Offline motorcycle navigation: how to keep riding when the signal is gone

On a long trip you lose signal more often than you expect: in the mountains, right after a border, on the cheap SIM that stops working in the next country. A navigation setup that needs the internet fails at exactly those moments. Here is what works offline, what to prepare, and how to test it before you leave.

What works without signal, and what does not

GPS does not need the internet. The satellites only broadcast, and your phone listens. What needs a connection is everything around it: map areas you have not downloaded, online search and routing, traffic, and anything that changes live.

• Works offline, if you downloaded it: the map, your imported GPX tracks, navigation along a track, routes between places inside the downloaded area, and search for the places stored in the download.
• Needs a connection: map areas you did not download, live positions of other riders, messages and new spots from others.
• The first fix: without help from the mobile network the first GPS position can take several minutes. Open the app under open sky and give it time.

What to download before you go

• Offline maps for every country on the route, and the neighbours if you ride along a border.
• Your tracks, imported into the app, not only saved somewhere as files.
• Enough free storage. A country with map, road data and terrain can easily take a gigabyte.
• Before a border: the next country, while you still have signal or Wi-Fi.
• The tracks and places of your expedition. Whatever is in the app before you leave is there when the signal is gone.

Test it at home

• Switch off mobile data and Wi-Fi.
• Open the map in a downloaded region, zoom in close, search for a fuel station and start navigation along one of your tracks.
• If something is missing, you find out on the sofa, not on a pass at dusk.
• Do the test with the phone in its mount too. A mount that blocks the charging port or a screen you cannot read in the sun is better found at home.

Routes and search without signal

Following a track is one thing, finding the way to the next fuel station is another. In Two Wheels Apart the phone calculates routes itself from the downloaded road data, so you can navigate from where you are to a town, a campsite or a spot without any connection. Search works the same way: towns, fuel, camping, beds and food are part of the download.

A route can only use roads in regions you downloaded. Take a little more than you think you need, especially along borders.

Data and SIM cards abroad

Offline maps make you independent of signal, not of data altogether: messages, new spots from other riders and the riders nearby still need a connection. Inside the EU your home tariff usually works under the roam like at home rules. Outside the EU, check your tariff before the border, because data gets expensive fast, and think about a local SIM or an eSIM.

Before you leave, switch off automatic app updates and photo backups over mobile data. They can empty a small data package in one evening.

How it works in Two Wheels Apart

In Two Wheels Apart you download maps and road data region by region for more than 190 countries and territories (as of October 2026): all of Europe from Iceland and Norway to Portugal, the Balkans, Turkey and Georgia, Asia from Kazakhstan, Mongolia and Iran to India, Japan and Indonesia, all of Africa, the Americas from Alaska to Tierra del Fuego, Australia and New Zealand. Austria with map, road data and terrain is about 1 GB.

In a downloaded region the map with hillshading and contour lines, turn-by-turn directions on screen, search for towns, fuel, camping, beds and food, the spots of the region and the elevation profile all work without a connection. Navigation shows directions on screen and does not speak. The free version holds offline maps for four countries at a time; Pro in the iPhone app removes the limit.

Power, heat and vibration

• Charge from the bike over USB or the 12 V socket, and carry a power bank for the days the bike stands still.
• A bright screen, cold nights and an old battery are what empty a phone on the road. Turn the brightness down to what you can still read, keep the phone in the sleeping bag on cold nights, and replace a tired battery before the trip.
• Heat is the other enemy: in full sun a phone on the bars can get too hot to charge. Shade the mount at breaks or turn the screen away from the sun.
• Vibration: Apple warns that long exposure to high-amplitude vibration from high-power motorcycle engines can damage the iPhone camera's image stabilisation and autofocus, and does not recommend mounting an iPhone on such motorcycles. A damping mount or a second, older phone as the navigation device are common answers.

Have a plan B

• A second device with the same maps, even an old phone without a SIM.
• A paper map of the region for the big picture and the day the electronics give up.
• Note the next towns on your route, so you can ask for directions the old way.

Riding a long GPX route like the Trans Euro Trail? The details are in the TET with GPX, and the full packing list is in the motorcycle trip checklist.

Questions riders ask

Does GPS work without mobile data?

Yes. GPS satellites only send signals, and the phone receives them without the internet. Without help from the network the first position can take several minutes.

How much storage do offline maps need?

It depends on the country. In Two Wheels Apart, Austria with map, road data and terrain is about 1 GB (as of October 2026).

Which countries can I download in Two Wheels Apart?

More than 190 countries and territories (as of October 2026): 50 in Europe, 38 in Asia, 55 in Africa, 27 in North, Central and South America and 23 in Oceania. The free version holds four countries at a time.

Does Two Wheels Apart give voice directions?

No. Two Wheels Apart shows turn-by-turn directions on screen. There are no spoken instructions.

The TET with GPX · Motorcycle trip checklist · Wild camping in the Balkans