GPS or Google Maps/AA Ireland

Geno · Guru

GPS or Google Maps/AA Ireland

murphy · Guru

Having been to Ireland 3 times since 06, and relying just on maps, I am about to change and add a gps. My Garmin Nuvi 1350 has served me very well in the 20 months that I have owned it, and wouldn't consider any trip over 20 miles to an unfamiliar destination here stateside without it. That being said, I have read much more positive than negative on various forums, about using a gps in the UK and Ireland.

On our upcoming trip, we will be so equiped. I know...more stuff to drag along when you are traveling light, but the nuvi is very small and light weight, and will take just the car power cord, as well as the power cord splitter so I can be charging the gps and cell phone at the same time.

The options I have been exploring this past 2 weeks:
(1) purchasing an on-line computer download for $69.99....probably the same one you are looking at.
(2) Buying a micro SD card from Garmin for $69.99, and the advantage to doing this, is it could go into another garmin unit...if you should need it. The micro SD is the size of a dime, and slips right into the small 1/2" slot on the unit. (I had to put a blank one in for extra memory before my first update for North America... it should be updated once a year....I opted for the lifetime North America Undate for $69.99... update is available up to 4 times a year)
(3) Buy a garin micro SD card on Amazon.com for $38.95 plus tax plus $4.99 shipping. Saves you some bucks over buying direct from Garmin.
(4) Beg, borrow, buy or steal a 2012 Uk/Ireland micro SD card from a friend, neighbor, relative, or someone on one of these forums that may have gone, and would be willing to part with it and recoup some bucks!

The Ireland/UK micro SD card is not up-gradeable...you need to just buy a new one in the future.... if you think there has been a lot of building of new roads, businesses etc. in Ireland.

That is my 2 cents worth, so be back here after Oct 30th to let you know how we got along.

Dan

-- Edited by murphy on Monday 17th of September 2012 04:35:39 PM

wendyanne75 · Member

My husband was going to download Ireland maps to his GPS but the cost is $70. We are renting a car from Enterprise I believe, as he has special benefits through them and are waiting to hear back on the price for GPS rental through them. My other thoughts is to just print out google maps (or AA - is that better?) for free from one destination to another since I heard GPS can be unreliable anyway...we also have the Michelin Ireland map as well - what are thoughts on this?

murphy · Guru

Wendy,

Some other options....you can get an all-Europe micro sd card....if you think you might be traveling to other countries outside of the UK/Ireland. I think it was priced at $99. Also you can get a version with a lifetime update...if you purchase the CD Rom, also available for $99.00, if I remember right. However this will be linked to your GPS, and not transferable to another GPS.

Dan

-- Edited by murphy on Tuesday 18th of September 2012 10:50:56 AM

Geno · Guru

Some of the most wonderful moments we have had in Ireland occured because we were lost and off the beaten path for a bit. That is one reason we probably will stick with the maps! biggrin We had no plans, for instance, to go to Castletownbeare, but took a wrong turn one year and ended up there. What did we find? McCarthy's Bar made famous on the cover of Pete McCarthy's book by the same name. Now I always try to go back there when I am in the area and tip a pint with the wonderful owner, Adrianne McCarthy.

Wandering around has it's plusses, although I would consider turning something like that on at the end of the day to take me back to my B&B. That does make some sense if the map reading isn't your thing. But I'm fine with the old school approach to getting myself to where I want to go.

Geno

-- Edited by Geno on Tuesday 18th of September 2012 10:56:11 AM

murphy · Guru

I think of getting Lost.... as time wasted furious ! I know about how much the total cost is, for a 2 week trip to Ireland per person. Based on a 2 week trip, approx. 10 hours/day sightseeing, this computes out to minimum $25/hour/person! I would prefer to be NOT lost, and instead seeing the sights I planned to see...considering the cost of the trip! Some day...when I have gotten most everything crossed off my bucket list....then I will be happy to go over there....and purposely get lost! biggrin

Dan

-- Edited by murphy on Tuesday 18th of September 2012 11:04:22 AM

wendyanne75 · Member

Thanks Dan and Geno! Talked to my husband and he has decided he definitely wants the GPS - he has also heavily relied on it in recent years and can't imagine just going off a map anymore. I appreciate the options though and will send those to him, because I don't think he thought about purchasing a SD card vs. the download. It makes much more sense to get the sd card in case this GPS breaks, or he upgrades in the future.....

Carla · Veteran Member

I'm with Geno on this. My husband and I have been to Ireland 5 times since 2003 and have never considered a GPS. We have always used a combination of a Michelin spiral bound map book, directions printed from AA, and Ordnance Survey maps of specific areas. One of us drives while the other navigates when necessary.

4kids4us · Member

We rented a GPS with our car b/c the cost was the same as if we downloaded them to our own GPS, which I didn't much feel like bringing along (old one, not as compact). Also, based on advice I received, we purchased the spiral bound OSI Road Atlas Ireland for 9 euro in Kilkenny, our first stop after leaving Dublin. The GPS navigated us out of the airport and onto the motorways, as well as into Kilkenny, but I don't like the feeling of not being able to see the entire area around us, plus I love looking at maps. So we hit a bookstore in Kilkenny and bought the OSI map which was so much handier than having the GPS. It allowed me to look at the areas all around our planned stops to see if there was something else we might want to see - for instance, this is how we found the Jerpoint Abbey outside of Kilkenny(saw it on the map) as we headed out toward Carrick on Suir for our first planned stop.

There were several times where our GPS failed us and it was so nice to have the map to fall back on. One problem we did face is that many of the streets are not marked - the GPS would tell us we needed to turn, but there would be several streets in succession and we couldn't tell which was the right one! So we'd take one, realize we were going the wrong way, but instead of turning around as the GPS would tell us, I'd look at the map and figure out how to re-route us.

Of course neither is fool proof. When we got to Carrick on Suir, we could not find the Ormond Castle. As we were headed what appeared to be out of town, we stopped and asked a man who was walking to his car. He thought for a moment, then said, "Follow me - you'll never find it based on my directions." And sure enough, it was a series of turns all that took us all through the small town, until there it was, off the beaten path.

As it was, our GPS was crappy - the touch keyboard was very sensitive and would register the wrong letter. I would press the A and would get S, and this would happen up to 5 times in a row, meaning it would take forever to type in an address accurately. We filed a complaint with Hertz when we turned the car in, and within days after getting home, they refunded our money in full.

My personal opinion is that a GPS is handy to help you find your way in/out of an area, but it's not always precise. Having a map (OSI Road Atlas is great but your Michelin map might be just as good) and a navigator is much more beneficial. And thankfully, so are the very friendly and hospitable Irish, who were always willing to lend a hand.

Geno · Guru

Certainly understand your thoughts Dan. And I'm not talking about wasting alot of time and being aimlessly lost over there, I just enjoy the diversions now and then that lead to interesting and unexpected things.

As I said when this subject was first posted, it really is a personal choice of no right or wrong answer.

Geno

murphy · Guru

Geno,

I agree....definitely no right or wrong answers! I will be a lot more confident in a gps that is mine, and that I am very familiar using. GPS technology changes quickly. I have been using GPS for aviation since 1997, and that old machine is a real dinosaur by now! (I have upgraded 2 times since!) My latest aviation GPS is now 3 plus years old, and the nuvi that is half that old is 10x's as user friendly. I would guess that equipment in a rental car might not be up to date, depending on the age of the car/gps.

I ordered my UK/Ireland sd card today. $44 delivered to me around Sept 26th. I missed out on 2 of them on Ebay....one went for 27.05....my bid was 26.05, and they upped me 1 dollar in the last 30 seconds! furious The 2nd one: I thought it expired on 9/17 at 6:15PM, however it was AM! I had the high bid at $9.99! The sell now price was $30 and DW advised me to get it. I didn't....I am a newbie at Ebay! It went for $31.50 at 6:15 AM on the 17th. furious So I am done messing around, and went the Amazon.com route. Now, I can't wait to get it....to see how many of the lodgings, tourists attractions, pubs, and restaurants are actually in the data base. If they are not, you can go to google maps, get the lat. long. and put them in and name the waypoint. I will have a couple of weeks to play with it....more toys! biggrin

Dan

Itallian Chauffeur · Moderator

I AM a 'TOY' guy.

That said, I am also a FIRM believer in Paper maps AND being familiar with the route you plan to travel, before starting out. That doesn't mean knowing every twist, turn and curve of the road -- Though, with GOOGLE STREETVIEW, even that IS possible, nowadays biggrin -- but you SHOULD know the names of the intervening towns along the way. That way, if leaving Galway, heading South, to Ennis, for example, you know to look for signs leading to the N18, OR Clarinbridge, OR Adrahan, OR Gort, OR Ennis -- OR, Maybe, even Limerick! Although the road signage HAS gotten better over the past decade, the Roads Department DOES seem to take perverse pleasure in 'Mixing It Up' when it comes to signage protocalls ... biggrin biggrin

I have a Nokia 6110 Navigator Mobile Phone that I purchased on EBAY about 4 years ago. It has a built-in GPS that utilizes Route 66 mapping software that is independant of the phone. I generally rely upon paper maps, but I often 'SET' locations such as our accommodation into memory, in case I need help finding my way back. I'll use it while traveling, too -- but I am NEVER hesitant to Ignore the voice prompts -- particularly at Roundabouts, when signs indicate otherwise. I COULD update the maps, but I don't really rely on the GPS for Turn-To-Turn info.

What's REALLY fun, though, is to select 'Shortest Route' and then follow the instructions PRECISELY ... biggrin biggrin biggrin

I call it, "Adventureering" ... biggrin biggrin biggrin biggrin

I also have the 2010 version of Microsoft AutoRoute (Western Europe) and a USB cabled, GPS Receiver that I purchased for my Travel Netbook. I normally only use it for Route Planning, on the night prior to a trip, but I HAVE run both it and the Phone GPS simultaneously, as a Test and it is AMAZINING how frequently they give CONFLICTING directions -- particularly when driving between Kildare and Kilkenney ???? confuse confuse confuse For my up-coming trip, I Upgraded the old, fairly SLOW, Netbook for a New, 13.3" Samsung 5 Series Ultrabook, which I just finished installing and configuring AutoRoute and my GPS Receiver. (It also does Skype!)

Since this trip is for 30 days, the route PLANNING function of AutoRout is much more appealing since it does NOT rely upon an internet connection, because it allows me to create, or modify a route on a whim ...

I say all this, NOT because I believe that what I do is THE 'Right Way' -- nor, am I implying that any other way is Wrong. To each, their own.

Or, as an ancient teacher once said -- "Go with what works with you."

Bob

tony2phones · Guru

If you have a GPS also have a map for back up. Make sure the GPS map is up to date or like the brother in law it might take 6 hours to do a 2 1/2 hour journey. Should you feel like calling in on us for tea and scones approach from the west because no GPS knows the eastern end of our lane 1 1/2 miles away exists and they send you 5 miles round to the western end also 1 1/2 miles away and easily missed, which means the thing resets and sends folk over the mountain and round again. No Joke.

Michele Erdvig · Host

Good exchange about the pros and cons of GPS and maps. I think that most people nowadays will be more comfortable with both. Bob's advice about knowing the names of the cities and towns along the way is essential because that is what the signs will be for. Tony's advice is that GPS units are not infallible. They are just software programs and need human brains to interpret them.

BTW, GPS is called Sat Nav in Ireland.

Slim34 · Newbie

We just arrived home from a 17 day tour around Ireland. Before going, I downloaded Ireland and UK maps to our Garmin GPS for 70. , and used them very little. the first town we went into, (Bray)I bought an Ordnance Survey Ireland touring map for about 5. We used this a lot. Maps are great for people you meet ,to mark interesting places etc.
I have an iPad 3 with wifi + cellular. We bought a micro SIM card at a Vodophone store in the same town for 20. +10. To activate it. We used the google maps app with the GPS marking through out the south. Reception was weak only in a few areas but being able to zoom in on streets was invaluable.Plus we had Internet all over and did not have to rely on wifi.The iPad is larger for the maps than the iPhone and it also takes great video and photos.
Once we got into the north we lost the signal. It came up as Vodophone UK. You would have to buy a micro SIM card for the UK. We didn't bother. Hence our Garmin.
We still missed turns in spite of all these devices. You just go with the spontaneous and don't get stressed.
roads are marked better in some places than others. Dublin has terrible street markings . No ,we didn't drive downtown!!

Michele Erdvig · Host

Slim,

Welcome to the forum and thanks for your experiences using GPS and maps in Ireland. We appreciate the input.

Michele

Green Dragon · Guru

I also love my GPS for Ireland. Yes, it was a cost to upload maps, but they work for all europe - I used them for our Scotland trip as well. It is a great comfort knowing that I can go wherever I want, get as lost as I can, and still find my way back to the B&B for the night.

Yes, GPS has taken us over some questionable 'roads', over mountains, and once tried to take us off a cliff (but it tried to do that once in Maine, too - I think it wants to kill us!). However, that makes it more of an adventure!

Michele Erdvig · Host

Christy,

Is your GPS named HAL? biggrin

Michele

CowboyCraic · Guru

Michele, mo chara...I was thinking the same thing!

I kept hearing "Just what do you think you're doing, Christy?" and " I'm sorry, Christy. I'm afraid I can't do that"

Green Dragon · Guru

Don't think we didn't quote these lines several times on our trip!

murphy · Guru

Just back from 2 weeks in Ireland, Northern Ireland and Scotland. This is our 4th trip, but the 1st using a GPS. I wouldn't go again without it!!!!

The aspect I liked the best about using the gps (sat nav in Ireland), was that it told you ahead of time which exit you will be taking to get out of the next round-about! Otherwise you really have to watch the signs, which sometimes doesn't give you much reaction time, esp if you need to take the first exit, or need to change lanes in the double lane round-abouts. Also, you always knew ahead of time, with a white arrow, if you were expecting a right turn or a left turn at a non roundabout intersection, or a left exit or right exit off a dual carriageway or motorway.

We always had someone in the car, watching the map all the time as well.

There were a couple of times that the GPS took us on the shorter route, which was on the wee roads, which sometimes I prefer over the larger highways or motorways!

We also liked the ability to select the "attractions" page, and find most every major attraction we were planning to visit, usually within 10-20 miles of range. All area attractions are listed starting with the closest first, and you just scroll down, click on the attraction you want, and press go, and you are set! If you are more than 10-20 miles away, just type in the town name (if you don't have the exact gps address), and then as you get within 10-15 miles of that town, the attraction will come up available on the "attractions" page.

I still think it will work best on a GPS that you are familiar with.

Dan