Skip to main content
  1. Home
  2. Travel

Elevate Your Travel Instagram Stories with Unfold App

By

Instagram Stories have always encouraged shoot-from-the-hip social media expression where the design becomes secondary to the need to be in-the-moment and spontaneous. The result, however, is that most look like they were designed by over-caffeinated tweens. The new Unfold mobile app is looking to change that by elevating the Stories of design-conscious users through clean, thoughtfully considered templates.

Image used with permission by copyright holder

The core functionality of Unfold is simple but effective: It provides streamlined templates to which users can add photos, video, and text to their new Stories. Photos can be sourced from their own camera roll or Unfold’s growing pool of stock photography. The look of the more 80 templates borders is professional and, in some cases, worthy of a two-page magazine spread: ample white space, photos displayed on perfectly color-coordinated borders, and handwritten script font captions.

Recommended Videos

Unfold is the brainchild of an Instagram-savvy entrepreneur and an architect. The former, Andy McCune, has a solid background in new media and advertising technology. He’s also the man behind the Instagram heavy-hitter @Earth account, which has garnered more than 1 million followers. The latter, Alfonso Cobo, is an architect with a Parsons design degree. The app started as a simple idea for Cobo to share his design and photography portfolios before he realized it could be the perfect vehicle for others to create better Instagram Stories.

If you’re worried about downloading yet another mobile app destined to disappear in three months (taking all your new Insta-creations with it), know that Unfold’s adoption has been impressive. Since its debut in January 2018, the user base has exploded to three million actives with more than 100,000 added daily. In that time, it’s spawned more than 50 million Instagram Stories. Big brands like Cathay Pacific, Soho House, CBS, and Four Seasons have already adopted the app as part of their branding strategy. Heavy-hitting Instagram influencers like @joanpala (with 213,000 followers), @alivialatimer (100,000), and @aleksandarjason (127,000) rely on it to publish many of their Stories. Apple has also given its stamp of approval, naming Unfold a “Must-have App.” So, it seems the app is here to stay for the foreseeable future.

Related

The Unfold app is now available as a free download for iOS and Android with 25 free templates. For a small premium, users can opt to add 60 more.

Editors’ Recommendations

Mike Richard
Mike Richard
Contributor
Mike Richard has traveled the world since 2008. He's kayaked in Antarctica, tracked endangered African wild dogs in South…
These unexpected menu items at Komodo Las Vegas made my meal memorable
From appetizers to dessert, expect to be impressed
Komodo Las Vegas

The difference between a good meal and a memorable meal goes beyond just great food. You can find great food anywhere and especially when visiting Las Vegas. Yet, the most memorable meals of my life have more than just stellar food. Memorable meals have an element of surprise or experience to them. At Komodo Las Vegas, unexpected menu items turned the dining experience unforgettable.

The menu is full of choices that go beyond what you'd see at a typical Southeast Asian restaurant, transforming a meal into a complete dining experience. From the Matcha Martini to the Surf & Turf Maki Roll, these unexpected menu items at Komodo Las Vegas surprised me in the best way possible.

Read more
Flying with beer? Here’s how to pack alcohol in your luggage
Learn how to do this right with this packing guide
Packing a suitcase

If you're anything like me and can’t resist picking up a few bottles of that amazing local wine or craft beer while you’re traveling, you’ve probably faced that moment of panic when it’s time to pack. Maybe you went a little overboard at a vineyard in Napa or filled half your suitcase with IPAs from a cool little brewery you stumbled upon. No judgment -- been there, done that. Honestly, local beer and wine make some of the best souvenirs (and gifts, if you don’t end up keeping them for yourself). Here's the big question, though. Can you bring alcohol on a plane?

The short answer is yes. Like with anything else in life, there are rules, and it's important to know them before you head to the airport, including how much and what you can bring. If you're flying with beer or wine, it's also essential to know how to pack the alcohol for the flight. There’s nothing worse than a bottle of red wine breaking in your suitcase and staining everything, or a broken beer bottle making your luggage smell like yeast right before a long-haul flight. With a few smart packing decisions, your beer or wine will be safely waiting for you at the baggage carousel, wherever your final destination may be.

Read more
Once nearly impossible to visit, this country could soon welcome the world
Turkmenistan just got easier to visit
Turkmenistan

For most of the world, Turkmenistan remains a mystery. Landlocked in Central Asia, it’s the second largest country in the region, yet it’s one of the least-known nations globally. Part of the reason for its obscurity? Turkmenistan has long maintained some of the strictest visa policies in the world. Independent travelers could only access the country on a transit visa, typically valid for just 3 to 7 days, or by joining a guided tour that required pre-arranged, government-approved invitations.

But that may soon change. According to The Independent, Turkmenistan has passed a new law that simplifies the visa process. Under the new system, travelers will only need to fill out an online form, eliminating the need for a formal invitation. Although President Serdar Berdymukhamedov will have the final say on the specifics (including the types of electronic visas and their validity) the new process promises to make visiting Turkmenistan far easier for travelers.

Read more