I've seen several websites that recommend getting a GPS system with your rental car if you are driving around Italy. I believe AutoEurope rents them. One review I read did make it sound like a fantastic help. What do you think? Worth the price? (I think its about $150-200 for a week). Or should we just rely on old-fashioned maps?
One thing I like is that they send you the GPS unit before you leave home, so you can practice with it and enter in all your destinations ahead of time. Then its just a matter of getting in the car, waiting for the satellite to find you and then hitting the next destination number and instant directions from whereever you are!
We don't have personal information yet. Two years ago I tried buying the Italy maps for my GPS system. Through a series of unfortunate events (the chip didn't arrive before we left) we drove in Tuscany without GPS. A friend told me that many GPS systems do not have good satelite coverage in Italy and recommended not bringing one. Something else to consider; CostCo sells a GPS unit for $200 and the map chip for Italy is $130 on e-bay. So buying may be a better bet than renting. This year we are renting GPS for 4 days in Sicily. Fingers crossed.
We purchased a GPS system last summer before our trip; it saved our marriage . Seriously, for us it was a really good thing, and yes, having it ahead of time to program our destinations was really helpful. Ours is a Garmin Nuvi; we got it with the Italy chip. It was not inexpensive, but we did a lot of comparison shopping and decided to splurge. We have also used it on trips at home, and will be taking it to Savannah next week.
We purchased a GPS system last summer before our trip; it saved our marriage .
LOL - Marcia, I say forget couples pre-marriage counseling, send the engaged couple to Italy (or maybe just Sicily) for a week with a rental car, if they're still together after that, the marriage will survive.
We bought a TomTom version about a year ago partly because we had just moved to a new area and could use it at home but also for use in Italy. We chose the brand because it came with European maps already and was more compatible with Apple computers, as we're mac people. We took it to Italy for 6 weeks over the holidays and it was great for the most part. You'd probably find it wonderful if you've never driven in Italy before. The problems it had were with new freeway interchanges that were not accurate on it's maps. If I were you I'd bring along an old fashioned map in addition. If you're intimidated by driving around Italy you'll probably find it a godsend. If you're on this board much you'll lots of warnings about hiding it though when you're not in the car. They seem to be a target for theft. People say you should be careful to wipe off the windshield where the mount tends to leave a circle so it's not obvious you've got one hidden in there. Have a great time!
Posts: 174 | Location: Cool, CA | Registered: 17 February 2003
Thanks for the replies! Yes, I'm not sure if we should bother buying one or just rent. We did drive in Italy last time (about 7 years ago), mostly around Toscana, and while for the most part it was not difficult, there were some VERY hairy moments, mostly involving roundabouts!
If you go to our Technology on the Go forum and search on GPS, you will find a lot of information and opinions.
We have used both a TomTom and a Garmin, and even though they have their glitches, I would never drive in Europe again without one. For me one of the most useful things is that when you do get lost, at least you have some idea of where you are!
I'd say about 95% of the time it's great. 4% of the time you wonder what it's thinking. 1% of the time it's just wrong.
You need to trust it but not too much
One issue is the form of address. Not a problem if you're picking a city to head towards. But it can cause problems if you have a street address and it's format doesn't match what the GPS maps are using.
My boss used one while driving around France last fall and said it was great! Not only for driving help, but even walking around the streets. He just took it out of the car and stuck it in his jacket pocket, finding it a great help as he tried to find his way around the streets of Paris and other cities along his journey.
Are you trying to put me out of business? How about I pass out business cards so IF the GPS doesn't keep the relationship happy, THEN they come to therapy?
(Or better yet, they take the therapist to Italy just in case...)
We LOVE our Garmin GPS in Italy and the U.S.. It was SO worth it!
One of our better stories with the GPS came one day when we drove to a town in Piemonte in search of a synagogue that we knew to be there from one of our books. The GPS did not know that there was a centro storico there that we could not drive into, so after a few turns around we decided to park and take the GPS walking with us. Once we passed into the center of town, the GPS did an excellent job of getting us where we wanted to go. Without it, we might have just given up (or else tried to use our nonexistent Italian), particularly hard since since it was a deserted Sunday afternoon.
I think if you are tempted, you should probably buy the Garmin Nuvi that has maps for both Europe AND the US. In the US, you are likely to find it easier to work with than in Europe, and the investment will pay off over time, as opposed to the steep one-time rental fee.
I bought one before coming to Italy to live, and have found it a mixed blessing. It directs you to drive like a robot. (I'm somebody who is used to drivin having in mind where I am going -- if that makes sense.) Italian street signage is often so unusually placed or abbreviated that to be told "turn left on viale San Martino del Suffragio e San Jacopo nel Verde" can be rather useless, since the sign (if it exists) is abbreviated to the point of being a real guessing game, and a left turn in Italy according to Garmin Nuvi may not be what you think of as a left turn elsewhere.
We rented a Magellan from Lower Gear before our trip to Italy in 2006. We didn't want the extra expense to purchase our own unit because we don't travel to Europe that often. When we are able to travel more frequently, we plan to purchase one.
Be sure to check with AutoEurope about the coverage of the country you plan to travel in. I know when we inquired at Ideamerge (where we leased our car) we were told the coverage was the best in France. Things might be different now, though.
We will never travel, especially to a foreign country, without GPS. I hate being lost in the US, let alone a foreign country! Just be sure you have some maps to double check things.
Posts: 212 | Location: California | Registered: 12 February 2006
The GPS did not know that there was a centro storico there that we could not drive into
One of my fears about the GPS in Italy is that is ignorantly directing me to drive in areas that are off-limits to non-residents, and my license plate will be photographed and I will get a bill for a fine from the rental company.
quote: We purchased a GPS system last summer before our trip; it saved our marriage .
LOL - Marcia, I say forget couples pre-marriage counseling, send the engaged couple to Italy (or maybe just Sicily) for a week with a rental car, if they're still together after that, the marriage will survive. Big Grin
I've long maintained that the true test of a marriage involves a foreign country, a rental car and questionable maps. Our first test of this sort was in Australia, so we got to add driving on the "wrong" side of the road to that equation.
That said, we've now done it enough that, particularly in Italy (outside of big cities!) we rather like messing with the maps, and on occasion tossing them in the backseat and going by road signs. I don't want to be constantly staring at the GPS device, and we know enough now to allow time go get lost
We used a GPS system on my husband's palmpilot (Tom Tom) this past summer, and it was overall VERY helpful. This was mostly true, if you didn't trust it too much. ie. if the sign on the road says "DO NOT TURN ENTER"...chances are that you shouldn't. It generally saved us, and got us going in the right direction if we were completely turned around. It even helped us when walking in Parma, and started to feel anxious about where exactly we had left the car! It doesn't work great with taller buildings surrounding you on all sides, as it can't make contact with the satellites, but it is better than being lost on sore feet.
That being said...on my birthday we went to Al Gallopapa in Castellina in Chianti, from our agriturismo near Certaldo...a little far for dinner, I'll admit. I fell asleep in the car on the way back to our lodgings. OH MY goodness, what a nightmare when I awoke. We were on some "goat path", on our way to a Texas chain saw massacre. We were completely in the middle of nowhere, and my husband was relying on the GPS to save us. I don't think we were even driving on the road, but on someone's driveway when I realized that we were going in circles. It was certainly an adventure!
Otherwise, the GPS was great at getting us near to airports, and where the car lot was in Roma etc. Husband says that next time we would get a Garmin unit, with the most up to date software we can get. We would probably have had many more "goat path" adventures without it; you just have to be choosy about when to listen to it.
Garmin just released new European maps. Supposedly they've increased the point of interest coverage. The old maps when you asked for an ATM would start plotting a route to London
The only time "Susie" - Rob's Nuvi was wrong was when we had her in the pedestrian mode and she told us to go up a one-way street. Our error, not hers. She was wonderful in Italy and we use her here at home all the time. Even if we know where we are going, she/it gives us arrival time.
And like Marcia ours will be getting a real workout in Savannah. Rob has so many entries for our week there.
We would definitely recommend having a GPS when traveling ... anywhere you go.
(We have been using GPS units for years. The new ones are so much easier and smaller and the download of information is much easier.)
In-our-opinion.
Posts: 2983 | Location: Monterey Peninsula, California, USA | Registered: 07 September 2003
Ok, maybe this is a philosophical point. But.... I gotta say it
With the combination of time and the right attitude, there can be (note I said "can" not "is") something magical about getting lost in Italy. With this country's network of small roads which can take you some of the most beautiful and unforeseen places, getting lost in Italy can be unforgettable (in a GOOD way). So I would say, use the TomTom or Nuvi or whatever to get from point A to point B like from Hotel to AIrport. But if you want to really enjoy the driving portion of your vacation, shut it off and head for the back roads. Get caught on dirt tracks and discover a castle not on your map. Look at the men playing cards near the cafes. Don't even think about staying on track to reach a destination which might not be as nice as the ride to get there....
Oh the GPS will take you on back roads. I'm not sure if it's a software problem or a map problem but the choices made are strange at times.
Some times this works great. It took me on a back route and I founds some wonderfull views. Just need to find it again and bring the camera.
Or the time it had me take a strange route across a small town instead of the normal route around the town. Two weeks later a rock fall led to a detour which went via the town. May be it was training me.
OTOH some times the GPS is just plain wrong. It wants me to take a road so narrow and curving nobody but the people who live on it use it. I guess if you measure it's marginally shorter then taking the main road but it's the sort of road you drive at less then 10km/h instead of the main road at 50.
GPS won't replace common sense. But combined with an alert driver it's a great help. OTOH if you don't know the roads you need to be more alert to avoid the strange turns the GPS some times suggests.
. Seriously, for us it was a really good thing, and yes, having it ahead of time to program our destinations was really helpful. Ours is a Garmin Nuvi; we got it with the Italy chip. It was not inexpensive, but we did a lot of comparison shopping and decided to splurge. We have also used it on trips at home, and will be taking it to Savannah next week.
