Maps have always been one of the most important tools when traversing a new city. Available in a variety of formats, sizes, colors, models, they are the key to understanding big issues like where I am and where I’m going.
To get them just go to an information center located in major stations and airports in major cities. If you do not find there, you will surely find some to sell at a newsstand. It is also possible to get them in the hostels and hotels where you stay.
The first thing you do when you open a map is to mark your location with a pen, that is, where you go to sleep and need to return at the end of the day. Discover also the best means of transportation to get there. Then ask some tips from a local person and check out the top attractions you need to visit in the city. Some maps also indicate facilities such as post offices, banks, restaurants, among others. If this information does not exist on your map, ask at the reception of your hostel / hotel.
There are specifically two maps I highly recommend in Europe: Use-It and City Spy. These maps are funded by donations, and also by people and organizations that use them to advertise. They are free and distributed in different places. I found several printed City Spy in Prague and in Belgium I found Use-It printed in Brussels and Bruges.
Both organizations have websites and you can pre-download the map on their website. Use-It has several tips from local people regarding attractions in the city, good and cheap restaurants, nightlife and entertainment. City Spy, with less capillarity, follows the same line, but has a relatively small standard size compared to other maps. On the back of it there are several useful phrases and the phonetics of how to speak them in the local language. Have a good trip and enjoy what the maps have to offer!