Matthew Moran

When I say plan a tour, I am using it to create a speculative route; to see possible towns to play in.  Later Ill discuss how I find venues in those towns to turn my speculative route into a specific route and tour.

Here is the process.

First, Go to Google Maps:
http://maps.google.com

Assuming you want to do a mini-Southwest tour (I want to do several and since I am in Phoenix, that is where I will start).

I put Anthem, AZ or Phoenix, AZ into my Google Map Search bar and allow it to bring up a map of Phoenix.  Then, I zoom back to get a broader picture of Arizona and the surrounding states.

Looking at the map, I look for major cities in the general area; major being a relative term ' Ill play places with 2 stop lights or more..

I am going to play down in Tucson on May 2nd  so this might be a bit too late for a start of May tour but.. well see.

From Tucson I see the Las Cruces, New Mexico  with El Paso a short trip away.
I click on the "Get Directions" link and a box comes up with my "A"  starting point and "B"  destination.

I put "Anthem, AZ" (or my address to be more specific) in "A" and "Tucson, AZ" in "B"  and press the "Get Directions" button.

This results in a map from my starting destination to the ending destination.  Cool  thats pretty straight-forward.

But here is where things get fun and fancy.

The next stop in my "Southwest Cactus Tour" is "Las Cruces, NM".  I select the "Add Destination" link below the text box with "Tucson, AZ" and type "Las Cruces, NM".

I click "Get Destination" and voila!!!  Now Las Cruces has been added.
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Next I add "El Paso, TX" because it is about 45 minutes South of Las Cruces.  Again, clicking "Get Destination" adds this destination to my map.  Which, by the way, is showing my driving distance and times ' which we can use for budgeting our trip.

I was given a tip for a house concert in Alamogordo, NM, so I add that to my list and then add Albuquerque, NM.  I add Santa Fe, and then Flagstaff and Sedona in Arizona.  From Sedona, I head back home to Anthem.

Here is my list of destinations:

Note: It includes a driving time estimate and miles'

Here is the map:

Now I can use Google, facebook, myspace, etc. to find and contact venues in those areas.  Thats another topic but there is another little bit of magic with google maps.  As with most of life, you plan and plan and then, about the time you are getting started, things change.

Making Changes:
What happens when discover that your house concert in Alamogordo actually takes place before you play in El Paso, TX?

In the list of destinations above, simply click and drag the Alamogordo destination box above the El Paso box.

Your map will adjust automatically and you will see that your total miles increases from 1,332 to 1,408.

Adding a new destination is as simple as using the "Add Destination" button as before and then dragging it into your route list at the appropriate spot.  If the map does not re-calculate, simply choose the "Get Directions" button.

Saving Your Map
To save your map for future retrieval, select the "Link" link at the right top of your map.

This gives you a box with embed code and a link.  Copy the link and store it in a text document ' or, my preferred method, a google document with notes about the proposed tour.

Collaborate
Using a google document allows you to store the link and tour notes with Street Team members or a manager.

Editing Your Map
Simple grab the link and paste it into a new browser window.  Google maps will recreate the map and all the destination points.  You can then refine your map by adding specific addresses to venues in each city.

As you do so, remember to grab the most current link and paste it back into your document.

NOTE: DO NOT SAVE YOUR MAP USING GOOGLES MY MAPS
Google has a way of saving created maps, called My Maps.  Unfortunately, it does not maintain place to place directions, distances, or let you add/move/delete destinations.

Here is a link to the above map:

The Cactus Tour Map

Soon Ill include my method for locating and contacting venues and how it relates to using Google maps in this way.