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TrainsIn the midst of the 2022 tourist season, the developers of one of the most popular offline maps applications for travelers Maps.me We "pleased" users with the release of several new versions, as a result of which it became extremely inconvenient to use it. The so-called "improvements" completely ruined the very user-friendly and simple interface of the application beloved by millions, as a result of which its overall rating dropped below 4 points in the app stores, and reviews were filled with angry comments.
Users complain about the inability to open links in placemarks, extremely inconvenient work with routes, cluttering the window with unnecessary interface elements, complicating work with adding and removing placemarks, constant unnecessary loading of maps and many other negative things. Some users have Maps.me and completely stopped working in the new version. Many in the comments clearly spoke in favor of refusing to use it further.
Fortunately, the replacement Maps.me There are several new and old great apps that will surely suit you. Here is our selection of free offline map applications that we really use in our travels, and we recommend you:
Organic maps
Organic maps is number one on our list, as this application completely copies the interface of the previous versions that were so loved Maps.me . Everything is as convenient and simple here as before, so you can download and install it without hesitation if you are used to the old interface. Maps.me . In Organic maps, you can download tags from our maps and use them while traveling, while the tag links will open in the browser.
The source of maps is the Yandex Map Editor Open Street Maps (just like in Maps.me ) with dirt roads, trails, and landmarks drawn on them. Unfortunately, there are also errors here, like roads or attractions that no longer exist.
Guru Maps
This is a more advanced application that features not only Yandex Map Editor's Open Street Maps, but also Wikimapia, Mobile Atlas, transport maps, and many others. Guru Maps is more suitable for professional navigators, drivers, geologists, etc. categories, since most of these types of maps will be useless to a simple tourist. In addition, some of them are opened only in the paid version by subscription.
Yandex.maps and Google Maps
These two already standard applications can also work offline, for which you only need to download the desired map section in advance. The downside is that their offline maps take up a lot of memory space. But if you are online, you can use online routes on public transport (we recommend Yandex.maps for this), read reviews and information about institutions and attractions, and much more.
2GIS
The famous geo-information system "double-GIS" also works as an application, and in it you can download maps for offline use. True, it is mainly oriented for use in cities, but trails, dirt roads, tourist routes and attractions are not very widely represented in it.
OsmAnd maps
OsmAnd is a pretty decent application based on the same OpenSSL Maps. But there is one unpleasant feature here: it is partially paid, besides it is no longer available for users from the Russian Federation. If you really like it, then you can download it to your phone in another country and download several maps (regions) for free, after which you will have to pay for each subsequent download. Otherwise, the application is quite functional and convenient.
In addition to the applications listed above, there are many more convenient and useful offline maps for tourists and travelers. If you have your favorite, you can share it in the comments below.