0:02 All right, folks. So, whether you've got
0:03 a brand new motorcycle and looking to
0:05 start riding this year, or you've been
0:08 riding for decades, one question you may
0:10 be asking yourself is, does Google Maps
0:13 have options for motorcycle routes? In
0:14 today's video, we're going to talk about
0:16 whether or not Google Maps has a
0:19 motorcycle mode for 2025 and we'll talk
0:21 about some tips on how to use Google
0:23 Maps for routes and some features that
0:25 it has to help motorcyclists. And if you
0:27 find this video helpful at all, the only
0:28 thing we're going to ask of you in
0:29 return for all the work put into the
0:31 video is to hit that like button for us.
0:32 It'll help the channel. And don't forget
0:34 to subscribe. And if you are looking for
0:36 the best roads to take by motorcycle
0:39 near you, check out our website at great
0:41 motorcycleroads.com where we have the
0:42 free links to the direct Google Maps routes.
0:44 routes. [Music]
0:53 The fact is Google Maps does not have a
0:55 dedicated motorcycle mode globally,
0:59 which is a bummer. Come on, man. I know,
1:01 right? With all the new tech and AI
1:03 coming out of these multi-billion dollar
1:05 companies like Google. You would think
1:06 it wouldn't be too much to ask for
1:08 Google Maps to have an option for
1:09 motorcycle riders around the world to
1:12 plan their trips. But here's the thing.
1:13 It does offer features that can be
1:15 useful for motorcyclists. In some
1:17 countries and regions like parts of
1:19 Asia, Google has rolled out a
1:21 two-wheeler mode which provides routes
1:23 tailored for motorbikes and scooters. It
1:25 can avoid roads where they're restricted
1:27 and it can favor more narrow roads or
1:29 shortcuts that vehicles can't take. It
1:31 also adjusts for travel time estimates
1:34 based on motorcycle specific conditions
1:36 like traffic patterns or even the
1:38 ability to lane split in some areas. But
1:40 for most places outside these regions,
1:42 including North America, there's no
1:45 official motorcycle mode yet as of 2025.
1:46 But the fact that they've rolled out
1:48 this option for some regions already
1:50 gives us hope that they can develop this
1:51 feature for those of us in North America
1:54 and around the globe. But even if you
1:55 are planning motorcycle routes in a
1:57 region where the two-wheeler mode is not
1:59 yet available, Google Maps does have
2:00 some features that can be very helpful
2:02 for motorcycle trip planning. And here's
2:04 a few tips on how to optimize it best,
2:06 whether you're using a laptop or your
2:08 mobile device on Google [Music]
2:13 [Music]
2:16 Maps. The good news is you can still use
2:18 Google Maps effectively for motorcycle
2:20 trips by tweaking just a few settings.
2:22 So, if you've got your laptop set up
2:24 with Google Maps open, once you put in
2:26 point A and point B destinations, you'll
2:27 notice the algorithm is set up to get
2:29 you there the most timeefficient way,
2:31 which will probably include highways.
2:33 But you do have the option to select
2:35 avoid highways right here. This will get
2:36 you automatically off the freeway
2:38 completely and give you a route that has
2:40 back roads which are often much more fun
2:42 than straight open freeways. And you can
2:43 also select avoid tolls if you prefer
2:45 routes without those. But if you do
2:47 choose this option alone, just keep in
2:48 mind it will still give you some
2:50 highways. And here's how you can find it
2:51 on your mobile device. When you've got
2:53 the route up, click on the three dots on
2:55 the upper right hand corner and click
2:56 options. Here's where you can select the
2:59 same items on your mobile device. And
3:01 don't forget, once the route loads, you
3:02 can zoom in and manually drag the path
3:04 to include roads you know are best for
3:06 riding, like twisty mountain passes or
3:08 coastal routes. This can get a bit
3:09 tedious, but it lets you at least
3:11 customize your trip. Now, some riders
3:13 like to see what kind of elevation
3:15 changes there might be on their routes.
3:16 The second step is you can check
3:18 elevation and terrain changes. Google
3:20 Maps doesn't directly show elevation
3:22 profiles for driving roads, but one way
3:24 to check is the bicycle setting. This
3:26 gives you a rough idea of elevation
3:28 changes down here, but it's not perfect
3:29 for motorcyclists because it's still
3:31 meant for pedal bikes. And another way
3:33 to check elevation changes is to switch
3:35 to the terrain view. This will highlight
3:37 hills, mountains, and valleys, helping
3:39 you to spot potentially fun or
3:41 challenging sections. And it gives you a
3:42 heads up on some steep climbs or
3:45 descents. And don't forget this simple
3:46 yet effective measure as well, which is
3:48 to check the street view for road
3:50 conditions. We always try to show a few
3:51 seconds of this kind of footage on this
3:53 YouTube channel when we highlight the
3:55 best roads to take by motorcycle. The
3:56 reason is because it gives you a real
3:58 world perspective on what it's actually
4:00 like to be viewing the road. And it's a
4:01 great way to preview what the road
4:03 actually looks like, whether it's
4:04 narrow, if there's forgiving shoulders,
4:07 and the like. And another great way to
4:08 use Google Maps is the fact that you can
4:11 share and save your routes. Once you've
4:12 got a route you like and you plan on
4:13 using your phone to navigate while
4:15 you're riding, you can save it offline
4:17 by downloading the map area on your
4:19 phone in case you lose a signal. All
4:21 right, so say I want to ride through
4:23 Texas Hill Country. So on my phone's
4:26 Google Maps, I'll type in a nearby city
4:28 and then I'll scroll over to download
4:30 offline map. Then you just select the
4:31 amount of area you want to have saved on
4:33 your phone. Just keep in mind the larger
4:35 area is going to take up more space on
4:36 your device, but that way you'll have it
4:38 saved on your phone even when you don't
4:40 have any signal. I can't tell you how
4:41 important that's been for me on some of
4:42 my trips when you're riding through a
4:44 remote area and you're using Google Maps
4:46 to navigate your ride. All right, so
4:48 those are some tips on how to utilize
4:50 Google Maps. But what if you have more
4:51 than one route you want to have mapped
4:53 out? If you spent any time on Google
4:55 Maps, you may have noticed you can only
4:57 map out one route at a time. In other
4:58 words, say you want to ride a few
5:00 different great motorcycle roads in one
5:01 region or state, and you want to have
5:03 these separate routes laid out so you
5:05 can see how to plan your trip. Well,
5:07 there is another map tool offered by
5:09 Google. It's called Google My Maps. This
5:11 is designed for creating and sharing
5:13 custom maps, organizing information, and
5:15 highlighting specific locations or
5:18 routes. And it allows for collaborative
5:19 map creation with anyone you may be
5:21 riding with on a planned trip. For
5:22 instance, if you're looking to do a road
5:25 trip in the US or Canada, and you want
5:26 to map and have laid out the best roads
5:28 within each state, we've got this
5:30 feature on our Patreon for our members.
5:32 Our maps show where all the roads are
5:33 located so you can plan your motorcycle
5:35 road trip in the US and Canada more effectively.
5:37 effectively. [Music]
5:46 So, Google Maps is not perfect for US
5:48 motorcycle trips because it's mainly
5:50 designed for cars. The fact is, Google
5:52 Maps doesn't explicitly account for
5:53 things that motorcyclists care most
5:55 about when planning a trip, like road
5:57 conditions, sharp curves, or motorcycle
5:59 related hazards, unless you're in a
6:01 region with a two-wheeler mode. So,
6:03 while Google Maps can work for
6:05 motorcycle routes with some creativity,
6:07 it's definitely not a one-stop shop
6:09 solution, and many times it won't give
6:12 you the most scenic or fun routes. For
6:14 those details, you can pair Google Maps
6:15 with different paid apps or websites
6:17 like ours over at great motorcycleyclroads.com.
6:19 motorcycleyclroads.com.
6:20 Websites like ours are specifically
6:23 built with motorcyclists in mind and
6:24 they offer features like turnbyturn
6:27 navigation for twisty routes as well as
6:29 GPX files available for download which
6:30 you can use for your navigational units
6:33 like Garmin and TomTom devices. So if
6:35 you are planning routes in a region
6:36 where the two-wheeler mode is not
6:38 available yet, Google Maps is a good
6:40 starting point for help planning your
6:42 ride. Let us know in the comments
6:43 section below how you plan your
6:45 motorcycle trips. Hey, if you found this
6:46 video helpful at all, go ahead and hit
6:48 that like button for us. It'll really
6:50 help out the channel here. And don't
6:51 forget to subscribe either. And if
6:53 you're looking for the best motorcycle
6:55 roads near you, be sure to check out our
6:57 website over at great
6:58 motorcycleroads.com. Hey, thanks for
7:00 watching and we'll see you in the next video.
7:01 video. [Music]
7:04 [Music]
