Updated 24 October 2026. Every answer lists its source.
Minecraft travel and navigation questions, answered
How to cross a Minecraft world quickly and find your way back.
What is the fastest way to travel in Minecraft?
A boat on blue ice is the fastest normal way, even faster than an elytra boosted with fireworks. Elytra are fastest across open land and oceans.
Every block in the Nether counts as 8 in the Overworld, so Nether ice roads multiply that speed.
Source: Minecraft Wiki - Blue Ice, Minecraft Wiki - Elytra, Minecraft Wiki - Nether Portal
How do you build a Nether highway?
Link two Nether portals, then dig a straight tunnel between them in the Nether. Ice and a boat or blue ice make it much faster.
Source: Minecraft Wiki - Nether Portal, Minecraft Wiki - Blue Ice
How fast is a boat on blue ice?
About 72.7 blocks per second at top speed, the fastest way to move on the ground. On packed or normal ice a boat tops out near 40.
How fast do minecarts go?
Minecarts on powered rails reach about 8 blocks per second on Java. Experimental minecart changes on Java can raise it with a game rule.
Source: Minecraft Wiki - Minecart, Minecraft Wiki - Game rule
How many powered rails do you need?
Powered rails keep a minecart at its top speed of 8 blocks per second. Space several along flat track and put them closer together uphill.
Source: Minecraft Wiki - Powered Rail, Minecraft Wiki - Minecarts
How do you ride a happy ghast?
Put a harness on a grown happy ghast and climb on. Up to four players can ride one. Hold a snowball to lead it.
Source: Minecraft Wiki - Happy Ghast
How do you fly faster with elytra?
Use firework rockets while gliding. Diving down also builds speed. Longer-duration rockets push you further.
Source: Minecraft Wiki - Elytra, Minecraft Wiki - Firework Rocket
How do you take off with elytra?
Jump off a high place and press jump again in the air to start gliding, then use a firework to climb.
Source: Minecraft Wiki - Elytra
Does Riptide work as travel?
Yes. A trident with Riptide launches you while you are in water or rain. In a storm it is a fast way to fly short distances.
Source: Minecraft Wiki - Riptide
What is the fastest horse in Minecraft?
Horse speed is random and passed to foals, so the fastest horses come from breeding fast parents. Skeleton horses are also fast.
Source: Minecraft Wiki - Horse
How do you see a horse's speed?
Vanilla does not show horse stats. Players test speed by timing a run or use a mod or server plugin that displays it.
Source: Minecraft Wiki - Horse
How do you steer a strider?
Put a saddle on it and hold a warped fungus on a stick. Striders walk on lava, so they cross Nether lava lakes safely.
Source: Minecraft Wiki - Strider
How do you ride a camel?
Put a saddle on a camel. Two players can ride, and it can dash forward. Camels are tall enough that most mobs cannot hit you.
Source: Minecraft Wiki - Camel
Can you put a chest on a horse?
No, but donkeys, mules and llamas can carry chests. Use one on them while it is tamed.
How do you know which way is north in Minecraft?
On Java, press F3: the "Facing" line shows north, south, east or west. The sun and moon rise in the east and set in the west.
Source: Minecraft Wiki - Debug screen, Minecraft Wiki - Coordinates
What do X, Y and Z mean in Minecraft?
X is east (positive) to west, Z is south (positive) to north, and Y is height.
Source: Minecraft Wiki - Coordinates
How do you mark places on a map?
On Java, use a filled map on a banner placed in the world to add a marker with the banner's color and name. Bedrock has no banner markers.
How do you make a map wall?
Put item frames on a wall and place filled maps in them side by side to make one large picture.
How do you lock a map?
Craft the map with a glass pane in a cartography table. A locked map no longer updates.
What is a waypoint in Minecraft?
Since 1.21.6 the locator bar shows other players as markers, and /waypoint can manage them. Vanilla has no saved personal waypoints.
Source: Minecraft Wiki - Locator Bar, Minecraft Wiki - Waypoint
How do you find your base if you get lost?
Use saved coordinates and /tp if cheats are on. Otherwise follow a compass to spawn and retrace, or link a lodestone compass to your base first.
Source: Minecraft Wiki - Coordinates, Minecraft Wiki - Lodestone
More questions
Every topic is on the FAQ hub. Questions about the ArtemisPvP server itself (commands, ranks, events) are on the server FAQ. Server IP: play.artemispvp.com.