Re; GPS (satnav) system in Ireland

Your GPS should have settings that allow you to specify the type of units. Don't rely solely on the GPS, it may send you down some roads you're not comfortable with. It's useful, but do some advance planning and have maps available as a back-up. Many car rental GPS are a bit pricey, have you considered whether you can buy your own for what you're paying to rent? That way you're familiar with the unit, and can pre-load your destinations and routes before you get there.

we brought our GPS with us after purchasing an Ireland map chip in 2013. it has settings that you can change from kilometers, miles and time zones. it will send you the most direct route, which is not always the best route to drive, meaning it will take you off the main road, through minor roads, if that is the most direct, so you will need a map as a backup. Also places do not have good addresses as we have in the states, so B&Bs and other sites give out the longitude and latitude which you can put in the GPS to find the specific location. Also when driving you will not want to go the most direct route for scenery purposes, so a good map is necessary.

Thank you for your replies - we do appreciate you taking the time to do so. Yes we have thought about buying one here in California but I read somewhere about people with GPS systems from here not being able to plug them into Irish and British cars.
I have a Garmin GPS - its about 7 or 8 years old and it plugs into a socket in my car that resembles a cigarette lighter socket. I know that those type sockets are no longer being put into newer cars.
To rent a system in Dublin will cost 15 Euros per day and if wasn't for our uncertainty about the plug in thing we would buy one here and familiarize ourselves with it beforehand.
We will have maps as a back up - just in case we get some questionable directions from our navigational help!
Thanks again for your help and advice. mcm95

We used our Garmin GPS in Ireland for 9 weeks last year and there was never an issue regarding lighter socket compatibility for the plug. Believe that all new cars still have them...may have to hunt around to find it but am sure it's there. Just check with the rental car company if you need verification.
Need to ensure that you have the updated map for Ireland and the north - some new construction in Belfast and Derry that you'll want to steer clear of.

The old "cigarette lighter" socket is a common 12 volt power receptacle. The builders no longer put lighters in the sockets but there's usually a receptacle in the center console or in a little foldout bin that somewhat resembles an ashtray. :-)

Thank you, Robert & Peter, for your advice. We have decided to buy a Garmin here with UK & Ireland maps added. I think that it's important to get familiar with the unit before taking it to Ireland.
Thanks again to everyone who responded to our questions. mcm95

Mcm95, would you mind posting where you purchased the preloaded gps? Thank you

Google Maps (street view) was quite helpful for us on our trip last year. Can "drive" portions of the route in advance to visually familiarize yourself with streets, landmarks, roundabouts, etc., and in some cases it'll take you right to the door of your hotel or b&b. Was a big stress reliever for me to preview legs of our trip in advance - might work for you too.

Hi KrMagnes & Robert, Col.Springs,

Yes I will post when we buy the Garmin - probably this week - July 4th. sales will still be on!

Robert - thanks for that suggestion - it does help to see what the Motorways look like but we still can't figure out if the M1 remains a Motorway all the way through Belfast until we join the M2 going North and later branch off on the A26 going towards Ballymena.
Hopefully we don't have to drive on Belfast city streets for part of this journey.
Thanks again for your help. mcm95

The Northern Ireland M1 does not connect with the NI M2, but they are linked by a dual carriage way that is for all intents and purposes part of the M1. Just follow the signs at that point, which will switch from blue to green, and it will take you on to the M2, where they will become blue again.

Drove from Belfast to Dingle in 2013 and around the entire island ( NI and Eire) in 97.

Both trips without some computerized irritating talking head spouting where to proceed to and too often insisting on the longest and less convenient route. No apologies. My job entails countless hours of road travel in and around SoCal and I NEVER use GPS. Regular old free AAA map as a back up if needed.

In European countries I now look online via Google Maps the night before Check routes and city names and off I go. Nary a problem yet.

In both countries signage is prevalent. If you know where you're going ( and some the name of towns in between point A to point B ) driving there shouldn't be a problem. Similar to driving the 101. A straightforward trip from Dublin to NI You can pay the tolls online. Ask about this when you get your rental at the Dublin airport. I believe there's at least one roundabout in NI on your route. They can be tricky if you've not encountered one before. However, a couple of times around you'll get the hang of them!!

If you are stressed about this drive use the Google Maps satellite street view. You can see what the freeway looks like. Other than getting used to driving on the opposite side of the road it isn't rocket science.

Lastly, if you are actually visiting Belfast I highly recommend the Titanic Museum, St Stephen's market and the seafood chowder at Mourne's next to Kelly's Cellars pub.

Hi,
Once again I want to say a big thank you to all who replied to our posting. Thanks MC Glasgow for that information about the transition from the M1 to the M2 in N.I. - it's good to know in advance what to look for.

We bought a new GPS system today but won't have it for about 8 to 10 days. The reason for this is because we purchased it from the Garmin company at Garmin.com

Some details
Garmin Nuvi 2559LMT $249.00 but they gave us a rebate of $50.00 on an old 2007 Garmin 760 which we had to mail back to Kansas.
Our final price including taxes was $215.99
All the big stores - BestBuy, Walmart, Crutchfield and so on also had it at $249.00 and there are some on Ebay at over $300.00.

Advanced GPS Car Navigation.
5.0-inch pinch-to-zoom, dual-orientation display
Detailed maps of North America and Europe with free lifetime¹ map updates and traffic avoidance
Garmin Real Directions™ guide like a friend using landmarks and traffic lights
Find new and popular restaurants, shops and more with Foursquare®
Bluetooth® technology for hands-free calling³
Detailed Maps with Free Updates
nüvi 2559LMT arrives loaded with detailed maps of North America and Europe. With free lifetime¹ map updates, your routes are sure to reflect the most up-to-date maps, points of interest (POI) and navigation information available. New maps are available for download for the useful life of your GPS device, with no fees.
So that's it. We will get a chance to use it before driving in Ireland in September. We will give the maps one last update shortly before we get there.

Thanks again. mcm95