sparkle5197

We are first time visitors to Spain and will be renting a car for about 10 days of our trip in April. Is it better to bring a portable GPS from the US and purchase the Spain maps to add on or is it better to rent one in Spain with the rental car?

chapla

Nowadays most rentals come w/GPs.Check w/rental company.

Aramis

You can arrange to have a GPS when you rent, at an extra cost, but they almost always have a charge associated with them.

If you already have a GPS you are familiar with, I would bring it.

The issues to consider are;

the cost of purchasing the Europe maps for your GPS, including whether you will be able to amortize that by using the maps on another trip (they usually sell Western Europe maps, not just individual countries) versus

the daily charge from the rental company, your possible unfamiliarity with the foreign GPS device, including possible future rentals as noted above.

Robert2533

GPS is an add-on except on the more expensive rentals, and quite frankly, for Spain it's not worth it. Just pick up a good Michelin map of the area or areas you plan on being in and study the map. Michelin sells some very detailed maps, including their popular Zoom maps (www.michelinonline.co.uk/travel/zoom.htm).

If you have an iPhone, iPod or iPad, the mapping system is better than using a GPS to find your current location and to check on a route you may want to use.

greg

If you bring your own, you would be more familiar with the operation. Additionally, you can pre-program in known way points and the destinations. Before the trip, I connect my GPS to my PC and download destinations I found on my PC google map to my GPS using USB using google map GPS download function.

However, mounting is an issue. I take a vent hole attachment kit. This has worked on most cars.

Using iPhone, etc, requires finding off-line maps if you don't want to get hit with data roaming charges.

CarolA

I took my own. Very glad I did. Plus you can pre program it. The cost of Europe maps was less then a GPS rental for my trip

Huggy

I would not travel to Europe without one. Even if I am lost, I know where I am lost. I purchased one in Amsterdam loaded with all Europe for about the same cost as purchasing European maps here in tne US.

Robert2533

I'm glad that some people swear by GPS and can't live without it, but it can get you into trouble in any number of places, having you drive down stairs in Granada when the city converted a rather steep street to pedestrian use only, or lead you down a road that no longer exists in the dead of night.

Relying on a GPS in the city (Paris, Madrid, Lisbon) is fine for a taxi driver, but not something I'm willing to move on to. Maps and a basic understanding of the area are much better. For anything else, I rely on the iPhone mapping. It actually works.

DeborahAnn

I'd check to see what your rental company would charge for the gps, sometimes they will offer specials which include a gps. If you travel to Europe often enough buying maps for your own gps might be a good investment. We bought a Garmin with European maps included that we use in Europe and the UK. I wouldn't travel without a gps but I also take along road maps Deborah

flanneruk

The cost of hiring Hertz' satnav for a week in Naples was twice what it cost to buy it at our local supermarket, then buy the software for the entire Western European road system.

Which said, my satnav can be close to useless in builtup urban environments, and often almost dangerously so in southern Italy. Signals just don't travel as fast as the reflexes of Italian drivers.

Apart from outright errors in the software such as Robert 2353 describes, it's not at all rare for directions to be several seconds late or early. This is a bloody nuisance in central London or Paris: in Naples or Palermo it can easily lead to collisions with undertaking (overtaking on the inside lane) scooter or motorbike drivers, who assume you're going to take a rational turn and not the pointless one you'll take if you listen to Satnav Girl's mistimed advice.

ira

Hi sparkle,

If you bring your own you will
have time to get used to it before you need it,
be able to pre-program it
pay less than renting it.

ovahimba

We used a gps in France and it was very helpful. We turned off the voice and my wife acted as navigator holding the gps and describing upcoming turns well in advance. It was especially important in traffic circles where you sometimes had to make swift moves, "take the 3rd turn at 11 o'clock" or "turn at 3 o'clock".

greg

Is mounting a GPS unit on car windshield restricted in Europe?

California has a GPS mounting location restriction. Ontario, and probably many other places, have general restrictions on placing objects potentially blocking the driver's view.

La_Mancha

I paid for the European upgrade last year and get to use it again this year. I'd rather spend $80 to upgrade a Tomtom than give a rental company $60 that I have to return.