my visit plan

Top 10 Itineraries of The Week

Key benefits, personalized itineraries.

Receive travel plans that are specifically tailored to your interests, preferences, and travel goals, ensuring a unique and memorable experience.

Time-Saving

Save hours of research and planning by letting the AI handle the itinerary creation. Quickly get a detailed plan that covers all aspects of your trip.

Comprehensive Planning

Get well-rounded itineraries that include a variety of activities, from sightseeing and adventure to relaxation and cultural experiences.

Discover New Destinations

Explore new places and activities that you might not have considered, broadening your travel horizons and enriching your travel experiences.

Flexibility

Customize the generated itineraries further to suit your specific needs and preferences, giving you the flexibility to adjust plans on the go.

Optimized Travel Experience

Enjoy itineraries that are optimized for time and convenience, helping you make the most of your trip without unnecessary hassle.

Variety of Trip Types

Whether you’re planning a family vacation, a romantic honeymoon, an adventure trip, or a cultural immersion, the tool provides itineraries for a wide range of trip types.

Local Insights

Benefit from local insights and recommendations included in the itineraries, enhancing your travel experience with authentic and off-the-beaten-path activities.

Stress-Free Planning

Reduce the stress of travel planning by relying on AI to create thorough and well-structured itineraries, allowing you to focus on enjoying your trip.

Accessibility

Access your itineraries from any device, making it easy to plan and manage your travels from anywhere, at any time.

• 3 itinerary generations (non-logged in)
• 5 itinerary generations (with free account)
• Up to 14-Day Itineraries
• Maps Integration
• PDF Downloads
• Standard support
• Everything in Basic Plan and
• Unlimited itinerary generations
• Personalized packing lists
• Additional itinerary details (hotels, transportation, travel requirements, local sayings, etc.)
• Ad-free experience

$3 / month or $30 / year (2 Months Free)

€2.76 / month or €27.60 / year (Save €5.52) £2.37 / month or £23.70 / year (Save £4.74) ₹249.00 / month or ₹2,490.00 / year (Save ₹498.00)

• Everything in Plus Plan and
• Up to 30-Day Itineraries See Example
• Smartest AI with latest updates
• Private Itineraries

$5 / month or $50 / year (2 Months Free)

€4.60 / month or €46.00 / year (Save €9.20) £3.95 / month or £39.50 / year (Save £7.90) ₹415.00 / month or ₹4,150.00 / year (Save ₹830.00)

"This is super cool. I did three days in a relatively small town, and it came up with a nice sounding trip (relaxation focused)."

- Redditor StillKickinginAZ

"This is incredible"

- Jenny Turner

"This is so awesome! We hired a travel agent for $200 and your AI just spit out almost exactly the same itinerary the agent planned for our honeymoon in Greece!"

Do you see an issue or want to let us know what to improve? Please let us know and we'll take care of it.

Share Itinerary

Organize your trip today

Create an itinerary, map your route, and organize your travel plan. Start your next adventure with confidence and leave the hassle behind.

Where are you starting?

Bring your plan together

Organized trip planning.

Update your itinerary without rebuilding your calendar and trip map - everything works together.

Plan with friends & family

Share with others or collaboratively build a trip in real-time with live updates.

Everything in one place

Gather the pieces of your plan: itinerary, budget, & important documents.

Plan That Trip is here to take the hassle out of your trip planning process.

We eliminate the clutter of traditional planning methods by combining various planning aspects into one intuitive interface.

You're in good company

Check out these examples, utah outdoors.

Explore the diverse and stunning natural wonders that Utah has to offer.

Ireland Sightseeing

Traverse Ireland, see must-visit destinations, and experience classic Irish charm.

Italian Adventure

Embark on a journey through Italy's rich history, vibrant culture, and breathtaking art.

Your ticket to efficient planning

Skip the data entry.

Automatically add flights to your trip itinerary from confirmation emails or other documents.

Plan on your terms

Access anywhere, anytime. Export a PDF for convenient offline access, or use our mobile-ready web app.

Kick-start your research

City-level information about locations. Find out average temperatures during your visit, currency, time zone difference, and more.

Collect your ideas

Keep track of all the possibilities of your trip before committing to an itinerary. Move your ideas into your plan when you are ready. No more losing track of your options!

Budgeting made simple

Easily manage your travel expenses. Track spending, split costs among travelers, and view a comprehensive breakdown of expenses to keep within your budget.

Your travel documents, organized

Access all your trip-related documents. From tickets to hotel bookings, keep everything in one secure, accessible place. Forward confirmation emails to a synced address, and we'll include them with your trip-planning documents.

How it works

Gather your ideas.

Organize your ideas and decide what you want to do.

Chart your course

Plot your destinations and build your itinerary.

Fill in the details

Add your stays, activities, travel documents, and notes.

See your plan come together!

Can i plan trips for free.

Yes! Our free plan offers you everything you need to plan a trip. Trips with itinerary, calendar, and map views are saved for a year. You can also track expenses and attach notes. However, there are no sharing or collaboration tools with the free plan.

Can I share my trip plan?

Absolutely! Plan That Trip allows you to invite friends, family, or colleagues to collaborate on your travel plans. They can view, edit, and add to the itinerary in real-time, ensuring everyone involved has the latest information. Collaboration and sharing require a Premium plan.

How do I add flights?

Plan That Trip lets you add flights in lots of ways. You can specify the destination and arrival location, or flight number and date. With the Premium plan, you can automatically load flights from any document.

Can I track my spending and budget?

You can assign a cost to any part of your itinerary, and we'll tracks all expenses across the entire trip. Cost splitting lets you determine who owes what for various activities and is a good way of keeping tabs on individual expenses.

Is my data secure with Plan That Trip?

We take your data security very seriously. All your information, including personal details and travel documents, is stored securely and is only accessible to you and those you choose to share your itinerary with. We also give you the ability to download your data or delete your account, so you are always in charge.

Want to learn more?

Trip Planner AI

• Community Trips

Your Next Journey, Optimized

Build, personalize, and optimize your itineraries with our free AI trip planner. Designed for vacations, workations, and everyday adventures.

Your AI-Powered Trip

The most optimal.

Craft your perfect itinerary with Trip Planner AI. Our advanced algorithms take into account your selected explore-sights, dining, and lodging preferences to create the optimal travel plan tailored just for you.

Get Inspired

Extract valuable travel insights from Instagram reels and TikToks, explore the mentioned explore-sights, and effortlessly include them in your own adventure with Trip Planner AI.

TRIP PLANNER AI

The only tool youll ever need.

Say goodbye to the stress of planning and hello to personalized recommendations, efficient itineraries, and seamless dining experiences.

Optimal Route Planning

Our AI algorithms analyze your preferences to craft the most efficient route, saving you time and effort.

Personalize Your Adventure

Shape your journey by freely adding, editing, or deleting activities from your itinerary.

Local Cuisine Recommendations

Discover local cuisines and hidden gems recommended by our AI, tailored to your taste buds.

Dont take our word for it

See what our users have to say about revolutionizing their travel experiences with Trip Planner AI.

Trip Planner AI saves time and stress by aiding travel planning, relieving indecision or uncertainty.

Trip Planner AI offers diverse planning options in a user-friendly interface. Simplifies travel planning for enthusiasts.

I love traveling but hate planning. This app quickly organizes trip agendas, reducing decision fatigue.

Our Trusted Partners

Journey Inspirations from Travelers

Dive into unique trip itineraries crafted by our global travelers. Find your next adventure and share your own journey with fellow explorers.

Trip to Tokyo

Join me on an exciting 10-day journey through Tokyo, where we'll visit iconic landmarks, indulge in delicious cuisine, and immerse ourselves in the vibrant culture of Japan's capital city.

Trip to Dubai

Embark on a thrilling 6-day journey through Dubai, United Arab Emirates. Explore vibrant souks, iconic landmarks, world-class shopping, and enchanting attractions. Join us as we uncover the hidden gems and unforgettable experiences that Dubai has to offer.

Trip to New York

Experience the best of New York City in just 7 days! Explore iconic landmarks, indulge in delicious meals, and immerse yourself in the vibrant culture of the city that never sleeps.

Trip to Rome

Join me on a thrilling 5-day adventure in Rome, where we'll explore ancient ruins, marvel at stunning architecture, and indulge in mouthwatering pizza. Get ready for an unforgettable experience!

Customized Itineraries for Every Travel Dream

Trip Planner AI is your ultimate companion for any travel scenario. Whether it's a solo adventure, a family vacation, or a group expedition, our app tailors every aspect of your journey. Experience the convenience of:

AI-Powered Route Optimization

Utilize AI for optimal travel routes. Our app ensures a seamless journey, calculating the best paths, travel times, and distances for city tours or cross-country road trips.

All-in-One Travel Organizer

Simplify travel planning with our all-in-one platform. Trip Planner AI consolidates hotel and flight details, manages bookings, and imports tips and guides. Organize all trip details in one place.

Collaborative Group Planning Made Easy

Collaborate on itineraries with companions. Our real-time feature makes group travel planning effortless, ensuring everyone stays informed and involved in the process.

• Trip Planner

Trip Planner | Travel Itinerary Planner | Plan a Trip

Are you looking for an itinerary planner to plan your next trip? We know creating a customized travel itinerary manually is an overwhelming task. You have to put a lot of time into selecting destinations, booking hotels, flights, and comparing prices. On top of that calculating budgets & booking hotels and flights is another challenge that makes itinerary planning tough.

But what if all of this is done within a few minutes for you? Yes with TripHobo trip planner you can do this smartly. We have observed that many travelers end up spending more time in researching information than enjoying the actual trip. Not only first-time travelers but also experienced travelers struggle in creating perfect travel plans.

Even though it is a tedious task to create a customized itinerary, everyone agrees on the importance of itinerary for an enjoyable holiday. So Triphobo came up with this easy to use automatic itinerary planner.

How Trip Planner Works / Steps to Plan a Trip

Do you want to create your travel itinerary quickly & easily? Are you ready to use this tool now? TripHobo's trip planner plays a major role to ease the itinerary creation process and helps you overcome the pain in the trip planning .  Follow these 4 simple steps to plan a trip & let us know your experience.

1) Choose Your Destination & Dates when you want to travel

Visual algorithmic trip planner lets you choose destinations you want to travel to. You have the freedom to choose the real dates from the calendar. After selecting travel dates, planner runs algorithms to optimize a trip. It starts suggesting activities, sightseeing spots, tours and transport options with the details. For every attraction, it suggests open/close timings, time to spend, and nearby restaurants.

You can drag & drop activities and complete your itinerary within a matter of minutes. You can book yourself a nice vacation once you are sure of all the details, making you plan your trip very easily.

2) Refer to User Created Itineraries

If you have a lot of travel ideas but confused about where to start? Don't worry. Thousands of other people have visited the same destination before and created itineraries with us. Choose from a pool of more than 1 million user-generated itineraries around the globe. You can view other travelers’ itineraries for any location and duration to inspire yourself and then customize them to suit your own preferences.

3) Book Hotels and Flights

TripHobo always tries to offer the best from the travel industry to our valued planners. It has formed alliances with Expedia , Skyscanner, Zomato and Booking.com. Its ratings and reviews come courtesy of TripAdvisor whereas Google (as well as other partners) powers its location data.

TripHobo aims to cater to travelers at every stage of the travel planning process. It provides one platform to create personalized itineraries and hassle-free bookings .

4) Get Ready with a Perfect Itinerary

Once you’ve created your customized itinerary, you can print it. Save your plan for future reference or share it with your friends. When you’re ready, you can finalize and have a perfect travel itinerary ready.

Why Is TripHobo a Smart Trip planner?

There are few things included in the Triphobo planner algorithm & app which builds itinerary within minutes.

• A free virtual map-based trip planner with a smart algorithm
• International trip planner with about 1,50,000 popular destinations
• The largest repository of user-generated itineraries
• Hassle-free booking options for hotels, tours & flights
• Provides local transit options like metro, rail, bus, and car
• Calculates an estimated budget
• Provides options to save, print and share itinerary
• Strategic Partnerships with leading travel companies

TripHobo: Around the Web

• Trip of Your Own
• Traveling made easier with TripHobo
• Making The Southeast Asian Travel Connection
• Ex-HCL employee’s led ‘TripHobo’ is on a mission to become a global brand – a goto place for travel planning!
• Interview: Praveen Kumar, Founder & CEO of TripHobo
• TripHobo inks partnership with Zomato
• How a trip planning startup can succeed
• Karthik Ramachandram Co-Founder COO, TripHobo - Phocuswright Conference

Here's what travelers have to say about our travel planner

• Excellent 238

Great and genuinely wonderful website that makes a proper vacation plan simple, like it should. All reviews are 5 stars. The only suggestion I have to enhance this fantastic website is to include a mobile application. Even paying for a version without ads wouldn't bother me.

Every traveller should use this!

So much easier & more helpful than a travel agency, given lots of fantastic ideas, and was extremely helpful for planning the trip. Would strongly advise my family and friends to use this!

Great tool for trip planning. Impportantly it's free and automatically tailors travel plans to your preferences and is completely customisable. The integration with skyscanner and booking.com, and other OTA like priceline and expedia makes it very easy to plan the whole trip along with the bookings in one place.

Turn your road trip into an adventure .

Find amazing stops along your route.

• Auto Travel

You’re always a short detour from an

Extraordinary place.

Our collection of more than 300 Extraordinary Places will take your trip to the next level. Look for the illustrations on our maps and read our takes on what make these places so special. We’ve been there, and we think you should go, too.

Yellowstone National Park

Mammoth, wy.

Salvation Mountain

Walt Disney World

Lake buena vista, fl.

Blue Whale of Catoosa

Catoosa, ok.

Mount Rushmore National Memorial

Keystone, sd.

Graceland Mansion

Memphis, tn.

Glacier National Park

West glacier, mt.

World's Largest Buffalo Monument

Jamestown, nd.

Yosemite National Park

Yosemite valley, ca.

Cadillac Ranch

Amarillo, tx.

Acadia National Park

Bar harbor, me.

Mothman Statue

Point pleasant, wv.

Grand Canyon National Park

Grand canyon village, az.

Statue of Liberty

Liberty island, ny.

Las Vegas Strip

Paradise, nv.

The Fremont Troll

Seattle, wa, build your perfect road trip.

Tell us where you want to go and what you'd like to see and do. Roadtrippers will help you find all the best stops along the way.

• Places to Camp
• Sights & Attractions
• The Great Outdoors
• Bars & Restaurants
• Hotels & Unique Stays
• Activities & Experiences
• Fuel & Rest Stops

On all your devices

Any trips you've saved or places you love will sync automatically across devices.

In-app RV navigation

Hit the road with safety and ease by using turn-by-turn directions, designed specifically for your RV. Simply enter your rig’s size and propane restrictions, and we’ll find the best routes to your next destination.

Ready to start your adventure?

• Sign up Log in Sign out
• Log in Sign out

Plan your journey, find amazing places, and take fascinating detours with our app.

If you used to sign in with Roadpass, you should now use the same username and password to log in directly with Roadtrippers above.

We couldn't find an existing Roadtrippers account using that service. Please try signing in with another option.

We need your email address to send you trip itineraries and other updates.

How do you want to plan your trip?

With just a few questions, our newest Premium feature, Autopilot, will plan your next adventure.

• Le Français

Plan your next dream trip to the USA in seconds.

How it works

• Plan a Road Trip
• Plan a Flight
• Find an Airport
• Where to Stay
• All Questions

Road trip planner

Starting City

Destination City

Or switch to flying

Planning a road trip?

Get advice from people who have done the same trip.

The Trippy road trip planner automatically calculates the optimal itinerary including stops recommended by Trippy members, favorite restaurants and hotels, local attractions and things to do based on what people who live in the area have suggested, and more.

Once you have a quick trip planned, you can customize every detail, adding or removing stops, or changing what time you leave in the morning or how long you stay at each stop. Then you can save your custom trip and share it with friends and family.

Let us know if you have requests for more features you'd like to see in the trip planner!

There's an easier way to plan and organize your trips—here's how

May 14, 2019

[[read-time]] min read

Travel planning is complicated. The number of tools and amount of information you need to sift through when deciding where to go, where to stay and what flight to take can be time consuming and overwhelming. That’s why today, we’re simplifying the way we help travelers plan trips with Google across devices.

When you’re planning a trip—whether you’re on desktop or mobile—we want to help you find the information you need, fast. Last year , we simplified trip planning by making navigation between Google Flights, Hotels, and Trips easier on smartphones. We’re now rolling this out on desktop as well. You can either go to google.com/travel or search for something like “hotels in Tokyo” or “Vancouver” to find travel information from a variety of sources in one place.

As you plan a trip, your research and reservations will be organized for you in Trips. As we continue to evolve Google Trips, we’re making this information more accessible at google.com/travel, and in Google Search and Google Maps. We’re also adding a few new features to make planning and organizing your trips easier.

One place for all of your trip details

Last year , we started adding your trip reservations for things like hotels and flights to a trip timeline for your upcoming trips, when you’re signed into your Google account and you’ve received a confirmation in Gmail. When you go to google.com/travel, you can now make edits directly to your trips timeline, and in a few weeks you’ll be able to manually add new reservations as well.

Whether you’re packing your bags or finalizing your travel dates, the weather is an important part of every trip. You’ll now see the weather for any upcoming or potential trips at google.com/travel—so you can make sure you’re prepared, rain or shine.

Keep track of research and keep planning

It often takes days or weeks to plan a trip. When you need to pick up planning again, we’ll keep track of your trip research across Google. Recent searches, saved places and flights you’re tracking are added automatically to your trips when you’re signed into your Google Account. Soon, we’ll add viewed things to do and saved and viewed hotels to your trips. When you want to continue planning, all of your research will be waiting for you at google.com/travel. If you don’t want to see private results, you can opt out by adjusting your results and web & app activity settings.

When you’re ready to continue researching other parts of your trip, scroll down to see travel articles and find out more about a destination like suggested day plans, popular restaurants around your hotel and events happening during your dates.

Continue planning on-the-go  

When you’re on-the-go or visiting a new place, we’ll do more to highlight things to do, restaurants and more with Google Maps. For instance, last year we made it easier to find the best places to see and things to do when using Google Maps to explore a new place. Now, we’ll also help you get the lay of the land when you’re traveling by pointing out popular neighborhoods nearby and what they’re known for.

And in the next few months, your trips—including reservations for things like hotels and restaurants—will be accessible in Google Maps, too.

Our goal is to simplify trip planning by helping you quickly find the most useful information and pick up where you left off on any device. We’ll continue to make planning and taking trips easier with Google Maps, Google Search and google.com/travel —so you can get out and enjoy the world.

Related stories

Our 2024 travel trends — right in time for the holidays

How to save money on your next trip, with help from Google

3 ways to find a great deal with Google Flights

A new advisory committee to improve flight emission estimates

Three tools for stress-free travel around Asia Pacific

New ways to browse hotels and save money on flights — plus other tools for summer travel

Let’s stay in touch. Get the latest news from Google in your inbox.

The Ultimate Trip Planner

Plan & book your dream trip, routeperfect. with you every step of the way.

Free travel perks only for RoutePerfect members who booked flights, hotels and services through the RoutePerfect site.

How it works

Popular itineraries

Testimonials

• PRO Courses Guides New Tech Help Pro Expert Videos About wikiHow Pro Upgrade Sign In
• EDIT Edit this Article
• EXPLORE Tech Help Pro About Us Random Article Quizzes Request a New Article Community Dashboard This Or That Game Happiness Hub Popular Categories Arts and Entertainment Artwork Books Movies Computers and Electronics Computers Phone Skills Technology Hacks Health Men's Health Mental Health Women's Health Relationships Dating Love Relationship Issues Hobbies and Crafts Crafts Drawing Games Education & Communication Communication Skills Personal Development Studying Personal Care and Style Fashion Hair Care Personal Hygiene Youth Personal Care School Stuff Dating All Categories Arts and Entertainment Finance and Business Home and Garden Relationship Quizzes Cars & Other Vehicles Food and Entertaining Personal Care and Style Sports and Fitness Computers and Electronics Health Pets and Animals Travel Education & Communication Hobbies and Crafts Philosophy and Religion Work World Family Life Holidays and Traditions Relationships Youth
• Browse Articles
• Learn Something New
• Quizzes Hot
• Happiness Hub
• This Or That Game
• Train Your Brain
• Explore More
• Support wikiHow
• About wikiHow
• Log in / Sign up

How to Make a Travel Itinerary with Google Maps

Last Updated: August 16, 2024 Fact Checked

This article was reviewed by Stan Kats and by wikiHow staff writer, Nihal Shetty . Stan Kats is a Professional Technologist and the COO and Chief Technologist for The STG IT Consulting Group in West Hollywood, California. Stan provides comprehensive technology solutions to businesses through managed IT services, and for individuals through his consumer service business, Stan's Tech Garage. Stan holds a BA in International Relations from The University of Southern California. He began his career working in the Fortune 500 IT world. Stan founded his companies to offer an enterprise-level of expertise for small businesses and individuals. There are 8 references cited in this article, which can be found at the bottom of the page. This article has been fact-checked, ensuring the accuracy of any cited facts and confirming the authority of its sources. This article has been viewed 104,731 times.

If you’re planning a trip, you might be wondering how to figure out where to go and in what order. Luckily, Google has a free tool that you can use in order to get a better sense of your travel plans. We’ll walk you through how to make a travel itinerary with Google Maps through its My Maps feature. In a few easy steps, you can master an excellent organizational tool that’ll help you plan the best trip possible.

Setting Up Your Map

• Unfortunately, as of October 2021, Google no longer supports the “My Maps” app on phones. If you’re on mobile, you’ll have to use your phone’s web browser to access the site while on the go. [2] X Research source
• If you don’t already have a Google account, setting one up is a quick process. A Google account gives you a number of benefits, including a new gmail address. Check out this link to start the set-up process: https://accounts.google.com/signup/v2/webcreateaccount?flowName=GlifWebSignIn&flowEntry=SignUp

• For instance, your might name your map something like “California Summer Trip 2022,” and you could enter a description like, “Places to see and eat during two-week California road trip.”

• For example, for a California road trip, you might enter “Golden Gate Bridge” into the search box. My Maps will automatically direct you to its location.

• For instance, if you’ve searched for “Golden Gate Bridge,” there will be a white box that offers some information on the location, and even a rating from other users. Click on the “Add to map” button to send it to your saved locations.

• For example, you might fill in the description to the “Golden Gate Bridge” box with something like, “Spend at least 1 hour here—must-see location.”

• You might consider changing the colors of your pins to match how important each location is to your trip. For example, must-see locations could be red pins, your housing spots could be green pins, and optional places to visit could remain as blue pins.

Creating an Itinerary and Planning Routes

• For example, you might have a layer titled “Places to see,” one titled “Places to eat,” and one titled “Places to sleep.” You can then put sightseeing destinations, restaurants, and hotels you want to stay at in their respective layers.

• You can add more than one location to a single route. For example, if you wanted to plot a route from Big Sur to the Golden Gate Bridge, and then to Palo Alto, you can add all three locations to your route layer and create a multi-stop path. [11] X Research source
• By clicking on the three dots next to the layer with your travel route, then selecting “Step-by-step directions,” My Maps will create a set of directions for your travel. Handy!

• For example, by using My Maps, you might notice that seeing the Golden Gate Bridge, walking around San Francisco, and eating at a restaurant in Berkeley are close enough to all be doable in one day, while visiting Big Sur might be better saved for another afternoon. My Maps can help you plan out the most efficient trip possible, so you can enjoy your travels even more.

• When sharing your map, you can also choose the option that allows others to edit the map as well. With this option selected, your friends can pick places that they’re interested in as well, so you can have them all on the same document. [13] X Research source

• Although My Maps can’t be viewed offline, you can download an offline map of any areas you’re interested in on your phone. Using the Google Maps app, type in a location into the search bar, tap the name of the location, then navigate to the option “Download offline map.” [15] X Research source

Expert Q&A

You Might Also Like

• ↑ https://support.google.com/mymaps/answer/3024925?visit_id=637744367666134651-2428484219&p=lite_addplaces&rd=1
• ↑ https://9to5google.com/2021/07/20/google-my-maps-android-shutdown/
• ↑ https://support.google.com/mymaps/answer/3024454?hl=en&ref_topic=3024924
• ↑ https://support.google.com/mymaps/answer/3024925?visit_id=637744500327517491-717751493&p=lite_addplaces&rd=1
• ↑ https://support.google.com/mymaps/answer/3024925?hl=en&co=GENIE.Platform%3DDesktop
• ↑ https://support.google.com/mymaps/answer/3502610?hl=en&ref_topic=3024924
• ↑ https://support.google.com/mymaps/answer/3109452?hl=en
• ↑ https://support.google.com/maps/answer/6291838?hl=en&co=GENIE.Platform%3DiOS

About This Article

• Send fan mail to authors

Did this article help you?

Featured Articles

Trending Articles

Watch Articles

• Terms of Use
• Privacy Policy
• Do Not Sell or Share My Info
• Not Selling Info

Get all the best how-tos!

Sign up for wikiHow's weekly email newsletter

Help Center

How can we help you.

My Disney Experience – Frequently Asked Questions

How should I begin planning my Walt Disney World Resort vacation?

The first step in planning your trip is to browse disneyworld.com to discover all that Walt Disney World Resort has to offer: 4 incredible theme parks , 2 great water parks , attractions and entertainment for the whole family plus dozens of hotels , hundreds of restaurants and much more.

Next, shop for a Disney Resort Hotel Package —which includes multi-day theme park tickets and a Resort hotel stay—for the dates of your visit.

As you book and link your plans to your MyDisney account, use your My Plans page to manage your vacation details all in one place:

• Get next-steps and key planning dates.
• See your hotel and dining reservations and personal reminders organized in a daily itinerary.
• View your tickets at a glance.
• See which plans you share with Guests on your Family & Friends list.
• Add, modify or cancel plans with a few clicks.

Did you find this answer helpful?

Related Questions

What is My Disney Experience?

The 19 Best Travel Planning Apps for Every Type of Traveler

December 1, 2021 15 min read

Planning your next travel adventure can be both exciting and stressful. While searching for amazing destinations and attractions to visit is always fun, keeping track of all of the information relating to your trip isn’t the easiest task. 

If you’ve been using Google docs and sheets or simply storing travel inspiration, confirmations, bookings, and reservations in your email, there’s a better way: using a travel planning app! 

You can discover an array of travel itinerary apps on the market, such as Wanderlog , a free and easy-to-use travel itinerary planner. But deciding which is best for your needs can be challenging. To help, we’ve put together this list of the 19 best travel planner apps on the market. 

To create this guide, we started by searching for the top trip planners online and in the Apple App Store and Google Play Store. We then tested these apps and looked at user reviews to create this ultimate list of the best travel planning apps. This extensive list includes a range of apps, from road trip planning apps to itinerary planning apps. No matter what type of traveler you are, we have you covered. 

If you’re looking for a way to simplify travel planning and organization, keep reading! 

Best Overall Travel Planner App: Wanderlog 

We truly believe that Wanderlog is the best overall travel itinerary planning app on the market. Wanderlog allows you to plan detailed day-by-day itineraries, import all of your trip information, and search activity suggestions. It’s also perfect for group travelers and those traveling via a range of transport methods, from flying to taking a road trip. 

You can use Wanderlog in-browser, or download the app for iOS and Android. Wanderlog is 100% free to use, and this free version offers access to almost all of the apps’ features. There is an upgrade option, Wanderlog Pro, that offers added benefits with a one-week free trial.

Wanderlog Features

Activity Suggestions and Access to Pre-Created Trips 

You can search third-party websites and add things to do to your itinerary from online guides, like Tripadvisor or Google Trips. Wanderlog also offers activity suggestions, and you can view trips created by other users for inspiration. 

Storage and Organization of Travel Information 

When using Wanderlog, you can manually add travel information or automatically import reservations, bookings, and other email confirmations by syncing with Gmail. This travel information includes flight info, bus or train reservations,  accommodation details, rental car confirmations, and more. You can also add expenses for places and items on your itinerary, and manage your total budget.

Itinerary Creation 

As you upload travel information and add activities you want to undertake on your trip, a day-by-day itinerary will be created. This itinerary is incredibly easy to edit, and you can add notes to each stop. 

If you don’t need a day-by-day itinerary and want more flexibility in your plans, you can simply create lists, for example, a list of things to do or restaurants to try. 

Access to Maps 

When you add stops to your itinerary or lists, they’ll be displayed on a map. The map feature makes it easy to see where all the attractions you wish to visit are located, allowing you to plan the most efficient itinerary. 

Road Trip Planning

Wanderlog now offers the ability to plan road trips! You can add start and end destinations, plus unlimited stops along the way, and your road trip route will be shown on interactive maps. 

It’s super easy to rearrange these plans, and you can even use our “Road Trip Optimizer” to generate the most efficient route. The total time and distance of your road trip journey will be displayed too.  

Group Collaboration 

Wanderlog makes collaborating with others in your travel group a breeze! You can easily collaborate with others traveling with you by simply adding their email to your trip. Alternatively, you can just share a link to the itinerary. Having done this, all members of your group can collaborate on the plans in real-time. 

Wanderlog Pro Added Features

• Offline access to itineraries and maps
• Exporting of maps to Google Maps
• Auto scanning of travel confirmations in Gmail
• Road trip route optimization  

Who Is Wanderlog For? 

Wanderlog is the best app to plan travel for every type of traveler. From solo travelers to groups, and from the highly organized traveler to those that simply need one place to store information and activity suggestions. Wanderlog also has a highly user-friendly interface, and best of all, it’s free to use! 

Who Is Wanderlog Not For? 

Wanderlog is great for all travelers! Whether you want to organize your travel details, search for an array of activities to enjoy on your trip, or collaborate with fellow travelers, the Wanderlog travel planning app won’t disappoint. 

Does Wanderlog sound like the travel itinerary planner for you? Download the app today ! 

Best Road Trip Planning App: Roadtrippers

If you’re looking for road trip planner apps, Roadtrippers is one of the best options out there! This app is created exclusively for those traveling via car. It not only maps out the best routes for you to follow but also offers suggestions of things to do along the way. 

Roadtrippers can be used online and via their iPhone and Android app. Roadtrippers offers a free Basic version and a paid-for version called RoadTrippers Plus, which costs $29.99 per year.  

Roadtrippers Features

Custom Route Maps

Roadtrippers calculate the best route for you. Simply enter your road trip start and end destination, plus stops along the way if applicable. You can choose the fastest route or ask Roadtrippers to suggest additional stops along the way. 

Activity and Attraction Suggestions 

As just mentioned, Roadtrippers offers suggestions on things to do along your road trip route. These suggestions include activities to try and attractions to visit, as well as dining and accommodation suggestions. 

Gas Cost Estimations 

Once you have a route mapped, Roadtrippers provides an estimation of the total gas cost. This feature is great for those operating on a budget. 

Navigation 

Roadtrippers also help guide you once you set out on the trip with in-app navigation. This feature allows you to stay within the app instead of switching to another navigation app, like Google Maps. 

Roadtrippers Plus Added Features 

• Offline maps
• Collaboration features, allowing multiple travelers to add to the road trip itinerary 
• Live traffic updates 
• Special promotions from Roadtrippers’ travel panthers, such as discounts on hotels 
• Dark mode 
• No in-app ads 

Who Is Roadtrippers For? 

As the name suggests, Roadtrippers is ideal for people planning road trips. The app is helpful for all types of road trip travelers, from those looking for a quick route from A to B to those wanting to visit an array of attractions along a multi-city route. 

Who Is RoadTrippers Not For? 

This app isn’t optimal for those planning different types of travel experiences. For example, if you’ll fly to one city and then want recommendations for tourist attractions, this isn’t the right app for you. You also miss out on features without a paid account, so if you want to benefit from all of a travel apps’ features for free, you may not be interested in RoadTrippers. 

Want to learn more about Roadtrippers? Read our in-depth Roadtrippers review ! 

Best Travel Planning App for Trip Information Organization: TripIt

TripIt is one of the relatively well-known itinerary planning apps that stores all your trip details, like transport and accommodation information, in one place. TripIt can be used via web browser or an app for iOS or Android. 

TripIt has both a free version of the app, with limited features, and a paid-for version called TripIt Pro. You can also purchase TripIt for Teams which is targeted at business travelers.

TripIt Pro: $49 per year with a 30-day free trial

TripIt Teams: Starts at $29 a month for one to ten users 

TripIt Features

TripIt allows you to upload your travel information to one place. Things you can upload include flight details, hotel bookings, and activity reservations. You can manually upload information or email it to TripIt. 

TripIt Pro Added Features 

• Transport fare trackers
• Check-in reminders
• Flight updates
• Seat upgrade information 
• Airport security wait time updates 
• Loyalty/rewards program points tracker 
• Baggage claim location notification 
• Interactive maps
• Ability to share plans with others 
• Features to add documents to your itinerary, such as photos or PDFs 

Who Is TripIt For? 

This is a great app for those that only want to store and organize all the information they already have relating to a trip in one place, and have access to this information on their phone. It’s also very easy to use. 

Those that also want notifications related to their trip all in one place will appreciate the features offered by TripIt Pro. 

Who Is TripIt Not For? 

TripIt is quite a basic itinerary planner. In addition, TripIt doesn’t offer suggestions on things to do in the city you’re visiting. These drawbacks mean that TripIt is best for those that only want to store all of their travel information in one place.

If you’re looking for an app that offers travel suggestions, such as activities to try or landmarks to visit, this isn’t the app for you. Travelers looking for a free travel itinerary app will probably not be interested in TripIt either (you should instead try Wanderlog that’s 100% free to use!) 

Unsure if TripIt is right for you? Read our detailed TripIt review to learn more about the app.

Best Travel Planning App for Documenting Your Trip: Polarsteps

Polarsteps allows you to document your entire trip, along with creating itineraries. This travel app can be used in-browser or via an app and is one of the best free travel planner apps, as you can access all features at no cost. You can pay for a printed travel book with pictures and notes relating to your trip. These books start at approximately $40 for a 24-page book.

Polarsteps Features

Trip Itinerary Creation 

You can create a trip itinerary and add as many stops as you like. These stops include different cities, countries, and landmarks/places of interest. A map showing each stop will also be generated. 

Addition of Images, Videos, and Notes 

For every stop added, you can also upload pictures, videos, and a description of the place. This feature is ideal for those looking to document their adventure and makes Polarsteps somewhat of a digital travel scrapbook. 

Access to Pre-Created Trips

You can follow other users (as you would on social media networks) and access their pre-created trips. This is the one discovery feature on the app to help you find additional places to visit. 

Sharing Features 

It’s easy to share trips with other people, like friends and family. You can add followers to your trip, which allows them to see everything you’re doing. Multiple people, however, can not edit and add to a trip from different accounts. 

Who Is Polarsteps For? 

Polarsteps is recommended for those that want to document their entire trip with images, notes, and the like. It’s also perfect for those taking long, multi-city trips, although can be used by those taking shorter trips too. 

Who Is Polarsteps Not For? 

This app isn’t recommended for those looking to create an itinerary that simply keeps all of their travel information in one place. If you don’t want to document your trip via images, notes, and videos, Polarsteps probably won’t be worth using. 

The app also isn’t great for those looking for activity suggestions, you can access the trips of others for ideas, but the Polarsteps will not offer streamlined activity suggestions itself. 

Read our detailed Polarsteps review to discover more about this app. 

Best Alternative to Print Travel Guides: Lonely Planet Guides

Lonely Planet is an extremely well-known travel guide brand. Recently, they launched an app, Lonely Planet Guides, that is quickly becoming one of the  best travel planner apps. Lonely Planet Guides offers attractions and landmark suggestions for over 1,000 cities. You can also access videos, curated collections, and phrasebooks. 

Lonely Planet Guides is accessible via an app for iOS and Android. There is a free version, but it’s very basic, so paying for a subscription is necessary in most cases. Lonely Planet Guides pricing is as follows: 

• One Month: $4.99
• Six Months: $21.99 (or $3.67 a month)
• One Year: $39.99 (or $3.33 a month) 

Lonely Planet Guides Features

Information on Places of Interest 

You have access to information on landmarks and attractions for the majority of cities on the app. This feature is great for discovery and allows you to find the best things to see and do in the city you’re visiting.

If you don’t have a paid subscription, you can only access info on four places of interest per month. 

Custom Maps and Bucket Lists 

If you discover places of interest that you want to visit, you can add them to a map and/or bucket list. Once in the city, you can open your map to easily see where all the attractions you want to visit are located. 

Without a paid plan, you can only add four locations to your map each month. 

Curated Collections

Access to pre-created collections of things to do is available. These are often categorized, for example, the best markets or restaurants to visit. 

Ability to Purchase Tours and Other Tickets 

If you discover an attraction you want to visit or a tour you want to try, you can purchase tickets via a third party directly in the app. 

Paid Subscription Added Features 

• Access to phrasebooks for 19 languages 
• 360-degree immersive experiences 

Who Is Lonely Planet Guides For? 

The Lonely Planet Guides app is ideal for those looking for a digital alternative to traditional print travel guidebooks. It’s also a good choice for those going on a multi-city trip as you have access to information for thousands of cities across the globe, all from your phone. 

Who Is Lonely Planet Guides Not For? 

Lonely Planet Guides isn’t recommended for travelers that are looking for free travel planner apps. It’s also not the best option for those looking to create complete itineraries that include transport and accommodation information as well as places they plan to visit. 

Get all the details on this travel planner app by reading our Lonely Planet Guides review . 

Best Travel Planning App for Those That Want to Explore Like a Local: ViaHero

ViaHero is a travel planning app with a difference. Instead of planning your itinerary yourself, locals to the area (called “Heroes”) will create an itinerary and personalized guidebook for you. Understandably, this comes at a cost. You’ll be charged $40 per day of itinerary planning, with the maximum paid for a guidebook usually being $125. 

Destinations covered include cities in North America, Central and South America, Asia, and Europe. 

ViaHero Features

Custom Guidebook Creation  

After highlighting the types of activities and attractions you’re interested in, your “Hero” will create an itinerary and guidebook. 

A Personalized Map

You’ll also get access to a custom map that features each location mentioned in your guidebook. 

Booking of Activities and Other Travel Arrangements 

If things on your itinerary need booking (and booking doesn’t require prepayment) your local “hero” will make these arrangements for you. 

Ability to Communicate with Your “Hero”  

You can get in touch with your local “hero” at any point before and during your trip. This feature allows you to request changes to your itinerary and ask questions if needed as you explore the city.  

Who Is ViaHero For? 

ViaHero is one of the best travel planner apps for those that have limited time to plan their own trip, plus a decent budget for someone else to do so for them. It’s also a great choice for those that like to explore off the beaten track and get recommendations from locals instead of visiting tourist hotspots. 

Who Is ViaHero Not For? 

Due to the cost, ViaHero isn’t a good option for those traveling on a budget. It also may not be a great choice for those that are visiting a city for the first time and want to see the most popular landmarks and attractions. 

Being a newer service, only “heroes” from a limited number of cities are available at this time. If you’re visiting an area without a local “hero,” you won’t be able to use the service. 

Best Travel Planning App for Those That Love Reviews: Tripadvisor 

Tripadvisor is another of the itinerary planning apps that’s well-known to the majority of travelers. Along with a browser version, Tripadvisor has a convenient app that can help with everything from booking accommodation to discovering places to visit. 

Tripadvisor is free to use and has information for almost every city across the globe. Tripadvisor will offer an overview of the city you search for, along with hotel, restaurant, and activity recommendations. Best of all, all suggestions include reviews from travelers who have visited. 

Tripadvisor Features 

Things to Do  

Tripadvisor suggests a range of places to visit and activities to try in the destination you’re visiting. Along with searching the “Things to Do” section, you can search for specific landmarks and attractions to get more information on them. Whichever way you search, you’ll also have access to reviews from travelers who have visited the landmark or attraction or tried the activity.  

Restaurants 

You can also access restaurant suggestions for the destinations you’re heading to. Again, reviews from those who have dined at each establishment are available. You can also select categories, such as types of cuisine, to narrow down your search. Many restaurants offer the option to reserve via Tripadvisor too. 

Hotels 

Looking for a place to stay? Tripadvisor has you covered! Simply input the dates you need accommodation for, number of guests, and other filters like budget, if applicable, to view hotel results. You can then go straight to the hotel website from Tripadvisor or view deals from hotel booking sites like Hotels.com. 

Itinerary Maps and Lists

When you find activities you want to try, landmarks you intend to visit, and restaurants you wish to dine at, you can add them to a map and list. By adding these things to a map, you can easily see where everything you want to do is located, and develop day-by-day plans. Unfortunately, you can’t create an actual day-to-day itinerary via Tripadvisor. 

Who Is Tripadvisor For? 

This app is great for learning more about attractions, landmarks, restaurants, and accommodation via reviews. If you like to hear opinions from real travelers before committing to plans, you’ll appreciate Tripadvisor. It also has amazing discovery features, making Tripadvisor ideal for travelers that are looking for suggestions on things to do in the locations they’re visiting. 

Who Is Tripadvisor Not For? 

Tripadvisor isn’t ideal for planning day-to-day itineraries. While you can create maps and lists of all the places you want to go, these can’t be separated into individual days. That can be frustrating for travelers, especially if going on a multi-day or week trip. 

Using Tripadvisor to access reviews and combining this research with a full travel itinerary planner, like Wanderlog , is recommended.  

Other Itinerary Planning Apps to Consider 

While we rank the above five as the best travel planner apps on the market, the following eight apps are worth checking out too!

GEOVEA allows you to plan trips, store details like flight and accommodation info, and search for activity suggestions. This travel planning software also has budgeting features. You can estimate the cost of the activities included in the itinerary to see the overall cost of your trip. 

While you can use the company’s website on your phone, there isn’t an app. The standard version of the software is free but comes with limitations. To have full access to the app, you must purchase a subscription which starts at $29.99/year.  

Hipherd is one of the best free travel planner apps for those looking for a place to store travel inspiration. It allows you to save a range of travel content that you find across the web, such as travel articles, videos, and other information on destinations you want to visit.  

As with Pinterest, you can create “boards” to organize content by destination or other categories. You can view the collections of other users too. You can also create maps that show all the attractions you want to visit. Best of all, Hipherd costs nothing to use. 

Inspirock is a free travel itinerary planning  software that creates day-to-day itineraries for you based on data you input. Once a list of suggested places to visit has been generated, you can edit the itinerary to remove and add activities. You can also access accommodation suggestions, car and flight deals, and booking links. 

Learn more about this travel planner by taking a look at our Inspirock review ! 

Jubel is one of the great itinerary planning apps for those that are looking to discover new destinations. You start by answering a questionnaire to highlight travel likes, dislikes, and other preferences. A customized itinerary for a surprise destination is then created for you. This service does come at a cost, with Jubel users needing a trip budget of at least $1,500 for a solo-traveler trip or $1,100/per traveler for multi-person trips. 

Pilot 

Pilot is one of the free travel planner apps that’s perfect for travelers wanting to create itineraries as a group. You can add travel information, like flight bookings, to your online account, along with adding the activities you’ll do each day to an itinerary. It’s also easy to collaborate on one trip itinerary as a group. As mentioned, Pilot is free to use, but there is not a mobile app, so you must use the software in-browser. 

Portico 

Portico is another recommended app for planning itineraries, organizing travel information, and searching for activity suggestions. Travel confirmation emails (transport bookings, accommodation reservations, etc.) can be added manually or simply email them to Portico to add to your account. You can also search for travel inspiration in-app and add places you want to visit to itineraries and lists. Portico is free and can be used in-browser or via an iOS app. 

Tripscout 

Tripscout is one of the best travel planner apps for trip inspiration and high-quality travel content. You can search an array of content in-app to learn about new destinations and attractions. If you discover things you’d like to do and places you’d like to go, you can add them to lists, itineraries, and maps to begin planning your next adventure! Tripscout is also always free to use. 

Tripsy 

Tripsy is another organization-focused itinerary planning app. This app stores travel information, such as flight confirmations and other transport info, restaurant reservations, and the like.  You can also get notifications, for example relating to your flight status, and can easily share your itinerary with friends and family. 

You can integrate your plans with third-party maps and calendars and can email confirmations as well as adding them manually. Tripsy has a free and paid-for Pro version that offers additional benefits, including unlimited itineraries. 

The Best Travel Apps for Flights and Hotels

Need transport or accommodation deals? These four travel planner apps are here to help! 

Snaptravel 

Snaptravel offers amazing deals on flights and hotels. Simply enter your travel dates and destination(s), and a selection of customized offers will be served to you. Customers benefit from rate and fare reductions of 30-50%, and Snaptravel is free to use. 

Discover more about saving on hotels and flights with this app by reading our Snaptravel review . 

Scott’s Cheap Flights 

Scott’s Cheap Flights provides users with incredible flight deals out of their local airport. You’ll receive deal emails each day with fare reductions of up 90% off applied. Scott’s Cheap Flights offers a free version and paid-for options, which allow you to receive business and first-class deals and add multiple departure airports. 

Read our Scott’s Cheap Flights review to learn more about this company! 

Dollar Flight Club 

Dollar Flight Club is another company offering steep discounts on flights. Enter your departure airport at sign-up and you’ll be emailed daily with great deals to an array of destinations. There is a free version, but this only offers access to 20% of deals. For the best results, upgrade to Premium ($69/year) or Premium Plus ($99/year.) Users can expect to save 60-90% on flights, however, you don’t have the option to get deals for specific destinations.  

Want to find out more? Read our Dollar Flight Club review . 

RometoRio 

Rome to Rio offers an array of transport options that work with your trip and are bookable through the app. This free app can show you flights, car rentals, buses, and trains that will allow you to get from point to point on your itinerary. While Rome2Rio isn’t a deal-based app, you can also benefit from cheaper transport rates when using the app. You can also find accommodation and activity suggestions via Rome2Rio, but cannot create itineraries.

Not sure which of these travel planner apps to choose? Give Wanderlog a try ! It costs nothing to do so, and we guarantee that you’ll love it.

The 8 Best Travel Budgeting Tools of 2024

You will never travel without this app again

How to Use Google My Maps to Plan a Trip (Ultimate Guide)

Note: Some of the links in this post may be affiliate links. This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive a commission at no additional cost to you. More details are  here .

I love a good map. I’ve got maps hanging on my walls. I go to the bookstore to read maps. Whenever I navigate my way home using only a map, I feel like I must have some innate bushcraft skills. And if you’ve read my posts about traveling in Maine , you’re probably sick of me talking about the DeLorme Atlas by now.

But while reading paper maps will always inspire a sense of get-up-and-go adventure for me, I’m not totally opposed to using tech for planning my trips and navigating on the ground.

And one of my favorite techy solutions? A secret little trip planner called Google My Maps, buried inside of everyone’s favorite map tool.

Google My Maps lets you create shareable custom maps with multiple layers, plus location pins with icons and notes. It’s a great way to brainstorm travel plans or create a trip itinerary from a desktop. And since the map can be viewed in the Google Maps app, you can use it to navigate on the go. 

To give you an example of what this post will show you how to do, here’s one of the custom Google Maps I’ve created for a trip.

Keep reading for an overview of how to use Google My Maps to plan a trip, plus a video tutorial of how to set it up—all updated in 2023. I’ll also share answers to commonly asked questions and some lesser known tips to help you get the most out of this tool. 

A quick note: Creating a custom map in Google My Maps is distinct from Google Lists of saved places. Check out our Google My Maps vs Lists comparison to see all the differences and our full guide to using Google Maps Lists .

8 Top Google My Maps Features

(AKA Why It’s Awesome)

Google My Maps allows you to see your trip itinerary. 

This is so helpful, especially if you’re a visual person or enjoy using maps. But even if you’re not, it’s still really useful to see where everything is in relation to each other as you plan your trip, vacation, or holiday because it helps you be realistic about your plans.

It connects with other Google apps. 

Setting aside my (ahem, very rational) fear that they may take over the world soon, I love all things Google. My Maps stores a copy of the map in whatever Google Drive account you’re using. (Am I the only one who has six of these?) So if you like to create Google Docs or folders to store trip planning information, documents, photos, or itineraries, it’s nice to have your map easily accessible in the same folder.

You get additional location information since it’s part of Google Maps. 

If a location is on Google, you can see their website, phone number, address, reviews, and website when you add it to your custom map. (Note that you can’t see this information when clicking on your saved pin from the Google Maps app, but you can from desktop.)

You can add your own extra notes and photos.

Customize your map even more by adding notes, photos, or videos. Use the notes during planning to add website, hours, or tips. If I hear about the location from a particular website, I usually add that link and what was noted in the article about the location (e.g., it’s a great sunset spot, which dish on the menu is recommended) so I can reference it later.

You can view your route by creating a layer with directions. 

When I traveled to Burlington, Vermont, I wanted to see the length of the bike trail on the map, so I used the directions feature to show the whole route. (Check out the Burlington travel guide for an example of the travel map I created that includes the bike path route.) And while I haven’t done this yet, you could also use Google My Maps to plan a road trip itinerary for a longer adventure. 

Caveat: As I’ll discuss later, you can’t use directions layers to get turn-by-turn directions (but I mention an alternative below). For this reason, I only use these layers to visualize my route.

It’s highly customizable. 

Don’t mind me while I swoon over the color coding and organization options over here. Use custom icons, layers, and colors so it’s easy to see what things are at a glance. For example, you can give different locations individual styles: a coffee cup icon for cafes, a bed icon for hotels, and a swimming icon for beaches. You can also use layers in many different ways, such as one layer for each day of your trip or one layer for each category (like dining, lodging, and things to do).

In-depth planning on your computer. Easy, on-the-go access from your phone. 

While you can’t edit the maps from the Google Maps app on iPhone or Android, you (and anyone you’ve shared them with) can view them. You can click on icons and see your notes, as well as navigate to those locations. 

Note that there used to be a dedicated My Maps app on Android, but this has been deprecated. 

It’s easy to share it with a friend or with the world. 

If you’re planning a trip with other people, it’s easy to share the map with others . And if it’s something you want to make available to everyone (like I do on my travel guide posts), just change the privacy setting and share the link or embed it on a website.

3 Ways to Use Google My Maps

Brainstorm and store ideas for future “maybe” trips. 

I often come across a really interesting hotel, restaurant, or fun thing to do in destinations I want to travel to in the future, and I want to make sure I don’t forget about them. I have so many bookmarks in so many places (Pinterest, Facebook, Instagram), but Google My Maps is the place I’ve started storing ideas for future trips.

Plan your trip itinerary. 

Want to use Google Maps for route planning? When you’re ready to plan an upcoming trip, plot it out visually by using Google My Maps to create your itinerary. If you like structured itineraries, you can easily create a detailed day-to-day plan. 

Or, you can use a looser itinerary structure like we usually do by adding all the places you might like to go. 

For example, on a day trip to NYC, we added tons of places to eat on the map (thank you, Tiktok). As we were walking around doing other activities and started to get hungry, we were able to easily see which saved restaurants were closest to us. 

Navigate on the go.

Whether you’re using your map loosely for ideas or for a structured itinerary, you can pull it up on your phone anytime and get directions to your next location. 

Not sure what you want to do today, or want to see what the closest restaurant from your list is for dinner? Pop into your custom map to jog your memory from the notes you made or to get directions to your next location.

Recommended: Need an organized backpack to take on the road? Check out my favorite luggage for camping, road trips, and flying: the Cotopaxi Nazca 24L and Allpa 35L !

How to Use Google My Maps to Plan a Trip

How to create a new custom map.

Go to Google My Maps from your desktop browser . Check the Google icon in the top right corner to make sure you’re using the Google account you want to. Click “Create A New Map” and a window will open with a blank map. To give your map a name and description , click the map name (“Untitled Map”).

You can also change the color and style of the base map if desired. At the bottom of the layer panel on the left, click the arrow next to “Base Map.” You’ll get a window with nine options, including terrain, light political (a very light version of the standard Google Maps), satellite, and some different colored versions. Note that changing the base map style on desktop won’t change anything when viewing on mobile in Google Maps.

How to Add and Edit Layers

When you create a new map, the first layer will already be created, so you’ll probably want to rename it. To give your first layer a title , click directly on the title name like you did with the map name, or click the 3 dots next to “Untitled Layer” and then click “Rename Layer.” Clicking these 3 dots next to a layer title is also how you can delete a layer if you add one accidentally or change your mind. In this example, I’m changing my first layer to “dining” and will add all restaurants to this layer.

You can use layers any way you want to, or simply stick to one layer if you don’t need multiple. To add new layers , simply click “Add Layer” in the gray section below the map title and description.

To move a pin between layers , click the pin on the layer and hold down the mouse, and then drag it to the desired layer.

How to Add Location Pins

There are various ways to add location pins to a layer. First, make sure the correct layer is chosen by clicking anywhere in the white area on the layer. You’ll see which layer is selected by looking for the blue bar on the left of the layer.

• In the map search bar, type either a place name or an address. Click “Add to Map” to add a pin for this location . This is how I add most pins.
• If you don’t need an exact location or don’t have an address , you can click the pin marker button below the map search bar (“Add Marker”). It will turn your mouse into a T and you can click anywhere on the map to add a blank pin. You’ll immediately be prompted to add the pin title and description.
• If you’re dealing with very remote locations (or you just like geeky map stuff), you can also use latitude and longitude coordinates in the search bar.

To delete a pin , simply click on it and click the trash icon.

A few tips and best practices for adding pins:

• If the place you’re searching for does not have a listing on Google, you’ll have to use an address. One thing to note is that sometimes Google Maps listings aren’t correct or don’t take you to the right place, so you may want to double check the location if you’re not using a street address to add the pin (especially if it’s a small business without a website).
• I have also found that hiking trail heads are frequently on Google Maps, but they’re not always correct in terms of navigating there by car. I usually add them to my map to get a basic idea of where they are while planning, but I use a paper map or atlas to find them while traveling.

How to Customize Location Pins

To change the title and add notes to your listing, click on the pin on the map, and then click the pencil icon (“Edit”).

To change the color and icon of the pin , click the paint bucket icon (from the pin itself or directly in the layer). Click “More Icons” to view all the icon options. You can color code by type of activity, by layer, or any way that makes sense to you.

To add photos or videos to a pin , click on the pin on the map, and then click the camera icon (“Add Image or Video”). This is another way to make your map interactive, especially after you’ve visited a location and want to share it with others.

How to Add A Directions Layer

I find that directions layers are helpful for showing the route of a walking tour, bike path, or road trip you want to take, but I don’t find them useful for directions while traveling since I can simply use the maps app to navigate. 

I use directions layers whenever I want to show an entire route on a map , rather than a specific location. Think of this as the 2024 version of mapping out a trip with AAA paper maps and a highlighter (if you’re old enough to remember).

Click the arrow icon underneath the search bar, which will create a new directions layer. On the legend, click “Driving” if you want to change this to walking or biking directions. Add a location name or address to Points A and B in the legend. If you find that the pins are not exactly where they should be, you can drag the points on the map.

Continue adding points by clicking “Add Destination” on the map. You can either type the information into the legend or hover your mouse to a spot on the map and double click it. (This is especially useful if you’re tracing a route on something like a bike path or hiking trail that won’t have an address.)

Rearrange the order by dragging the items around in the legend. Just like altering directions on Google Maps navigation, you can click on part of the route and drag it to a different road if you want to change part of the route after it is complete.

If you need to access the directions so you can see the distance of your route or the time it will take, click the three dots on the layer and click “Step-by-Step Directions.” Note that you can’t actually use this to get turn-by-turn directions in Google Maps.

How to Share A Google My Map

There are several options for sharing your Google Maps trip plan.

Open up your map, then click the share button in the gray bar above your layers. To allow others to view your map (which includes embedding on your website), click “change” under the section “Who has access.” For embedding, you will need to make this setting public.

Otherwise, if you want to allow others to edit your map, add their email address in the “invite people” section.

How to View Your Custom Map in Google Maps (iPhone or Android)

Open Google Maps and go to the Saved icon at the bottom. Scroll to the bottom of this screen and click “Maps.” Choose the My Map you want to view. The layers with your custom icons will now be visible on your Google Map. You can click on any pin to view your details (such as description or photos), as well as to navigate there. 

To close a map, click on a pin and then click “View Map Legend.” There, you can click the Close icon.

From the Map Legend, you can also toggle layers on and off, and then backing out to the main map (don’t click Close—just the back arrow or back button).

How to Navigate with a Custom My Map (iPhone or Android)

To navigate to one of your pins, open your map, find the pin for where you want to go, click it, and then click “directions.” When you do this, you won’t see your custom map anymore but will be looking at the regular navigation of Google Maps.

You can’t use a My Maps “directions layer” for navigation. If you’re looking for that functionality, I recommend just creating a route in Google Maps and sending it to your phone (or sharing with others). See here for more details. 

How to Import Locations from Google Sheets, CSV, or Excel

Importing locations to a My Maps layer can be helpful in a few scenarios:

• You have a significant amount of locations to add to your layer
• Your data is already in the form of a spreadsheet
• You want additional fields included besides the default Name and Description
• You want to create groupings of pins (for example, a list of 50 restaurants could have a column for “Cuisine,” which will give you the option to group and style the pins by cuisine)

The process is simple, and you can import a variety of file types, including CSV, Excel (XLSX), or directly from Google Sheets. There are also special file formats that import map data from other programs, but this section is focused on spreadsheet-type files that you create and format.

Create a spreadsheet with the desired column headers. At a minimum, you need place names and either addresses or latitude-longitude information . 

If you want to group your pins by some type of categorization, you should include that as a column. Other columns you could include: website, phone number, description, or notes. While Google Sheets allows you to include photos in a cell, Google My Maps will not import photos in this way (it will include the column as a field, but will be blank). 

Once your spreadsheet file is ready, click “Import” on a blank layer (if your map already has layers, you will need to add a new layer to see this option). If uploading a CSV or XLSX, do this from the Upload tab. If using a Google Sheet, click the Google Drive tab and choose your file. 

Choose which column has location data (address or latitude-longitude) and click “Continue.” Choose the location name column next and click “Finish.” 

To change the icons individually, click “Uniform Style” next to the paintbrush on your layer. Under “Group Places By,” choose “Individual Styles.”

To change styles by a category column (such as Cuisine), click the link next to the paintbrush and choose to group places by the desired column. You can then give each category its own color or icon.

You can manually add new pins to this layer, and they will include all the fields you imported from the spreadsheet columns. 

You can also add more items to your spreadsheet, and import this new data. Click the three dots on your layer. Under “Reimport and Merge,” click “Add More Items” and choose your file. It will add the new rows to your layer.

How to Import a Route from Google Maps Timeline History (KML) or GPS Data From a Fitness App (GPX)

Google My Maps can import routes and locations you’ve already traveled to via special file types that are very easy to download from certain apps. This could be useful if you want to share a walking, biking, or driving route that you’ve taken without having to recreate it on a directions layer. 

Note that this only works as well as the GPS satellites were able to track your location while you were traveling.

If there are a lot of clouds, dense forest, buildings, or anything else blocking the GPS signal, your tracked route will be much less precise. I’ve noticed that Google Maps sometimes has my route showing somewhere I couldn’t have walked or driven. 

If you have your location history turned on in Google Maps, you can download a KML file from a trip, which will include the route traveled and location pins for any stops. Sometimes it misses a location name or adds a pin in the wrong place, but overall it’s pretty good.

Go to your Google Maps Timeline and locate the day you want to export. Click on it, and you should now see your route highlighted along with any stops you made. Now click the gear icon on the bottom of your map, and click “Export this day to KML.” Go to your My Map and on a new layer, click “Import.” Choose the KML file you just downloaded. You can now edit each portion as needed—changing the color and thickness of the route line, changing the location icons, as well as adjusting the route where desired.

If you have other apps that track your location, such as fitness apps, you may be able to download a GPX file that shows the route you took. The instructions for doing this will vary from app to app, but I was able to easily find it in Samsung Health by looking at the detail of a particular workout/walk and clicking the three dots to download a GPX. The import process to Google My Maps is the same as above.

With both methods, you can make adjustments to points/stops along the way or even add more pins. With the Google Maps KML file, you can also adjust your route by moving the small white dots.

Google My Maps Tutorial

Here’s a walk through video to show you how to use Google Maps to plan a trip, along with several of my own Google My Maps itinerary examples. Coming soon: a 2024 update!

Google My Maps Examples

Here are a few more examples of My Maps I’ve created for sharing recommendations, trip ideas, and actual vacation planning.

Google My Maps FAQs and Tips

As great as Google My Maps is for planning a trip, there are some limitations to using it. Lots of questions have also come up about more specific uses and ways to use its features. Thanks to all the readers who have asked or shared tips in the comments as I’m always looking to make this a more robust guide. I’ve organized the questions and tips here since it makes it easier than scrolling through the comments.

How many layers can you add to a map?

Google My Maps limits you to 10 layers. If you are planning a longer road trip and want to create a layer for each day, this limitation may prove frustrating. 

Here are a couple of workaround ideas: You can create 2 maps, and have the entire master route as 1 layer on each (showing the very basic route for all 12 days—say from city to city) as a reference. Then build individual layers for each day. As a second option, you could add multiple days to 1 layer and change the titles to start with the day they correspond to (so it would be “1 – Name of Place” instead of just “Name of Place.”) However, this option may not be ideal since you can’t see the titles until you click when you’re on the phone.

How many location pins can you add to each layer?

You can add up to 2,000 pins per layer, and the entire map cannot exceed 10,000 lines, shapes, or places total. I haven’t tested the limits, and it’s possible adding this amount of items could slow things down. My guess is that most travelers wouldn’t need anything so large, but it is possible according to Google . 

Are custom Google My Maps available offline?

No, but keep reading for a workaround and alternative. 

One of the biggest complaints about Google My Maps is that you can’t download your custom map and pins to use offline, unlike the rest of Google Maps. 

However, I have been able to use it in areas with spotty reception. I pulled the map up when I did have reception, and I left it running in the background. It would stay loaded in the app and I was able to pull it up to look at it later when I was out of reception. I’m not sure I would rely on this as a surefire workaround, but it can work in a pinch.

Another alternative, especially if you’ll be traveling in another country where you’ll be completely offline, is to use Google Maps Lists, which can be edited from desktop or your phone but don’t offer the option for separate layers, unique icons, or adding photos. 

Is there an app for Google My Maps?

There is no separate Google My Maps app, but you can view your maps within Google Maps. Just make sure you’re signed into the same account, and all your maps will sync. 

(There used to be a dedicated My Maps app on Android, but this was deprecated in 2021.)

Can you create or edit maps from your phone?

No, the maps cannot be edited from the Google Maps app. Google My Maps can only be created or edited from the desktop version of the site. This is another huge advantage Google Lists has over Google My Maps because Lists allow you to add new places or entire lists from any device—iPhone, Android, tablet, laptop, or desktop.

Is there a bridge height filter?

No. For RVers and others who need to plan ahead for height limitations, there is no bridge height filter available in Google Maps. Since I haven’t had to use this feature myself, I am not confident in an alternative to recommend. However, from a bit of digging around, there are some apps and GPS units for truckers that may be a good place to start looking if you have an oversize vehicle.

What is the difference between Google Maps Lists and Google My Maps?

They both allow you to create custom maps with pins, but there are some key differences, such as offline access, layer capabilities, customizable pins, and creating/editing within the app. Check out the details on how Google My Maps compares to Lists (including a features comparison table).

How many stops can you add on a directions layer?

You can only add 10 stops per directions layer. This is also the maximum number of stops you can add for navigation in Google Maps. As some readers have pointed out, this can be limiting when you want to use this feature for a long road trip.

Can you use the directions layers on your phone for navigation purposes?

No, you cannot create a directions layer and then access those turn-by-turn directions for navigation in the Google Maps app. 

So…are directions layers totally useless? What’s the point of having a Driving Directions layer in My Maps?

Personally, I still like to use these layers, but only to show a route for my very visual brain, rather than to actually create custom directions. 

Can you send a custom created route (layer) to someone else so that the other person will take that specific driving route on google maps?

No, you can’t do this from My Maps, but there’s a workaround I can suggest.

Forget My Maps, and use Google Maps from desktop or mobile to plot a route. You can add up to 10 stops, and then you will be able to share your custom directions. 

From desktop, there’s an extra step in first sending the directions to your phone. If you’ve created the directions in the mobile app or once you have them pulled up there, you can share them with anyone by clicking the 3 dots next to your list of locations (sharing must be done before clicking “Start”—if you’re already in the navigation, you need to back out of it to share). When you share, it will list all the steps as well as send a link for the other person to open the directions in Google Maps directly. 

An important caveat to sharing custom routes: Google Maps will reroute the directions as it normally does according to current traffic at the time of driving, so this method cannot be relied upon if you’ve mapped a specific route for bridge clearances. As a workaround, you can add “stops” on the desired interstate (zoom in and add this literally on the road itself so navigation doesn’t try to take you off an exit), which will force Google Maps to take the driver that way. This is what I do when driving south from Connecticut to PA because Google Maps always wants me to take its beloved George Washington Bridge and I always don’t want to. I add a stop to force my route across the Tappan Zee Bridge. However, I’m not sure I would rely on this workaround as a sole method for RVs or truckers.

Can you see how much time the directions will take?

Yes, on desktop you can view the details if you want to know the distance or how long a route will take. To view distance and time for a directions layer, click the 3 dots on the laye, then click Step-by-Step Directions. 

Of course, this doesn’t really help when you want to get this information on your phone or use the directions for navigation. As mentioned elsewhere, the “directions” layer functions best as a way to visualize a route. If you need turn-by-turn directions, see the steps mentioned above to save and send directions in Google Maps. 

This post was originally published on July 27, 2017 and has been updated in May 2023.

Travel Photographer | FAA Certified Drone Pilot

Naomi is the coffee-loving, crazy-about-Latin-America writer and photographer behind everything here. She's guided by curiosity and a belief that every place has a story to tell–whether it’s through the intricate details of nature, history that has shaped a culture, or the people who call a place home. Learn More

• Skip to global NPS navigation
• Skip to the main content
• Skip to the footer section

Exiting nps.gov

Free entrance days in the national parks.

Come experience the national parks! On six days in 2024, all National Park Service sites that charge an entrance fee will offer free admission to everyone. Mark your calendar for these entrance fee–free dates in 2024:

• January 15: Birthday of Martin Luther King, Jr.
• April 20: First day of National Park Week
• June 19: Juneteenth National Independence Day
• August 4: Anniversary of the Great American Outdoors Act
• September 28: National Public Lands Day
• November 11: Veterans Day

National parks are America’s best idea, and there are more than 400 parks available to everyone, every day. The fee-free days provide a great opportunity to visit a new place or an old favorite, especially one of the national parks that normally charge an entrance fee . The others are free all the time. The entrance fee waiver for fee-free days does not cover amenity or user fees for activities such as camping, boat launches, transportation, or special tours.

The annual $80 America the Beautiful National Parks and Federal Recreational Lands Pass allows unlimited entrance to more than 2,000 federal recreation areas, including all national parks that normally charge an entrance fee. There are also free or discounted passes available for senior citizens, current members of the military, families of fourth-grade students, and disabled citizens. Learn more about the variety of passes offered by the America the Beautiful National Parks and Federal Recreational Lands Pass series.

Harris pitches tax plan in New Hampshire as Trump insists he is still fighting for the potential swing state

Vp’s first visit as democratic nominee comes as gop hopes of winning the state fade.

NORTH HAMPTON, N.H. — Vice President Kamala Harris used a campaign event at a brewery here on Wednesday to detail a new tax proposal to boost small businesses, offering a business-friendly appeal to the political center at a moment when Republican hopes of carrying New Hampshire in November have begun to dim .

“It’s so good to be back in New Hampshire ,” Harris beamed in her first visit since she became the Democratic nominee for president. Speaking from behind glass to a spirited crowd in a sunny field, she described her new plan — one of few economic policies her campaign has announced so far — as she exhorted supporters to maintain a sense of urgency in the next two months.

“New Hampshire, look, we’ve got 62 days to go,” Harris said. “This race is gonna be tight until the very end. So please, let’s not pay too much attention to the polls, because we are running as the underdog.”

Advertisement

Those remarks aside, the most recent New Hampshire polls have looked good for Harris — a fact that has not been lost on Republicans here , and surely not on Harris’s team, either. Whether the sometimes-swing-state’s four electoral votes are still truly in play has become a matter of heightened dispute in recent days .

Donald Trump won his first political victory in 2016 in the New Hampshire primary, and often reminds voters here of his work to protect its first-in-the-nation primary status. But his campaign has made minimal formal investments in New Hampshire recently; the former president has not campaigned in the state since he won its primary in January, and his top surrogates have not visited in months.

Republicans who were bullish about winning the state when President Biden was on the ballot have become more circumspect in the weeks since Harris brought fresh momentum to the Democrats. The Globe reported this week that a top Trump volunteer in Massachusetts wrote in an internal memo that the campaign had decided New Hampshire was no longer winnable, and supporters in New England should redirect their efforts to Pennsylvania.

In the wake of that story, Trump has disputed the idea his campaign won’t compete in New Hampshire.

In a radio appearance with “The Pulse of New Hampshire” radio show Wednesday morning, Trump committed to campaigning here.

“It’s a very important place in terms of winning this election,” Trump said, just hours before Harris touched down. “It could come down to New Hampshire. I’ll be there.”

Meanwhile, at Harris’s event in North Hampton, supporters clad in campaign gear and wielding Harris signs said they are confident — but not overconfident — their state will go for the Democrats, as it has in every presidential election for the last 20 years. Under a hot afternoon sun, supporters from all over New England cooled off with Ben & Jerry’s ice cream and shaved ice as they competed for rare pockets of shade.

“I think we have to take it really seriously,” Eileen McCue, 70, said of New Hampshire in the general election. “It’s all in play.”

McCue, who is retired and lives in Rye, said excitement in her state has increased now that Harris leads the ticket; if it had been Biden speaking at the brewery on Wednesday, she said, she isn’t sure she would have bothered to go. But McCue said she has learned from observing politics that things can change at the last minute.

Even though the state looks strong for Harris now, “I don’t think we can let our guard down for a second,” McCue said.

Recent high school graduate Jane Podrasky, 18, said she would have cast her first vote in a presidential election for Biden this fall but is happier to do so for Harris. Podrasky, who is queer and lives in Portsmouth, said that Republican attacks on the LGBTQ+ community are frightening, and that Harris’s candidacy gives her hope that New Hampshire will be a welcoming place to live.

“I want somebody we can look forward to and look up to,” Podrasky said.

Harris used the event to focus on her economic message with the new tax proposal aimed at small businesses. It would allow new companies to deduct as much as $50,000 in startup expenses, with the goal of launching 25 million new small businesses in her first term.

It’s part of a modest package of new policy announcements Harris has made since she secured the nomination. She has faced criticism for giving few media interviews and offering minimal details on what she would do as president, including how her agenda would differ from Biden.

The little that Harris has described signals a clear focus on the economy, which polls consistently show is a driving issue for voters. Her new plan also represented outreach to the political center, as a proposal for small business tax breaks hardly make Harris sound like the left-wing bogeyman her GOP opponents often describe.

Harris promised to “cut red tape,” lower taxes for those launching small businesses, and make it easier for owners to file their taxes — talking points that could just as plausibly be voiced by a Republican. She also slammed Trump for policy proposals she said would increase the national debt. And, in a point that may resonate more with the left, Harris also declared that “billionaires and corporations must pay their fair share in taxes.”

Harris played into the light tone and youthful themes that have been a powerful part of her rise, particularly online . One of the supporters introducing Harris described her as a “Femininomenon,” a nod to the popular Chappell Roan song that earned cheers from the crowd.

“By the way, I love Gen Z, I just love Gen Z,” Harris said to raucous cheering as she reflected on a college tour she did as vice president.

In her speech Wednesday, Harris also addressed the school shooting in Georgia, calling it “a senseless tragedy on top of so many senseless tragedies.”

“It is just outrageous that every day in our country in the United States of America that parents have to send their children to school worried about whether or not their child will come home alive,” Harris said in a somber moment. “It doesn’t have to be this way.”

Emma Platoff can be reached at [email protected] . Follow her @emmaplatoff .

Election 2024 live updates: Trump supports Elon Musk-backed government spending plan; Harris travels to Pennsylvania ahead of debate

What's happening today on the campaign trail:

• Vice President Kamala Harris is in Pittsburgh, where she will prepare for next week’s debate. After extended negotiations, she and former President Donald Trump agreed to the rules for the debate , which will use the same format as the June face-off between Trump and President Joe Biden.
• Trump returned to his former home state to deliver remarks at the Economic Club of New York where he announced he would adopt an Elon Musk-backed government spending plan if re-elected. He also appeared virtually at the Republican Jewish Coalition annual leadership summit in Las Vegas.
• Their running mates also hit the trail today. Sen. JD Vance of Ohio blasted the late Sen. John McCain's son for backing Harris in comments to a crowd in Phoenix, while Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz spent the day in Pennsylvania and delivered remarks in Erie this evening.
• Biden's son Hunter Biden entered a guilty plea to all the federal tax charges against him. His sentencing is scheduled for December. Meanwhile, the judge in Trump's election interference case in Washington, D.C., has yet to set a trial date .

Republican Jewish voters explain why they back Trump

Reporting from Las Vegas

At the Republican Jewish Coalition Summit, an annual gathering of Jewish community leaders, donors and GOP politicians, voters told NBC News why they're backing Trump this November.

“We're talking about somebody who has had a record of success in everything he's done," said Bill Cohen, who's from Sioux City, Iowa. "Whether it was protecting Israel, whether it was straightening things out with the United Nations, we could go through a whole list of 50 things of why he why he was good for the United States," the 77-year-old added.

Rosalie Thompson, a retiree from Miami Beach, Florida, said Trump's record speaks for itself.

“The two candidates have a record, and Donald Trump's record is better for the economy, for the country, for the free world,” she said.

But not all of the attendees were on board the Trump train. Madison Friedman, 32, from Los Angeles said that as of now, he's sitting this election out.

"I would say that you have to really love the candidates you’re voting for," said the software consultant. "I’m still learning about both of them for now."

Putin says Ukraine’s incursion failed; claims he supports Harris in U.S. election, citing her ‘infectious’ laugh

Yuliya Talmazan

Russian President Vladimir Putin  said Thursday that  Ukraine ’s gamble to  seize his country’s territory  has backfired by boosting his own military’s advance, a boast he paired with a teasing claim of support for  Vice President Kamala Harris  in the upcoming  U.S. election .

Speaking at an economic forum in the far-eastern city of Vladivostok on Thursday, he said it was the “sacred duty” of the Russian army to do everything to “throw the enemy out” of the border region of Kursk and protect its citizens after  last month’s stunning assault .

Yet, Putin also said that Moscow’s main goal remained capturing the Donbas region, Ukraine’s eastern industrial heartland where  Russian troops have been pushing forward for months .

Read the full story here.

Despite the family drama, Tim Walz’s mother says she backs her son for VP

Kelly O'Donnell

Nnamdi Egwuonwu

Darlene Walz, the mother of Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, remains supportive of her son’s bid to be vice president, even as other members of the family are divided, she told NBC News in a brief phone conversation today.

Darlene Walz made clear that she has grown tired of the public scrutiny of her family and believes her son “is going to be in the White House.”

Familial divisions over Walz’s role as the Democratic vice presidential nominee came into public view last week after a Facebook post and several subsequent comments from his estranged older brother, Jeff, were amplified by  multiple   media outlets .

Read the full story here

Former Trump chief of staff John Kelly explains why he criticized Trump's Medal of Freedom comments

Megan Lebowitz

Trump White House chief of staff John Kelly elaborated today on why he criticized the former president's comments about the Presidential Medal of Freedom being "better" than the Medal of Honor.

Speaking at a Colorado State University event, Kelly said "when someone says that one medal is more important than the other, I just corrected the record."

"I believe the president had it wrong, and we just needed to correct that," he added.

Kelly also emphasized that Medal of Honor recipients "did something that was irrationally brave, that the assumption would be when he or she did it, that you would be killed. That's kind of the level."

Kelly had previously rejected Trump's comments about the medals to CNN, saying that the medals are "not even close. No equivalency of any kind."

Vance: 'Who cares' what John McCain's son thinks about the 2024 race

Zoë Richards

Vance tonight dismissed a recent endorsement of Harris by the late Sen. John McCain’s youngest son .

"Look, who cares what somebody's family thinks about a president" Vance said in response to a reporter's question at a campaign event in Phoenix. "John McCain died, what, 5, 6, 7, years ago? And the media is turning into a story, what John McCain's family says about Donald Trump."

McCain, R-Ariz., died in 2018 a year after he was diagnosed with brain cancer.

Vance said he did not believe that John McCain would have backed “all the destruction” Harris has brought to security at the U.S.-Mexico border.

He also said that while he did not know McCain personally, the late senator and Trump likely shared commonalities, namely that "they didn’t let their personal grievances get in the way of the country."

Trump has repeatedly disparaged McCain over the years, including after his death.

Walz alludes to political differences with some of his family members

Isabelle Schmeler

Katherine Koretski

Emma Barnett

Walz addressed the ongoing disagreements with members of his family after  photos  of Walz family members wearing “Walz’s for Trump” shirts while posing with a Trump flag surfaced yesterday.

“All of you know, I need to talk to my relatives, too," he told a Pennsylvania crowd today. "Trust me on this. Nothing makes you more middle Midwestern than having your family be on this stuff.” 

Trump  reposted  the photo on Truth Social, which shows distant cousins of the governor's wearing shirts announcing support for Trump, saying it was “a Great Honor" to have the endorsement of Jeff Walz, the Minnesota governor's brother. Jeff Walz has not officially endorsed Trump, but he has said he's "thought long and hard" about the possibility of doing so.

A slew of Facebook posts from Jeff Walz were picked up by the New York Post, in which he said his brother is “not the “type of character” who should make decisions about America’s future.”

Walz’s brother later went on News Nation saying he no longer wishes to be involved in any political campaign, saying, “It wasn’t my intent, it wasn’t our intent as a family, to put something out there to influence the general public.” 

NBC News has reached out to members of the Walz family for further comment.

Jack Smith seeks to streamline Trump’s appeals in election interference case amid delays

Ryan J. Reilly

Daniel Barnes is reporting from the federal courthouse.

No date has yet been set for former President Donald Trump’s federal trial over his scheme to overturn his 2020 presidential loss by spreading what an indictment called his “ unsupported, objectively unreasonable, and ever-changing “ claims of mass voter fraud.

U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan held a status hearing in the case in a federal courtroom in Washington on Thursday, nine days after a new federal grand jury  returned a superseding indictment  against Trump charging him with the same four felonies he first faced in his  original indictment last August : conspiracy to defraud the United States, conspiracy to obstruct an official proceeding, obstruction of and attempt to obstruct an official proceeding and conspiracy against rights.

Walz discusses efforts to appeal to red-county voters in Michigan

Walz appeared on local Michigan radio station WCMU this afternoon to make a direct pitch to “voters in deep red Michigan counties.”

“These are folks I know well,” Walz began. “It’s not only how I grew up in rural Nebraska, but it’s the districts that I represent in southern Minnesota. Ag districts, folks that care.” 

Walz said many rural voters have benefited from the policies of the Biden-Harris administration and would stand to benefit for Harris’ own proposals.

“I think the disconnect is trying to tell people that these are policies that make a difference to them. Whether it’s the strong infrastructure bill that happened, investments in them, investments in local schools, making sure their property taxes stay low,” he said.

“We just saw here recently Vice President Harris talk about tax deductions on startup businesses. People have their dreams that they want to get, they want to try and launch," he continued. "And the idea of a tenfold increase in tax credits for folks when they get started, those are the things that make a difference.”

'He’s pissed off about it': Vance fields question about Project 2025 at campaign field office

Alec Hernández

Reporting from Phoenix, Ariz.

Prior to his publicly announced campaign stop here this afternoon, Vance dropped by a Trump campaign field office in battleground Maricopa County for the second stop of his multi-day west coast campaign swing.

Accompanied by his family as he greeted assembled supporters and volunteers, Vance made a point to ask those in the audience about what they were hearing from voters as they made phone calls and knocked on doors on behalf of the campaign. One woman mentioned to Vance that she hears a lot about Project 2025 — a policy agenda compiled by the conservative Heritage Foundation that both Trump and Vance have tried to distance the campaign from. 

“Kamala Harris is running dishonest TV advertisements because Kamala Harris is a dishonest person who doesn’t have a record to run on,” Vance said of Harris’ campaign’s effort to tie the two entities together. 

“I know from experience, nobody speaks for Donald J. Trump except for Donald J. Trump,” he continued, adding that Trump is “pissed off” about the association with the white papers, and reiterated that only Trump himself “will set a Trump 47 agenda.” 

Trump has tried to distance himself from Project 2025 , posting on his social media platform Truth Social in July that he knows nothing about the project. The Harris campaign, for its part, recently launched a new 30-second ad spot seeking to tie the Trump campaign to plan.

Teamsters says Harris will meet with union members on Sept. 16

Teamsters announced in a post to X that Harris would hold a roundtable with union members on Sept. 16.

The union has previously held roundtables with Trump and Biden, when the president was still running for a second term.

Teamsters General President Sean O'Brien said in a statement that the group's members "appreciate" Harris taking the time to meet in person.

"We look forward to having a conversation on the direction of the country and the issues that matter to working people," he added.

Hunter Biden pleaded guilty to all the charges in the federal tax case against him. The sentencing for President Joe Biden’s son is scheduled for Dec. 16.

Howling werewolf design crowned a winning 'I voted' sticker in Michigan

Michigan's secretary of state unveiled the winning designs for the state's "I Voted" sticker design contest.

At the top of the list is a sticker design by middle school student Jane Hynous depicting a muscular werewolf ripping off his shirt, howling in front of an American flag beneath the words "I voted."

Two other elementary/middle school category winning stickers said "I voted yay" and "I'm cool I voted."

Another winning design leaned into artist Breanna Tanner’s Midwestern roots with, “Ope, I voted.”

"I was overwhelmed by the enthusiasm and creativity from the people of our great state," Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson said in a news release . "Now, let’s use the same energy in casting a vote this November. I encourage every eligible voter to make a plan now to have your voice heard — vote with an absentee ballot, at an early voting site, or on Election Day — and feel proud to wear a sticker designed by a fellow Michigander."

The nine winning designs will be available for voters casting ballots in November, according to the release.

Harris campaign to launch a big ‘weekend of action’ around Trump and Project 2025 ahead of the debate

Yamiche Alcindor

Harris’ presidential campaign is planning to launch a weekend of action focused on what it calls the dangers of a potential second Trump presidency and Project 2025, a conservative governing agenda that Harris has repeatedly criticized on the campaign trail and plans to bring up during the presidential debate on Tuesday, according to campaign officials who shared the plans first with NBC News.

As part of the effort, which Harris’ aides said was the campaign’s biggest weekend of action to date, the campaign will have more than 2,000 events that it expects will reach more than 1 million voters. Volunteers, who plan to work more than 20,000 shifts, and key campaign surrogates will talk to voters “about Trump’s extreme plan to ban abortion nationwide, cut Social Security and Medicare, and spike taxes by $3,900 each year for middle-class families,” according to officials.

The efforts are also aimed at appealing to swing voters who may be drawn in by the recent endorsements of Harris by  former Rep. Liz Cheney, R-Wyo. , and  Jimmy McCain , the youngest son of the late Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz.

Trump says he plans to ban mortgages for undocumented immigrants

Alexandra Marquez

Trump today blamed undocumented immigrants for "driving up housing costs," before promising to "ban mortgages for illegal aliens in California."

The comment comes after the California state Senate sent AB 1840 to Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom's desk last month. If Newsom signs the bill, it would amend the "California Dream for All" program, which gives down payment assistance to qualified first-time homebuyers, to include undocumented immigrants.

Trump's vow to ban mortgages for undocumented immigrants came during a section of his speech in which he promised to lower housing costs if elected, saying, "As soon as I get to office, we will make housing much more affordable."

Sen. Joe Manchin appears to endorse former Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan in Senate race

Annemarie Bonner

During an interview with Merit Street Media's "The News on Merit Street," independent West Virginia Sen. Joe Manchin appeared to endorse former Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan in Maryland's Senate race.

"I'll give you one person who I know who's absolutely cut out to be a U.S. Senator: Larry Hogan in Maryland," he said.

Hogan, a popular two-term GOP governor, is running against Prince George’s County Executive Angela Alsobrook in a competitive general election race in the solidly Democratic state.

In response to the apparent endorsement, Alsobrooks campaign spokesperson said this race is about preventing Republicans from taking back the Senate majority.

“Angela Alsobrooks is proud to be supported by Vice President Kamala Harris, Governor Wes Moore, and Senators Ben Cardin and Chris Van Hollen. Angela and those incredible leaders know that this race is about protecting Democrats’ Senate majority, and stopping Republicans from taking back the Senate Majority and passing an agenda that will take away our freedoms and harm hardworking Maryland families," she wrote.

Manchin's office didn't immediately respond to a request for comment. The Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee also did not immediately reply to a request for comment.

N.C. judge agrees to mail ballot pause as RFK Jr. fights to get off ballot

Jane C. Timm

A judge in Wake County, North Carolina, today refused to force state election officials to reprint ballots to remove Robert F. Kennedy Jr.’s name, but agreed to order a brief delay so Kennedy can appeal the decision to a higher court.

North Carolina election officials were scheduled to start mailing ballots tomorrow morning to voters who requested them, but were told today by the state election board to table those plans. Kennedy was given 24 hours to seek appeal, and if that effort is denied, ballots may still start going out tomorrow afternoon.

“The bottom line is: make plans to not send ballots out tomorrow morning, but be ready if that situation changes and we need to send out ballots later tomorrow,” State Board of Elections General Counsel Paul Cox said in an email to election officials today.

As a third-party presidential candidate, Kennedy had fought to secure ballot access in North Carolina. But now that he has dropped out of the race and endorsed Trump, he is seeking to remove himself as an option for voters in the battleground state.

Trump plugs Elon Musk-backed plan on government spending in speech

Jillian Frankel

Jake Traylor

Vaughn Hillyard

Trump announced today that if re-elected, he plans to adopt billionaire Elon Musk’s plan for a government efficiency commission to cut federal spending, adding that Musk has agreed to lead the commission “if he has the time.”

The announcement came as the former president delivered remarks before members of the Economic Club of New York in midtown Manhattan, where he outlined a seven-pillar economic plan. 

“I will create a government efficiency commission tasked with conducting a complete financial and performance audit of the entire federal government and making recommendations for drastic reforms,” Trump said.

The former president continued, “As the first order of business, this commission will develop an action plan to totally eliminate fraud and improper payments within six months. This will save trillions of dollars.”

This year’s Democratic playbook features a lot of football

Allan Smith

When Vice President Kamala Harris introduced Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz as her new running mate at their first rally together, she called him “coach.”

One of the first stops on the campaign’s pre-convention bus tour was to a town in Pennsylvania where Walz spoke to a high school football team.

And then, at the convention itself in Chicago last month, Walz received his own pep rally when a parade of his former players took the stage wearing their old jerseys.

Walz’s football ties are a lynchpin of the Democratic effort to brand itself as the “normal” party this fall, right up there with Walz’s love of hunting and Harris’ time working at McDonald’s. 

The first presidential debate between Harris and Trump is less than a week away. NBC News’ Kelly O’Donnell takes a look back at Harris’ performances in past debates. 

Harris-Walz campaign spokesperson says muted debate mics limit Harris' ability to 'prosecute the political case' against Trump

Nicole Moeder

During an interview with MSNBC's Andrea Mitchell, Harris-Walz campaign spokesperson Ian Sams said that the agreed upon rule over muted mics will be "challenging" for Harris.

“I think what’s really challenging and unfortunate about this debate format is that it limits the vice president’s ability to prosecute the political case against President Trump,” he said.

He said they agreed willingly agreed to the rule “because of the insistence by Trump’s campaign to have the microphones muted, up to what we believe was threatening to pull out of the debate.” 

Trump responds to Russian sanctions, accuses Harris of trying to 'interfere in and suppress the Election'

In a post on his social media platform Truth Social, Trump attacked Harris and the Justice Department, accusing both of trying to "interfere in and suppress the Election" in response to the Justice, State and Treasury departments' sanctions and criminal charges announced yesterday to target what the Biden administration says are Russian government-backed attempts to manipulate U.S. public opinions ahead of the election.

"Comrade Kamala Harris and her Department of Justice are trying to interfere in and suppress the Election in favor of the Democrats by resurrecting the Russia, Russia, Russia Hoax, and trying to say that Russia is trying to help me, which is absolutely FALSE," he wrote. "In fact, President Putin would much rather see Comrade Kamala Harris in Office."

Attorney General Merrick Garland announced charges against two employees of the Russian-backed media network RT. They were accused of implementing a scheme that sent millions of dollars to right-wing commentators through a media company. The platform appears to match the description of Tenet Media, which is known for pro-Trump commentators.

Harris raised more than $300 million in August, extending cash windfall

Natasha Korecki

Carol E. Lee Carol E. Lee is the Washington managing editor.

Harris’ political operation raised more than $300 million in the month of August — more than twice as much as Trump’s operation gathered in the same period — two sources familiar with the Harris fundraising numbers told NBC News. 

The sources did not specify the exact fundraising haul, but the more than $300 million figure, which includes the campaign and related entities, signals that the breakneck pace of fundraising has not slowed since money began gushing in upon President Joe Biden’s July 21 announcement that he would step aside from seeking the Democratic nomination. 

The next campaign finance disclosure deadline for Harris’ campaign is Sept. 20.

Trump election interference hearing adjourns without new trial date

The federal judge presiding over Trump's election interference case said this morning that she intends to allow prosecutors to file an opening brief outlining their immunity arguments but did not make any scheduling rulings during today’s hearing, which adjourned after a little over an hour. 

It appears Judge Tanya Chutkan will not bother to set a new trial date at this time, as she and all parties agree that further pretrial appeals in the case are inevitable.

Chutkan said she will try to get a scheduling order out as soon as today.

Harris launches new ad tying Trump to Project 2025, targeting Black voters on NFL Sunday

Marquise Francis

Harris’ presidential campaign launched a new ad focused on “ Project 2025 ” today, taking direct aim at Trump and “his MAGA loyalists’ dangerous plan” that, it claims, will control Americans’ lives.

Developed by the conservative think tank Heritage Foundation and at least two dozen allies of Trump, Project 2025 is an outline of far-right policy proposals created as a blueprint for the next Republican president. The group has  wound down its policy work  amid criticism but Democrats have continued to make it a key campaign issue.

The Harris campaign’s new  30-second spot , which was shared first with NBC News, is aimed at Black Americans in key battleground states in hopes of making  inroads with a demographic  Democrats need to win over to be successful in November.

Hunter Biden intends to change plea on federal tax charges

Sarah Fitzpatrick

Dareh Gregorian

LOS ANGELES — Hunter Biden intends to change his plea from not guilty to accepting a sentencing that would come from a guilty verdict in the federal tax case against him, his attorney Abbe Lowell said today.

The announcement was made shortly before jury selection was expected to begin in what would have been Hunter Biden’s second trial this year. The only surviving son of President Joe Biden, Hunter Biden is the first offspring of a sitting president to stand trial on criminal charges.

The conditions of the plea were not immediately disclosed, nor was it clear whether the judge will accept his attempt to avoid a trial and move straight to sentencing.

The news came after Hunter Biden and his attorneys had a private meeting before court today with U.S. District Judge Mark C. Scarsi, who is presiding over the case.

Pro-Palestinian protests return to campuses adding election complication

Alex Seitz-Wald

Students are barely back on campus, but pro-Palestinian protests have already returned, putting a divisive issue back in the spotlight that Democrats had hoped Harris' nomination might allow them to move beyond it.

While few expect this fall’s protests to match the size or ferocity of last spring’s, when tent encampments roiled campuses and several university presidents lost their jobs amid criticism of their handling of the demonstrations, the new round of protests will come just as Democrats try to organize college campuses to mobilize voters for the November election.

“This isn’t going away. We’re not going away. Young people and their pursuit of justice and equity everywhere is not going away,” said Rania Batrice, a Palestinian American Democratic strategist.

Judge in Trump's election interference case says she's not considering the electoral schedule

Rebecca Shabad

Judge Tanya Chutkan said in court that the 2024 election is not a factor in her decisions about scheduling the proceedings in Trump's election interference case.

“I understand there is an election pending,” Chutkan said. “This court is not concerned with the electoral schedule. ... That’s nothing I’m going to consider.”

“This case has been pending for a year. We’re hardly sprinting towards the finish line here,” Chutkan added. “We can’t even really contemplate a trial date due to the looming appellate issues.”

Harris travels to Pittsburgh to prepare for debate

Gabe Gutierrez

The vice president is traveling to Pittsburgh today, where she will spend time preparing for Tuesday's debate. She’ll be doing debate prep and making informal campaign stops during the day, several campaign officials said.

Pittsburgh was chosen because the location will allow her to make the most of her time in a key battleground state, they said. Past presidential candidates have also traveled to key states to prepare for their debates, including John Kerry, who spent several days in Wisconsin, Barack Obama who went to a resort in Henderson, Nevada, and George W. Bush, who stayed at a hotel near Miami, Florida.

Vance explains how he thinks day care costs should be lowered

Vance suggested ways to alleviate the high costs of day care in remarks yesterday at a conservative group's event in Arizona, saying that extended family could help out and that people shouldn't be required to obtain onerous certifications to become child care workers.

"One of the ways that you might be able to relieve a little bit of pressure on people who are paying so much for day care is make it so that maybe like grandma or grandpa wants to help out a little bit more or maybe there's an aunt or uncle that wants to help out a little bit more. If that happens, you relieve some of the pressure on all of the resources that you're spending on day care," Vance said at Turning Point USA's event in Mesa, Arizona.

Acknowledging that families may not have that extra set of hands, Vance said people should be empowered to get trained in the skills needed to take care of children.

"What we've got to do is actually empower people to get trained in the skills that they need," he said. "We've got a lot of people who love kids, who would love to take care of kids, but they can't, either because they don't have access to the education that they need or, maybe more importantly, because the state government says you're not allowed to take care of children unless you have some ridiculous certification that has nothing to do, nothing to do with taking care of kids."

"Don't force every early child care specialist to go and get a six-year college degree where they've got a whole lot of debt," he said.

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics , however, requirements to be a day care worker vary by state. Some states, for example, mandate that these workers have a high school diploma or the equivalent. Some states also require certain credentials and training.

Status conference starts in Trump's federal election interference case

U.S. District Judge Tanya Chutkan has begun today's status conference in Trump's election interference case, with scheduling for the trial the primary focus.

Trump and special counsel Jack Smith have proposed two dramatically different timelines for the future of the case, with Smith requesting the judge schedule proceedings to address questions about whether Trump should be immune from prosecution for certain actions leading up the the Jan. 6 riot, and Trump's lawyers asking her to first address his motion to dismiss the indictment.

Texas AG Ken Paxton sues county over voter registration forms

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton went to court to try to stop a large Democratic-leaning county in the state from mailing out voter registration forms ahead of November's election.

Bexar County, which is Texas’ fourth-most populous county based in San Antonio, voted this week to spend almost $400,000 to encourage voter registration by sending out paid-postage forms to unregistered Texans, despite threats from Paxton that he would sue if they did so.

Paxton, a Republican, has made combating voter fraud a central part of his legal agenda, even though those efforts have resulted in little proof of widespread fraud he has claims exists.

“The distribution of forms to unverified recipients could induce ineligible people—such as felons and noncitizens—to commit a crime by attempting to register to vote,” the attorney general’s office said in a news release, noting that the election code does not specifically authorize counties to mail out registration forms.

Voter registration forms in Texas ask voters for their driver’s license number or the last four digits of their Social Security number. Eligibility is later verified by the secretary of state’s office before the voter can be registered. The form also requires registrants to swear under penalty of perjury that they are a citizen of the United States and that they are not disqualified from voting by a felony conviction. 

Bexar County’s attorney, Larry Roberson, told the county commissioners that state law prohibits mailing mail ballot applications, but not voter registration forms. The latter are broadly available and routinely mailed out by third-party groups.

Harris heads to Pennsylvania for debate prep as Walz campaigns in the key battleground state

Harris will head to Pittsburgh later this morning, where she will begin several days of preparation for Tuesday's presidential debate against Trump.

Walz, meanwhile, will be campaigning today in Pennsylvania. He's scheduled to deliver remarks at a campaign rally in Erie at 6 p.m. ET.

Trump to speak at two events while Vance campaigns in Arizona

Trump is slated to give remarks at the Economic Club of New York at 11:30 a.m. and to virtually address the Republican Jewish Coalition's annual leadership summit around noon.

His running mate, Sen. JD Vance of Ohio, will be campaigning in the battleground state of Arizona and is scheduled to deliver remarks in Phoenix at 6 p.m. ET.

When Harris introduced Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz as her new running mate at their first rally together, she called him “coach.”

Jury selection gets underway in Hunter Biden’s tax trial

LOS ANGELES — Jury selection is scheduled to begin in Los Angeles federal court today for Hunter Biden ‘s trial on tax-related charges .

It’s the second-ever criminal trial of a sitting president’s son, and the second for Hunter Biden this year.

Hunter Biden, 54, was  indicted in December  on three felony and six misdemeanor counts alleging that he failed to pay his taxes during a period when, he has said, he was in the throes of drug addiction, as well as when he got sober. The indictment says that “rather than pay his taxes, the Defendant spent millions of dollars on an extravagant lifestyle.”

Prosecutors say in the indictment that Hunter Biden “engaged in a four-year scheme to not pay at least $1.4 million in self-assessed federal taxes he owed for tax years 2016 through 2019, from in or about January 2017 through in or about October 15, 2020, and to evade the assessment of taxes for tax year 2018 when he filed false returns in or about February 2020.”

He has pleaded not guilty to all charges.

How Biden is spending his final months as president

Mike Memoli

Monica Alba

Biden is launching a new phase of his presidency this week.

Liberated from the constraints of a re-election campaign , he’s in the beginning stage of a strategy that will take him over the next five months to places at home and abroad that he likely would have ignored as a 2024 candidate, but with the goal of keeping the White House , his legacy and some of his most significant accomplishments secure.

Trump and Harris campaigns agree to rules for ABC debate

Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump are set to debate each other next week for the first time after their campaigns yesterday agreed to the ground rules set by host network ABC.

The Sept. 10 event in Philadelphia will use the same rules and format as the June debate between Trump and President Joe Biden.