Select Category Before Search

Hi:

I want to have my users to choose their category before searching the listings. I have 12 CPTs and am using Supreme theme.

This is how I think I can do it:

* Use the CPT Places as a place holder and change all the labels to “Select Category”.
* Make Places my first CPT in the CPT section of the search widget.
* Have 1 dummy listing to prop open the Places CPT in the CPT list in the search widget.
* Hide all other instances of the Places CPT in other widgets, etc.

Now my users see the words “Select Category” in the CPT dropdown. I hope they select a category and proceed as normal through the site.

If someone doesn’t select a category and does attempt to search in the Places CPT they would end up seeing my dummy listing. Which I don’t want.

What I do want is for them to be redirected to a page called /pick-a-category/. I can use this page to show them the category options AGAIN and redirect them to a real CPT. This page just became a feature 🙂

After trying to do 301 redirect and using an url masking plugin I realize I have to do a RewriteRule. I don’t actually know how to do this but I am Googling and reading as fast as I can. I am using the ReDirection plugin until I get the code correct then I will put it into the .htaccess and disable the plugin.

Any reason this wouldn’t work?

And any chance you have the rewrite code hanging around for this string that would allow me to do the rewrite to go to my preferred page?

?geodir_search=1&stype=gd_place&s=+&snear=&sgeo_lat=&sgeo_lon=

thx