AllTrails offers a wide variety of map types and details that can be applied to your maps to assist with planning your next outing. This article will help explain the difference between 'Map types' and 'Map details', as well as provide a brief overview of the options within these categories.
Map types
Map types represent the primary base-layer, or default view for your map. Each type will have slightly different features, points of interest, and attributes. Note that only one map type can be viewed at a time, but you can easily toggle between map types as needed.
Below is a brief overview of each of our map types:
- AllTrails: Our flagship map type, custom built for the AllTrails platform. Includes trail names, mileage markers, contour lines, hill shading, waterways, roads, summit labels, land cover types (forests, glaciers, etc.) and detailed building footprints.
- Satellite: Global, high-resolution satellite imagery. Includes labels.
- Road: Streets, buildings, and places all around the world.
- Terrain: Topographic map with contour lines and elevation that delineates boundary lines for regional, state, and national parks across the globe. Includes roads. (There's also a legacy version of this map type.)
- USGS Topo (US/legacy only): Historic US Geological Survey topographic maps showing both natural and human-made features (including campsites and roads), along with contour lines.
- OSM (OpenStreetMap/legacy only): Detailed map of the world created by a global team of volunteers. Includes trail names, landmarks, points of interest, campgrounds, parking areas, train stations, and more.
- OCM (OpenCycleMap/legacy only): Similar to OSM, but primarily aimed at showing information useful to cyclists.
Map details
Map details can be overlaid on top of any map type, and provide a wealth of additional information to help you plan your next adventure. Unlike map types, you can apply multiple details at once.
There are 4 map details available to all members:
- Photos: Displays geotagged photos on the map so you can see what to expect on the trail.
- Waypoints: Displays geotagged waypoints across the trail map so you can find landmarks, attractions, junctions, trailheads, etc.
- Nearby trails: Drops map pins for nearby trailheads so you can see other trails in the area as well as other access points.
- Distance markers: Displays mileage markers in miles or kilometers (based on your unit preference) along any route. *Only available at alltrails.com and not on the mobile apps.
In addition, there are 5 real-time map details that are exclusive to AllTrails+ members:
- Heatmap: Visualizes all the user activity tied to any trail. Easily find the most popular routes or less-traveled paths that other community members have taken.
- Weather: Displays real-time satellite and radar weather data over any map type.
- Air quality: Displays a real-time air quality index over any map type. Color coded with green indicating the cleanest air and red indicating the most polluted.
- Pollen: Displays a daily forecast of pollen levels over any map type in the US and Europe. The overlay is color coded with green indicating the lowest concentration of pollen and red indicating the highest concentration. Great for people with seasonal allergies!
- Light pollution: Displays a color coded overlay of excessive nighttime artificial light sources worldwide over any map type. Areas displayed in red show the most light-polluted areas while green shows the least polluted. This map type gives you insight into whether or not you'll be able to see stars at night!
Adjusting map types or details
You'll be able to easily select which map type you want to use or apply details to your map by clicking the map options icon (3 stacked sheets) from any map view.
Via desktop or laptop:
- Log into your account
- Select a trail card or personal map/activity
- If on a trail details page, select the static map of the trail (on the right side). If on an activity or map details page, select the map where your route is displayed (the right side of the screen).
- Click the map options icon (3 stacked sheets)
- To change map type, click on your preferred selection
- Click on any map details(s) you want to apply to your map
- When finished adjusting, click 'Apply' to see the updates on your map
Via iPhone or Android app:
- Select a trail card or personal map/activity
- If on a trail or activity details page, scroll down to the map section and click 'View Full Map'
- Tap the map options icon (3 stacked sheets) at the top right corner of the map
- To change map type, tap your preferred selection
- Tap any map detail(s) you want to apply to your map
- Swipe down on the gray bar to apply the updates and return to your map