As soon as I’ve returned from a trip, I’m usually imagining where to go next. One of the first tools that I use in researching a destination is Google Maps.

A fishing village an hour north of Puerto Vallarta, Mexico

Even the best guidebooks can’t give you the level of detail and overall geography that is made possible through worldwide satellite data. This view of Sayulita, Mexico clearly shows the triangular plaza in the center of town which appeared in the hand-drawn scribble from the owners of the guest house where we stayed, as well as the main beach and Playa de Los Muertos where we hoped to escape the crowds. – In order to watch a total solar eclipse this past July, the longest for the next 120 years, my wife and I traveled to a small spiritual retreat island in the East China Sea.

A small island southeast of Shanghai, China

Putuoshan is home to one of four sacred Buddhist mountains, and is dedicated to the worship of Guanyin, the Bodhisattva of Mercy. There is not much by way of maps available for the island, but here we could see the town and get a feel for features such as the boat dock and the One-Hundred Step Beach, and by cross-referencing a guidebook, the three pools in front of Puji Temple. Switching to the terrain view, you can also get a sense of the 1060 hand-carved stone steps one might need to climb to reach the height of Mount Putuo. – A few years ago, we went to Morocco and ended up in M’Hamid, a small town on the edge of the Sahara desert.

Erg Chigaga, in the Sahara Desert

We went on an overnight camping trip at the foot of Erg Chigaga, mammoth sand dunes that exceed what one imagines from a lifetime of such movies as Lawrence of Arabia and The Mummy. It was a truly magical experience to watch the sun rise and set over the desert, turning the fine Saharan sand different colors. While not as useful before the trip, this map gives an idea of just how remote and beautiful the desert was.

Maps give important context to understanding a destination, and now everyone has the world at their fingertips, in map, satellite, and terrain view.