For geographical and map lovers, they are mostly enchanted by the world of globes and maps.
If you love dealing with roads, directions, places, and maps, you might wonder what are the best hobbies for you.
In this guide; we will exclusively look at some of the ideal hobbies for map lovers.
So, What Are Some Hobbies for Map Lovers?
There are lots of hobbies for map lovers. Some of these include; making maps, verbal atlas, playing map games, geocaching, traveling, map collection, etc. These hobbies will help you learn more about the world, continents, countries, and other mapping activities in geography. Maps are very cool for map lovers, world travelers, and geography buffs. They are inspirational and educational, and they also evoke a sense of a home feeling or a sense of nostalgia.
Nine Hobbies For Map Lovers
1. Making Maps
Most map lovers have tried imitating and tracing maps during their initial years.
The job may have seemed to be challenging at first, but with proper practice and technique, it would not take you much time to become an expert in it.
All you need to do is have a rough idea of the place that would appear on the map. You can start making maps as a hobby by creating something as basic as a treasure hunt map.
This will provide you with great fun, and you will also see whether other people can interpret your map signs.
If you have never made your map, it’s recommendable, to begin with, a map of your room, house, or neighborhood.
With time, you can go on to create more innovative maps with proper calculations and measurements.
2. OpenStreetMap
OpenStreetMap (OSM) is one of the best map-related hobbies ever.
This collaborative project involves creating free editable geographic data of the earth.
Nicely addictive and fun; the more you map, the better the world becomes.
The OSM data is used in several ways, including producing electronic maps and paper maps, route planning, and geocoding place names and addresses.
As a map lover, you can join other geographic enthusiasts in celebrating geography and making maps with OpenStreetMap.
3. Verbal Atlas
An atlas refers to a book of maps.
On this note, a verbal atlas is a game in which players are supposed to name a geographical place beginning with the last alphabet of the last place named by the preceding player.
Playing verbal atlas is not just fun; it is a way of spending some family time with your loved ones and helps you in personal development.
By engaging in such games, you will learn more about new places, increasing your geographical vocabulary.
By playing the game regularly, you will not even need to make an effort to memorize the names of places.
You will instantly remember these names by hearing them regularly.
4. Reading Geographical Books
If you love reading and are into maps, you should consider reading more books about different places in the world to expand your geographical vocabulary.
Some of the popular books for map lovers include; Cross Stitch MAP, Around the World in 80 Maps, World Map 1000 Piece Jigsaw Puzzle, The Shipping Forecast Puzzle Book, etc.
These books that are about maps have maps, making them a great addition to improving your map knowledge.
5. Playing Map Games
Gamifying your love for maps can be of great help in keeping you engaged in learning geography.
There are many map games and puzzles that will amazingly be fun to participate in and enhance your knowledge of maps.
For map games, you can check out a few, including; Ticket to Ride, The Scrambles States, GioBingo, etc.
On the other side, you can also try out various map puzzles, including; USA Map Puzzle, Globe Puzzle, and World Map Puzzle.
Alternatively, there are lots of online geography apps and games that can be interesting for map lovers.
You can try out a flight simulator or other map-related apps like Stack and States.
These games will enable you to use more logical sense to find ways and direction.
6. Geocaching
Are you a map lover looking for a fun hobby to exercise your body and mind?
Geocaching is a good option for you.
This is an outdoor activity that combines hiking with an online treasure hunt.
Rather than using a physical map in which X marks a certain spot, you will use a mobile app hand in hand with your observing power.
More so, rather than finding a buried treasure, you will be looking for a cache hidden in an environmentally friendly site above the ground.
To get started, you only need to get a free Geocaching smartphone application or a GPS with geocaching features and use the app to find the possible cache near you.
This is the ultimate fun and can be pleasingly addictive. You can carry it out yourself, with some friends or other geocaching devotees.
7. Map Collecting
Collecting new and old maps is not an expensive hobby.
Most map collectors normally collect old maps of the place they stay or are familiar with while others make collections for a specific cartographer.
You can find cool maps from online platforms for about $5 to $10, depending on the map’s condition, age, size, and others.
The price will also depend on how valuable the map is to the seller. Several people enjoy getting a map of every town they visit.
The maps usually cost less than three dollars, and they will give you an extensive collection with the time you love to look.
Another idea is to begin creating data and mapping your hobbies or offering maps for any groups you are a part of.
8. Traveling
There is no better hobby for map lovers than traveling and discovering new places.
Whether it is a road trip to learn about new roads or visit different landscapes, collecting information about different places is a joy for map lovers.
So, if you love maps or geography, you should consider making it a point to travel regularly to different places that you would otherwise see on travel websites, books, and maps.
What Are Some Hobbies That Will Allow You to Travel the World?
9. Developing Web Map Projects
You can begin developing web Map projects if you have any background in HTML or other languages.
Even for beginners, you can start making maps in GIS software, load your computer with programs, and learn how to use it, such as the data formats and how they can convert.
You can then integrate several data sources, generate maps, and publish them as layers to Earth/Google Maps and others or on your server with any zoomable map component you find.
You can also create a variation that calculates the time it takes from one point to another.
Generally, you can generate brilliant maps when you learn the tools and formats.
Bottom Line
Hopefully, you have found some fun hobbies to engage in as a map lover.
These are great hobbies for both adults and children to engage in. Maps offer awesome guidance for learning.
Despite the emergence of online GPS, Maps and map reading skills is very important for anyone to learn and useful in navigating the surrounding.
Ultimately, any of these hobbies will help instigate more travel and adventure in your family!