Maps Skill

Location intelligence using free, open data sources. 8 commands, 44 POI categories, zero dependencies (Python stdlib only), no API key required.

Data sources: OpenStreetMap/Nominatim, Overpass API, OSRM, TimeAPI.io.

This skill supersedes the old find-nearby skill — all of find-nearby's functionality is covered by the nearby command below, with the same --near "<place>" shortcut and multi-category support.

When to Use

• User sends a Telegram location pin (latitude/longitude in the message) → nearby
• User wants coordinates for a place name → search
• User has coordinates and wants the address → reverse
• User asks for nearby restaurants, hospitals, pharmacies, hotels, etc. → nearby
• User wants driving/walking/cycling distance or travel time → distance
• User wants turn-by-turn directions between two places → directions
• User wants timezone information for a location → timezone
• User wants to search for POIs within a geographic area → area + bbox

Prerequisites

Python 3.8+ (stdlib only — no pip installs needed).

Script path: ~/.hermes/skills/productivity/maps/scripts/maps_client.py

Commands

MAPS=~/.hermes/skills/productivity/maps/scripts/maps_client.py

search — Geocode a place name

python3 $MAPS search "Eiffel Tower"
python3 $MAPS search "1600 Pennsylvania Ave, Washington DC"

Returns: lat, lon, display name, type, bounding box, importance score.

reverse — Coordinates to address

python3 $MAPS reverse 48.8584 2.2945

Returns: full address breakdown (street, city, state, country, postcode).

nearby — Find places by category

# By coordinates (from a Telegram location pin, for example)
python3 $MAPS nearby 48.8584 2.2945 restaurant --limit 10
python3 $MAPS nearby 40.7128 -74.0060 hospital --radius 2000

# By address / city / zip / landmark — --near auto-geocodes
python3 $MAPS nearby --near "Times Square, New York" --category cafe
python3 $MAPS nearby --near "90210" --category pharmacy

# Multiple categories merged into one query
python3 $MAPS nearby --near "downtown austin" --category restaurant --category bar --limit 10

46 categories: restaurant, cafe, bar, hospital, pharmacy, hotel, guest_house, camp_site, supermarket, atm, gas_station, parking, museum, park, school, university, bank, police, fire_station, library, airport, train_station, bus_stop, church, mosque, synagogue, dentist, doctor, cinema, theatre, gym, swimming_pool, post_office, convenience_store, bakery, bookshop, laundry, car_wash, car_rental, bicycle_rental, taxi, veterinary, zoo, playground, stadium, nightclub.

Each result includes: name, address, lat/lon, distance_m, maps_url (clickable Google Maps link), directions_url (Google Maps directions from the search point), and promoted tags when available — cuisine, hours (opening_hours), phone, website.

distance — Travel distance and time

python3 $MAPS distance "Paris" --to "Lyon"
python3 $MAPS distance "New York" --to "Boston" --mode driving
python3 $MAPS distance "Big Ben" --to "Tower Bridge" --mode walking

Modes: driving (default), walking, cycling. Returns road distance, duration, and straight-line distance for comparison.

directions — Turn-by-turn navigation

python3 $MAPS directions "Eiffel Tower" --to "Louvre Museum" --mode walking
python3 $MAPS directions "JFK Airport" --to "Times Square" --mode driving

Returns numbered steps with instruction, distance, duration, road name, and maneuver type (turn, depart, arrive, etc.).

timezone — Timezone for coordinates

python3 $MAPS timezone 48.8584 2.2945
python3 $MAPS timezone 35.6762 139.6503

Returns timezone name, UTC offset, and current local time.

area — Bounding box and area for a place

python3 $MAPS area "Manhattan, New York"
python3 $MAPS area "London"

Returns bounding box coordinates, width/height in km, and approximate area. Useful as input for the bbox command.

bbox — Search within a bounding box

python3 $MAPS bbox 40.75 -74.00 40.77 -73.98 restaurant --limit 20

Finds POIs within a geographic rectangle. Use area first to get the bounding box coordinates for a named place.

Working With Telegram Location Pins

When a user sends a location pin, the message contains latitude: and longitude: fields. Extract those and pass them straight to nearby:

# User sent a pin at 36.17, -115.14 and asked "find cafes nearby"
python3 $MAPS nearby 36.17 -115.14 cafe --radius 1500

Present results as a numbered list with names, distances, and the maps_url field so the user gets a tap-to-open link in chat. For "open now?" questions, check the hours field; if missing or unclear, verify with web_search since OSM hours are community-maintained and not always current.

Workflow Examples

"Find Italian restaurants near the Colosseum":

1. nearby --near "Colosseum Rome" --category restaurant --radius 500 — one command, auto-geocoded

"What's near this location pin they sent?":

1. Extract lat/lon from the Telegram message
2. nearby LAT LON cafe --radius 1500

"How do I walk from hotel to conference center?":

1. directions "Hotel Name" --to "Conference Center" --mode walking

"What restaurants are in downtown Seattle?":

1. area "Downtown Seattle" → get bounding box
2. bbox S W N E restaurant --limit 30

"Plan a quick weekend trip around flights/airports":

1. Use airline and airport sources as authoritative for route availability, schedules, fares/points, terminal info, and recommended arrival times; map route lookup is supplementary.
2. Use search to verify airport coordinates / exact airport identity when names are ambiguous.
3. Use timezone when the itinerary crosses timezones or the user needs local arrival/departure context.
4. Use distance or directions only as supplementary ground-planning tools (airport to hotel, airport to family, hotel to attraction) — not as the source of truth for flight availability.

Pitfalls

• Nominatim ToS: max 1 req/s (handled automatically by the script)
• nearby requires lat/lon OR --near "<address>" — one of the two is needed
• OSRM routing coverage is best for Europe and North America
• Overpass API can be slow during peak hours; the script automatically falls back between mirrors (overpass-api.de → overpass.kumi.systems)
• distance and directions use --to flag for the destination (not positional)
• If a zip code alone gives ambiguous results globally, include country/state
• After one script/geocoding failure, diagnose the cause once, then use one bounded fallback (direct Nominatim/OSRM or known coordinates); never repeat the identical geocoding attempt.

Verification

python3 ~/.hermes/skills/productivity/maps/scripts/maps_client.py search "Statue of Liberty"
# Should return lat ~40.689, lon ~-74.044

python3 ~/.hermes/skills/productivity/maps/scripts/maps_client.py nearby --near "Times Square" --category restaurant --limit 3
# Should return a list of restaurants within ~500m of Times Square

Public support files

• scripts/maps_client.py