Get free app to find local restaurants, events

Elgin Area Convention & Visitors Bureau has launched free applications for the iPhone and Blackberry. A Droid app is coming soon.

Travelers now have instant access to current events and partner locations where they can stay, dine, shop, and play. The apps are available at iTunes and App World under the name Chicagoland's Northern Fox River Valley.

These days, travelers are using their smartphones to not only help them plan every step of their vacation before they get to the destination but also when they arrive. EACVB's new app allows them to see what is nearby them so they can decide where to stop and eat while they are biking the trails or what shopping outlets are closest to the event they are leaving.

Some of the other interactive tools offered through the apps are Twitter Feeds, Share My Trip, and My Favorites. The Twitter Feeds allow the visitor to see the daily posts the EACVB puts up offering local promotions and events.

Travelers can use Share My Trip to tell all of their friends and family on their social media outlets what they did on their trip and what they enjoyed. The My Favorites option allows for travelers to look at all the destinations ahead of time and mark the locations to visit.

The Elgin Area Convention and Visitors Bureau serves 13 communities in Chicagoland's Northern Fox River Valley including Bartlett, Carpentersville, East Dundee, Elgin, Gilberts, Hampshire, Huntley, Lake in the Hills, Marengo, Sleepy Hollow, South Elgin, Union, and West Dundee. Its purpose is to encourage, foster, promote and stimulate conventions and tourism in Chicagoland's Northern Fox River Valley.

For information, call (847) 695-7540 or visit www.northernfoxrivervalley.com.