Going to Europe, what kind of GPS would be good?

[CindyAndEd]

Going to Europe, what kind of GPS would be good? Also enjoy GeoCaching occasionally.

 

Would it contain the maps I need or would I purchase that separately?

 

We're going to Brussels, Paris, England, and perhaps other areas.

 

I live in Ohio which is where I'd normally use it.

 

Thanks in advance for any advice.

[+fratermus]

Going to Europe, what kind of GPS would be good? Also enjoy GeoCaching occasionally.

Would it contain the maps I need or would I purchase that separately?

 

My answers will be garmin-centric.

 

If you are driving, a auto-based gps that could also run on batts would be good. CN Europe for maps.

If you are hiking/train/etc, I would get something portable with an expandable card (like one of the CX units) and load MG Europe.

 

The basemap will be very minimal. If you are not navigating by GPS you could snag the freebie GPS worldmap basemap out there. Shows major roads, cities, etc. Some assembly required.

[CindyAndEd]

We'll be taking the trains, walking and cabs I suppose. I currently have a 5 year old Garmin Legend but that seems somewhat limited. I'd like a bigger screen that I can program a lot of maps in.

Edited March 25, 2007 by CindyAndEd

[+fratermus]

We'll be taking the trains, walking and cabs I suppose. I currently have a 5 year old Garmin Legend but that seems somewhat limited. I'd like a bigger screen that I can program a lot of maps in.

 

If I were going anytime soon I'd take a color mapping unit (like a Legend CX) and the original Legend, too.

 

I'd load the classic legend with the Garmin Worldmap tiles (as many as would fit) and as many waypoints as I could find online. I suspect all the countries you are visiting will fit in the 8mb legend memory, using the garmin worldmap. Minimal, but better than nothing.

 

I've done the European trip thing a few times, but I think it would be very comforting to have a gps along.

[GeoidPS]

If you purchase your unit in the US, you will have North America basemaps. You can use European maps, but you won't have the base map.

If your using a routable map, I'm not sure what will happen.

[Suscrofa]

If you purchase your unit in the US, you will have North America basemaps. You can use European maps, but you won't have the base map.

If your using a routable map, I'm not sure what will happen.

The basemap is useless and for the cost of the EU version you can get the US version plus tons of maps. I live i the EU and have a US based 60CX. The best all around unit so far.

[Suscrofa]

If you purchase your unit in the US, you will have North America basemaps. You can use European maps, but you won't have the base map.

If your using a routable map, I'm not sure what will happen.

The basemap is useless and for the cost of the EU version you can get the US version plus tons of maps. I live i the EU and have a US based 60CX. The best all around unit so far.

[hike2cache]

If you purchase your unit in the US, you will have North America basemaps. You can use European maps, but you won't have the base map.

If your using a routable map, I'm not sure what will happen.

The basemap is useless and for the cost of the EU version you can get the US version plus tons of maps. I live i the EU and have a US based 60CX. The best all around unit so far.

 

I'm going to Europe as well and have the Garmin eTrex Legend cx and was wondering if it is worth the $300 to get the City Navigator Europe or is there something less expensive out there. I already Purchased City Nav US.

[Suscrofa]

If you purchase your unit in the US, you will have North America basemaps. You can use European maps, but you won't have the base map.

If your using a routable map, I'm not sure what will happen.

The basemap is useless and for the cost of the EU version you can get the US version plus tons of maps. I live i the EU and have a US based 60CX. The best all around unit so far.

 

I'm going to Europe as well and have the Garmin eTrex Legend cx and was wondering if it is worth the $300 to get the City Navigator Europe or is there something less expensive out there. I already Purchased City Nav US.

Do a search here, Metroguide EU can be made routable and metroguide is sold at a "honest" price.

Autorouting is a definite plus in the EU as streets and roads are far more intricate than in the US. Furthemore posting is less than optimal and worsened by the various languages.

[CindyAndEd]

Is this the one you are referring too?

 

http://www.garmin.com/products/gpsmap60cx/

 

[hike2cache]

Is this the one you are referring too?

 

http://www.garmin.com/products/gpsmap60cx/

 

 

No, I have the eTrex Legend cx

[appletree]

My family and I took a similar trip, Amsterdam, Paris, London and surrounding areas, last April. I bought MetroGuide Europe and loaded it into my etrex Vista and my Garmin Quest. I didn't spend the extra cash for CitySelect or Navigator as I was not driving myself so I did not need autorouting. I used the Quest almost exclusively as I preferred the larger color screen. I also used a short cabled external antenna which I would attach to plane, train, cab, and bus windows with a small suction cup. It was fun checking the speed of the EuroStar, but not while in the Chunnel, of course. The Quest is a great little GPS for in cars or out, and the price is remarkably low. I did not bring the mounting bracket for the car, but I did bring the plug-in charger and the necessary adapters, although most places we stayed had a US type outlet in the bathroom intended for electric razors that worked fine with the charger. I never came close to using up the battery charge, and I kept it on, with the backlight off, whenever I was not in a building. I still enjoy reviewing our tracklog. I did not log any caches on the trip but I have used the Quest for geocaching other times and it works great, no problems at all once you learn how to create waypoints, which are called "My Locations" on the Quest.

 

I am also in Ohio, Cincinnati area, so if you are nearby and would like to see my set-up and maps, e-mail me at appletree1@earthlink.net