Enlist Apple Maps to Plan Your Next Vacation

I use Apple Maps on my iPhone all the time to find nearby restaurants, new coffee shops and to navigate events and places in unfamiliar parts of town. But the Maps app is also a great planning tool when it comes to organizing a vacation or even just a jaunt out of town.

As you plan this winter's travel -- now is the time to book those flights -- here's how to use Apple Maps to discover destinations and navigate them easily once you arrive.

If the screens here look different from what you're used to seeing, note that Apple made some big changes in Maps in iOS 18.

And speaking of travel, don't forget to pack the essential items and avoid airline baggage fees if you're flying.

The benefit of tracking your destinations in the Maps app versus Notes or a spreadsheet is being able to see where they are in relation to each other. You can plan a morning or full day in one section of town and pick destinations that are nearby.

Apple Maps organizes spots in Guides, which are essentially lists or bookmarks of locations. In the Maps app, drag the handle above the Search Maps field until you see the Library section (if it's not already visible). Tap the Places/Guides/Routes item to view details of your Library, and tap Guides. Tap the + button to create a new Guide, type a name for it and then tap Create.

You can also create a Guide by first opening a location, tapping the More button and then tapping Add to Guides. Tap New Guide, name it and create it.

You may already have some destinations in mind, such as museums, landmarks and restaurants. Use the Search Maps field to find a choice spot, and then tap the More button. Choose Add to Guides from the menu and then tap the Guide you created.

Planning is great, but traveling is often all about adapting to unexpected circumstances or sudden serendipity. You may find yourself in an unexpected section of a crowded city or lazing about in a country bed and breakfast, looking for food or entertainment options nearby.

This is when an interactive guide like Maps is so useful. Tap the Search Maps field and look below for the Find Nearby options. Or, type a query such as "espresso" or "museums" and tap the first result. You can also filter the results to view, for instance, places open now or top-rated spots.

And if you're viewing a Guide, I particularly like the ability to tap the Sort by option and choose Distance to see which locations are closest.

Getting from here to there could be as easy as hailing a taxi or taking a leisurely walk -- as long as you know where you're going. I learned this lesson in Venice, Italy, where turn-by-turn directions are essential for navigating the narrow maze of streets and bridges (and you have to dodge all the other tourists navigating using their phones).

Once you've found a destination, tap the Directions button (which displays the type of transportation currently selected, such as the icon of a car or a person walking). The Maps app plots one or more routes. Pick one by tapping the Go button, which begins the first leg of the journey.

If you're out of a service area or in a highly-touristed location where the cellular networks are overwhelmed, your iPhone may not be able to load the Maps information you're looking for. Before you head out, you can download an offline map of the areas you'll be visiting that's stored on the phone and doesn't require a live Internet connection.

First, use the Search Maps field to find a location, which can be a city, area or landmark where you'll be. Then tap the More button and choose Download Map. On the next screen, drag the handles of the selection area to define the boundaries of the downloaded map -- the larger the geographic area, the more data the map will take up on your phone. Tap Download to save the map.

Traveling with friends and family? Everyone can be privy to the hotspots and suggestions you've put together by sharing your Guide with them.

Open the Guide and then swipe up until you see the controls appear at the bottom of the screen. (Yes, it's annoying for Apple to hide those controls.) Tap the Share button and choose a method, such as sending via Messages, AirDrop or Mail. Now you can send the Guide.

However, sharing Guides comes with a big, frustrating limitation: A shared Guide doesn't get automatically updated the way shared notes in the Notes app do. Once you share the Guide, anything they or you add to it is not updated for everyone.

Traveling doesn't have to be a pack activity. If you've split up to explore separate areas of a city, the Maps app includes a shortcut for getting directions to others' locations.

First, make sure you and your companions are following each other in the Find My app (a good idea whenever you're traveling together). You'll need to set the sharing duration to Indefinitely (versus one hour or one day), but when your trip is over it's easy to stop following people.

You can always switch to the dedicated Find My app to locate them, but if you're already in Maps, just type their name in the Search field. Below their name, which usually shows a home or work address, you'll see "Location 10 minutes ago" (or whenever they were last pinpointed by the sprawling Find My network). Tap the name to see their current or last location, and then tap the Directions icon to see how to get to them.

The Maps app doesn't track people in real time the way the Find My app does. If you want that level of way-finding, tap the Find My button.