We’ve introduced a new hierarchy for map elements to better distinguish their roles and improve clarity, especially as maps get more crowded. Read on to learn more about the difference between Highlights, Points of Interest (POI), and Waypoints.
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Highlights
Highlights are built from from community-sourced POI and photos across publicly shared routes. These popular locations display as round icons on the map, and can be toggled on and off from the Layers menu when viewing the Route Planner, Explore page, or any activity or route.
Highlights are great for discovering stops that other riders have found useful, like coffee shops, viewpoints, water sources and more, and we prioritize placement of the most essential resources. These are your new best friend for planning a route in a new area, or for finding some new-to-you gems in your neighborhood!
As a member of the Ride with GPS community, you can also suggest new Highlights or update the information of existing Highlights. Check out our article all about Highlights to learn more!
Note: Highlights are only available when using our RWGPS Cycle map or OSM-based map types.
Points of Interest (POI)
Use the Custom POI tool to make note of things nearby your route, but not necessarily along it. Use Use POI to mark things like potential camp spots or accommodations, emergency bail out options, or nearby bike shops just in case. POI appear at a similar size as Highlights, but use a square icon instead of a circle.
Check out our help article to learn more about Points of Interest.
Waypoints
Waypoints are designed to show important places along your route. Waypoints act as a combination of a Cue, a Point of Interest, and a Control Point. They live directly on or near your route line, and are displayed with larger icons so they’re easy to spot in an instant.
Waypoints have the following characteristics:
- You can click and drag on Waypoints and they will adjust your track line, like a Control Point.
- Waypoints are displayed along the elevation profile at their location so you can easily identify things like snack stops, water sources, and campsites along the way.
- Waypoints are also displayed within the cuesheet so you’ll be notified when coming upon them when navigating a route.
POI, Highlights, and Location Searches can all be turned into a Waypoint. To add a POI or Highlight as a Waypoint, simply click on it and then select one of the available routing options to add it to your route as a Waypoint.
For an in-depth look at using Waypoints, check out our help article here.