How to find your way without Google Maps

Short version. You don’t need a blue dot on a screen to get places. Before you leave, look at the route once, remember the big turns, and learn the bus number and stop name. On the way, follow landmarks like the church or the chippy, count your stops, and if you’re not sure, just ask a person. People did this for thousands of years before phones, so you’ve got this.

Plan it before you leave

The trick is to do the thinking at home, while you’ve got time and a kettle on. Look at the route, out loud if it helps, and break it into a few simple steps: out the front door, left at the postbox, past the school, second right.

For the bus, you need two things: the number of the bus and the name of the stop you get off at. Write both on your hand or a scrap of paper if you like. Three or four turns is usually all a route is once you stop staring at a map.

Landmarks beat blue dots

A phone tracks where you are with a dot. You can do the same job with your eyes by picking out big things that don’t move. A church, a chip shop, a red postbox, a bridge, a weird-looking tree. These are your checkpoints.

The plan in your head becomes: “When I see the church, I turn left. When I reach the big Co-op, I’m nearly there.” If you pass a landmark you didn’t expect, you’ve probably gone too far. Turn around and head back to the last one you knew.

Counting stops on the bus

On the bus, count the stops between getting on and getting off. If your stop is the fifth one, you can relax for the first four and pay attention near the fifth.

Easiest tip of all: tell the driver. As you get on, say “Could you let me know when we get to the High Street, please?” Drivers do this all day and they won’t mind. Sit near the front so you can hear them.

Asking a person is a skill, not a failure

Asking for directions is fast and completely normal. Grown-ups do it constantly, they just pretend they don’t.

Pick your person well:

• Someone working in a shop, behind a till or a counter.
• A person with a pram, a dog, or shopping bags (they live nearby and aren’t in a rush).
• Anywhere busy and public, like a shop doorway, not a quiet side street.

Ask a clear question: “Excuse me, which way is the library?” Say thanks, repeat the directions back to yourself, and off you go.

Carry a backup

Take something paper. A free local bus map from the library, or a short list you’ve written: the turns, the bus number, the stop name, and a phone number for home. It fits in a pocket and it never runs out of battery.

Tell someone your plan

Before you head off, tell whoever’s at home where you’re going and roughly when you’ll be back. It’s not babyish, it’s what sensible adults do too. If your plans change, give them a quick call. That way nobody’s worrying and you can get on with your day.

What if I get lost

First, don’t panic. Getting a bit lost happens to everyone and you’re almost never as far off as it feels.

Do this:

• Stop. Standing still beats marching further the wrong way.
• Look around for a landmark you know, or a shop you can stand near.
• Ask someone, using the same trick as before.
• If you’re really stuck, ring home. That’s what the phone is for.

A wrong turn is a story you’ll tell later, not an emergency. Take a breath, find one thing you recognise, and work back from there. You can do this without a screen, and pretty soon you won’t even think about it.