Instagram adds a new way to discover attractions in your location

Continuing efforts to turn Instagram into an e-commerce platform, Meta is also adding a map where the location of various Instagram “attractions” is rendered without much room for interpretation.

For example, if you’ve just arrived at your holiday destination, you’ll be able to more easily find Instagram “stars” operating nearby, along with any local businesses using Instagram as a method of promotion.

For now, touted as a boon for connoisseurs, the new Instagram attractions map isn’t exactly easy to access. For celebrities or entrepreneurs eager for promotion, there are a few ways to get put on the map: if someone tags a location in a post or story, you can tap on the tag and hit “view location” to get to the location page. And if you’re in the area, you can access the search mode to see what’s nearby.

The new map is also available for searches from the Explore tab. So you can search by a specific location and then access the map of available attractions. Further, you can apply filters to narrow your search results, deciding whether you want to find only restaurants, bars, parks or other types of sights. You can also save the locations you find if you want to return to them later.

Initially tested in a small group, the new Instagram attractions map should now be available to all users of the platform.

In recent months, Meta has been adding more e-commerce features to Instagram, trying to make the platform a little more attractive to business users as well as Instagram stars looking to monetize more from their fan base. The move is mirrored on Facebook as well, with the platform’s algorithms prioritizing recommendations for certain pages and locations, selected based on each user’s actual location.