street and trip

Microsoft Streets and Trips Alternative for 2024 - A Complete Guide [video included]

By christina carpio, posted in sales software / tools, featured, sales management.

Every salesperson has their favorite sales tool to efficiently get the job done. But in a rapidly-evolving industry, tools often get replaced by the next generation of software.

Back in the day, everyone's favorite sales tool was Microsoft Streets and Trips . It was one of the most popular mapping softwares, used by thousands of salespeople.

Wonder what happened to it and what the best alternatives are now? Let's find out!

Streets and Trips Best Alternative

What is microsoft streets and trips, is microsoft streets and trips still available, how do i update microsoft streets and trips.

• What is the best Microsoft Streets and Trips alternative?
• Best Alternative to Streets and Trips - Optimized Routing and Scheduling

Best Alternative to Streets and Trips — Check-ins and Follow-up Reminders

• Best Alternative to Streets and Trips — Mobilize your CRM

Best Alternative to Streets and Trips — Improved Customer Data Visualization and Filtering

Best alternative to streets and trips — lead generation on-the-go, best alternative to streets and trips — integrated team view, best alternative to streets and trips — advanced reporting, more alternatives to microsoft streets and trips.

• Try out the Best Streets and Trips Alternative

Released in 2000, Microsoft Streets and Trips was a mapping and routing software designed to build multi-stop routes.

It had six million miles of maps including details such as stores, restaurants, and gas stations. Its invention was a major milestone in the evolution of traveling resources.

Streets and Trips' users loved its route optimization  options  for multiple stops , which allowed them to choose their preferred route based on various criteria (freeway, scenic route, secondary roads, etc.). Plus, routes could be changed on the fly, with no need for Internet connection.

Streets and Trips showed relevant points of interest along the way. It also allowed users to add notes, phone numbers, and any other relevant information about their customers. These features were especially useful for field salespeople.

Yet despite its groundbreaking features and popularity, Streets and Trips had limitations . As you could only install it on PCs with a CD-ROM, Streets and Trips suffered from the technological restrictions of its time, such as a lack of updates. 

It also was a time well before the era of mobile devices, when a lot of pre-planning was necessary for scheduling routes. As such, Streets and Trips lacked many of the on-the-go capabilities that today’s field sales industry demands.

Still, Microsoft Streets and Trips enjoyed tremendous popularity with salespeople . We had become dependent on its user-friendly interface and extensive maps to plan and optimize our daily sales routines.

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Unfortunately, Microsoft Streets and Trips is no longer available for download . As the saying goes — all good things must come to an end.

Streets and Trips struggled to remain competitive in the rapidly-evolving digital mapping industry. Microsoft switched their focus to search engine Bing, with the hope that their mapping service Bing Maps could compete with the powerhouse of the industry, Google Maps.

Lost in the shuffle, Microsoft Streets and Trips 2013 was the last version available to the public, leaving many field salespeople without one of their most trusted resources for outside sales.

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Since it was discontinued, salespeople have wondered how they can update their favorite mapping software. 

And it’s a good question — will Microsoft Streets and Trips work on their newer operating systems?

Even if you figure out a way to make Streets and Trips work on your current software, its download options are unavailable , making it impossible to update.

This left many outside sales professionals stranded, looking for the best Streets and Trips replacement .

What is the best Microsoft Streets and Trips alternative?

After Microsoft Streets and Trips and other popular software of the time such as Microsoft MapPoint were discontinued, it left many asking, what will replace Microsoft Streets and Trips?

The answer is  Badger Maps , an app developed specifically with today’s field salespeople in mind.

Badger Maps is the best alternative to Microsoft Streets and Trips for outside sales. It’s user-friendly, easily customizable, and updated regularly with new features.

Badger Maps offers the advanced features that sales reps and managers loved in Microsoft Streets and Trips – things like routing, data visualization, check-ins, detailed follow-ups , and more.

The difference is that Badger Maps is optimized for modern-day selling, making it an invaluable tool for all field salespeople.

What makes Badger Maps the Best Alternative To Streets and Trips?

Created specifically for the outside sales community, Badger Maps allows for route optimization, customer check-ins , and a variety of other features to maximize time in the field .

One of Badger Maps greatest advantages is its user-friendliness, making it the best Microsoft Streets and Trips alternative. Badger Maps even offers new users free onboarding with Account Specialists who will walk you through the app’s features. You can quickly start optimizing your sales routes with unlimited stops and start increasing your sales.

The #1 route planner for field sales in all app stores, Badger Maps is designed to solve the main problems outside salespeople face in the field . From planning out their route to keeping track of check-ins in order to better manage their customer relationships, Badger Maps is the all-in-one app for field sales efficiency.

Available on iOS, Android, and PC, Badger Maps can be with you anywhere in the field. It gives you easy access to customer data and optimized routes, which is perhaps its biggest upgrade from Streets and Trips. But it’s not just the most convenient mapping software for salespeople searching for an alternative to Microsoft Streets and Trips — it’s also the most effective

It’s a great Microsoft MapPoint and BatchGeo alternative as well.

The best part about Badger Maps? Its selection of innovative mapping and routing features, designed to maximize field sales productivity. This includes:

• Optimized routing and scheduling
• Check-ins and follow-up reminders
• Improved customer data visualization and filtering
• Lead generation on-the-go
• Integrated team view
• Advanced reporting
• Bi-directional CRM integration

“It took me 2 days to plan routes with Streets and Trips. With Badger Maps, it takes 3 hours for a new rep to plan his initial visits of all 110 store locations.”

Matthew Brooks

Business Development Manager, Cargill

Best Alternative to Streets and Trips — Optimized Routing and Scheduling

Badger Maps makes it easy to optimize your route and plan your schedule - all in one tool. Using Badger Maps as a multi-stop route planner  saves you hours in weekly planning, as it automatically generates the fastest route to all your appointments. As a result, you’ll spend more time in the field and close 20-25% more deals.

In Route Mode, Badger Maps gives you turn-by-turn directions and live traffic updates to keep you on the fastest track. Additionally, you can cut down planning time by saving routes for at a later time. 

Microsoft Streets and Trips' route optimization feature was cutting-edge. Yet Streets and Trips did not live to see the age of smartphones and was only available on the computer. Badger Maps, on the other hand, is a mobile first app available across all Android and iOS devices and the web, so you can carry your routes and customer information anywhere, even in the field.

With Badger Maps Check-ins feature, you can keep track of all your client interactions as they take place. 

When you create a check-in, you can log your interaction (meeting, phone call, etc.), and add time-stamped notes of the interaction to stay organized.

If you use a CRM, all the notes you make when in the field will automatically sync. This way, you have all your meeting notes on-the-go and you'll never misplace valuable customer information. With Badger Maps, what happens in the field also happens in the office.

While Microsoft Streets and Trips was an extremely useful software, it was created for a more general market. Badger Maps is an app dedicated to salespeople, so we know the  importance of follow-ups . Studies have shown that 80% of deals need five or more follow-ups to close.We make sure you never miss a single one

The Follow-ups feature lets you add a date for your next follow-up and set an appointment reminder. With Follow-ups to keep you on track, you will never miss an opportunity simply because you forget to contact a prospect.

Best Alternative to Streets and Trips - Mobilize your CRM

Sales teams can mobilize their CRM with Badger Maps , allowing them to access and update customer info directly from the field. This enables field teams to sync and leverage data in their CRM, all from their phone. Badger Maps can integrate with leading CRMs such as HubSpot, Salesforce , Microsoft Dynamics , Zoho , Insightly , NetSuite , and many more.

By integrating Badger Maps with your CRM, sales reps working in the field can visualize all of their data on an engaging and interactive map. This shows reps exactly where their customers are and how best to prioritize them. 

With Badger Maps Bi-directional Integration, sales teams will be able to see all their activity in Badger Maps instantly in their CRM too.

These vital CRM capabilities make Badger Maps the best Streets and Trips replacement for field teams.

“CRM usage increased more than 50% once our sales team adopted Badger”

Regional Sales Manager, Danaher

Discover how Danaher increased CRM usage by 50% with Badger Maps!

With Badger Maps Data Visualization and Filtering features,  territory management  is painless.

The Colorize and Filter features give you a smarter view of your territory. It makes it easy to view your priority accounts, mass update information, and plan your future sales calls. Filters are fully customizable, allowing you to visualize customers based on any criteria you find useful.

Using Badger Maps colorize and filter features is as easy as editing pushpins in Microsoft Streets and Trips. Badger Maps advantage is that once you colorize and filter, you can immediately make your next move. Using the Lasso tool, you can quickly select all the pins you want to create a route for or mass update, with no tedious steps in between.

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Ever had a customer cancel a meeting at the last minute? With Badger Maps  lead generation tool  ' Places ', you’ll always have a back-up plan.

'Places' helps salespeople cut back on idle time and find new opportunities around every corner. Whether your meeting was canceled or you have time to spare, you can simply go to the Places tool, search by business category, and instantly view new leads in your selected area.

Since Streets and Trips wasn’t made with a salesperson's needs in mind, it lacked this important feature. Street and Trips was limited to showing business reviews and ratings. Badger Maps built on what Streets and Trips started and added this crucial tool to maximize every salesperson's potential.

Teamwork is a huge part of many people’s sales process. One of Badger Maps most popular features, “My Team,” allows you to link different Badger Maps accounts together into teams.

Both sales reps and managers can benefit from using My Team. Team View allows reps to see their account status, view their territories, and access team activity reports.

Managers can use Manager View to access all team member check-ins, territories, routes, and activity reports. Having this information allows managers to get an accurate view of what’s going on in the field and catch problems before they arise. Managers can also directly edit their team members’ territories and routes. 

Badger Maps knows the importance of collaboration, so the feature is customizable for field sales teams of any size.

The best part? Badger Maps has a free team pilot program so that you can see how it works for your entire team. 

With Badger Maps, it's easy to know what goes on in the field. Every time you make a check-in, Badger Maps saves the information in a check-in report. The report includes account information, a timestamp, and the notes of that visit.

Every Friday, check-in reports are automatically sent to your inbox. Users can also export their report at any time, allowing them to view their progress without manually going through each account.

For reps, these reports provide the ability to track performance and keep notes of the work they've completed over a given period of time

For managers, reports help  identify sales curves and trends  and build an incentive program for reps.

Report generation was nonexistent in Microsoft Streets and Trips. This resulted in hours spent tending to tiresome administrative duties. Badger Maps automatically generates reports each week, saving you time and helping you be more productive than ever.

With so many mapping tools available, it makes sense to explore your options to be certain you choose the right one for your needs. Here are a few additional mapping tools that are worth looking into:

• Price : Free
• Best fo r: Road Trips, Simple Routing

Launched in 1996, MapQuest was the first commercial web mapping service. This reliable software is used to create simple routes, locate businesses, and book hotels. 

MapQuest limits how many stops you can add to optimized routes, which makes it better suited for road trips and other simple routes.

Roadtrippers

• Price : Free or Plus for $35.99/year
• Best for: Road Trips, Sightseeing 

Roadtrippers is a web-based software application and mobile app designed to help travelers plan epic road trips. With Roadtrippers you can plan trips, discover unique destinations along your route, read reviews of points of interests, and calculate gas cost. 

This app is perfect for adventurers looking to enjoy the journey and not just the destination.

• Price: Contact for pricing information
• Best for: Sales/Data Visualization 

Mapline is a web-based mapping tool for territory and data visualization. By importing your data to Mapline, you can get a customized view of your customer base and use the analytical tools to plan your next steps. Additionally, you can use Mapline to create territories and build routes.

Xactly AlignStar

• Price:  Contact for pricing information
• Best for : Sales Territory Management 

Xactly AlignStar is a territory management tool that allows you to visualize and adjust territories with no hassle. Through data analysis, AlignStar enables you to rebalance territories based on your parameters, and discover new sales opportunities for your reps.

AlignStar is geared towards sales managers and does not have features, such a route planning, that sales reps may be looking for.

Try out the Best Microsoft Streets and Trips Alternative

For outside salespeople, Badger Maps is the best Microsoft Streets and Trips alternative. Offering many of the same tools that came with Microsoft Streets and Trips, field salespeople throughout the industry have made the switch to Badger Maps — and are loving the updated features.

Support and onboarding for new users is just a call or email away. So make the change to Badger Maps today, and empower yourself with the #1 route planner for field sales on the market.  Start your free trial today!

Co-authors:  Christina Carpio and Mitch Paglia

BADGER PAYS FOR ITSELF WITH GAS SAVINGS

Sales reps using badger sell at least 22% more and drive 20% fewer miles..

See the potential return on investment you can get by using Badger Maps with your field sales team.

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Microsoft Streets and Trips for Windows

• By Microsoft
• Trial version
• User Rating

Key Details of Microsoft Streets and Trips

• Plan and customize your trip with preferences.
• Last updated on February 21, 2024
• There have been 1 updates
• Also available on

Unscannable (this software program could not be scanned for compliance. Its safety status is unknown, and caution is advised)

Developer's Description

Explore more.

MB Indu Lagna

Swift-E-Logbook (32-Bit)

Swift-E-Logbook (64-Bit)

MB Upagrahas

AirportTime

Kayak Trip Huddle

Full Specifications

• Windows Vista

Related Software

Perform calculation to find out the indu lagna position.

Calculate flight timings and keep record of the flight data on your Windows machine.

Search and compare flights to find best fares.

Microsoft Streets and Trips 2010 and MapPoint 2010 Construction Data Update

Download the latest construction data to keep your maps current

Important! Selecting a language below will dynamically change the complete page content to that language.

Date published:.

ConstructionA9021000.dat

System Requirements

Supported Operating Systems

Windows 7, Windows Server 2003, Windows Server 2008, Windows Vista, Windows XP

Install Instructions

Related resources.

• MapPoint 2009 / Streets & Trips 2009 Construction Update
• Streets & Trips 2008 Construction Update
• MapPoint Home Page
• Streets & Trips Home Page

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Microsoft Streets and Trips

I have been using Microsoft Streets and Trips 2013 for years but some Windows 10 Pro automatic updates invaded my computer and made the program unusable.

When I try to open the program I get a message saying ""A licensing initialization error has occurred. Please contact customer support for more assistance. Error 0xC004D301"

I have the CD and activation code but cannot get past this message.  I tried to download it from the website recommended but could not get past the I am not a robot screen.

I have no idea why this product was discontinued...there is nothing even close to it.

Please let me know how I can overcome this issue.

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Replies (8) 

• Microsoft Agent |

Welcome to Microsoft Community.

I'm Hahn and I'm here to help you with your concern.

I understand your frustration with Microsoft Streets and Trips and the licensing initialization error you're encountering. It may not be fully compatible with the latest Windows updates.

Microsoft Streets & Trips is a mapping program developed by Microsoft based on Microsoft MapPoint technology. The Microsoft Streets & Trips software eventually stopped being updated in 2013, and related support was discontinued in 2015, with Bing Maps being the successor.

Here are a few suggestions to try and resolve the issue:

1. Compatibility Mode:

- Right-click on the Streets and Trips shortcut or executable file.

- Choose "Properties."

- Go to the "Compatibility" tab.

- Check the box that says "Run this program in compatibility mode for:" and select an older version of Windows (e.g., Windows 7 or Windows 8).

- Click "Apply" and then "OK."

- Try running the program again.

2. Run as Administrator:

- Choose "Run as administrator."

- Confirm any prompts that appear.

- Check if the program runs without the licensing error.

I hope this helps.  If there is anything not clear, please do not hesitate to let me know.

Your Sincerely

Hahn - MSFT | Microsoft Community Support Specialist

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Sorry this didn't help.

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Thanks for your feedback.

I did as you suggested but still get the licensing initialization error...any other ideas? I have the cd and code...

Please let me know what you think.

1 person found this reply helpful

This is so frustrating...it is costing me time and money. Please help me resolve this issue.

Microsoft Streets & Trips is an older mapping program, and its compatibility with the latest Windows updates may indeed be limited. Since Microsoft has officially discontinued support for the software, it becomes challenging to ensure its proper functioning on newer operating systems.

Given the circumstances, and if you find that the program is not working despite trying various troubleshooting steps, it might be worthwhile to explore alternative mapping and navigation solutions that are more current and compatible with Windows 10.

As mentioned earlier, popular alternatives include Bing Map for online mapping and navigation, among others. These services continue to receive updates and support, providing reliable alternatives to older software that has been discontinued.

I understand that transitioning to a new tool may take some adjustment, but it could offer a more stable and feature-rich experience on the latest operating systems. If specific features from Streets & Trips are crucial for your needs, researching alternative mapping solutions and testing them out might help you find a suitable replacement.

I am familiar with Bing and it is not even close to Microsoft Streets and Trips.  I have kept the operating system that has always worked with Streets and Trips and continually cancel the automatic updates.  This apparently is no longer an option as the system was forced to update.  I will return to whatever operating system you suggest but surely there has to be a way to get me up and running again.

Please let me know what you suggest.

I understand your frustration, and I appreciate your patience. If you're willing to consider a different operating system that is more compatible with Microsoft Streets and Trips, you might want to try running the software on a version of Windows that was available when Streets and Trips was still officially supported.

You can explore using a virtual machine on your current Windows 10 system. Virtualization software allows you to create a virtual environment in which you install an older version of Windows, such as Windows 7, and then run Streets and Trips in a virtual machine.

Please note that these solutions involve some complexity, and I recommend taking appropriate precautions, such as backing up your data, before making any significant changes to your operating system. Additionally, consider the security implications of using an unsupported operating system.

Please do not let the Aol account fool you...I have many computers, operate MAC, Windows and Unix systems fluently and learn new software very often.

I have had a similar problem with your software before, about 6 months ago, fixed it by running the program as an Administrator and in Compatibility mode. After I was able to recover the software, I went to my Settings and chose to NOT have Automatic Updates.

That worked until a few weeks ago when my computer tried to Automatically Update again. This time, when I tried to turn off Automatic Updates again, I was not allowed to so I chose to Pause Updates for 30 days.

This also did NOT work and "my" computer was forced to update a day later...leading to my current state of HELL.

I am in the middle of a job that has 54 locations to visit over 5 days (let's see Bing orchestrate that). Everything was lined up nicely until Microsoft took over my computer and virtually erased all of my hard work. This has led to embarrassment, loss of money, loss of a client and loss of sleep.

To be clear, I have been running Microsoft Streets and Trips for 20 years and have, since 2013 (or there about), successfully run the program on Windows 10 (the current operating system on the pertinent computer). If I do as you say, partition my computer and run Windows 8, I have exactly ZERO confidence that this will work without running into the same issue.

Do I or do I not have a right to repair?

Please give me the access code or key or instructions to have your program run again on my computer, on Windows 10, as it did prior to your FORCED Automatic Update last week.

Looking forward to hearing from you soon...with a solution.

I understand your sentiment, but due to Microsoft Streets & Trips related support ceased in 2015. So there may be no way to restore it for now.

Microsoft attaches great importance to user experience, you can submit your ideas and suggestions through the Feedback Hub, and the development team will regularly review submissions for ideas or fixes.

Send feedback to Microsoft with the Feedback Hub app - Microsoft Support

Please share the feedback link here after submitting as it will allow others on the forum to vote for your submission, including me. More votes will lead to more visibility and higher priority to the development team.

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Microsoft Streets and Trips 2022 Alternative

Jul 31, 2020

It’s 2022 and nearly everyone has access to a personal GPS on their mobile device — but let’s not forget that digital maps are a recent invention. With the introduction of MapQuest in 1996, online personal mapping slowly became accessible to the public. This not just revolutionized personal navigation — it transformed the way industries like field sales operated.

But before Waze, Google Maps, and even TomTom existed — there were five friends from Surrey, England that built an overnight success software called Autoroute. Massively popular, it was eventually downloaded by half of the computers in the UK. In the late 90s, it was acquired by Microsoft and distributed in North America as Streets and Trips in 2000 .

14 years later, it suddenly disappeared from the market. So what happened?

What Was Microsoft Streets and Trips?

Microsoft Streets and Trips was a mapping and routing program that helped lay the foundation for personal GPS systems. Now discontinued, it was a computer program that mapped out streets, businesses and places of interest — as well as displayed pins on a map and built multi-stop routes from place to place.

In later versions, it introduced features we are familiar with like weather considerations, traffic monitoring and construction updates.

With an extremely user-friendly interface for its time, Microsoft Streets and Trips featured ground-breaking technology that contained more than six million miles of map.

The most impressive feature was Streets and Trips’ ability to update route information in real time. The software would identify roads that were under construction and provide information on how to avoid them.

This combination of business data and route optimization was a success within sales departments. It provided a comprehensive solution that offered territory creation, route optimization , management efficiency, and territory mapping — effectively revolutionizing the sales industry.

But in 2013, Microsoft chose to discontinue the product; and then in 2015, it ended its Streets and Trips support lines.

Is Microsoft Streets and Trips Still Available?

Microsoft Streets and Trips was discontinued as part of Microsoft’s concerted effort to invest their resources into Bing, a web search engine meant to rival Google.

It was Microsoft’s hope that Bing Maps would eventually compete with Google Maps, but that hasn’t exactly panned out so far .

In the end, Streets and Trips released a goodbye message urging their customers to use Bing Maps instead. In doing so, they lost sight of the enterprise market that used Streets and Trips for sales. Bing Maps was not a direct replacement and was inherently a consumer product.

Is There a Microsoft Streets and Trips Replacement?

Yes — in 2016 we built Map My Customers to replicate the best of what Streets and Trips had to offer, while adding in modern features that make it mobile-friendly and super insightful.

We knew that when Streets and Trips vanished, enterprises and businesses had no suitable alternative.

Most sales reps had wound up resorting to free mapping softwares  like Google Maps and manually entering each data point themselves.

This led to a lot of frustrated customers, including (of course) ourselves…

It was 2015, and we were stuck running our sales routes like it was 1988. It was inefficient, boring, and in the end — it just didn’t make any sense.

That’s why we created a new software that does everything (and more) of what Microsoft Streets and Trips was capable of:

• Route Optimization  —  Reduce planning and travel time with our leading routing algorithms
• Data Visualization  —  Visualize sales opportunities and customers displayed as clickable pins on a map
• Lead Generation  — Identify new customers and create additional appointments while on the road
• Planning and Contact Management — Log activities like cold calls and meetings, track check-ins and sync it all to your calendar
• Management and Reporting  — Manage territories, track rep activity and surface sales data unique to the field

Unlike Microsoft Streets and Trips, MMC is built for the phone — meaning you can see your routes, schedule and customer notes from anywhere. On the web, we have dashboards to organize and analyze your team’s data and easily transfer data between team members or your CRM — all with a modern user interface.

Above all — here at Map My Customers, we promise not to disappear.

How Map My Customers Can Replace Microsoft Streets and Trips

Microsoft Streets and Trips was a powerful tool, but it wasn’t really built with the salesperson in mind. Map My Customers is unique because it’s the tool that’s purpose-built for outside sales. In fact, I first built this app specifically for my father , a career field sales professional in the flooring industry.

Because of this, we understand exactly what sales reps need. Here, I break down the top 5 aspects of what makes Map My Customers so useful for reps and teams in the field:

Microsoft Streets and Trips Alternative for Sales Route Planning and Optimization

Just like Microsoft Streets & Trips, one of the keystone features of Map My Customers is the ability to create detailed multi-stop routes . Creating these routes is simple and allows sales reps to build their most efficient day.

Map My Customers visualizes all of your customers as pins on a map. You can add those pins to a route in a few short taps or by using our lasso tool to mass-add relevant pins.

Similar to Microsoft Streets and Trips, our route optimization takes into account real-time factoring such as traffic congestion, required stops throughout the road, weather conditions, traffic accidents and more. Since our platform is powered by Google Maps ( proven by CNBC to be more accurate than Apple Maps ) you can rest assured knowing that the route directions you receive will always be the fastest route possible.

Once your route is built, you can also follow turn-by-turn navigation via a mobile GPS of your choice — including Apple Maps or Waze.

Creating a route on our platform is actually much easier and faster to do than on Microsoft Streets and Trips. In fact, many of our customers praise our platform for saving them countless hours that would have been spent on driving and planning routes. Some customers have even cut their weekly planning time in half and reduced their weekly driving time by 200 miles .

When you build a route with Map My Customers  — you also get a stop-by-stop itinerary where you can further dictate additional information about stops, including customers involved, the length of the visit and the total distance traveled. Once you build your optimized route, you can sync your itinerary to your calendar (like Google Calendar or Outlook) and add it to your Saved Routes.

Want to change your route? Simply drag and drop each stop and rearrange it in the order you want it to be in. You can easily add or remove stops as well.

Even better, routing is available on our web app, iPhone, iPad and Android devices.

See a hands-on product tour of Map My Customers

Microsoft streets and trips alternative for sales data visualization.

As we mentioned above, when you import your customers into Map My Customers they are displayed as pins on a map. This is helpful for routing, but it’s also an important way to visualize and fully understand your sales territory like never before.

In a single field of view, you can see every customer, prospect or contact displayed — making it the perfect visual for the field sales rep (and part of what was so great about Microsoft Streets and Trips).

Unlike Microsoft Streets and Trips, however, Map My Customers takes data visualization to new heights. For example, our heat mapping tool can help you to understand the geospatial factors that influence your deals.

You can also use Map My Customers to curate a specific view of certain customers. With Grouping and Filtering, you can segment your customers based on tier, priority, and product type — as well as by radius (in miles) or custom fields.

Map My Customers brings a more insightful view of your territory than Microsoft Streets and Trips ever could. Once you’ve segmented and visualized customers appropriately, you can build a new route or click in to the customers to learn more about them, make a call, or send them an email.

Microsoft Streets and Trips Alternative for Lead Generation

As a rep in the field, it’s also important to be able to keep your pipeline consistently full and have new deals coming in. With Map My Customers, you can find new leads easily and quickly with our Lead Generation tool.

Find places of businesses nearby to build a day of cold calls to generate new business. Or, if you find yourself with a gap in your schedule due to a cancellation — use the Lead Generation tool to find a nearby opportunity.

Although Microsoft Streets and Trips did not have a true Lead Generation tool, they had a similar business search similar to Google Maps that posted reviews and additional details about opportunities.

With Map My Customers, you can easily find new opportunities relevant to you — and instantly add them as a saved prospect or give them a quick call.

Microsoft Streets and Trips Alternative for Sales Planning and Contact Management

Whereas Microsoft Streets and Trips mostly existed as a tool for routing, Map My Customers also acts as a mobile contact management and planning tool .

This means that beyond routing, you can do all of your administrative work from your mobile device as you go about your day. Some customers have spent up to 50% less time doing that admin work, meaning they’re spending more time selling.

Before you hit the road, use Map My Customers to pick out your highest priority customers and build your itinerary for the day or week.

As you go about your day taking meetings and making cold calls, you can log notes about your customers, add files, and schedule follow-ups as necessary. You can even use our Cadence Management tool to indicate when you need to follow up with an account.

The best part about this is that you can also share this information with your entire team, which encourages clean and consistent data management practices across your entire organization.

Microsoft Streets and Trips Alternative for Sales Team Management and Reporting

Another way Map My Customers goes beyond Streets and Trips is with leading field team management functionality. As a manager, you are able to see your sales team’s activities and successes displayed in several ways.

With our Field Dashboard, you can see recently added companies, recent activities (like calls or emails) and active deals. Plus, you can actively compare the performance of your reps by number of activities logged and by type of activity.

You can also click in to an individual rep to see more about what their day is like and check in on them.

In addition, easily define sales territories and assign them to a rep so you can get a true birds’-eye view of your organization’s sales landscape.

Within Reports, you can access tables of more granular information, activity logs, and added customers. This data can be exported or integrated with CRMs like Salesforce, HubSpot, Zoho and Microsoft Dynamics.

Replace Streets & Trips Today

Streets and Trips was a revolutionary product, but it was limited in some of its features. One of the biggest advantages of Map My Customers is that we are both a web and mobile solution. You can easily create routes on the web and have it be available and accessible from your mobile device (iOS or Android) and vice versa.

We’ve taken the best of MapPoint and Streets and Trips and improved them for the needs of the modern outside sales rep. If you haven’t jumped onboard with Map My Customers, you can begin here with a hands-on product tour!

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Support for Streets & Trips has ended

Support for Streets & Trips , AutoRoute , and MapPoint ended in 2015.  You can continue to use these products; however, Microsoft will no longer provide software updates or technical support for these apps.  Volume license customers will also be unable to download the apps from the Volume Licensing Service Center .  You can still activate the apps online, or through the automated phone system (from within the product's activation window).  If you need help, you can search self-help articles on support.microsoft.com or post a question in the Community forums at https://answers.microsoft.com .  If you enjoyed these products and are looking for a replacement, we encourage you to try out Bing Maps .

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Route Optimization and Planning

Why optimoroute is the best replacement for microsoft streets & trips.

You’ve probably suffered the disappointment of your favorite store or restaurant closing down at some point. Maybe it was your favorite place to shop for your clothes or the best place to pick up food with your friends before the big game. Once they closed down, it wasn’t so easy to just switch to another shop or restaurant you liked. You had to find a replacement for a key part of your regular routine, one that had become almost second nature.

Many delivery teams were left in the same position when Microsoft discontinued Streets & Trips in 2014. They needed alternative options for route mapping software to find and plan the fastest routes for their drivers.

If this situation sounds familiar, and you’re still looking for the best Microsoft Streets & Trips replacement, we’ve got you covered. OptimoRoute’s software can help you achieve even better route planning than Streets & Tips, with real-time tracking, workload balancing, and automatic route optimization based on your business needs.

Jump ahead to the section that most interests you:

What Was Microsoft Streets & Trips?

• Is Microsoft Streets & Trips Still Available?

How Streets & Trips Worked

Who used streets & trips.

• 5 Features That Make OptimoRoute The Best Microsoft Streets & Trips Alternative

Microsoft Streets & Trips FAQ

Microsoft Streets & Trips was a computer program that could map out multi-stop routes between businesses, stores, restaurants, and other places of interest. The program was  originally developed by NextBase Limited , a UK-based company, in 1989 and was known as AutoRoute. Microsoft bought NextBase and the AutoRoute program in 1994, so they could continue developing the software. Eventually, it was rebranded as Streets & Trips in 2000. Unlike  MapQuest , which  launched in 1996  as a web mapping service, Streets & Trips was developed for offline use.

Microsoft released updates and new versions annually, continuing to update the maps and capabilities of Streets & Trips. Eventually, the program contained  more than six million miles of maps  for users to navigate with. Whether it was a family road trip or an easier commute to the office, they could plan out the best route to take using the software. 

From its earliest versions, Microsoft Streets & Trips  provided features like  door-to-door directions, points of interest along routes, and surveys for restaurant reviews. By the time it was last updated, Streets & Trips had grown into an even more customizable, user-friendly tool for planning optimized routes between multiple stops.

Is Microsoft Streets & Trips Still Available? 

No — Microsoft  discontinued Streets & Trips in 2014,  along with its broader category of Microsoft MapPoint technology, and stopped supporting Streets & Trips in 2015. They discontinued the tool in favor of Bing Maps, Microsoft’s online web mapping service. The move reflected a larger shift toward online mapping and navigational tools rather than an offline route planner.

Streets & Trips hasn’t been updated since 2015, and plenty of new roads and highways have been built since then. In the U.S. alone,  about $565.55 billion was spent  on new highway and street construction between 2015 and 2020. The maps available on Streets & Trips won’t be accurate to what you’d find in the real world anymore and may not get you to your destination. Delivery team members looking for up-to-date software must explore alternative  route management  and optimization options instead.

Streets & Trips was developed as an offline mapping tool for “ point-to-point navigation .” It was primarily used on a computer or laptop to map out the best route between two or more locations, but later versions included added functionality as well.

Some of Streets & Trips’ most helpful features included:

• GPS with voice-prompted directions:  Microsoft introduced this feature in the  2006 version , giving drivers hands-free, turn-by-turn directions.
• Automatic rerouting:   Introduced in 2008 , Streets & Trips could catch when drivers made a wrong turn and direct them back toward their destination.
• Traffic updates:  Drivers were given updates on traffic flow, construction, and other incidents for more efficient route planning. This was also released in the  2008 version .
• Pushpins:  Users could pin locations or points of interest to their maps to personalize routes and directions. In the  2013 version , they had the option of turning pushpin names on or off for easier trip planning.
• Online ratings and reviews:  One of the features that made for a more tailored trip planning experience, Microsoft  introduced more robust review capabilities in 2013 .

Although certain features  integrated with MSN Direct  and Live Search Maps, Streets & Trips was primarily an offline tool. Users could access information like traffic and weather updates or directions to the nearest gas station without being connected to the internet. But they couldn’t receive true, real-time updates because of the software’s offline nature. Businesses trying to track deliveries or make adjustments to drivers’ routes were limited in what they could do.

Because of its accessible price point, both consumers and businesses used Streets & Trips as a navigation solution. Commuters used it to avoid traffic on their way to work, and families would plan long road trips, plotting out ATMs, hotels, gas stations, and points of interest in advance. On the business side,  both delivery teams and sales teams used Streets & Trips to plan their routes to customers. Field sales reps used it for territory mapping and planning out sales routes when visiting new customers. Delivery companies would plan the fastest routes to drop off their packages.

5 Features That Make OptimoRoute the Best Microsoft Streets & Trips Alternative

If you’re looking for efficient  route optimization  software to replace Microsoft Streets & Trips, OptimoRoute is the answer.  Don’t rely on Google Maps  to create routes for you. Our software easily maps out the fastest  multi-stop routes  for your delivery drivers while reducing time on the road, so you can make more deliveries and improve fuel efficiency.

Automatic route planning & optimization

You can balance priority scheduling, driver overtime, and delivery windows—all without any manual calculations. You no longer need to spend hours factoring in schedules, workloads, customer preferences, traffic, and timing. Instead, you can  plan out routes  for your delivery drivers incorporating all of those factors in just a few seconds.

With  automated route planning , you’ll go beyond the basic navigation and plotting of Streets & Trips to truly optimize your full driver fleet. Produce delivery schedules weeks in advance so you can better manage your workforce and your vehicle fleet. Our software will even suggest the best days and times for running certain delivery routes, automatically scheduling them for the fastest windows based on traffic patterns. And with location-based route planning, you can assign drivers to geographic zones for even greater efficiency.

Real-time order tracking

Send your customers  real-time status updates , tracking links, and delivery notifications for a seamless customer experience. You’ll improve customer satisfaction and reduce frustration by keeping them well-informed about when their package will arrive.

Real-time order tracking and live updates are already integrated into our tool. Customize your text updates using our template, and choose which information you want to include, like order ID and estimated time of arrival (ETA). They’ll receive a live tracking link, where they’ll be able to see updates and a countdown to their arrival time, so they know exactly when to expect their package.

ETA updates

Gain visibility into where your drivers are on the road and when they’re expected to complete deliveries so you can monitor for roadblocks and re-plan routes as needed.

ETAs  are key to understanding and optimizing delivery routes, as well as providing accurate real-time updates to customers. If there are route delays or drivers fall behind schedule, you’ll need to re-plan so you can still get all your deliveries out. OptimoRoute gives you real-time visibility into driver location and ETA so you can adjust on the fly and keep your customers happy.

Proof of delivery & customer feedback

Collect proof of delivery and automatically request customer feedback to ensure your customers are getting the best experience possible. Our software allows drivers to easily  collect customer signatures  as well as photos and notes on who accepted the delivery. With strong documentation, you can respond quickly if customers call with any delivery issues after the fact.

Send out invites for  customer feedback  through email or text so you can gain fresh insight into your company’s reputation. Personalize survey questions or ask customers to leave comments and ratings. Then, view feedback and driver ratings through OptimoRoute’s analytics dashboard so you can uncover areas where your customer experience shines and where there’s room to improve.

Balance your drivers’ workloads to reduce costs, and allocate tasks based on driver skillsets to get the most efficiency out of your route planning. Plan routes based on either the minimum drivers needed or distribute deliveries evenly among them. Our route planning tool can also automatically balance by working hours or number of orders per driver to reduce strain on drivers while lowering payroll costs.

Workload balancing

You can also plan delivery routes or tasks based on drivers’ skillsets. Automatically assign delivery tasks to drivers with the skills to handle them, such as assembling furniture, for the most efficient workload management. The tool’s flexible scheduling will automatically adjust route assignments and start times based on working hours, callouts, labor costs, and miles driven.

Looking for a better alternative to your route optimization software? OptimoRoute can help you scale quickly while cutting down on delivery times and optimizing workloads for every driver.  Learn about how one restaurant plans 500 deliveries in just five minutes. Or  sign up for a free, 30-day trial  to see how OptimoRoute can help improve routing for your business!

What happened to Microsoft Streets & Trips?

Microsoft discontinued Streets & Trips in 2014 after they made the switch to Bing Maps. The software hasn’t been updated since 2015. If you’re still using Streets & Trips to plan your routes, you’re using outdated maps and navigational info, and you have no access to real-time traffic updates.

What will replace Microsoft Streets & Trips?

Customers will need to replace Microsoft Streets & Tips with other route mapping or navigation software. For consumers looking for basic navigation or GPS, tools like Waze or Google Maps can do the trick. But for businesses, they need something more robust and efficient for route planning.

Is OptimoRoute an alternative to Microsoft Streets & Trips?

OptimoRoute is the best alternative to Streets & Trips. The automated route planning and optimization are even more valuable than the basic navigational features offered in Streets & Trips. Delivery planners can gain access to efficient routes, driver scheduling, and real-time tracking in just a few seconds instead of spending hours combing over the best paths for their drivers.

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• Services & Software

Microsoft Streets & Trips review: Microsoft Streets & Trips

Microsoft streets & trips.

Microsoft's Streets & Trips makes a fine backseat driver, but you should leave this version at the rest stop. This trip planner delivers accurate and easy-to-understand driving directions and comes with some useful mapping tools, but it still suffers the same limitations of last year's version--namely, its lack of online integration. Plus, at $40, it's one of the more expensive options of its kind.

The Bottom Line

If you're on the road a lot, you might be better off with a dedicated GPS device, such as the Garmin StreetPilot III . As for finding quirky roadside attractions, you'll need to do some good, old-fashioned legwork online.

Streets & Trips 2004, like its predecessors, hogs disk space. But unless you want to keep the second CD in the drive every time you use Streets & Trips, we recommend installing the entire program instead of the minimum, even though it takes up 1GB.

The program's interface remains familiar, with three easy-to-navigate panes: a map of your highlighted route in the center, driving directions at the top, and a task pane on the left for route planning and finding nearby attractions. A toolbar atop the center screen includes shortcuts to planning tools and a slider for zooming in on your map. Another toolbar at the bottom houses drawing tools for marking maps. Neither toolbar is customizable.

To get started, simply enter starting and ending points, plus any intermediate stops. Click the Get Directions button, and your route pops up in seconds. If you decide to stop in Memphis instead of continuing on to Chattanooga, simply click the route on the map and drag it on top of Memphis; the program's Snap Routing feature automatically recalculates your journey. This program has an excellent range (it documents more than 6.7 million miles of roads in the United States and Canada), and in our tests, the directions were dead-on. The directions also note any bumps that may come up along the way by providing up-to-the-minute road construction information.

Streets & Trips 2004 introduces a few minor new features. One-way streets are now color-coded and marked--a useful addition, though we wish Microsoft had used a slightly brighter color. Business travelers will love the new options for calculating the amount and cost of fuel on a per-trip basis. You can also plug in your average driving speed for a more accurate driving-time estimate.

You can still mark favorite locales or interesting attractions with pushpin icons. You can also create your own pushpin images or add Web links to any pushpin's description.

Speaking of the Web, Streets and Trips 2004 still lacks content for evaluating destinations. If you're salivating for blackberry pie in the middle of Oregon, you can get numbers and addresses for local diners--but no pie-quality tips. A search for hotels offers the same disappointing result--no ratings, let alone built-in Web links for making reservations.

Streets & Trips offers fairly good printing options. You can now print a full-page map, but alas, there's still no preview option.

Microsoft upgraded the program's GPS support for Pocket Streets, the bundled application that lets you export maps to a Pocket PC device. If you have GPS gear connected to your Pocket PC handheld (the GPS must support NMEA 2.0 or later), you can see your location on the Streets & Trips map. You can also turn a map (or a map and driving directions) into a Web page and even set it to update every time you make a change to the map or route in Streets & Trips.

You'll get standard Microsoft service and support. There's a fairly thorough help file and decent built-in help (although we were irritated that we couldn't search for specific keywords from within the program). There are a few FAQs posted online, but if they don't help, you can try searching the Microsoft Knowledge Base. If you need help from a live human being, you can file an online help ticket or contact customer service by phone (available Monday through Friday, 5 a.m. to 9 p.m. and Saturday 5 a.m. to 3 p.m. PT).

Score Breakdown

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Microsoft Streets and Trips 2010 With GPS Locator

Expert's rating.

• Text to speech announces street names
• Good value for software package and current maps
• Short USB cable on GPS receiver
• Limited documentation

For trip planning, it’s always been hard to beat Microsoft Streets and Trips . And that remains true of the latest version, Streets and Trips 2010, even though many of its new features are less than compelling.

If you’re not familiar with it, Streets and Trips turns your laptop or netbook into a full-fledged GPS-navigation and trip-planning device. As with previous versions, Streets and Trips 2010 ships in two packages: a software-only version for $40; and a combo of software plus GPS locator for $70. Streets and Trips will work with most GPS receivers that are NMEA 2.0-compatible, so if you have such a receiver from a previous version, all you need is the software.

Microsoft hasn’t broken much new ground with the latest version of Streets and Trips. You do get updated maps for the U.S. and Canada, along with some welcome additions to points-of-interest categories. The major additions to the product, however, consist of a new “Send to GPS” feature as well as the ability to export route information in the standard GPX format. These are nice additions, but their usefulness is limited.

There are two ways to send directly to a GPS. You can updated the device via MSN Direct. However, the device must support MSN Direct and have an active subscription; Microsoft’s supported device list indicates that only a few models from Garmin, Nextar, and Pioneer can take advantage of this feature. You also can upgrade some GPS devices with a USB cable, using a computer with a live Internet connection. This method does not require an MSN Direct subscription, but it is limited only to Garmin devices and requires that you download and install an ActiveX control.

The GPX export feature worked as expected, but not all GPS devices support this format. I was able to successfully export a route and import it as a “Favorite” into a test Garmin nüvi 770.

Trip planning, however, is where Streets and Trips really shines. You merely enter one or more addresses or names of places, and you’re off. You can arrange multiple trip segments in any order, or let Streets and Trips optimize the route if you have three or more waypoints. Based on route preferences that you can customize, Streets and Trips calculates your route, complete with turn-by-turn directions and a map overview. You can even input the size of your gas tank, gas mileage, and the status of your tank at the beginning of the trip, and Streets and Trips will include a prompt for refueling. If you enter the current cost of gas, the estimated fuel cost of your trip appears at the bottom of the directions list.

After you complete your route planning and generate your route, you have multiple options for the screen display. You can choose to view only the map, the map plus a list of directions, or the map plus directions and a navigation pane. If the GPS receiver is enabled and receiving enough satellites, the navigation pane shows you the distance to your next upcoming turn, along with the direction of the turn. Optionally, you can turn on the GPS pane to display your current speed, direction, latitude, longitude, altitude, and time. Also, a full-screen mode will recover the space taken up by the menu bar.

I installed Streets and Trips on a netbook, a device that’s significantly smaller than the laptop that I normally use. Even its small size, however, wasn’t petite enough to make using Streets and Trips a viable alternative to a windshield-mounted GPS ; there’s just not enough space on the dashboard for a netbook. But for larger vehicles, perhaps an SUV with a console, or an RV, it could be an option.

In my tests, the netbook had to sit on the passenger seat, and that required me to take my eyes off of the road to see the distance-to-turn indicator. Streets and Trips does offer text-to-speech (TTS) capabilities (they were added in the 2009 version), so the software did announce upcoming turns, along with street names. But the USB extension cable supplied with the GPS receiver was only slightly longer than two feet, so the receiver frequently fell off the dashboard, and often lost satellite lock. A four-foot cable with a suction cup to hold it on the dashboard, such as was supplied with Streets and Trips 2009, would probably eliminate that problem.

The routes generated by Streets and Trips were very good, and were comparable to routes generated on dedicated GPS devices. The software provides multiple printing options including strip maps, turn-by-turn maps, and directions only. I’ve printed directions for an upcoming trip, and will take them with me–as a backup to my in-dash GPS.

Though I found the new features of Streets and Trips less than compelling, at $40, it’s worth upgrading just to get the latest maps. If you’re using Streets and Trips 2008 or older, the new version is definitely worth the upgrade for the text-to-speech feature–a must-have in my book for any navigation program or device.

–Craig Ellison

Microsoft Streets and Trips Replacements

In December 2014, Microsoft decided to discontinue Streets and Trips. Here is a list of some of the best alternatives on the market for sales reps who need routing software.

When Microsoft Streets and Trips discontinued their services, sales reps across the country were asking… now what?

Though this program was once helpful and popular, it eventually became an outdated technology. With the rise of smartphone and tablet applications, sales reps can now route and make any last-minute changes on the go.

Here are some of the best alternatives to Streets and Trips

Badger Maps

Badger Maps is arguably the best routing software on the market for sales representatives. This easy-to-use app is available on the iphone, ipad and web. Using live traffic data, Badger can optimize your sales route and is flexible to any last-minute changes on the go.

Map Business Online

MapBusinessOnline is a business mapping software that businesses can use to enhance workflows, and improve efficiencies through map services and optimized routing. This interface is not that easy to use and it is on the pricier side at $75 for three months for exclusively US maps.

RoadNet is a premier routing service that is mainly targeted toward fleets in a variety of industries that have massive amounts of deliveries. The fleet and mobile management software provides territory and street-level route plans, multi-stop vehicle routing and scheduling, and real-time vehicle GPS tracking.

TripIt is a route planning software service that uses Google Maps to find the best route for your trip. TripIt also allows you to access your route on-the-go with their mobile app available on the iPhone, Blackberry, and Android.

MapQuest Route Planner

MapQuest Route Planner is another alternative route planning software that will help you find the fastest route. Though the interface is nice to look at, MapQuest is a tedious app to use because you have to individually input every location rather than being able to do an automated upload of your entire client list.

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9 Must-Have Items For A Southern Road Trip, According To Our Readers

Anything from Buc-ee’s

Diet soda (with the good ice).

• Pork Rinds & Cracklins

Lottery Tickets

Boiled peanuts, nothing at all.

Marcus Lund / Getty Images

As the saying goes, it’s less about the destination and more about the journey. On a road trip , you can leave behind the stress of catching flights or sharing armrests with total strangers, and instead embrace the freedom of the open road. It’s the laughter with loved ones, the joy of shared experiences, and the inevitable pit stops along the way that turn a simple drive into a lifelong memory. Everyone has their go-to items for making the journey more enjoyable, but in the South, there are certain staples travelers simply can’t leave the convenience store without. We asked our readers to share their must-have road trip essentials . Here are nine things Southerners consider indispensable when hitting the road.

Remember that excitement you felt as a kid heading to a Six Flags amusement park? That’s the same thrill Southerners experience when pulling into Buc-ee's . This beaver-themed convenience store is a non-negotiable pitstop whenever it’s en route–and even when it’s a little out of the way. It’s home to the largest gas stations in the world, a wide range of merchandise, and an impressive variety of smoked meats and snacks. Our readers love to pick up Buc-ee's jerky, which can be sampled in roughly 20 flavors at the 15-foot wide Jerky Bar, and the famous chopped brisket sandwich. Of course, Beaver Nuggets, the popular caramel-coated corn puffs, also ranked high on the list. We recommend grabbing a sampler box of their fudge too; it’s made in-house daily. 

Of all the gas station snacks that have worked their way into the hearts (and cars) of our readers, Combos fly off the shelves the fastest. These stuffed snacks, with their signature crunchy shells and savory fillings, have been a quick and convenient road trip staple since the 1970s. Our readers recommend reaching for the classic cheddar cheese pretzel or the bold pepperoni pizza flavor. Both deliver that perfect salty-cheesy blend that always hits the spot. Not to mention, since Combos are perfectly sized to pop into your mouth whole, they don’t leave behind many crumbs—a great way to minimize the mess in your car.

When the AC isn’t working hard enough, it’s time to pull over for an ice-cold drink. Turns out, Southerners are pretty specific when it comes to their road trip beverage of choice. Many of our readers are reaching for soda, but not just any soda– diet soda. Whether it’s Coke, Dr. Pepper, or Pepsi, nine times out of 10, they’re going to make it a diet. And if they can help it, they’re “stopping at a place with the good ice,” as one of our readers puts it, referring to the soft, chewable ice known as nugget ice. We’re convinced this combination might just be the secret weapon for staying replenished and awake at the wheel.

Pork Rinds & Cracklins

Our readers can’t get enough of these crispy and airy Southern delicacies when they’re on the road. A bag of pork rinds can be found in just about any gas station in the region. Made of 100% pork skin, pork rinds have that melt-in-your-mouth quality that comes from their unique, light texture and perfectly seasoned crunch. Cracklins, on the other hand, have a bit more heft.  They are made from pork skin with a layer of fat attached, and they are also harder to find. You’ll have to visit specific spots like local butcher shops or specialty markets in order to get your hands on these. But for many road trippers, the extra effort to track them down is well worth the savory, satisfying crunch.

It doesn’t get much more Southern than a tall glass (or in this case, a tall styrofoam cup) of sweet tea. During the summer months, many of our readers are holding on tight to this beverage and never letting go. Whether you have been driving for several hours or several minutes, there’s nothing like a cup of sweet tea to keep you cool and put a little extra pep in your step. If you don’t have time to stop, we recommend making your own beforehand.

For many, stopping at the gas station for an ICEE has become a road trip ritual of its own. The act of choosing your own flavors and watching the colors swirl into a giant cup—it’s a simple pleasure that easily breaks up the monotony of a long drive. Not to mention, this treat is filled with nostalgia. One sip can bring back a dozen childhood memories, rekindling those sunlit days of summer and family adventures. Whether you’re choosing Blue Raspberry, Cherry, Coca-Cola, or blending them all together, Icees evoke those carefree feelings that pair perfectly with a road trip.

When you’re cruising down the open road with your loved ones, it’s easy to feel lucky. Many of our readers like to extend that luck by grabbing a lottery ticket along the way. For some families, it’s a spontaneous, last-minute purchase before they leave the gas station, and for others, it’s a locked-in part of their road trip routine. Regardless of which category you fall into, there’s something exhilarating about rolling the dice—even if it’s just on a $1 scratch-off— when you’re miles away from home. At the end of the day, if you’re road-tripping, you’re already winning big—adding a lottery ticket just brings a little extra excitement to the journey.

Other regions might prefer roasted peanuts, but in the South, boiled peanuts reign supreme. The official snack of South Carolina, this treat is a road trip essential for many of our readers. Unlike their roasted counterparts, boiled peanuts are tender, savory, and soaked in a flavorful brine. The best part is that finding them likely won’t take you too far out of the way. Roadside stands often offer fresh batches of this Southern delicacy.

According to some readers, stops are only for fueling the car, stretching the legs, and using the facilities—nothing more. Afterall, those fast food expenses can add up quickly. Southerners are known for their expert planning, so it’s no surprise they opt to pack their coolers with homemade snacks and meals instead. Our readers like to make sure their vehicles are stocked with everything from individually-wrapped sandwiches to fresh fruit and freshly-baked cookies, keeping everyone satisfied for the duration of the trip. So when you ask what they’re grabbing from the store, the answer is simple: “Nothing. We bring our stuff with us.”   

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Boeing Starliner Set to Leave Space Station Without Its Crew

The troubled spacecraft is scheduled to undock on Friday for a trip back to Earth while two NASA astronauts will stay in orbit.

By Kenneth Chang

Leaving behind the two NASA astronauts it took to the International Space Station three months ago, Boeing’s troubled Starliner spacecraft is set to begin its return to Earth on Friday evening.

Six hours after it undocks from the station, it is to parachute to a landing at the White Sands Space Harbor in New Mexico. If bad weather or technical issues cause a delay, Starliner’s return could happen on Sept. 10, Sept. 14 or Sept. 18.

After lengthy analysis and ground tests, NASA officials said they still did not fully understand the cause of the propulsion system problems that arose as Starliner approached the space station in June.

Both Boeing and NASA officials have said that they expect that the trip back will be uneventful for the empty Starliner. And they maintain that the spacecraft could have probably still brought back safely the two NASA astronauts, Suni Williams and Butch Wilmore, whose stays on the space station have been extended.

“We have confidence in the vehicle,” Steve Stich, the manager of the commercial crew program at NASA, said during a news conference on Wednesday. He noted that Starliner had successfully landed during earlier test flights with no crew.

“We’ve had two good landings with Starliner so far, and we’re expecting another one Friday,” Mr. Stich said.

Even so, lingering unease led officials to choose what they considered to be the safer option: to keep Ms. Williams and Mr. Wilmore on the space station for another five months and have them return in February on the Crew Dragon, a spacecraft built by SpaceX, a competitor founded by Elon Musk.

Dana Weigel, the program manager for the space station at NASA, said Ms. Williams and Mr. Wilmore had undergone training for a longer mission including performing spacewalks and operating the robotic arm.

“We had them well prepared to move into this role,” Ms. Weigel said.

After Starliner undocks, it will fire its thrusters to back away and then move above the space station. The maneuver was changed from what would have been used had the astronauts been aboard. “It’s a quicker way away from station, way less stress on the thrusters,” Mr. Stich said.

The departure uses short thruster pulses, which are less likely to cause the heating that is believed to have reduced the performance of some of 28 small thrusters in June. The spacecraft also experienced leaks of helium, an inert gas used to push propellant. But it still has much more helium than is needed for the return trip.

The key maneuver is a firing by larger thrusters that causes the spacecraft to drop out of orbit. The smaller thrusters, including the ones that malfunctioned during docking, are used to keep the spacecraft pointed in the correct direction.

The large thrusters have not had any problems so far, but in case they malfunction, the smaller thrusters also serve as a backup for dropping the spacecraft out of orbit.

If the landing goes smoothly, what happens next with the Starliner program remains somewhat uncertain. June’s flight was the first with astronauts aboard, and was to be the last step in NASA’s process of certifying that Starliner was ready to begin regular once-a-year trips carrying astronauts to the space station.

NASA could request that Boeing perform another crewed flight test. The company agreed to redo a crewless flight test after the first launch of Starliner in December 2019 almost immediately ran into technical trouble.

Bill Nelson, the NASA administrator, said at a news conference last month that the new chief executive of Boeing, Kelly Ortberg, had assured him that Boeing would continue working on Starliner.

However, that would come at considerable cost for Boeing. The $4.2 billion contract that Boeing signed with NASA in 2014 set fixed amounts for meeting milestones like certification, and the company does not receive payment until it meets those benchmarks. Unlike many traditional so-called cost-plus contracts, Boeing is responsible for picking up the cost of overruns and delays under the agreement with the agency.

Boeing has already written off $1.6 billion of its costs for the Starliner program.

Kenneth Chang, a science reporter at The Times, covers NASA and the solar system, and research closer to Earth. More about Kenneth Chang

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3 Fairy Tale Towns In Ontario For A Fall Road Trip

These magical destinations in Ontario, Canada, offer travellers a small town vibe set against a beautiful fairy tale backdrop.

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Road trips during autumn in Ontario, Canada.

With autumn inching closer each day, it’s time to start thinking about fall road trips in Ontario . Canada's second largest province covers over 415,000 square miles and is home to stunning natural landscapes including forests and lakes and adorable small towns that look like they stepped right out of a fairy tale. Ontario’s diverse capital city, Toronto, is a great home base that will allow you to take day trips to these historical destinations packed with culture, heritage, and charm. These three magical Ontario towns are the perfect autumn adventure for all ages, whether you live in Ontario or are driving across the border from the United States.

Storybook Gardens In London

Skyline of downtown London Ontario Canada with waterfront park and the Thames River at night. Day and Night Series, Thames River.

Ontario has a London too, although much smaller than the one in England, it’s the perfect road trip destination. Located in the Southwestern part of the province about halfway between Toronto and Detroit, London is packed with fall adventures, including Storybook Gardens . Located in Springbank Park along the Thames River, this nursery rhyme themed amusement park is open year round and has a special family friendly Halloween event. General admission to the park includes the Jumping Pillow, Adventure Island, Hands in the Sand play area, Gnorbert’s Garden, and a Miniature Play Village. Save time to ride the carousel, ferris wheel, and the swings, for a faster paced ride to add some excitement to your day. The pretty grounds also include a Vintage Storybook Chapel, Frog Pond Lookout, and London Bridge – the Ontario version - that’s perfect for younger visitors playing make believe. After your fairy tale adventure, head to London’s Covent Garden Market in search of autumn treats.

Main Street In Unionville

Unionville, Greater Toronto, Canada - 12 22 2019: People on the Main street of the historic village of Unionville whose quaint period buildings have been preserved as a heritage conservation district.

Take a road trip to Main Street Unionville for a picture perfect autumn day. This cute neighborhood located within the larger city of Markham is easily accessible and just north of Toronto. Markham is home to a diverse community with a rich cultural heritage and packed with vibrant activities. Start your day by walking along Unionville’s historic main streets lined with boutique shops selling clothing, books, and accessories. When you get hungry check out a nearby café or restaurant such as Old Country Inn, a 140-year-old house with old world charm serving Austrian food on Main Street. This cute Ontario destination provides an adorable fairy tale backdrop and boasts original buildings from the 1800’s including Davison’s Garage and the Village Post Office. Consider joining a free walking tour in September or October that will wind you through historic streets while you learn about the village’s past and famous landmarks from a knowledgeable guide.

Gingerbread Cottages In Grimsby

GRIMSBY, ONTARIO, CANADA - Grimsby Beach Cottages. Grimsby is a town on Lake Ontario in the Niagara Region, Ontario, Canada. Visitors likes to come to Grimsby Beach to enjoy the Gingerbread houses that are affectionately painted by owners in bright colours.

Grimsby became a town in 1922 and there are historical reminders of rich heritage around every vibrant corner. Many of the old homes predate 1945 and are protected under the Ontario Heritage Act. One of the famous landmarks in town are the gingerbread cottages painted by owners in stunning bright colors near Grimsby Beach . Keep in mind this is a residential neighborhood and the gingerbread houses along the narrow streets are private property, so admire them safely from a distance. In addition to the cute homes, take time to appreciate the dense tree canopy with native species such as white pine, sugar maple, and white spruce. If heading to the beach and waterfront, they can be accessed through the park.

For those visitors wanting to extend their getaway, check into The Casablanca Hotel in Grimsby, a charming establishment in the lakeside area just minutes away from Lake Ontario. If you are looking for the ultimate luxurious experience, select their luxury penthouse suite overlooking the stunning Niagara escarpment.

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Our 20 Best Moscow Tours of 2022

Join us on an unforgettable tour to Moscow, the capital of Russia. Imagine visiting Red Square, St. Basil’s the Kremlin and more. Moscow is one of Europe’s most vibrant cities and one of Russia’s most historical. All of our tours to Moscow are fully customizable and can be adjusted to fit any budget. Our most popular tours are listed below. Please click on the tour details to learn more or contact us for more information about our Moscow tours using the form at the side of the page. You can also schedule a call with one of our Russian travel specialists to learn more.

Classic Moscow

This is our most popular Moscow tour that includes all the most prominent sights. You will become acquainted with ancient Russia in the Kremlin, admire Russian art in the Tretyakov Gallery, listen to street musicians as you stroll along the Old Arbat street, and learn about Soviet times on the Moscow Metro tour.

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A Week in Moscow

This tour is a perfect choice for those who wish to get to know Moscow in depth. One of the highlights of this package is the KGB history tour which gives an interesting perspective on the Cold War. You will also have time for exploring the city on your own or doing extra sightseeing.

Weekend in Moscow

This tour is a great way to get acquainted with the capital of Russia if you are short of time. You will see all the main attractions of the city, the most important of which is the Kremlin - the heart of Russia. The tour starts on Friday and can be combined with a business trip.

Group Tour Moscow Break by Intourist

Russia's capital has so much to offer, from the Kremlin and the Metro to the Old Arbat street and the Tretyakov Gallery. Besides these sites, you will also visit a fascinating country estate which today is quite off the beaten path, Gorky Estate, where the Soviet leader Lenin spent the last months of his life.

Kolomenskoye Tour with transport

The history of Kolomenskoye stretches back for centuries. In 1380, Dmitri Donskoi’s army passed through Kolomenskoye on their way to the Kulikovo battlefield, and it was...

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Kremlin, Red Sq., Cathedrals & Armory Tour

The Kremlin is truly a fascinating structure, at the same time it is an ancient tower, the city’s former military fortification, a palace, an armory, the sovereign treasury...

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Kremlin, Red Sq., Cathedrals, Armory, Diamond Fund Tour

Old Arbat walking tour

You will be told of the street’s interesting history and view the street’s artisan culture. You will also have the opportunity to view and purchase souvenirs from the...

Tour to Sergiev Posad with transport

Considered by some to be the Russian Vatican, Sergiev Posad is the temporary residence of the Patriarch of the Russian Orthodox Church. The Trinity St. Sergius Monastery (Lavra)...

Tour to Kuskovo with transport

The Kuskovo Estate often called the Moscow Versailles due to its perfectly preserved French park, is an example of an 18th century, luxurious Moscow summer residence. Its history...

Tour to Tsaritsyno with transport

The Tsaritsyno Estate is located in the southern part of Moscow. The estate was constructed for Catherine the Great by the Russian architects Bazhenov and Kazakov in a romantic...

Moscow Metro and Old Arbat Tour

The Moscow Metro is one of the largest and most grandly built metro systems in the world. It was meant to be a showcase of the Soviet Union’s achievements for both the Russians...

Vodka Museum Tour with transport (excursion and vodka tasting)

Vodka is an important component of Russian life, an element of national identity and everyday culture. We invite you to visit the Vodka Museum and feel the atmosphere of long-gone...

Mikhail Bulgakov Apartment Museum

This apartment museum located close to Patriarch Ponds became the prototype of the "bad apartment" described in the novel "The Master and Margarita." Currently the museum's...

Kremlin, Red Sq., Cathedrals & Diamond Fund Tour

The State Museum of Lev Tolstoy Tour

Take this opportunity to learn more about the Russian writer Lev Tolstoy. During the visit to the museum you will see part of a vast collection of exhibits connected to Tolstoy...

Novodevichy Convent Tour with transport

Tour of the Novodevichy Monastery. Founded in 1524 by Grand Prince VasiliIoanovich, the original convent was enclosed by fortified walls and contained 12 towers. The structure...

City Tour with Visit to St. Basils & Red Sq. with transport

Panoramic City Tour. This Moscow tour is a great start to your trip and the best way to get acquainted with many of the city’s major highlights. Our professional guide will...

City Tour of Moscow

Head to the heart of Moscow with a professional guide on a 4-hour private walk through the city center. See Tverskaya and Old Arbat streets, Theatre Square with the world-famous...

Moscow Metro walking tour

Kremlin, Red Square and Cathedrals Tour

KGB Tour with transport

This is a very interesting and insightful tour. You will visit places connected with Stalin’s terror - a time of great repression and fear. You will be shown monuments to...

Soviet and Post-Soviet Moscow Tour

The tour begins with a drive or walk down Tverskaya Street – a Soviet masterpiece. In the years of Soviet power, Tverskaya began to undergo a transformation: it was widened...

Tretyakov State Gallery Tour

This world-famous gallery contains masterpieces of Russian art beginning in the 10th century up until today. You will view exquisite Russian icons and paintings from the 18th and...

Jewish Heritage of Moscow Tour

This tour offers a detailed look into the history and present-day life of the Jewish community of Moscow. On the tour, you will visit sites connected with the cultural and religious...

Vodka Museum Tour with transport (excursion only)

Lena, our guide in Moscow was excellent. She was very knowledgable and could answer any question we had for her. We liked that she could pick up on our interests and take us places we might not have thought of to go. When we realized that one of the places we had chosen to see would probably not be that interesting to us, she was able to arrange entry to the Diamond Fund and the Armoury for us. Riding the Metro with Lena was a real adventure and a lot of fun. In Saint Petersburg we found Anna well versed in the history of the Tsars and in the Hermitage collection. Arkady in Veliky Novgorod was a very good guide and answered all of our questions with ease. Novgorod was perhaps a long way to go for a day trip, but we did enjoy it. Vasily was a great driver to have and kept us safe with good humour and skill. We enjoyed ourselves so much, my daughter says she is already planning to return. We would both have no hesistation to recommend ExpresstoRussia to anyone we know.

Just wanted to let you know that My grandson Bruno and I couldn´t have been more pleased with our week in Moscow (6/15 - 6/21). We were absolutely enchanted with the whole experience, including getting lost a couple of times in the Metro during our free time. Although both our guides (both Eleanas) were excellent, I would particularly commend the first one (she took us to the Tatiakov, the KGB tour, and to that beautiful cemetery where so many great Russian artists, authors, composers, musicians, militarists, and politicians are buried). Her knowledge is encyclopedic; and her understanding of today´s Russia as a product of its past was, for us, truly enlightening. I will be taking another tour in Russia, with my wife, within the next two or three years. I will be in touch with you when the time comes. Meanwhile, I will refer you to other potential visitors to Russia as I meet them.

Tours to Moscow

Our Moscow tours are land only meaning that you arrange your own air travel to Russia and our expert staff meets you at the airport and handles everything else from there. Our online Airline Ticket booking system offers some of the most competitive rates to Russia available on the web so if you need tickets, please visit our Russian air ticket center . Rest assured that you will be taken great care of on one of our Moscow tours. Express to Russia has a fully staffed office in Moscow that will help to make your visit fun, informative and unforgettable. Please remember that of all these tours are private and can be adjusted to your taste. You can add, replace or skip some sights; you can add more days to the package or cut the tour short. Our specialists will be glad to help you create the tour of your dreams!

Moscow, a City Like No Other

Moscow is Russia’s largest city with a population of between 12 and 13 million. It is also Europe’s largest city and when you visit Moscow, you can feel it. The layout and architecture of the city is eclectic, ranging from crooked, ancient streets and alleyways to wide, bustling boulevards, from medieval churches to Stalin skyscrapers and to modern, glass buildings towering over everything and of course in the center of it all is the Kremlin and the magnificent Red Square. Moscow is also home to a fantastic, efficient and very beautiful metro system – each station having its own special design. In fact, Express to Russia’s Moscow metro tours and excursions are some of our most popular attractions that we offer. On our Moscow tours, you will see this and more.

Moscow Tours centering on Russian History

Moscow has a long and interesting history and has been the capital of Russia in many of its different iterations – capital of the Grand Duchy of Moscow , the Russian Empire and of course the Soviet Union (who could ever forget the Soviet Union?). Moscow, was founded in the 12th century by Prince Yuri Dolgaruki (Yuri of the long arms – he really did have long arms!). From that time on, it was home to the Russian Tsars until Peter the Great moved the capital to St. Petersburg in 1703. The city has survived invasions and sieges from the Mongols, the Tartars, the Poles, Lithuanians and Napoleon but has always persevered. Our Moscow tours will enlighten you on this great history and give you insights into Muscovites and their unique culture. Our Moscow tours show you what the city is like today but also brings to life the past. Moscow never seems to sleep and is bursting with energy. A Moscow tour with Express to Russia is truly the best way of getting to know Russia’s largest and most vibrant city.

Frequently Asked Questions From Our Travelers

What is the best time to visit moscow.

Any time of year is fine depending on what you plan to do. Summertime is pleasantly warm, ideal for exploring the city and its vibrant atmosphere, but Moscow will be much busier and accommodation is more expensive. Winter can be quite cold but beautiful nonetheless, and this is unproblematic if you intend to spend most of your trip in museums and galleries. There are also various festivals and events organised throughout the year. For more information about the best time to visit, read our guide

How many days are enough in Moscow?

If you plan your itinerary strategically and aren’t averse to a packed schedule, you can cover Moscow’s main sights over a long weekend. Most popular attractions are in the city centre, and the Moscow Metro allows you to cover much ground in a small amount of time. Ensure that your accommodation is fairly central and book tickets in advance, so that you can make the most of your days. For an informative and well-organised day out, check out our Moscow day tours with options to suit all interests.

Do they speak English in Moscow?

As Russia’s capital city, tourists are well accommodated in Moscow. There should be English-speaking staff in restaurants, bars, hotels, shops and attractions in tourist hotspots, and there are also English-speaking tourist police. Transport services have English translations on their maps and English announcements via intercom; alternatively, order taxis from the Yandex Taxi app (Russian Uber), though it’s unlikely that your taxi driver will speak English. If you get stuck and cannot communicate, it’s fine to use Google Translate.

Is it safe to travel to Moscow?

It is no less safe to travel to Moscow than to any European city if you exercise common sense and look after your belongings. As with every city some regions can be more unsavoury than others, but no tourist attractions are located there. The traffic in Moscow is notorious, so exercise caution when crossing roads. Do not take unlicensed taxis; book in advance or take public transport, which is widespread and perfectly safe. If you encounter any problems, look for the special tourist police who can help you. For more information, read our guide about staying safe in Russia .

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