When it comes to travel, the journey is just as important as the destination — and the right tools can make that journey both seamless and memorable. As part of Good Housekeeping’s 2026 Travel Awards, our editors and testers spent months evaluating travel services and booking platforms to find the ones that make vacations easier, smarter and more enjoyable. Whether you’re searching for the perfect hotel, booking authentic guided tours, or curating a one-of-a-kind itinerary for a bucket-list getaway, these award-winning services take the stress out of planning so you can focus on the adventure ahead.
A screen-free alternative for long car trips and flights, Audible delivers hands-free audio entertainment and storytelling with its extensive library of over a million titles. On the app, you’ll find audiobooks and podcasts in a wide range of genres and subjects for all ages, including an Audible Kids Profile for younger listeners.
TEST RESULTS: “I love listening to audiobooks while traveling, and it's great that once a book is downloaded you don't need WiFi, so you can listen on an airplane, internationally, or on trains and in the car where service is in and out,” said one tester. They also liked the user-friendly interface and range of content, featuring “so many great options, including Audible exclusives.”
Listen to your favorite tunes with Apple Music on your next road trip or adventure, available in more than 167 countries and regions. With a subscription plan, users can stream over 100 million songs across Apple devices like their iPhone or iPad, as well as via CarPlay while driving.
TEST RESULTS: “On the go, this was pretty great and songs loaded very quickly,” said a GH engineer. He also found Apple Music’s audio quality superior and described it as a “love letter to musicians and the craft itself.” Testers found playlist creation intuitive and the user interface “engaging” and appreciated its “impressive recommendation algorithm” to help discover new music.
The T-Mobile Experience Plan allows customers to access high-speed data and texting in more than 215 countries without any add-ons or data roaming fees. Other perks include in-flight Wi-Fi on several major U.S. carriers, travel discounts, and network access in certain dead zones thanks to satellite technology.
TEST RESULTS: Our testers loved being able to continue using their T-Mobile plan abroad without having to buy another SIM card or pay extra fees. “I had good service and enough data for basic use like WhatsApp calls and Google Maps navigation during my entire stay in France,” said one traveler. Another was impressed by how their phone automatically connected to satellites when traveling in rural Wisconsin, so they could still send messages despite having no network access.
Skip long baggage check lines with Ship & Play, a service that picks up travelers’ luggage and gear—including oversize items like skis, bikes, and golf clubs—and then tracks it and delivers it to their destination. Serving over 180 countries and territories, every shipment provides complimentary insurance, as well as a money-back guarantee for on-time delivery.
TEST RESULTS: One of the best perks for our testers was that the service saves time at the airport and avoids checked bag fees. And for families with kids, traveling without suitcases was a major bonus: “Juggling a suitcase and a stroller isn't for the faint of heart—especially if you're traveling without another adult,” said one tester. On top of timely delivery, testers liked the service’s easy-to-use interface, tracking process, and excellent customer service.
The Tripadvisor website and app help millions of travelers do everything from planning to booking and taking trips. It is available in 24 languages, and you can complete bookings, make reservations, discover experiences, and more on the platform as well as read hundreds of reviews to help you decide on the details and logistics of your next trip.
TEST RESULTS: “The best part about it is the reviews,” said a longtime Tripadvisor user and travel enthusiast who loved being able to filter the reviews and home in on comments from other travelers in specific situations, such as families with kids. Testers also enjoyed using the Build A Trip AI feature, which creates a trip itinerary and offers suggestions.
A leading digital platform, Booking.com is a one-stop shop for planning your next vacation. From the website or the app, you can book everything from standout accommodations worldwide to a car rental or city tour. With multilingual support, 24/7 customer service, and tools like an AI Trip Planner, it helps make planning a getaway faster and more intuitive.
TEST RESULTS: Testers found Booking.com easy to use, whether searching for a hotel stay or booking plane travel. “I used Booking.com for part of my Mongolia trip, and it was able to coordinate some complicated flights,” said one. They also appreciated the breadth of accommodation options at a variety of price points as well as the extensive user reviews. “I love that everything can be in one place—it’s particularly convenient when you’re taking a road trip with multiple hotels,” said one tester.
David’s Vacation Club Rentals helps guests save on trips to Disney resorts and lets them get access to more in-room space by allowing them to purchase points from Disney Vacation Club members. You can use it to book one of Disney’s Deluxe Villa Resorts at a discount without the commitment to a Disney Vacation Club membership.
TEST RESULTS: One Disney regular found that DVCR offered substantially better prices than booking directly with Disney. “I love how this service gives you access to Disney villas at a steep discount,” they said. “We’ve been to Disney many times, and our vacation experience is always much better when we have the space and amenities of a villa rather than a standard hotel room.” Our pros suggest booking well in advance to ensure availability.
You’ll find all types of travel experiences available on Viator, from traditional tours to extreme adventures like hot-air balloon rides, sunset cruises, zip-lining, and more. It offers more than 400,000 experiences, and you can book everything from start to finish with a tour guide or tour operator via the platform.
TEST RESULTS: “I liked this tour a lot better than others I have been on run by other companies,” said one traveler, who found the tours competitively priced and consistently high-quality. Beyond the fact that testers found bookings very easy to make, one raved that their guide was “clearly enthusiastic about the region, excited to be guiding us, and it made the day so enjoyable.” Testers also liked using the app, which let them keep track of upcoming tours.
Operating in 28 cities from Paris to New York City, Go City enables travelers to take their sightseeing to the next level by unlocking access to attractions, tours and activities at a discount. Two kinds of passes are available, the All-Inclusive Pass and the Explorer Pass, both of which offer entry to attractions and consolidate multiple sightseeing tickets into a single digital pass.
TEST RESULTS: Testers found Go City to be an easy, organized and cost-effective way to get a taste of a new city and see its highlights. “If you want to see multiple attractions, you can pack them into one or two days and really make the most of it,” said one Los Angeles traveler. Testers also liked the app’s ease of use and found it straightforward to activate and use to book passes to popular sites like Universal Studios.
A global app and marketplace for booking unique travel experiences, GetYourGuide offers thousands of vetted partners. Within over 12,000 cities, you can search for activities like cultural excursions, access to attractions, and guided food tours to make your vacation more immersive.
TEST RESULTS: Testers were impressed by how easy it was to book tours as well as by the quality of the experiences and the top-notch customer service. “Skip-the-line guided tours like this one are well worth their cost,” one said. Testers found their experiences memorable: “Because of the specialized knowledge of the guide, we learned so much about the history of the cathedral, its construction, and the artifacts contained therein, etc.—far more than if we had attempted to visit without a guide,” one said.
To simplify family travel and make renting a vacation home easier, vacation rental platform Vrbo, together with BabyQuip, offers guests a 10% discount on baby-, beach-, and pet-related rentals. Thanks to this integration, families can now rent essential gear and equipment for their trips—from cribs to high chairs, beach umbrellas, and more—so they won’t have to pack it up and transport it themselves.
TEST RESULTS: Testers found the Vrbo website user-friendly, and booking a stay was hassle-free. Being able to rent gear from BabyQuip was the cherry on top. “Having the items delivered felt like such a luxury and saved us a lot of space in the trunk!” said one. Customers found that rental items arrived clean and in great condition. “It’s tough traveling with kids, but having access to the right gear and toys makes it that much easier and is worth the rental fee!” said a tester.
To help you make the most of your trip, City Experiences offers a curated list of more than 150 locally guided experiences across North America and Europe, from city walking and food tours to cooking classes, dining cruises, and more. It gives travelers priority access to iconic attractions, thanks to partnerships across the globe.
TEST RESULTS: One tester took a food and wine tour in Rome and absolutely loved it. “Our tour guide was very knowledgeable about the neighborhood,” they shared. “She helped us find family-owned non-touristy businesses where we'd get the most authentic food.” In addition to learning about and experiencing true Roman cuisine, they found booking the tour extremely easy.
