A lot of people have been forced to cancel their out-of-the-country trips since COVID-19 hit, and even though travel restrictions in some regions have started to ease up, many travel buffs are still hesitant to fly. So, to help LEGO fans explore the world without leaving the comfort of their homes, LEGO is releasing a new building set called the LEGO Art World Map.
The newest addition to the LEGO Art Collection, the LEGO Art World Map allows builders to create a stunning representation of Earth using 2D LEGO tiles. Made with a total of 11,695 elements, LEGO Art World Map contains the most pieces ever included in a set in the toy brand’s history.
The LEGO Art World Map features customizable brick-built pins that can be used to mark out destinations the builders have already visited or highlight those that are still on their bucket list.
The set’s building instructions, which comes in a coffee-table style booklet, show how the 40 interconnecting base plates are divided into three sections for the build, which can be arranged in one of three different ways, allowing builders to place their favorite part of the world in the center of the map.
By following the building instructions, the oceans on the map can be arranged in a manner inspired by bathymetric mapping of the ocean floor. Builders, of course, can also express themselves more freely and creatively by arranging the ocean tiles as they wish.
To make the building experience more enjoyable, builders can listen to an accompanying soundtrack while constructing the set. The soundtrack features travelers’ tales from bloggers and adventurers like Torbjørn C. Pedersen, who is the first person to visit every country in the world in one unbroken journey without flying, and blogger Syazwani Baumgartner, who has visited some of the most remote places on the planet.
Measuring 25.5 inches high and 40.5 inches wide, the LEGO Art World Map comes with a white brick-built frame and two hanging elements that make the map easy to display, take down, and rebuild whenever there’s a need to update.
“We know that our adult fans love to travel, but many haven’t been able to do so for over a year now. We thought that there was no better way of helping explore the world while relaxing in the comfort of their home than by allowing them to build, rebuild, plan and reminisce through building. We hope the LEGO Art World Map will inspire new adventures in some, and help others relive and celebrate wonderful travel memories from the past,” Fiorella Groves, creative lead for LEGO Art, said in a statement.
Priced at $249.99, the LEGO Art World Map will be available for purchase from LEGO.com and LEGO Stores globally starting June 1st. It will hit the shelves of other retailers across the globe starting August 1st.