Zicht Op Maastricht Audio Tour

Zicht Op Maastricht is a history and archaeological project aimed at creating resources about the history of Maastricht and its people, buildings, and products. Using timelines and themes to group historical buildings and events to gather, the project presents a complete yet evolving story of Maastricht. Available in several languages including English, I encourage you to check out the various interactive features on their website. But what I really want to talk about today is their audio tour of the city.
 
Zicht Op Maastricht offers several free print and audio tours of Maastricht with a historical bent. For audio, you can download a PDA/smart phone app which includes a tour that can use GPS or you can take advantage of the MP3s on your iPod (or other music player). There is a print street map that goes along with these audio tours. If you don’t want audio then you can try out one of the two print theme walks.
 
I was unable to get the Smartphone app to work on my Android phone, so instead I opted to try the MP3 tracks which I downloaded via iTunes. The tracks are organized into four themes and each varies in length from about 2-4 minutes. They are meant to be used with the printed street map which has corresponding numbers with the track numbers. The female speaker has a pleasant and clear voice and the information is interesting, if a bit dry at times. Even after wandering around Maastricht quite a bit on my own I was able to discover new things from the handful of tracks I listened to.

Unfortunately the numbering will not lead you on a guided tour and the best way to make use of the tour is to pre-select your route and decide which tracks to listen to. The four themes overlap with track locations next to each other even when they are part of different themes, so mixing them will help you get more out of the experience. Alternatively, just bring the MP3s and numbered map along with you as you wander and listen to the ones you find interesting. Maastricht is full of old buildings that may pique your interest.
 
These tours are all available for free, so there is no reason not to download and try them on your own. Happy exploring!