Google Maps has become very ubiquitous and useful since its launch in 2005. We use the app to keep track of walking directions when driving or while walking in places we don’t know very well. Many of us also use it when planning trips to get to know the highlights of the area we want to visit.
But Google Maps includes many other features that may not be known to many, such as: creating custom maps for a trip route and sharing them with others, using maps without an internet connection, and many more, according to the “Arab Gate for Technical News”.
Here are 5 of the most notable of these:
1- The feature of saving the car’s parking place
After you’ve parked your car, open Google Maps on your phone, and tap the blue dot that marks your current location to open a menu of options. Among those options, you will find the option to “Save parking.” Click on it, and the application will save your car’s parking location.
And if you need help finding your car later, you can open Google Maps, tap the search bar and then tap the saved location option to get directions to your car’s location.
And if you are able to get back to your car without having to follow directions in the Google Maps app, you can delete this saved location marker by clicking on it, selecting “More info”, and then clicking on the “Clear” button to delete it.
2- The ability to use Google Maps without the Internet
If you are planning to go on a trip and may lose your internet connection, you can download a map of the location you want to go to and save it to the Google Maps application so that you can use it for offline directions. To download and save maps in the application, follow these steps:
Open the Google Maps app on your Android phone or iPhone.
Click on your account picture shown in the upper right corner.
– Click on the “Offline maps” option, it will show you any maps that you previously downloaded, and you will notice the option “Select Your Own Map”, click on this option, and select the map that you want to save.
– After you have finished selecting the map, click the “Download” button and the map will be saved in the “Offline maps” section and can be used at any time without the Internet.
(expressive from iStock)
(expressive from iStock)
3- Measuring distances between locations
If you want to know the distance between two locations, Google Maps can help you with that, as you can easily measure the distance between any two points on the world map. To do this, follow these steps:
If you are using a computer, open the Google Maps website, then locate the first location and right-click on it.
– Click on the “Measure distance” option.
– Select the second location that you want to know the distance between it and the first location that you selected previously, and the distance between them will appear to you.
If you are using the Google Maps application on your phone, tap a specific point on the map to add a marker over it.
– Click on the marker, then choose “Measure distance” from the menu that will appear.
– Select the second location to find out the distance between it and the first location.
This feature helps in trip and travel planning, for example: if you are planning a trip in Rome city, and you want to hike multiple places in the same day but some people in your group can’t walk long distances, you can use this tool to see if the distance from your current location To that area you and your group can either walk or you need to rely on public transportation to go to that area.
4- Special maps feature
Next time you’re planning a trip with your friends, you can use the Custom maps feature in Google Maps to make it easy to locate and share the destinations you want to visit with your friends.
This feature allows you to tag different destinations, group the tags together, and share your own map of those destinations with others so that they can add other destinations to it, and see the itinerary. To find this feature, follow these steps:
Open Google Maps on your computer, and click the three-line menu button in the upper left corner.
– Click on the “Your places” option, then click on the “Maps” button that appears in the upper right.
– Click on the option (Create Map) Create Map.
5- The Live View feature to explore the city using Google Maps
When you follow walking directions in Google Maps while you are in a specific city that you do not know much about, you can activate the Live View feature, which works with AR technology to display information about the places you pass.
You can take advantage of this feature to find famous landmarks in that city, shops, cafes and restaurants on your way as you walk, as well as details about opening times in shops and customer reviews, and the location of ATMs and more.