When I was planning a long weekend with my girlfriends in Chicago in June, I knew I wanted to try and find some good photo locations, but knew I wouldn’t have a lot of time to wander about alone looking for them. I stumbled upon an app called Picfari and got excited. It’s a travel photography app that promised to do something no other app has done– let me see photos of locations along with their GPS coordinates and/or map to find them.
So I created my own Picfari for Chicago on my laptop before I left, and used the app on my phone to follow the map I created once I arrived. I even took a screenshot of the map to peak in case I didn’t to have my data on all the time.
*All photos belong to Picfari
I loved the ease of the app. I downloaded the free version of the app, but there is also one at the app store for $2.29 CDN. I’m not entirely clear what the difference is in the two, but the free version suited my needs. The app worked seamlessly with the website. My Chicago Picfari was ready and waiting for me to explore!
After my trip was over, imagine my delight when Scott Herr, one of the co-founders of Picfari, contacted me asking if he could feature my Chicago Picfari on their Facebook site. Heck, yes!
Scott sent me some interview questions and we had several pleasant emails. You can check out my Picfaris here, here, and here! I have plans to create my own for Quebec City and New Orleans as well.
“Find photo inspiration before your trip so you can have more time to enjoy your vacation.” -Picfari
I highly recommend Picfari for scouting new destinations as well as looking for a different perspective on old ones. I found it uniquely helpful in that you can customize it to your interests. Most photos also have a story that goes along with the photos giving a bit of background or detail about the area.
Users are encouraged to upload their own photos for others to explore. Picfari covers locations around the world. Why not sign up and upload some pics to help a traveller explore a new locale? Or show us all what makes your home unique. I did notice that Canada is not well represented yet, so travellers to Canada, why not post some of your best photos of your favourite locations and show off our beautiful country?
If you’re interested in seeing what became of my Chicago phototour, have a look here.
As an aside, Scott personally recommends Charleston, SC. He says, “It’s the #1 tourist city in North America (by Conde Nast) and a fantastic place. We have about 20 Picfari’s in Charleston and it would be perfect for a Planning Picfari. There is an amazing amount of history and things to do here, including eat!” Gotta love a city with good food. Charleston was never on my radar before, but I’ve got it in mind for my next roadtrip to the southeast.
