Knowing Your Travel Distances
Maps were not made just to show the way, but also to appreciate distances, and the technologies we now have available allow us to calculate distances in miles, air miles, nautical miles and kilometers. Travel distances are essential particularly for trip or vacation planning, thus one can appreciate the fuel costs as well as the the need for hotel reservations in case the journey extends on two or more days. The Internet is the richest resource for travel distances and calculators even if AAA and Rand McNally still remain the largest map companies in the United States with very good presences online too. Google and MapQuest are other major players in the online map competition.
Google calculators for travel distances dominate the web, particularly since together with this free service you are offered a whole range of options. For access to the Google Maps page you need to have a regular free Google account; after the entrance of the points of origin and destination, the distance measurement tools will give you accurate and highly comprehensive data. Thus, other than the travel distances you can also access other links in the menu that give access to info on gas prices, great sights to visit and weather forecast.
Program analysts point out that so far Google has come up with the most user-friendly type of program for the calculation of travel distances. This online service is also widely used thanks to the fast way of accessing the information: you just write the place of origin, the destination point and press enter. You will be provided not only with a map and the travel distances, but indications for how to move around are available too. For the moment, MapQuest is preparing the release of yet another complex program that would compete with the giant Google on an equal foot; this will most certainly trigger the introduction of other tools and functions to aid the web searcher even further.
Presently, time and space perception has changed radically and the modern means of transportation reflect this change. The travel distances between Los Angeles and New York would thus be long by car or train, but short by plane. In fact, the relative part in the equation is not distance as such, but the way we feel it in relation with time. People often tend to say: how long does it take to get to location X and not how far is location X? Costs, on the other hand are other ways of considering travel distances: gas, food, lodging, they all mean money. Hence, make sure to calculate the travel distances well and include them in the overall planning for your trip.
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