GPS system Europe

For me, the argument for a GPS is the same as in the US.

You certainly don't need one but they are a convenience and they're quite inexpensive nowadays - I guess it depends on your own priorities.

Diane,

For me this is a must have device, especially given the cost. Purely from a safety standpoint if anything. It's dark out. The weather is bad. City driving. You don't want to be fiddling with maps trying to identify streets in languages that aren't familiar to you.

I recommend Garmin. Learn to use it before you leave. Plug in your addresses (ie hotels) before you leave.

Here is a discussion on another thread that discusses making sure it is Europe ready.

Renting a GPS in Spain

I first read about the value of a GPS on this forum. We totally believe a GPS removes anxiety mapgrabbing and second guessing. We dont take vacations without it anymore.
We bought a TomTom for about $200 or $250 last year which had the Euro maps preloaded; the less expensive devices are US/Canada maps only. We liked being able to mark the car's location, put it in our pocket, walk around, and turn it back on when ready to find the car and leave town. It was invaluable at the roundabouts and getting into the correct lane for highway exits.
It was also great for walking as it has all sorts of attractions, hotels, museums, hospitals, post offices and more loaded, so you don't have to pull a map out.

We consider the GPS (Garmin) simply indispensable when traveling, especially oversea. We used it in Germany, Austria and northern France last fall. We bought the portable Garmin that was already loaded for overseas and carry it with us for use in the rental car. We will be using it in Slovenia/Croatia this fall. Some countries are not preloaded (Australia and NZ), but you can buy these and download them into your unit. (South America is not available...yet) We now plan to also use it when we are doing walking tours of large cities and bought a recharging unit to keep the batteries charged when we are not using it in the car.

After traveling around the US for a month this summer with our Garmin Nuvi 780, personally I would not travel without one again.

Loved it.

It pays to purchase the lifetime map updates.

I was surprise at the gravel roads the GPS recognized.

Since moving to Europe from the US, we purchased the TomTom (rider for the motorcycle/car) and will never go on a European trip without it again! In the US, we used Garmin. Both are good, but many reviews praised TomTom for Euro maps. Be sure to download any extras - gas stations and restaurants that might not be pre-loaded.

*Even though we have the GPS, we always bring a physical map and print out of our itinerary. The GPS can break down!

Lots of people on here recommended getting a Garmin 270. They're available on CompUSA.com for $121.98 with shipping included, and it was incredible. We got one after 7 or so recommendations on here, and loved it. Drove through Italy, Ireland, Slovenia, Germany,and Austria for 17 days, and it was fantastic.

I hear you can even ebay them for about what you paid for them! It was absolutely great!

We just returned from a car renting, GPS driven, European vacation. The GPS is a must. It saved us time and anxiety. HOWEVER, be forwarned that GPS often lose satellite in cities with tall buildings and it can go out at very inopportune moments. Also, some of our most enjoyable moments came when we got lost.