JEM Venues Map Module

The JEM Venues Map Module displays JEM venues on an interactive OpenStreetMap map. It is designed for sites that need to show venue locations, filter them by event date, category or country, and optionally help visitors find venues near their current location.

Overview

The module shows venue markers using Leaflet and OpenStreetMap. A venue is displayed only when it has valid latitude and longitude values in JEM. Each marker opens a popup with the venue name, location information and a directions link.

The module can be used as a simple venue map, a map of upcoming event locations, a category-based map, or a country/region-specific map.

Important: venues without GPS coordinates are not shown on the map. If a venue is missing, edit the venue and check its latitude and longitude fields.

Compatibility

JEM versions	JEM 5.0.0 beta 3 and JEM 4.5.0 beta 5
Joomla versions	Joomla 4, Joomla 5 and Joomla 6, depending on the JEM package used
Map engine	Leaflet with OpenStreetMap tiles
Module name	`mod_jem_map`

Requirements

JEM must be installed and configured.
At least one venue must have valid latitude and longitude values.
For date filtering, venues must be linked to events with valid event dates.
For category filtering, events must be assigned to JEM categories.
For visitor location, the visitor browser must support geolocation and permission must be granted.

Where To Find It

Joomla area	System / Manage / Site Modules
Module type	JEM - Venues Map Module
Frontend output	A map with venue markers and optional filters

Basic Module Settings

These are standard Joomla module settings. They control where the module is displayed and who can see it.

Option	Description	Recommended Value
Title	Name of the module in the Joomla module manager.	Venues Map
Show Title	Controls whether the module title is displayed on the site.	Hide for full-width map positions, Show for sidebar positions.
Position	The template position where the map is displayed.	A wide content position is recommended.
Status	Publishes or unpublishes the module.	Published
Access	Defines which user groups can see the map.	Public, unless the map is for registered users only.
Menu Assignment	Defines on which menu items the module appears.	Use a dedicated map page or selected JEM pages.

Options Tab

Map Position And Display

Option	Default	Description	Example
Auto center map	Yes	Automatically centers the map using the venues currently displayed. This is usually the best option because the map adapts to filters.	Enable for most public maps.
Map center latitude	`54.526`	Latitude used as the initial center when auto center is disabled.	`40.4168` for Madrid.
Map center longitude	`15.255`	Longitude used as the initial center when auto center is disabled.	`-3.7038` for Madrid.
Default map zoom	`4`	Initial zoom level. Valid range is 0 to 19. Lower values show a larger area; higher values show more street detail.	`4` for Europe, `10` for a city, `14` for a district.
Map height	`500px`	Height of the map container.	`500px`, `600px` or `60vh`.
Full screen button	No	Adds a fullscreen control to the map.	Enable for large maps or mobile-friendly map pages.

Visitor Location

Option	Default	Description	Example
Show my location	Yes	Shows a button that lets visitors display their current location on the map. The browser asks for permission before sharing the location.	Useful for maps where visitors need to find nearby venues.
You are here location marker	`media/com_jem/images/marker-blue.webp`	Marker image used for the visitor location.	Use a blue or distinctive marker to separate the visitor from venue markers.

Note: visitor location depends on browser geolocation support and user permission. On many browsers, geolocation works best on HTTPS sites.

Date Filter

Option	Default	Description	Example
Show date filter	Yes	Displays date filter controls above the map.	Enable when the map should focus on venues with events in a selected period.
Default date filter	`All`	Defines which date filter is active when the module loads.	Use `Today` for current events, or `Month` for a monthly overview.

Date Filter Value	Behavior
All	Shows all venues with valid coordinates, regardless of event date.
Today	Shows venues with events today.
Tomorrow	Shows venues with events tomorrow.
Week	Shows venues with events from today until the end of the current week.
Month	Shows venues with events from today until the end of the current month.
Year	Shows venues with events from today until the end of the current year.
Date	Allows the visitor to select one specific date.

Category Filter

Option	Default	Description	Example
Show category filter	No	Displays a frontend category selector above the map.	Enable when visitors should choose between event categories.
Categories	Empty	Limits the available map data to selected JEM categories. If left empty, all available categories can be used.	Select only music categories for a concert map.

If Show category filter is enabled and categories are selected in the module settings, visitors can choose only from those selected categories.

Country Filter

Option	Default	Description	Example
Show country filter	No	Displays a frontend country selector above the map.	Enable for international sites or regional event directories.
Default country filter	All countries	Defines the country filter used when the module loads.	Select Spain to show Spanish venues by default.

Markers And Heatmap

Option	Default	Description	Example
Marker image path for venues	`media/com_jem/images/marker-red.webp`	Marker image used for venues.	Use a custom SVG, PNG or WebP marker matching your site design.
Set Heatmap Layer	Yes	Enables a heatmap layer to show venue/event concentration areas.	Useful when many venues are displayed in the same city or region.

Advanced Tab

Option	Default	Description	Recommendation
Alternative Layout	`default`	Selects the module layout. Template overrides can provide additional layouts.	Keep default unless your template provides an override.
Module Class Suffix	Empty	Adds a custom class suffix for template styling.	Use only if your template has matching CSS.
Caching	Use Global	Controls whether Joomla caches the module output.	Use global caching for normal sites. Disable while testing.
Cache Time	`900`	Time in seconds before the cached module output is refreshed.	Reduce if events or venues change frequently.

Frontend Behavior

The module loads an OpenStreetMap tile layer using Leaflet.
Venue markers are created only for venues with valid coordinates.
Clicking a marker opens a popup with the venue name, city, country flag and directions link.
The venue name links to the JEM venue page.
The directions link opens Google Maps directions using the venue latitude and longitude.
If enabled, the heatmap layer highlights areas with many venues.
If enabled, frontend filters submit automatically when changed.
If enabled, the visitor location button adds a marker and accuracy circle for the visitor position.

Recommended Configurations

General Venues Map

Use this setup to show all venues with coordinates.

Auto center map: Yes
Show date filter: Yes
Default date filter: All
Show category filter: No
Show country filter: No
Show my location: Yes
Heatmap: Yes
Map height: 500px

Upcoming Events Map

Use this setup to help visitors find current or upcoming event locations.

Auto center map: Yes
Show date filter: Yes
Default date filter: Today or Month
Show my location: Yes
Full screen button: Yes
Map height: 60vh

Category-Based Map

Use this setup when visitors should browse venues by event category.

Show category filter: Yes
Categories: Select allowed JEM categories
Show date filter: Yes
Default date filter: Month
Auto center map: Yes

Country-Specific Map

Use this setup for regional or international event directories.

Show country filter: Yes
Default country filter: Select target country
Show category filter: Optional
Show date filter: Yes
Auto center map: Yes

Troubleshooting

Problem	Possible Cause	What To Check
No venues appear on the map.	No venue has valid coordinates, or filters exclude all results.	Check venue latitude/longitude and reset date, category and country filters.
The map is centered in the wrong place.	Auto center is disabled, or no venues are available after filtering.	Enable auto center or set manual center latitude/longitude.
The visitor location button does not work.	Browser permission was denied or geolocation is unavailable.	Allow location permission and test on HTTPS when possible.
A marker opens the wrong page.	Joomla SEF routing or menu structure may affect generated venue links.	Check JEM venue menu items and Joomla routing configuration.
The map overlaps the site navigation.	Template z-index conflict.	Adjust the template CSS or place the module in another position.

Related Development Notes

The Venues Map Module was integrated into the JEM package and improved during the JEM 4.4.x, 4.5.x and 5.x development cycle. Recent work includes frontend category selection, date filter behavior, installation fixes, routing reports and Leaflet/map centering improvements.