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Getting started

BlueScore helps you find the perfect travel destination based on weather conditions. Here’s how to get the most out of the app:

Quick start

1. Set your travel dates (within the next ten days).
2. Define your ideal weather preferences for different times of day.
3. Pick the countries you’re considering.
4. Activate any Points of Interest you’d like to see in Settings.
5. Apply filters to refine results if needed.
6. Review the rankings and choose your destination.

Points of Interest (POI)

BlueScore can show you relevant places and attractions near each destination. Six different POI categories help you plan activities at your destination.

Available POI categories

• Airports — nearby airports with IATA/ICAO codes, airport type, operator information and driving time from the destination.
• Golf courses — with contact information and operator details when available.
• Beaches — near your destination with information about facilities and surface (sand, pebbles, etc.).
• Hiking trails — with network type, difficulty level and length.
• National parks — national parks and nature reserves with park type, IUCN category and operator.
• Camping sites — camping sites and caravan parks with facility information.

Activating new POI categories

The three newest categories (hiking trails, national parks and camping sites) must be activated in the app’s settings before they appear:

1. Open BlueScore and go to Settings.
2. Scroll down to “Points of Interest”.
3. Toggle on the categories you want to see.
4. Return to a destination to see the new information.

Data sources for POI

• OpenStreetMap (OSM) — a collaborative, open-source map database updated by millions of contributors worldwide. Used for all six POI categories.
• GeoNames — a geographic database with millions of place names and coordinates. Primary source for airports and golf courses.
• Apple Maps — used as a backup source when other services are unavailable.

Note: the quality and completeness of POI data varies by location. Popular tourist areas typically have more detailed information than remote regions.

Progressive loading and extended information

When you open a destination for the first time, BlueScore uses a smart loading strategy:

1. Initial load — basic information (name, distance) appears quickly (2–4 seconds).
2. Extended information — additional details load progressively in the background (phone numbers, websites, facilities, opening hours, etc.).
3. Driving times — calculated automatically for airports and golf courses when you view those sections.
4. Apple Look Around — the app checks which locations support Apple’s street-level imagery feature.

After the first visit, all information is stored locally on your device and appears instantly when you return.

Smart filters

Many POI categories include horizontal scrollable filter chips that let you quickly refine the results:

• Beaches — filter by surface type (sand, pebbles, gravel, etc.).
• Hiking trails — filter by network type (international, national, regional, local).
• National parks — filter by park type (national park, nature reserve, protected area).
• Camping sites — filter by site type (camping site, caravan site).

Understanding timeout messages

Sometimes you might see a message saying “OpenStreetMap is currently unavailable”:

• This happens when OpenStreetMap’s servers take too long to respond (over 90 seconds).
• It’s usually temporary and resolves itself within minutes or hours.
• Your cached POI data from other destinations is unaffected.
• To try again, pull-to-refresh on the destination page.

Why this happens: OpenStreetMap is a free, community-run service that occasionally experiences high traffic. BlueScore respects their servers by implementing reasonable timeout limits.

Frequently asked questions

Troubleshooting

App not loading weather data

• Check your internet connection.
• Make sure you have the latest version of the app.
• Try closing and reopening the app.
• Restart your device if the problem persists.

Issues adding custom places

• When adding your own places, make sure they are within supported countries (Europe and Asia).
• Try variations of city names or nearby major cities in the search.
• Custom place search uses Apple Maps’ database — very small towns may not be available.
• Search requires at least two characters to start finding locations.
• If a specific location isn’t found, try searching for the nearest major city or well-known area.
• Added places will then be included in your weather rankings alongside curated destinations.

Performance issues

• Clear the app cache in Settings.
• Make sure you have sufficient storage space.
• Close other apps running in the background.
• Update to the latest iOS version.

POI data not loading

• Check that you’ve activated the desired POI categories in Settings.
• Verify your internet connection (initial load requires connectivity).
• If you see a timeout message, wait a few minutes and use pull-to-refresh.
• For persistent issues, clear the app cache and try again.
• Some remote locations may have limited POI data available.

Extended information not showing

• Make sure Extended Information is toggled ON for that POI category.
• Wait a few seconds for the information to load progressively.
• Extended information is only shown when available from OpenStreetMap.
• Not all locations have complete information — this varies by region.

Filters not working

• Make sure the filter chips are scrollable (swipe left/right to see all options).
• Tap “All” to reset filters and see all results.
• Some filters may show no results if there are no POIs matching that criteria.
• Filters work on cached data — no internet required after the initial load.

Sharing log files for support

If you’re experiencing technical issues, you can help us troubleshoot by sharing log files:

1. Open BlueScore and go to Settings.
2. Tap “Share log information”.
3. The log files will be attached automatically.
4. Describe your issue in the email.
5. Send the email to our support team.

Note: log files contain only technical information and no personal data.

Feature requests and feedback

We love hearing from our users! If you have ideas for new features or improvements, please don’t hesitate to reach out. Your feedback helps us make BlueScore better for everyone.