Buy National Geographic Executive World Map Wall Mural

Customer Ratings:

As some customers have already stated, the mural itself is very nice when you look at the quality.

My wife purchased this for a relative and when it arrived she set out to install with her sister, very craft oriented, and her mother. The instructions recommend professional installation. This is probably the way to go. Other wise in order to get a seamless mural you will be required to make a series of cuts from top to bottom in excess of the height of the mural, over 6 feet. There is a white border around all three panels, with the center panel requiring the removing of the white border. If you wanted a seamless fit, even more cuts would be necessary unless you don't mind overlapping panels, still requiring the two cuts. Difficult to do in the average home and get it right.

My wife requested a refund from the seller Swift Maps and got what I would consider a rude and condescending e-mail in return. Both my wife and I have both been in retail for a long time and the response was the type that a normal place of business would issue corrective action or termination for that kind of interaction with customers. The seller will only take the product back if it is "new resell-able condition", again hard to do once you have taken it out unrolled it and discovered the challenges that lie ahead.

My suggestion is buy it if you are having it installed professionally, or make sure you have the skills and tools necessary for a time consuming installation before ordering. My suggestion overall, skip this product, and certainly this seller. Horrible customer service.

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My wife gave this to me for Christmas, though we had both wanted it for more than a year. We love it, and get great compliments from it. My impressions:

Pros (5 stars):

Beautiful. The day we had it installed we literally spent an hour that night admiring it and looking up different locations. My kids (4 and 2) love it as well. A previous reviewer said that it was too pink. Ours is a rich earth tone.

Educational. In an era where apparently a large percentage of high-school seniors can't locate the United States on a map (let alone any other countries), I look forward to using the map to help ensure my kids don't follow the same race to the bottom.

Practical and useful. Now that I have a large mural on which to plot and visualize (finished dimensions with a frame nearly 7ft x 10.5ft), my master plan for World Domination is now one step nearer to completion. Mwa ha ha ha!

Cons (collectively deduct one star):

Buying it is the easiest (and least expensive) part. Unless you are very experienced in hanging wall paper, I wouldn't try to install this yourself. Not only do you have to trim vertical white borders in order for the three panels to match up to each other, but the three panels were printed slightly askew relative to each other, meaning that you had to align them and trim them while hanging them. You also have to maneuver the panels on the wall to match up city names, borders, latitude and longitude lines, etc. We ended up finding a great installer who charged us $115, though most quotes we got were in the $250-300 range. We also purchased "chair rail" molding to install as a frame around the borders from the local hardware store, which took the look from cool to absolutely fantastic (or as my wife said, 'from nice but a little tacky to awesome and erudite'), but did add extra to the price.

Not absolutely up to date. Our map had information circa 2007, while I think smaller versions of this map are 2009 or 2010. That means if you're looking for the latest population data it won't be here. Ditto for trying to find South Sudan (at least as a separate country). Presumably they sell less of this version than the smaller versions, so don't update is as often.

Not any more detailed than the smaller sizes they sell. This is just a blown up version of the smaller NatGeo map, which means that 1) there is no more detail in terms of cities or other geographic information even though the expanded space could accommodate it; and 2) some of the print is slightly blurry when looking up close, and many of the longitude lines are somewhat pixelated. Not so noticeable as to detract from the overall presentation, but there nonetheless.

In all, a great map that I enjoy looking at and studying every day, and expect to do so for years to come.

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If you are looking for a large sophisticated world map, look no further. I used to have the massive DOD 13 foot wide one in my old residence but chose this one for its nicer colors and more workable size. The 8 panel DOD map's detail is great but polar distortions are extreme and colors are too clinical if not grade-schoolish. Its also a little bit too huge for most rooms. The Nat Geo has superbly rich colors and is also highly detailed. Minus the shipping routs, I would say its as detailed as the DOD map. Includes such features as time zones, land/mountain elevations and sea floor/trench deapths and many more, such as airport marker locations. The top corners present the poles in magnificent detail, including which countries claim which areas. The bottom left and right maps show land use patterns and population density of the world. It even has small paragraphs in certain hot spots breaking down the current political situation as far as geography is concerned, as in the case of Taiwan. Everyone who has seen the map says it looks like a piece of art. Because so, I've even decided not to put pins in it. I trimmed the white boarders off which framed it beautifully. Hanging it was what you'd expect from a large 3-panel piece of wall paper. Not easy, but not terrible either. One person could do it if need be. I hung the 8 panel 8 by 13 ft DOD map myself with precise results). Using regular wall paper paste, it took my brother and I about three hours from trimming the boarders to the end. The hardest part was positioning it correctly on the wall which took a number of precise measurements, markers and observations. No rocket science. The top of paper itself was very durable and resistant to wetness so no problem or damage there. Be careful when smoothing out the bubbles on top though when mounting it with certain tools. You can remove small bits of paint as we did if you are too rough. It arrived in perfect condition, rolled up in a compact triangular box, nothing huge. I've renamed my guest room where the map hangs now as the "Atlas" room. It has not only changed the room beyond measure, but has elevated the whole stature and character of my house!

Honest reviews on National Geographic Executive World Map Wall Mural

I had this map installed over the coffee service counter in a church that focuses on changing the world through missions and ministry. A pro wallpaper installer hung it and said it was good quality, and easy to hang. That being said, there was a lot of double-cutting, matching and trimming, so hanging it is not for amateurs. The pro cut "V" notches in the white "seam allowance" to be able to match the pieces before double-cutting with a sharp blade. It seemed to have a nice washable surface. The only thing that surprised me about the map was that the colors are MUCH more brilliant than the antiqued-look shown on the website. The colors are pretty saturated, so I painted the walls Benjamin Moore's "Cappuccino Muffin:#1155" and because all of the white border was removed, it looks wonderful! I had a black counter installed under it, and because the ceilings weren't that tall, the bottom of the map got trimmed off, but it made no difference because we still had the "important parts" exposed. Not only is it geographically correct, it is attractive. It created an exciting stir among the visitors and staff as they saw it going up. It has become the "focal point" people are drawn to as they pass the room!

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This world map wall mural is not only a great learning tool, it is simply gorgeous on the wall. The thick, wipeable material has a slight sheen to it, and the mounting was just as described, as easy as mounting wall paper. The scale is just stunning, ours is in a smaller play room, so it takes up an entire wall, but in a large room this map would be beautiful as well. A huge and interesting art statement.