# Pocket Maps — Offline public access maps.

> Offline maps for public access land exploration in New Zealand. (iPhone/iPad app by Herenga a Nuku Aotearoa.)

- Source: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/pocket-maps/id1575447895 (this page in markdown: same URL + `.md`)
- Developer: [Herenga a Nuku Aotearoa](https://appshunter.io/developer/1575447897)
- Category: Navigation, Health & Fitness
- Price: Free
- Age rating: 4+
- Requires: iOS 13.0 · 198 MB
- Languages: Arabic, Bosnian, Bulgarian, Catalan, Croatian, Czech, Danish, Dutch, English, Estonian and 28 more
- Released: 2021-10-19
- Data updated: 2026-06-01
- Monetization: free
- User reviews in markdown: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/pocket-maps/id1575447895/reviews.md

## What is Pocket Maps?

Welcome to Pocket Maps, the app for safely exploring the outdoors on public access land in Aotearoa, New Zealand.

Pocket Maps is developed and owned by Herenga ā Nuku Aotearoa, the Outdoor Access Commission, 
and displays a range of maps and layers that are also available on the Herenga ā Nuku mapping system. 

Pocket Maps displays Public Access Areas derived by Herenga ā Nuku from cadastral information, which indicate what land is publicly accessible. 
The app also contains tracks, recreation spots, huts and campsite layers which are maintained and owned by other government agencies.

Features include: 

• Publicly accessible areas in Aotearoa, shown by type
• Range of map layers for outdoor recreation
• Ability to generate elevation profiles 
• Get coordinates and share
• Selection of high quality basemaps
• Offline map regions
• Find your location 
• Draw and measure routes

## Key features

- Public access area maps
- Outdoor recreation layers
- Elevation profile generation
- Coordinate sharing
- Offline map regions
- Location finding
- Route drawing and measurement

## Recent user reviews (5 of 5)

All indexed reviews: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/pocket-maps/id1575447895/reviews.md

### 5/5 — very cool resource

*2025-10-13*

helpful for finding unmarked areas where can walk / bike paper roads

### 3/5 — Room to improve

*2025-03-16, version 1.5.1*

I like this app but information on each site remains limited. Works best if youre at a park already and need boundary or track info. When you lose the free paper map. Not that great for looking for somewhere to go

### 1/5 — Download Function & Route planner

*2023-01-10, version 0.9.3*

Downloading an offline map wasn’t working and it needs a route planner. It would be brilliant if these both were available.

### 3/5 — Not downloading

*2023-01-01, version 0.9.3*

I just wanted to download a back up offline map but it won’t let me download the map. NZ Topo maps works better.

### 1/5 — Designed to fail? Or just not field tested?

*2022-10-28, version 0.9.3*

After years of stalling it’s great the WAC folks released this information as an app - to enable, as is people’s right - access via unformed legal roads, marginal strips, etc. 

A key requirement is for the app to work offline. Because much of this app’s use is likely to be in the back blocks, stable offline maps are essential. 

Sadly however the ability to download regions seems to often fail (spinning wheel of death), or once downloaded the download drops. 

App needs to be seriously stability tested in the field, for the purpose of ensuring downloaded maps remain stored and accessible offline even if many weeks pass between app use.

## Frequently asked questions about Pocket Maps

### What is Pocket Maps?

Pocket Maps provides offline maps for exploring public access land in Aotearoa, New Zealand. It displays public access areas, tracks, recreation spots, huts, and campsites.

### Can I use Pocket Maps offline?

Yes, Pocket Maps allows you to download offline map regions, ensuring you can navigate and explore even without an internet connection.

### What kind of map layers does Pocket Maps offer?

Pocket Maps offers a range of map layers for outdoor recreation, including public access areas by type, tracks, recreation spots, huts, and campsites.

### Does Pocket Maps show my current location?

Yes, Pocket Maps includes a feature to find your current location on the map, helping you orient yourself while exploring.

### Can I measure distances or draw routes with Pocket Maps?

Pocket Maps allows you to draw and measure routes, and also get coordinates to share, which is useful for planning and documenting your outdoor adventures.

### What devices is Pocket Maps available on?

Pocket Maps is available on iPhone, iPad, and iPod, making it accessible to a wide range of Apple users.

### How often is Pocket Maps updated?

The latest version of Pocket Maps was released on May 16, 2023, indicating regular updates to improve functionality and data.

### Is Pocket Maps suitable for children?

Pocket Maps has an age rating of 4+, making it suitable for younger users to explore with adult supervision.

## Version history (last 3 releases)

### 1.5.1 — 2023-05-16

New Features - Pocket Maps v1.5

Map Layers

• DOC Huts & Campsites - including locations, weblinks and photos. Provided by Department of Conservation. 
• Hunting & Fishing Access Points – including locations, descriptions and weblinks. Provided by Fish & Game New Zealand.
• River & Coastal Access Points – locations, descriptions, and access information. For the Canterbury region only. Provided by Environment Canterbury.  
• Tracks & Trails– including Te Araroa, New Zealand Cycle Trail, Department of Conservation and local council tracks. 

Basemaps

• Default with Relief  – New version of the existing default basemap that also includes a relief hillshade of Aotearoa’s terrain underneath for topographical context. This feature is only available online. 
• Imagery with labels – An alternative version to the existing Imagery basemap which also includes dynamic labels for roads, addresses, places, regions and localities. This feature is only available online. 

General

• Get coordinates – long pressing the map now drops a pin and generates coordinates for the pin’s location which can be copied to the clipboard or shared using your devices sharing panel. 
• Elevation Profiles– allows users to click on a track in the app and see it’s elevation profile in the pop-up. This feature is only available online. 
• Help page – updated to include offline help documentation for using Pocket Maps’s interface, tools and data.  
• News and Updates page – enables Pocket Maps users to see communications from the developers about new Pocket Maps releases, layers, basemaps and offline data, as well as other general messages such as warnings, alerts and user survey links.  

Improvements  

• Pop-ups – Pop-ups for all layers have been simplified for easier use with.  
• Fields – fields for each layer have been refined and made easier to understand.  
• Layer transparency – Public Access Areas layers now have increased transparency by default to ensure ease of use and ability to see underlying basemaps.  
• Screenshots – allows users to take a screenshot of the map view and add annotations. These can be shared or saved to their device. Previously part of the “Measure” tool.  
• Download map – offline area download interface improved to show download progress bar. 
• New look and feel – simplified UI, tab names and colours with Herenga ā Nuku branding.

### 0.9.3 — 2021-10-19

Edited listing subtitle

### 0.9.2 — 2021-08-17

No release notes.

## Apps similar to Pocket Maps

| App | Rating | Price | Category |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| [NZ Topo Maps](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/nz-topo-maps/id1337281557) | 4.3 (18) | Free | Navigation |
| [ChargeNet](https://appshunter.io/ios/app/chargenet/id1243950744) | 1.0 (1) | Free | Navigation |

## Related topics

[herenga a nuku aotearoa](https://appshunter.io/ios/topics/herenga-a-nuku-aotearoa)

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*Data collected daily from the US App Store and indexed by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/). User reviews are verbatim App Store reviews. Ratings, prices and chart positions refresh continuously; this snapshot is from 2026-06-01.*
