Overview
The Google Maps MCP server provides access to three Google Maps Platform APIs: Places (search for businesses, restaurants, and points of interest), Routes (driving and walking directions with distance and duration), and Weather (current conditions and forecasts up to 10 days ahead).How to Add Google Maps
Get a Google Maps API Key
- Go to the Google Cloud Console
- Select or create a project
- Navigate to APIs & Services → Library and enable the following APIs:
- Places API
- Routes API
- Weather API (part of Google Maps Platform)
- Go to APIs & Services → Credentials and click Create Credentials → API Key
- Copy the key
Add to Civic
Add the Google Maps server to your Civic environment through the server directory. You will be prompted to provide your API key.
What You Can Do
Place Search
Find businesses, restaurants, parks, and points of interest by text query or coordinates
Driving Routes
Get driving directions with distance and duration between any two locations
Walking Routes
Get walking directions and distance (beta — may lack sidewalk data)
Weather
Current conditions, hourly forecasts (48h), and daily forecasts (10 days)
Use Cases
Place Search
- Nearby Places:
"Find coffee shops near Brandenburg Gate, Berlin" - Specific Search:
"Search for pet-friendly parks in Manhattan, New York" - Business Lookup:
"Find the Reichstag phone number and address" - Radius Search:
"Search for Italian restaurants near 52.52, 13.405 within 500 metres"
Weather
- Current:
"What's the weather like in Berlin right now?" - Hourly Forecast:
"Will it rain in London tomorrow morning at 9am?" - Daily Forecast:
"Give me a 3-day forecast for Paris"
Routes
- Driving:
"How long does it take to drive from Brandenburg Gate to Berlin Hauptbahnhof?" - Walking:
"How far is it to walk from the Reichstag to Checkpoint Charlie?"
Combining Tools
- Chained Queries:
"Find a coffee shop near Brandenburg Gate, then give me walking directions to the top result" - Multi-Tool:
"Search for restaurants near Potsdamer Platz and check the weather for tonight"
Available Tools (3)
search_places
search_places
search_places — Search for places by text query with optional location bias (coordinates + radius). Returns place IDs, coordinates, and Google Maps links. Supports languageCode and regionCode for localized results.compute_routes
compute_routes
compute_routes — Get routes between two locations. Supports DRIVE and WALK travel modes. Returns distance (meters) and duration. Accepts place IDs from search_places directly.lookup_weather
lookup_weather
lookup_weather — Get weather conditions for a location. Supports current conditions, hourly forecasts (up to 48 hours), and daily forecasts (up to 10 days). Units default to METRIC — pass unitsSystem: IMPERIAL for Fahrenheit/miles.Place names in summaries only —
search_places returns place IDs, coordinates, and Google Maps links in structured fields, but not place names. Names appear in the AI-generated summary.Location bias is a bias, not a filter — Results outside the specified radius may still appear. Post-process by distance for strict proximity filtering.Weather: no historical data — Only current conditions and forecasts up to 10 days ahead. Past dates return an error.Hourly forecasts within 48 hours only — Beyond 48 hours, use daily mode (omit the hour parameter).Routes: DRIVE and WALK only — No transit, cycling, or two-wheeler support. Walking routes are in beta.Dates use local timezone — date and hour in lookup_weather are interpreted in the target location’s timezone, not the user’s.