TravelinSperry

Hello all,

Heading to Scotland and going to be driving around the Highlands and Isle of Skye. A friend who did this trip 2 years ago (2015) said Google Maps was horrible and that the car rental GPS saved him a bunch of times. However the car rental (Europcar) GPS is very pricey ($18.55 per day). Do you think I can get away with just my cell and Google maps? Or am I risking it in the remote areas?

Thanks!

Skatering

Google Maps has an offline mode, where you can download any maps you'll need. If you do that, then you shouldn't be affected when you stray into no-service parts of the Highlands.

Failing that, buy a GPS locally and install a UK map onto it. $18.55/day is insane.

Giggleswick

I know that this will make me sound like an antique or worse, but I've successfully navigated around many parts of Scotland with nothing but a (gasp!) printed road atlas. Most recently was last year on a trip that included Argyll, Islay, Lewis and Harris, the far north, then back to Edinburgh via Dornoch, the Black Isle, Speyside, and Perthshire. All with Philip's Navigator Scotland atlas (mostly 1:200,000; 1:100,000 from the border to the Forth-Clyde line) for a whopping £8. So if you're willing to go low-tech, it can be done.

hackneycab2

Yes,me too!but...will be over that way in Oct(UK,Scotland & Eire) and like you, just used a road map as well,but....last time I was over (015,016) I was lucky enough to score a rental car with "shock horror" a sat Nav as standard!(after I had bought a satnav in Ealing,gave it to my cousin when I left though,I asked if I could "borrow" it back,he said well it is yours!Glad I can get my hands on one though,it does make life just a little easier.Scotland is not hard to navigate without one anyhow,especially the Outer Hebrides(my mother comes from Lewis.)Cheers

WorldLux

1. Google/Here offline maps.
2. Road maps
3. Buying a world navigation system. (I invested 150$ into a TomTom a couple of years ago and it's pretty much paid off.)

TravelinSperry

Thanks all. Good suggestions.

1- I just downloaded Google Maps offline.
2- I was able to lower the GPS cost by switching to Sixt. It's now $10.33 per day. Europcar prices were insane. Still high but surely less than buying a Tom Tom I'll never need again. I still may cancel the GPS rental - but at least it's more palatable now.
3- I may just go the old school printed map route for $10 or so. I wonder though, where would I even buy one, lol. Unless it's at Glasgow airport when I arrive, I'd have no idea.

Giggleswick

Shops do still sell road atlases--I'm not the only dinosaur who loves the printed page!

If you're picking up the car at the airport, the ubiquitous WH Smith (newsagent; there are several at the airport) will have them; no problem. Also the Visitor Information Centre, which I think is in the domestic arrivals hall.They may also sell them at the auto rental office (I say "may" because I've never rented a car at GLA).

If you'll be staying in the city or passing through a largeish town, general bookshops (e.g., Waterstones on Argyle Street or Sauchiehall Street in Glasgow) and newsagents should also have them. Some supermarkets and convenience stores stock them.

Motorway service stations will have them, and other service stations may.

lwildernorva

If you're only interested in getting to where you want to go, you probably need neither GPS or maps. That's how I did my first trip to Scotland in 1998 which included trips into the Highlands. The roads are really well sign posted.

GPS pays dividends when you see a single-track road and on the spot of the moment, think, "I wonder where that goes?" You can explore that road without a thought because when you need to find yourself, the GPS does an admirable job. For those with map and compass skills, a map can do the job. For the rest of us, a GPS provides a lot of assurance. In the last couple of years, I've used Here and offline, downloaded Google Maps. Both work very well.

WorldLux

How long is the rental? I paid 150$ for a Tom Tom with World maps (the ones limited to a region are cheaper) as it would've been 50$ cheaper than paying for Sat-nav for 16 days of rental. Since I've bought it, I have it used numerous times for other rentals and private use back home (as it isn't limited to Europe).

You can however be perfectly fine with Google Maps. Don't forget to have a 12V charger or battery pack.

HIDDY

Being Scottish I really don't need a road map, however I like to look at one to judge scale when we go back and tour. I picked a new one up on our last visit...a couple of quid from a discount shop or supermarket.

The free phone Apps mentioned come into their own when locating your accommodation using the post code facility.

antichef

Navigating Scotland with a printed map is simple, most tourist routes are via a single direction road, all well signposted. Navigating a city (Edinburgh/Glasgow etc) down to street level less so, same as all cities. Navigating to an airport GLA/EDI/ABZ etc is easy - excellent signage.

Maps are usually issued (flimsy type) free at rental locations. All service stations on main roads will stock road atlas/maps. Leaving airport GLA/EDI etc and heading off North, for example, you will head towards Perth then off towards Inverness or Aberdeen. All road signs are big and obvious!

:D!

I use Galileo Offline Maps, which is based on OpenStreetMap. I find it more useful than Google maps...

it is more likely to give useful information than Google in remote areas.

mad_rich

Agree that GPS is not necessary - many of us managed to get from A to B before them! - but nice to have. Great for getting you out of a town or city as much as anything else.

Bear in mind that when you download Google Maps offline, it doesn't always have the ability to calculate a route offline; just display the maps. (Unless things have changed recently.) Other apps, e.g. Nav Free, do. Don't expect much phone signal anywhere in the highlands.

Also, you should know there are stiff new penalties for using your phone in a car in the UK. You should make sure it's properly mounted (you can get a windscreen suction mount in most petrol stations) and preferably avoid touching the phone to enter an address while you're driving.

irish_goat

I'd recommend Here Maps for driving in the UK and Ireland. Download the maps so they're available offline before you start just. Make sure to have a USB cable handy for charging in the car too.

mandolino

Donald!

Things have changed.
Phone signal is improving all the time. For driving I'd happily rely on Google maps in Highlands and islands these days.

Road atlas can be bought at the first motorway services place you stop at. Or at WH Smith in the airport.