Heading out on a short trip to a different city soon and have to find my metal case Engineer compass to take along. Like to have it with me where I might get turned around. Don't know if saying the brand name is acceptable but it looks like the model has been discontinued. Just curious if anyone else carries a compass around with them these days.
I try to keep a handheld compass and road map in my car for emergencies. I think most cars have a compass heading in their instrument panel display menu... e.g. E for east, NW for Northwest, etc. Sometimes even printing out maps using Google Maps directions on the computer lets you zoom in and out to get street detail for things along the way or in certain spots. I've used these printouts in cases where I overshot my destination or had an unplanned detour... also GPS can get sketchy in downtown areas with a lot of highrises or skyscrapers blocking the signal. Heavy traffic, pedestrians, one way streets, and lousy GPS signals can be a headache if you are not familiar with the area.
Additionally, I try to download the area I'm traveling to Google Maps (I don't know if they still have that feature) and use a secondary GPS/Maps app for backup (i.e. OsmAnd) that doesn't require internet access. I once tried just using the Google Maps for directions when traveling up north, but went through many areas where internet access was unavailable, and even rest stops with WiFi access sometimes took 20-30 minutes to download a local map of the area. At the time, if you were to rely on GMaps from your destination, it wouldn't download details of the area further away until you were in the vicinity. This makes it problematic if you are driving for days and randomly decide to stop and look for a rest stop, hotel, gas station, diner, etc.
Similarly, I stopped about an hour outside of LV while traveling through the SW in the middle of the night and tried to make reservations for a LV hotel room but had no phone internet, and the gas station's WiFi was really slow... especially downloading the map to the hotel. That added 30 minutes to my travel waiting for the map to download at the gas station.
I have a watch with a digital compass, but it seemed a little sketchy on reliable directions... maybe because I was around metal objects (like my motorcycle)... and the directions suggested recalibration every once in awhile.
I will also add, if you don't mind being tracked, that when traveling I keep my GPS on my phone not only for directions, but it helps if you are stranded and call emergency services so they can track down your position.
