Given that some software nowadays is so powerful you can easily stitch images together for a really wide view (either with panorama mode on camera or something like photoshop), is there still a point in bring ultra wide angle lenses on a trip?
Answer
Great question. A little over a year ago, I bought an ultra-wide (10-24mm f/3.5) lens with an eye toward landscape shots and quickly saw that generally, I can stitch images taken on a longer lens and produce more satisfactory panoramas. So, as you ask, what's the point of an ultra-wide?
Well, to answer it, the best approach is probably to discuss what an ultra-wide does, so you can decide how to make it work for you. I'll include a couple examples - not the best examples of my best work, but that will make my point.
First, an ultra-wide gets LOTS of stuff onto the same size sensor. This is why it fails for panoramas, and was never an excellent choice for them. It doesn't actually produce a bigger picture - it just makes stuff smaller.
Second, it tends to distort so that things on the edges look much bigger than they really are, proportionately to how the other things look. The wider the angle, the more this is true. Things in the middle tend to look normal, things on the edges, not so much.
Thirdly, it tends to exaggerate proportions. Whatever I want in the foreground, I have to get real up close to - like, within INCHES - everything else looks miles away. This is why it can fit big things in up close.
If you just want a panorama, then don't bother with the wide-angle. In my experience, the distortion means cropping and photoshopping and you end up with an image that captures just a bit more than a longer lens (say 24mm or 35mm), so what was the point?
But if you want to be able to get cool architectural features or interesting shots, then on vacation or anywhere, bring your ultra-wide.
Examples:
I squeezed in a frigate from about 5 meters: 
In this example, I am able to squeeze the whole church in (the tower is about 200 ft tall) by zooming way out to 10 mm and sitting inches from the family. Dad didn't think I could possibly get all of them in, let alone the church.
Because of the distortion, it isn't great for standard portraiture, but can be great for fun shots, like this one:
And cool special effects with the sky and clouds:
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