ActiveCaptain: real-world knowledge from fellow boaters
Aqua Map integrates over 70.000 points of interest from the ActiveCaptain community, a network of boaters sharing exactly the kind of on-the-water knowledge that makes navigation safer and a lot less stressful. Marinas, hazards, anchorages, and genuine local know-how, all right there on your chart.
ActiveCaptain settings
You'll find the ActiveCaptain settings page from the main Settings menu.
- Sign in lets you log into your ActiveCaptain account. You don't need to be signed in to view the data, only if you want to edit it later.
- Data download turns ActiveCaptain on and downloads its database for offline use. The first download can take a few minutes, but you can keep using the app while it finishes.
- Update now triggers an immediate download of the latest available data.
- Automatic update controls how future updates happen: "Never" requires manually tapping "Update now," "WiFi" updates daily whenever you're active on a WiFi network, and "Always" updates daily regardless of connection type, worth knowing if that could mean extra cellular costs on your plan.
- Show on map turns the ActiveCaptain overlay on, with five object types you can toggle individually: marinas, anchorages, businesses, local knowledge (covering boat ramps, bridges, dams, ferries, inlets, and locks), and hazards. As with Waterway Guide, these settings also control what Route Explorer can search for, hide an object type here, and Route Explorer won't find it either.
- Icon size on map adjusts how large ActiveCaptain icons appear.
- Show names on map displays object names beneath their icons, though only once you're zoomed in to a detailed scale.
The object info page
Tap any ActiveCaptain icon on the map, then select info , to open its full details page, covering the object's name, description, opening hours, and ratings from other users.
Beyond just browsing, you can also contribute directly:
- edit
, tap the pen icon to update any section of the listing; - review, tap "Write review" (or "Write comment") at the bottom of the page to add your own feedback;
- delete, available from the Summary section's edit view (requires being signed in to your ActiveCaptain account), using the "Delete marker" button.
Creating a new ActiveCaptain object
To add a new listing, start by creating a regular Aqua Map marker, or use an existing one, at the position you want to mark. Open that marker's info page, and select the ActiveCaptain icon from the bottom menu (this only appears if ActiveCaptain data is enabled).
You'll be asked to confirm, then choose which type of ActiveCaptain object you're creating (signing into your ActiveCaptain account is required for this step). The new listing is created at the same position and with the same name as your original marker, and once it's created, you're taken straight into its info page to fill in the rest of the details.
Want to see it in action?
For a full walkthrough of ActiveCaptain, check out our video tutorial.
