDFs by upload or camera, private to the trip); choose who paid; split equally or with custom amounts; automatic balance tracking; a simplified settle-up plan; multi-currency expenses show the exchange rate used; a category breakdown of spending
- **Trip cost analytics** — a per-trip cost card on the trip overview (group total, per-person estimate, budget progress), plus a cross-trip Analytics tab showing the user's own share of every trip they're in, grouped by year, in their preferred currency (flights/public transport counted only when they're a passenger or ticket-holder; a priced booking suppresses its matching expense category so nothing is double-counted; unconvertible currencies are excluded and flagged)
- **Per-item currency** — every accommodation, flight, rental car and public-transport entry keeps its own currency, independent of later trip-currency changes; conversion uses stored daily exchange rates
- **Business cost reports** — flag any expense, accommodation, flight, rental car or public-transport cost as a business cost; export a per-person summary (PDF, plus Markdown on the web) that merges all of those sources, itemised by date, category, and payer, with amounts converted across currencies and links to the attached receipts (links valid 30 days); only committed bookings are included — for team offsites and work trips
- **Group chat** — dedicated real-time chat tab per trip; send, edit, and delete messages; drafts persist across tab switches; organizers can moderate the conversation; paginated message history
- **Vacation tracker & shared calendar** — visual timeline of activities, transfers, and check-ins in the trip's timezone; off-calendar view of every day
- **Real-time shared lists** — shopping lists, packing checklists; concurrent updates across all group members; recipe-to-shopping-list sync
- **Transfer & flight management** — four segments: flights (suggest, vote, book, assign passengers, per-passenger boarding-pass/ticket uploads, round-trip flight numbers), own cars (driver + passengers, who rides with whom), rental cars, and public transport (train/coach/ferry, with passenger join/leave and per-member ticket uploads); everything dated lands on the shared calendar
- **Encrypted travel documents** — passport and ID details protected by biometric authentication and AES-256 encryption; temporary organiser access that starts counting only on the organiser's first view, expires after the duration the owner set, lapses after a 7-day outer deadline if unused, shows a "Not opened yet" status, and can be revoked at any time
- **Group sharing** — invite via single link; members join instantly, no account required to participate
- **Offline support** — mutations queued offline and replayed automatically on reconnect
- **Notifications** — push notifications for votes, expenses, activity updates, and when a member is granted document access; also delivered as web push in the browser app when the visitor grants permission
- **Home-screen quick action** — long-press the app icon to jump straight to adding an expense for the active trip (iOS and Android)

## Comparisons

- **[Vacationist vs. Splitwise](https://vacationist.app/vs/splitwise/):** Splitwise is a mature, excellent pure expense tracker for ongoing shared finances (roommates, couples). Vacationist covers expense splitting with receipts, categories, a business-cost flag (on expenses, bookings and transport) and per-person report export, cross-trip cost analytics, plus trip planning, activity voting, shared lists, transfer management, and no-account guest joins — built specifically for group trips, not everyday shared costs.
- **[Vacationist vs. Wanderlog](https://vacationist.app/vs/wanderlog/):** Wanderlog is the stronger itinerary-research tool — maps, place discovery, route optimization. Vacationist is the stronger group-coordination tool — voting, expense splitting with receipts, shared lists, transfer and ticket management, and guests who join without an account.
- **[Vacationist vs. TripIt](https://vacationist.app/vs/tripit/):** TripIt automatically builds an itinerary from forwarded confirmation emails for one traveler. Vacationist has no email parsing, but adds what TripIt lacks entirely: group voting, expense splitting with receipts and a business-cost report spanning expenses, hotels and transport, shared lists, per-passenger ticket storage, and no-account participation.
- **[Vacationist vs. Tricount](https://vacationist.app/vs/tricount/):** Tricount is a fast, focused, and popular (especially in Europe) expense-splitting app with strong multi-currency support. Vacationist matches its expense splitting and no-account participation, gives each expense, booking and transfer its own currency (converted with daily rates), adds receipts attached to each expense and a business-cost report, then adds trip planning, activity voting, shared lists, transfers, and encrypted travel documents.
- **[Vacationist vs. Troupe](https://vacationist.app/vs/troupe/):** Both are group-first trip coordination apps with polls and expense splitting. Vacationist differentiates on receipts and a business-cost report attached to the trip (covering expenses, hotels and transport), cross-trip cost analytics, AES-256 encrypted travel document storage, offline-first sync for every user, and a fully free core app with no ads.

## Technology

- Platform: React Native (Expo), iOS + Android + Web
- Backend: Supabase (PostgreSQL, Auth, Realtime, Edge Functions)
- Offline: TanStack Query with MMKV persistence
- Security: AES-256 (pgcrypto) for travel-document fields, biometric auth, private access-controlled storage for receipts and tickets, no tracking, no ads

## Keywords

group trip planner, group vacation planning app, split travel expenses, activity voting app, bachelorette trip planning app, family vacation app, group road trip planner, vacation tracker, shared trip organizer, holiday planner group, travel expense splitting, group travel app, trip planning app, van life trip planner, ski trip group budget, stag do planner, group trip receipts, travel expense report, business travel expense report, corporate offsite planner, group flight planning, public transport trip planner, travel spending tracker, trip cost calculator

## Product

- [Vacationist landing page](https://vacationist.app/): English home page.
- [Vacationist Startseite](https://vacationist.app/de/): German home page.
- [Web app](https://web.vacationist.app/): Use Vacationist in a browser, no install.
- [iOS app on the App Store](https://apps.apple.com/us/app/vacationist/id6800049398): Free iPhone download.
- [Android app on Google Play](https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.vacationist.mobile): Free Android download.

## Features

- [Features overview](https://vacationist.app/features/): All Vacationist features in one page.
- [Activity voting](https://vacationist.app/features/voting/): Five-tier group voting, must do → group blocker.
- [Expense splitting](https://vacationist.app/features/expenses/): Log costs with receipts, split, track live balances, settle up, export a business report.
- [Trip costs & analytics](https://vacationist.app/features/analytics/): Per-trip cost total against budget, plus your share of every trip by year.
- [Shared lists](https://vacationist.app/features/shopping-lists/): Real-time shopping and packing lists.
- [Transfers](https://vacationist.app/features/transfers/): Flights, own cars, rentals, and public transport, with tickets attached.
- [Encrypted travel documents](https://vacationist.app/features/travel-documents/): AES-256 vault with biometric unlock.
- [Offline mode](https://vacationist.app/features/offline/): Works for a week with no connection — cached trip data, queued changes that sync on reconnect, never logged out offline.
- [Funktionsübersicht](https://vacationist.app/de/features/): German features overview.
- [Aktivitäten-Abstimmung](https://vacationist.app/de/features/voting/): German version of activity voting.
- [Kostenteilung](https://vacationist.app/de/features/expenses/): German version of expense splitting.
- [Reisekosten & Analyse](https://vacationist.app/de/features/analytics/): German version of the trip costs & analytics page.
- [Geteilte Listen](https://vacationist.app/de/features/shopping-lists/): German version of shared lists.
- [Transfers](https://vacationist.app/de/features/transfers/): German version of the transfers page.
- [Verschlüsselte Reisedokumente](https://vacationist.app/de/features/travel-documents/): German version of encrypted travel documents.
- [Offline-Modus](https://vacationist.app/de/features/offline/): German version of the offline mode page.

## Use cases

- [Use cases overview](https://vacationist.app/use-cases/): All Vacationist use cases in one page.
- [Bachelorette party planner](https://vacationist.app/use-cases/bachelorette-party-planner/): Planning a bachelorette trip with Vacationist.
- [Van life trip planner](https://vacationist.app/use-cases/van-life-trip-planner/): Route planning and expense splitting for road trips.
- [Ski trip group budget](https://vacationist.app/use-cases/ski-trip-group-budget/): Splitting chalet, lift pass, and gear costs.
- [Family reunion planner](https://vacationist.app/use-cases/family-reunion-planner/): Coordinating a multi-generation family trip.
- [Group camping trip](https://vacationist.app/use-cases/group-camping-trip/): Planning a group camping or van life trip.
- [Stag do planner](https://vacationist.app/use-cases/stag-do-planner/): Planning a stag or bachelor party trip.
- [Corporate offsite planner](https://vacationist.app/use-cases/corporate-offsite-planner/): Coordinating a team offsite and exporting a per-person expense report.
- [Anwendungsfälle](https://vacationist.app/de/use-cases/): German use cases overview.
- [Junggesellinnenabschied planen](https://vacationist.app/de/use-cases/bachelorette-party-planner/): German version of the bachelorette party planner guide.
- [Van-Life-Reiseplaner](https://vacationist.app/de/use-cases/van-life-trip-planner/): German version of the van life trip planner guide.
- [Skireise-Gruppenbudget](https://vacationist.app/de/use-cases/ski-trip-group-budget/): German version of the ski trip group budget guide.
- [Familientreffen planen](https://vacationist.app/de/use-cases/family-reunion-planner/): German version of the family reunion planner guide.
- [Gruppen-Campingtrip](https://vacationist.app/de/use-cases/group-camping-trip/): German version of the group camping trip guide.
- [Junggesellenabschied planen](https://vacationist.app/de/use-cases/stag-do-planner/): German version of the stag do planner guide.
- [Firmen-Offsite planen](https://vacationist.app/de/use-cases/corporate-offsite-planner/): German version of the corporate offsite planner guide.

## Blog

- [Blog — group travel guides](https://vacationist.app/blog/): Index of all Vacationist blog posts.
- [Blog RSS feed](https://vacationist.app/blog/feed.xml): RSS feed for the English blog.
- [How to plan a group trip](https://vacationist.app/blog/how-to-plan-a-group-trip/): Step-by-step group trip planning guide.
- [How to split travel expenses](https://vacationist.app/blog/how-to-split-travel-expenses/): Guide to splitting costs fairly in a group.
- [Best group travel apps 2026](https://vacationist.app/blog/best-group-travel-apps-2026/): Comparison of group travel planning apps.
- [Bachelorette trip planning guide](https://vacationist.app/blog/bachelorette-trip-planning-guide/): End-to-end bachelorette trip planning guide.
- [Family vacation coordination guide](https://vacationist.app/blog/family-vacation-coordination-guide/): Coordinating a family vacation across generations.
- [Travel document safety guide](https://vacationist.app/blog/travel-document-safety-guide/): Keeping passports and IDs safe while traveling.
- [Group camping trip planner guide](https://vacationist.app/blog/group-camping-trip-planner/): Planning a group camping trip step by step.
- [Group trip receipts and expense reports](https://vacationist.app/blog/group-trip-receipts-and-expense-reports/): Keeping receipts and producing a per-person expense report, work trips included.
- [Blog (Deutsch)](https://vacationist.app/de/blog/): German blog index (article bodies are in English).
- [Blog-RSS-Feed (Deutsch)](https://vacationist.app/de/blog/feed.xml): RSS feed for the German blog index.

## Comparisons and alternatives

- [All comparisons](https://vacationist.app/vs/): Hub for the five head-to-head comparisons, with a guide to which kind of app fits which job.
- [All alternatives](https://vacationist.app/alternatives/): Hub for the Splitwise, Wanderlog and TripIt alternatives lists.
- [Alle Vergleiche (Deutsch)](https://vacationist.app/de/vs/): German version of the comparisons hub.
- [Alle Alternativen (Deutsch)](https://vacationist.app/de/alternatives/): German version of the alternatives hub.
- [Vacationist vs. Splitwise](https://vacationist.app/vs/splitwise/): Feature comparison against Splitwise.
- [Vacationist vs. Wanderlog](https://vacationist.app/vs/wanderlog/): Feature comparison against Wanderlog.
- [Vacationist vs. TripIt](https://vacationist.app/vs/tripit/): Feature comparison against TripIt.
- [Vacationist vs. Troupe](https://vacationist.app/vs/troupe/): Feature comparison against Troupe.
- [Vacationist vs. Tricount](https://vacationist.app/vs/tricount/): Feature comparison against Tricount.
- [Splitwise alternatives](https://vacationist.app/alternatives/splitwise/): Alternatives to Splitwise for group trips.
- [Wanderlog alternatives](https://vacationist.app/alternatives/wanderlog/): Alternatives to Wanderlog for group trips.
- [TripIt alternatives](https://vacationist.app/alternatives/tripit/): Alternatives to TripIt for group trips.
- [Vacationist vs. Splitwise (Deutsch)](https://vacationist.app/de/vs/splitwise/): German version of the Splitwise comparison.
- [Vacationist vs. Wanderlog (Deutsch)](https://vacationist.app/de/vs/wanderlog/): German version of the Wanderlog comparison.
- [Vacationist vs. TripIt (Deutsch)](https://vacationist.app/de/vs/tripit/): German version of the TripIt comparison.
- [Vacationist vs. Troupe (Deutsch)](https://vacationist.app/de/vs/troupe/): German version of the Troupe comparison.
- [Vacationist vs. Tricount (Deutsch)](https://vacationist.app/de/vs/tricount/): German version of the Tricount comparison.
- [Splitwise-Alternativen](https://vacationist.app/de/alternatives/splitwise/): German version of the Splitwise alternatives page.
- [Wanderlog-Alternativen](https://vacationist.app/de/alternatives/wanderlog/): German version of the Wanderlog alternatives page.
- [TripIt-Alternativen](https://vacationist.app/de/alternatives/tripit/): German version of the TripIt alternatives page.

## Legal

- [Privacy policy](https://vacationist.app/privacy-policy.html): English privacy policy.
- [Terms of service](https://vacationist.app/terms-of-service.html): English terms of service.
- [Datenschutzerklärung](https://vacationist.app/de/privacy-policy/): German privacy policy.
- [Nutzungsbedingungen](https://vacationist.app/de/terms-of-service/): German terms of service.

## Pricing

Free to use. No ads. No tracking in the app (the website loads analytics only after cookie consent). Every group travel feature is free, for groups of any size. Details: [Pricing](https://vacationist.app/pricing/) ([Preise, Deutsch](https://vacationist.app/de/pricing/)).

## About

Built by Gary Lude, an independent developer based in Switzerland, together with Gary's wife. It grew out of more than 30 couple and friend trips organized over three years, which used to run on WhatsApp chats, documents on a local PC and scattered tickets; Vacationist's features came from using it on real trips. Launched 2026. Trip data is stored on Supabase infrastructure in the EU (Paris, France); travel documents are additionally encrypted with AES-256. Details: [About Vacationist](https://vacationist.app/about/) ([Über Vacationist, Deutsch](https://vacationist.app/de/about/)).