A new app called Tourist wants to replace the paper discount card you never carry with something you always have: your phone. It's a free download on iOS and Android that works as a digital tourist card. When you're out and about, you show the card at participating restaurants, cafés, hotels, tour operators and shops, and the discount is applied on the spot — no promo codes, no booking ahead, no vouchers to print.
The app includes a map view so you can see which deals are nearby, which makes it the kind of thing you'd open while wandering a new city rather than planning at home. Free members get up to 5% off at listed businesses. An optional Tourist Plus subscription bumps that to up to 60%, costing $9.99 a month or $39.99 a year. If you travel a few times a year, the annual plan pays for itself quickly once the bigger discounts kick in — a single discounted tour or hotel night could cover it.
The network behind it is substantial on paper: more than 55,000 local partners worldwide, spanning hotels, restaurants, guides, activities and rentals. Businesses can list themselves directly through tourist.com, so expect the inventory to vary a lot by destination — strong in major tourist cities, thinner in smaller towns. As with any discount network, it's worth checking the map for your destination before your trip to see whether the partners there match how you actually like to travel.
For travellers, the appeal is friction. Discount schemes usually require signing up, collecting points, or remembering a code at checkout. This one trades on simplicity: pull up your phone, show the card, save. It won't replace booking platforms for big reservations, but for small spend — coffee, lunch, a walking tour, a souvenir — shaving a bit off without thinking about it is genuinely useful.
Who's it for? Frequent travellers who resent tourist markups, city-breakers who like to spend spontaneously, and anyone who has ever stood in a café abroad wondering if there was a deal they were missing. Budget-conscious backpackers can start on the free tier and see if 5% is worth having before committing to the subscription.
Tourist is available now on the App Store and Google Play, with a web version at tourist.com.
