Metsker Maps of Seattle — Local services in Seattle

This is a place that could be talked about for hours or in a few seconds. I will provide the short version: this store provides the most expansive and vibrant collection of maps in Seattle, and if you are at all a geography or cartography dork, there is no better job in the city to satiate your interests. If I ever opened a map store, I would love for it to look like this: walking in here feels like wandering through an embodiment of my passions and interests but assembled with a care and skillfulness that I would probably not be able to muster. There are topographical maps and historical maps, enormous selections of guide books, and a great selection of works about the history of specific places. It's a store for someone who likes to know and likes just as much to adventure. A spirit of wonder and discovery simply emanates...

If you love maps, languages, flags, and books, you'll be in heaven at Metsker Maps, just outside of Pike Place Market. They also have music- and vexillology-related trivia cards (games, basically). The book selection is pretty awesome. I bought a book on the history of African civilizations. It's map-based, so it'll complement my text-heavy ones that I really need visual help with. I also bought The Atlas of Disease as a present (which was much appreciated). I saw a lot of great takes on historical charts and on the world map, but I wonder if they have more variety than they display. (I saw a south-up world map on the wall, but I already have one that's area-accurate [to the extent possible]. I didn't notice any of those projections displayed. (Perhaps someone can correct me.) Anyway......

What a great store. Just moved to the area and was exploring downtown for the first time and what a great find. If you like maps as I do you will love this store. They have an incredible selection of maps that you might want to have as wall art or for actual use. As more people use GPS I sometimes worry that maps will go out of use, but there is something to be said about actually seeing and reading a large wall map. I felt bad that I didn't buy anything there because I want to support the store, but the item I wanted was a little out of my price range. I will be back though, it's more like a museum then a...