gps

Role down the window and ask directions, you'll meet a lot of very nice people that way.

We now leave the GPS with Europe map chip home and use my iPhone with a SIM card with large amount of data, cheap. I know you can download maps ahead, but what about constant changes in driving routes? The Got us all over Sicily, even in thick fog!

In all likelihood your Garmin only has map data on it for US roads, so will probably be useless for the European road network.
Using a smartphone is a better option.

You can use Google Maps offline (e.g. with no cell service or wireless) for driving, provided you download the maps before you go. So for example if you're driving in Iceland, you can download the piece of Iceland you'll be driving in beforehand. See https://www.cnet.com/how-to/how-to-use-google-maps-offline-on-ios-android/

I haven't taken a gps in years. I just use my phone. Have you updated your maps lately?

The old Garmin should fine - power-wise - using the "cigarette lighter" connection in a modern rental car.

But if you've never used it in Europe before, it may not have European maps. If the Garmin is new enough, you might be able to buy a European map card for it.

As others have suggested, a smart phone with Google Maps (even without mobile service in Ireland) would work as a GPS, as long as you have downloaded the maps "offline" into the app ahead of time. Some tablets will work that way too (not all - try it at home).

Thanks all!

We have taken our Garmin to Europe many times and it has always come thru for us, or at least 98% time. Hubby says it worked better than cell phone while in Scotland a couple years ago.

We can use our cell phone, but it's just 2G over there, so I thought our GPS might be nice, and easy! It does have European maps.

My main concern was the outlet to plug it in.

Thanks again! And, I do like the idea of asking directions!

Susan and Monte—glad you’re back.
We’ve had a few cars these last few years without lighters but all had USB ports. We recycled the old European TomTom and use the phone.

The auto manufacturers have removed the cigarette lighter but left what is now referred to as a power point. Most new cars have USB ports but I have never rented one without the lighter-less power point. If you haven’t updated your maps in a while, you might want to do so but it might be more expensive than getting local, faster cell service.

Hi Susan,

I've rented several cars in Europe in the last 3-4 years, always had a power outlet. I had 2G of data for 3+ weeks in Portugal. I used google maps a lot, sometimes when I didn't trust (rightly so) the Garmin, and a lot when I was walking around. I also used email and Whatsapp a lot including sending photos to friends though I avoided the data hogs like videos and Waze. I used less than 1.5G.

Hmmm... I'm interested to learn that automakers have removed the cigarette lighter from cars. Our 3-year old Volkswagen has two cigarette lighter ports -- one in the front seat and the other in the trunk. Cigarette lighter cell phone chargers are widely sold in France, at least, as are the ubiquitous (since large bags of ice are so rarely available) Campingaz powered coolers, which have a cigarette lighter plug to power them in a car (some also have a 2-prong plug for wall sockets at a house).

Someone should tell those guys that automakers have removed the cigarette lighter from cars.

If you want to re-use an old GPS after a longer time it can happen that it does not work properly due to a GPS update in April 2019 (see details).

Check Garmin website.

Alternative: buy a mobile solution for smartphone with permanent offfline map, e.g. Sygic.

I recomment, not to use Google Maps in Germany and other parts of Europe. Really bad quality of guidance and partly very old data.

@ Matt -- Newer cars don't have cigarette lighters but they have the equivalent receptacle for chargers and other devices, covered (at least in mine) with a little flap. You can't use it to light a cigarette (though maybe you can buy a lighter insert) but you can use it to charge devices like GPS, phones, and such. I have two, plus a couple of USB ports.

I take my Garmin, with a Europe map, when I'll be driving. It's small and light enough for me. I get free updates so make sure that's done before any major trip. And, as I'm sure Susan and Monte know, a good map is still worth bringing or acquiring to keep the GPS honest.

Thanks for all the replies!

I think I'll go ahead and take the Garmin, and the iPhone with 2G, Ricks recommended atlas of Ireland, and a couple of maps. Then, if I see a local I'll ask directions even if I don't need them :-)

Watch out, Susan. Stopping locals for directions can add hours to your driving times thanks to those long, delightful conversations. I think the gift of gab is a hereditary gene across the island.

We have rented cars twice in England (driven in Wales and England) and found a nav system or gps to be indispensable to find our B&B or small hotel. Our nav system on our last car rental (with Europcar) wasn't the best and twice in 28 days it failed to locate our destination. Both times we had to ask for help. It added a lot of time driving in traffic and created much frustration.

I rented a car, in Ireland, in May and it had a cigarette lighter. I just got the cheapest small manual transmission. It might be different in the better cars.

There's an old joke about asking an Irish person for directions. In a nutshell, they're (in)famous for giving directions even when they have no idea. It usually ends with, "and when you get there, ask someone else."

Using the cell phone shouldn't care about 2G. Mine uses a satellite signal and works without data. In fact, because of limited signal, it worked better turning data off. I used Co Pilot.

I've found Google Maps wants data (haven't tried Google Maps offline). It will navigate without data. If you miss a turn, however, it won't reroute without data. I'd avoid it in favor of something you download the maps at home ahead of your trip.

My rental car in England had that type of port to plug into. I also bought a new car 3 weeks ago and it has the old cigarette lighter type port, they just don't call it that anymore. I have a Tom Tom GPS and I had brought it to use last Fall, but my rental car came with built in GPS (Nissan Qashqai). One word of advice, the guy at the rental counter said in England when using a GPS my best bet was to plug in the Zip Code and not the address and I'd get better accuracy. It turns out my Tom Tom didn't allow me to search via Postal Code so luckily the car came with GPS. I'm not sure if Garmin is the same and if Ireland addresses are better searched for via Postal Code but it's worth researching.