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Last week, Google started sending out surveys to Google Map’s local guides to test out a forthcoming travel app. If you don’t know, Local Guides are people who help keep all the information about an area updated for Google Maps and Places.
Well, new information about that app is starting to trickle out. Google is calling it “Google Trips,” and it’s essentially a travel guide app, only it isn’t written by people who have only visited the country once (or probably never even visited at all). Google’s local guides tend to be deeply rooted in the cities they’re responsible for, with many having lived there their whole lives.
As such, Google Trips seems to offer up highly detailed guides for things to do and things you need to know when visiting a country. For instance, here’s an excerpt from the app detailing your travel options when you first arrive at Barcelona’s El Prat airport:
Barcelona-El Prat Airport is 13 kilometers from the city center. It has 4 terminals, although international travelers mostly use T1 and T2. A free shuttle bus connecting terminals operates 24/7. Buses leave every 4 minutes from 5:30am to 8:00pm, every 7 minutes from 8PM to midnight, and every 20 minutes from midnight to 5:30am.
The most convenient way to get to the city center from the airport is by Aerobus. Commuter trains are cheaper but slower. Taxis are easy to find, but beware of extra costs.
Other things the app will offer up are a list of things you absolutely need to know during your visit, the best restaurants to eat at, top sight-seeing and fun spots to check out, and more. Many of the places show other information from Google Places such as reviews and closing times. There’s also an option to access all this information offline.
It wouldn’t be a Google app if this thing didn’t use some information from your inbox, of course. The app can automatically serve up the info you need by looking at your inbox to see any itinerary details you have for your trip, though we presume you’d be able to use it by inputting information yourself.
That’s about all we can surmise from the screenshots you see above, but it sounds like a great idea and we hope to hear something official about it quite soon. Anyone excited to check this out?
[via Android World]
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