Hexagon Mazes

A number of different types of maze, focusing on ideas rather than difficulty

A straightforward maze based on hexagon cells. Start at the arrow, and find your way to the red cell.

Click here for some notes on how to solve this type of maze. The one featured here is called 'multiply connected'.

Here's a hexagon 'ruled based' maze. You start at the left most cell, and try to get out at the right most cell.

You can move any number of cells in the direction of the arrow. After you land on a cell you must set off again in the direction of that cell's arrow.

Click here for a solution.

Owl maze - start at the left hand side of the branch; try to get out at the right hand side of the branch. You must stay on the same colour tiles until you come to a grey tile. You must leave a grey tile on a different colour tile (eg if you arrived at a grey tile from a blue path, you must choose a path that is not blue). You're allowed on any colour except brown. You may not turn round on a tile and go back the way you came.

You could use something similar as a garden patio...

Ice maze - the light blue hexagons are ice, and very slippery. The brown hexagons are firm ground. You can stand on firm ground, but once you set foot on the ice you keep sliding in the same direction until you hit firm ground again. The green hexagons and the sides of the maze are made of perfectly bouncy rubber - slide into it, and you bounce back the way you came. Your task is to get from the left hand side to the right hand side.

It's not very hard, but I thought it was quite an interesting idea...

Step and turn maze - you have to get from the left hand side to the right hand side, entering and exiting in a horizontal direction. Each time you step into a cell you have to turn (change direction), according to the symbol in that cell. If you fall off the edge of the maze, you have to start again.

A = turn 120 degrees, and come out at an Adjacent cell wall
Y = turn 60 degrees, and come out at one of the Y forked cell walls.
O = no turn, come out at the Opposite cell wall

Another interesting idea...
Click here for a solution.

3-D Maze - a maze on four floors. You enter at the bottom level (the Ground floor), and make your way to the exit on the top level (level 3). Stairs to the next level (up or down) are indicated (by the level number they connect to).

Line Maze - travelling on the lines, not the cells. Enter as shown (on the line). Now go along each line in the direction of the arrow and try to get back to the start.

Addition Maze - start at the cell on the left, and try to get out on the right. You may only step into a cell if its sum is two more or less than the cell you're standing on. Good for kids practising sums.

Good places for mazes in general:

Think Labyrinth! - Java make creator; review of maze algorithms; links

Mazemaker - includes some hexagonal mazes

The Maze Man - includes giant maize field mazes

Create a Maze - creates random mazes on the fly, various shapes

Maze shareware - software to download and make rectangular mazes

Amazing Maze Generator, The - creates random mazes on the fly, various shapes

Amazing Maize Maze - mainly American, giant maize field mazes

Javascript Maze - generates simple rectangular mazes, solvable using the mouse

Randomizer - Java maze, solvable using the mouse

DailyPuzzle.com, Conk's magic mazes - generates easy or hard circular, rectangular etc mazes

Yahoo also has excellent lists of maze sites - search for 'maze'

Click to go to the Hall of Hexagons.

Comments and discussion always welcome -

David King last update 19Nov01