How to save money using Google Maps overseas

No more expensive cell phone data connections required with Google Maps (Image: Google)

When you’re on the road in a rental car, do you rely on a mapping app on your phone to get you where you’re going, and to find the things you need along the way? Those apps are great — until you lose your Internet connection.

Now Google Maps says it has solved that problem with a new upgrade of its app.

Users can now download a particular area or region to their phone, and if they lose connectivity, the app will still let them conduct destination searches, obtain turn-by-turn driving directions and find information about specific places along the way.

New! Get $20 off your first Lyft ride!

How does it work?

According to Google Maps, “You can download an area by searching for a city, county or country, for instance, and tapping “Download” on the resulting place sheet, or by going to “Offline Areas” in the Google Maps menu and tapping on the “+” button. Once downloaded, Google Maps will move into offline mode automatically when it recognizes you’re in a location with spotty service or no connectivity at all.”

Once it finds a connection again, “it will switch back online so you can easily access the full version of Maps, including live traffic conditions for your current route. By default, we’ll only download areas to your device when you are on a Wi-Fi connection to prevent large data fees.”