MapQuest Blog

Our new interface lets you easily plan and reorder trips with up to 10 stops. Here's a quick glance on how to use the multi-point routing features:

First off, generate a route by entering two locations in the directions form, then click "Get Directions".

Select "Add Another Stop to Your Route" in the section below your written directions right above your map. Type in the business name and/or location in the two boxes in the tan section. You can use this tool to add locations for up to 10 stops to your route.

Your route map and directions will show each segment with stops designated by letters A, B, C, etc.

You can collapse or expand the text view each segment in your written directions by clicking on the arrow beside the start of each segment label.

To edit locations or remove points along your route, click the "Edit" and "Remove" buttons located to the right of each stop in your text directions.

You can also use the "Move up" and "Move Down" tools to reorder your stops in your route.

In the next post, we'll describe improvements to our printer friendly pages and how you can customize what you print to take on the road!

Ever walk out the door and leave the printed directions on the counter? Well, I bet you rarely forget your cell phone! Another feature we've introduced back into BETA is various different ways to share the map or directions you just created. Send your directions to your cell phone simply by clicking on the "Send to Cell" option and you'll have your directions within a few seconds while also saving ink and paper. See the screenshot below of where "Send to Cell" can be found in the upper left corner of the map.

Want to pre-populate the "Send to Cell" form with the mobile number you use most frequently? No problem. Click on the "My Settings" tab under the MapQuest logo and save your Default Mobile Phone Number in the section in the bottom left column. Below is another screenshot of where this is located in the "My Settings" tab.

But the "Send" button does more; it also allows you to email a map/directions or add a link to a blog or website.

So, look to the Send button the next time you're on MapQuest to share where you're going with yourself and with others.

As we've pointed out in prior blogs, the BETA site is always evolving. We are continuing to add brand new features but are also bringing in popular ones that are currently on the classic MapQuest site. We know one of the favorites is our Advanced Routing options, and starting today, it's also integrated into MapQuest BETA.

We like to think of Advanced Routing as a way of giving our users more control to customize their own routes. This feature appears as a "More Options" text link at the top of your direction search results.(See screenshot below).

Once you click on More Options you'll be able customize your route in many ways.

The default on MapQuest is always Shortest Time, but there are a few other great options to choose from like the ability to avoid toll roads, highways and/or seasonally closed roads. You can also reverse your route from this menu when wanting to get turn-by-turn directions going back the same way you just came.

Here's an example of how the Advanced Routing feature recently came in handy:

Mike is a MapQuest colleague and also a huge baseball fan. While doing business in New York City, he flew out early and wanted to see the best way to get from John F. Kennedy International Airport to the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, New York. Mike typed in the airport code, "JFK", as his start location and "Cooperstown, NY" in the end. (That's right, MapQuest also recognizes an airport's address if you know the three letter airport code) The recommended route would get him from the airport to Cooperstown in a little over 4 hours but also let him know that there's a number of tolls in his turn-by-turn results. He preferred to save a few bucks and clicked on "More Options" and then on "Avoid Tolls". Mike now had a route that was about the same number of miles but was going to be around 20 minutes longer. He said he didn't mind the extra minutes and the road without tolls was a better option for his pocketbook.

As with everything in the new beta site, we're giving you more control of your navigation experience. Stay tuned – more to come!

MapQuest Beta has been up for a few days and we are getting some good feedback about the new interface. One question that has come up a few times is, "Where's the button for hybrid View?" If you're not familiar, Hybrid View is a term used to refer to street names and other important map labels displayed on top of an aerial image. So does MapQuest have hybrid views, and if so, why doesn't MapQuest have a button at the top that says "Hybrid"?

The fact is, ever since MapQuest added satellite imagery, we've had Hybrid views. We've listened to our visitors and found that a far majority of people that view aerial images, view with the map overlay and that in many cases the word "hybrid" was confusing. So, our Aerial Images automatically come in a Hybrid view as the default. If you want to see the aerial image only, you can click off the Show labels box. See the example below of how a hybrid map appears on MapQuest when someone clicks the "Aerial Image" button.



On a side note, we would like to recognize a couple notable MapQuest Beta mentions we have found online in the last week.

The first is a thorough, but short, screencast tour of the new MapQuest Beta Site by DemoGirl.com. Audio is also provided with her tour. Check it out by clicking here.

The next is an article written by Greg Sterling, a credited Internet consumer behavioral consultant and founder of Sterling Market Intelligence. Check it out here: MapQuest Stays the Course - with Tweaks

This is the first of many posts to come regarding the updates and enhancements happening at MapQuest. For the last few months the MapQuest team has been working diligently to introduce a better MapQuest.com. We're pleased to release the first round of our beta site with plenty of additional enhancements coming right around the corner.

So why the change? With over 50 million people visiting the site every month and continuing to be the US mapping category leader -- does it really need a change? The answer is quite simply, yes. We've listened to our users and are introducing a completely new look and feel based on a great amount of research and suggestions by loyal MapQuest visitors.

What's the biggest change? You'll see it immediately. On the home page, there's now a map and the most popular tools are in one place. All the controls are near the top of the page and easy to maneuver. We've tried to create a dashboard-like feel that lets you control your mapping and routing experience.

Feature Spotlight

The new site introduces many convenient features, starting with the main navigation.--now everything is at your fingertips. Whatever you need to do is in one master dashboard at the top or left hand column of the page. Get directions by putting in your Start and End point in easy one-line input boxes. Or, find a business or place from our huge database - no need to go to business directories anymore.

Remember when you had to input an address in up to 4 boxes? Now you only need one. No need to tab from field to field -- put your address information into just one box. Input as much as you know and hit go. You can also see your past searches next to your start and end points. Just pull down the arrow beside the input boxes.

Sometimes all you need is a map. Why not make it as large as possible? Now you can choose whether you want a full page map or a split screen view. Click on the thin vertical bar between the screens to see the view you'd like. You can also click on the aerial button to see high resolution satellite images of your destination.

The directions for your route are now located next to the map so you can easily see your route and map side-by-side. We've made the route list very customizable so users can have total control over their view. You can collapse each routing segment to view just your stops. Just click on the triangle next to the each routing segment and hide the section of your driving directions you don't need to see.

If you want to add multiple stops choose the Add Next Location on the bottom of your directions results. You can add up to 10 stops on your route. And if you need to reorder your stops, just click the arrows under each lettered Star and arrow up or down your stops in to the order you want. The directions will automatically recalculate for you.

We've made it much easier to create the experience you want on MapQuest by providing a way to control your default settings. Select the My Settings tab on the left side to set your home or work location as your default map view, including street or aerial map preference, for return visits. You can choose your route language from 9 different languages, pick miles or kilometers, or see your most recently viewed locations.

Another new feature is the ability to print the map in the view you want. Drag the map, zoom, choose street map or aerial views, and more --you have the choice to print the map in the view you choose. To save ink and paper, you can pick a "text only" option. You'll receive your driving directions, along with the road shield icons, but it won't print the map.

One final feature we're covering in this post is our new ability to move the icons on a map. Ever have an icon in the way of a street name, or perhaps a marker is covering up a key part of the map? Now you can simply click and drag the place marker out of the way and a line will appear that traces the place icon back to the original location.

We hope you're as excited about our new beta site as we are. Stay tuned for more enhancements coming over the next few months, including advanced routing options, ability to save maps and routes, drag and drop map interactions and more.

• Take the Tour
• Take me to the MapQuest.com Beta.
• Add us to you or your RSS reader