Surely, I'm not the only map geek. Am I?

[Bruce Pollock]

Ever since I was a kid, I've loved looking at maps. When we start planning a trip, the first thing I do is buy the most detailed map I can find of the area we will be travelling. When we are considering apartments or hotels, I want to know the precise address so I can find them on Google Maps. How will we get from the train station to the hotel? Can we walk it? I spend hours (perhaps too many) poring over maps.

By the time we are actually on the ground, I feel I have my bearings. Once in Copenhagen, before the days of a Google Maps enabled phone, we came up from the metro into a square where I couldn't tell whether we wanted to go left or right. I hate that feeling.

I can't imagine travel or travel planning without hard copy maps. Am I the only map-obsessive out there?

 

[Eleanor]

I'm the same. I love maps and all the detail on them. We are lucky in the UK with the OS maps which must be some of the best in the world.

I did all our holiday planning for France using the Michelin 1:200,000 maps rather rather than a guide book. I'd do a google search on places that looked or sounded interesting on the map and we found so many hidden gems which never feature in the guide books.

I've never used sat nav. I can appreciate they can be useful in a strange town where road signing may leave a lot to be desired but not for general navigation. It doesn't give you any idea of what the countryside is like or interesting places off the route which may repay exploring. If you get caught in a traffic jam you can't use it to find a way round the blockage...

 

[joe]

Welcome to the ward, Bruce!
I've made a few posts on the allure of printed maps here and on the old ST forum, here's one of them :
https://www.sloweurope.com/community/threads/some-interesting-maps.2728/

I'm like you - don't travel anywhere without the best (most detailed) printed map I can find. Since all of our travel is to Italy, this has lead me to find some under-the-radar map resources for that country (take a look especially at the Torino book store website) :
https://www.sloweurope.com/community/threads/talk-to-me-about-the-piedmont.2889/#post-19649

A forum member (I believe DDTraveler) once recommended "Maphead" by Ken Jennings, and I really enjoyed it. I've since given it away to another maphead that I met, and he liked it too. So now you've got three recommendations for it, if you haven't read it.

When I was a kid, I'd see in quite a few homes that people had maps of the world hung up, sometimes with pins on the places they'd been to. You don't see that anymore. The National Geographic maps that sometimes came with the journal were a cause for excitement.

It's also strange for me to see how much of the younger generation is clueless about map use and navigating - some can't even follow directions like "go west when you exit the station". Today it's all about looking at a dot on a screen, not at the sky or horizon....

 

[Bruce Pollock]

Thanks, Joe. I'll check out those recommendations. I think I still have a few old NatGeo maps kicking around here someplace.

The other thing about being a map nerd is that you develop an appreciation for a well-designed map. Basically, any map of the same scale will show you that same information, but the choice of contrasting colours and even type-faces can make all the difference between an easy to use map and one that's a chore.

Here are some interesting maps of Iceland.

Well, it's nice to know that there are a few other recovering members of Map-Users Anonymous.

 

[joe]

The other thing about being a map nerd is that you develop an appreciation for a well-designed map. Basically, any map of the same scale will show you that same information, but the choice of contrasting colours and even type-faces can make all the difference between an easy to use map and one that's a chore.

Agree with you completely. In fact, I usually plan our drives in the Italian countryside by the markings of scenic roads on the maps. I use a 1:200,000 scale road map, so quite a few "green" routes appear, and indeed they've been beautiful drives.
We also use a navigating software, of course - Waze or Google Maps - but the map comes out on the vantage points, and for researching day trips.

 

[Ian Sutton]

Hi Bruce
Yes, I'm with you in wanting to know the basic 'lie of the land' before I arrive. Especially important as the brains of the operation gets stressed about feeling lost.

Where needed I will print a map off with route / key locations annotated on the map, though I have now done a google map 'Torino Food explorer' that I'll keep tweaking every time I go there.

I'll prepare bus routes / times if we're out in the country, plus local restaurants with opening days / times.

All stuff that helps me feel not quite so lost when I arrive, and when faced with finding a place for lunch, I've got options on hand, to support simply noticing what is nearby as we pass.

One favourite map is the one in the Tippett walking guide for the amalfi coast. It's great for plotting combinations of routes, though for many routes there are a multitude of variants possible.

Regards
Ian

 

[BryanS]

Completely agree! We've had many people get lost in Basilicata when relying on a GPS. An actual map will show the mountains, which roads are better and alternate routes. A GPS and a map are essential tools, in my opinion, for modern travel

 

[Ian Sutton]

FWIW we do use satnav, though I prefer our old plug-in TomTom to the more recent in-built one in the car we have now. We still take to old TomTom to Italy with us.

However it's always a good idea to scan a map beforehand to:
- Have some key waypoints to remember in case the road/satnav gets confusing
- To plot a more interesting route, potentially with options to stop en-route
- To plan which road you'll come into a town/city on, and an easy car park to reach. It's stressful looking for the signs in the morass of signage that greets you in Italy. Much better to navigate directly to a car park.
- Plan a day trip taking in two or more locations, or simply getting a feel for what you'll encounter
- As a back-up if the signal gets lost, or the SatNav has a 'seniors moment'

 

[Bruce Pollock]

Pro tip: Pack your maps in your carry-on luggage. That way, when the airline loses your checked bags and you have to drive your rental car from, say, Billund, Denmark to your destination in, say, Herning, Denmark (at night) you won't have to do it from memory.

Don't ask me how I know this.

 

[DDTraveler]

"A forum member (I believe DDTraveler) once recommended "Maphead" by Ken Jennings, and I really enjoyed it. I've since given it away to another maphead that I met, and he liked it too. So now you've got three recommendations for it, if you haven't read it."

Hey thanks for the shout out, Joe! It's nice to know that one's posts are sometimes helpful.

Yes, I like maps as well. I know we discussed this thoroughly on ST a few years ago, but I do best when I can orient myself to a city's landmark, like a river. However I find that as I'm aging {cough, cough}, my "sense of direction" doesn't seem to work as well, so a paper map is essential.

Just the other day I bought a used guide book for Berlin (we're visiting in the fall), and the detailed city map was worth the $2!

DD

 

[CaWino]

If you like maps, you will love award winning app Citymapper. It features robust public transit navigation and includes many major worldwide cities, including Copenhagen.

 

[DDTraveler]

If you like maps, you will love award winning Citymapper. It features robust public transit navigation and includes many major worldwide cities, including Copenhagen.

That app looks great! Just what I need for our trip to Berlin next Fall. Thanks so much! I hope they add other cities soon.