Ever thought about getting a GPS system with your car rental? Did you think $10/day was too much? Let me tell 'ya, once you've tried it, you're hooked.
I first rented a GPS device with a car rental when my boyfriend and I visited Europe two weeks ago. WOW! I want my own! The one we had was called TomTom but I know Garmin is another popular brand.
In case you've never seen or used one before: You type in the address of your destination (like the hotel), it calculates the best route in 5 seconds, and then the computers talks out loud with the directions. ("In 50 meters, turn left...turn left now...) The directions start from exactly where you are at that point.
Now, I used to think that having the convenience of a GPS system was too luxurious and that you can survive without one. Now that I've experienced using it for 1 1/2 weeks of driving on vacation from city to city, I've changed my mind!
I HIGHLY recommend using a GPS device when traveling through towns you are not very familiar with, and especially driving as a couple. There are so many reasons why I recommend having a GPS device.
- No more getting lost! No more excessive U-turns! - With a map, it's so easy to miss turns and once you do, sometimes it's hard to get back on track, especially when you're in a city with one way streets. The GPS device automatically creates a new route as soon as it detects that you didn't take the turn it had suggested.
- Alternative routes in case of traffic jam or accident - if you find yourself in a jam, you can ask the computer to find another route.
- Plan a day ahead - it's almost like having mapquest with you. You can choose a special function where you specify a starting point and an ending point, and then it'll give you the route, distance, and time to drive. (The normal function starts the directions from your current position.)
- Less stress in the car and makes the vacation more relaxing - this could even save a relationship. I'm usually the navigator and my boyfriend is the driver. Arguing was always inevitable when driving through an unknown area, like trying to find our hotel.
- No maps to buy - get free ones from the tourist office that gives you an overall view of the town or state, but leave the details up to the GPS device. And you'll look less like a tourist when driving by the locals.
- Safety - the driver can pay more attention to driving, rather than getting distracted by fighting with the navigator, or fussing with a map when driving alone.
Like everything else, it's not perfect. One time we ended up driving down a road which really wasn't a road, but the GPS thought we were on the road right next to us which was a real road. You most likely won't have this problem in Canada or US and rarely in Europe, but more likely Europe because of some of their crazy roads.
Another issue would be streets being newly created and your GPS device doesn't have the latest. It'll be rare that you do run into this but when you do, don't worry because if the GPS loses your location because you're on new roads, just keep driving and you'll eventually get back on old road again :). It's quite entertaining on the screen though, it looks like you're flying. :)
So is the GPS device worth $10/day that the car rental agencies will charge you? If you're going through unfamiliar territory, YES!!! Go back to those 6 points and see how much those are worth to you.
You can watch a demonstration of TomTom here (requires high speed internet).
http://www.tomtom.com/lib/flash/valencia/index.php?language=us
