What budget (or used) GPS for 3wk Melbourne trip? (from Ireland)

[stevebni]

Hello all, in a couple of weeks I'll be arriving in Melbourne from Ireland for a three-week visit, I'm bringing my bike and plan to do a few days rides as well as get an hour or so a day in the saddle. It's just occurred to me that my GPS (an old Mio Cyclo 305) doesn't have maps for Melbourne, and getting them seems near impossible, so it looks like I'm going to have to pick something up once I arrive.

I don't much use a GPS at home, so I've no longterm requirement, so reluctant to spend too much.

I've seen 2nd hand Garmin Edge 800's for sale locally for less than £100 ($175), so I'm wonder if they can be picked up 2nd locally for the same(ish)? If so, where is good to look?

Is the Garmin 800 a good local GPS? I'm aware that some brands are better than others in certain countries, so should I be looking at alternatives?

I arrive on the 9th of June, and would like to have something either waiting for me, or arriving pretty soon after I land.

Thanks.

[Neddysmith]

Why dont you just use your phone and google maps or some toher free mapping software while here, costs nothing and will give you more detail the the maps you will get with a cycling computer.

[ValleyForge]

Interesting situation. Generally a phone is crap for navigating while riding. There are detailed threads elsewhere here on this.

A Garmin 800 (or higher) will easily be loadable with free maps of both Melbourne & Ireland. Particularly the OSM (Open Street Maps) have cyclepaths as well as roads and lots of local info on them - in FAR more detail than the 'phone maps.
The bigger the screen, the better for "live" navigating while riding; most Garmin users though will plan a route on the web (Strava or Garmin Connect or ridewithgps) and load it onto the device beforehand.

So I'd agree with a Garmin as you will likely use it when you're back home or touring elsewhere.

[Jmuzz]

The fairly cheap Lyzene use a hybrid system where the phone app is running Google Maps navigation and relays the directions to the headset by Bluetooth.

Nowhere near as nice as a real map screen though.

[stevebni]

I tried the phone thing, bit of a disaster if you ask me. To save the pain of trying to load up maps to a garmin, is there a local source for 2nd hand models?

[Toyopet]

......I don't much use a GPS at home, so I've no longterm requirement, so reluctant to spend too much....

Here's a free solution that worked for me. I had a similar problem trying to use my Mio/Magellan overseas. I knew the unit’s basemap was locked to Australia, but was hoping that by loading an OS route into it, I could at least follow the route without a basemap. Unfortunately it wouldn’t even load the route once at my destination. It came up with some error along the lines “no basemap available”. However, my Plan B worked. It might work for you too. See below for Plan B.

1 - Download the free maps.me app onto your phone
2 - Ensure you also download the maps.me map for Melbourne or Victoria
Note that maps.me can be used offline once you’re in Melbourne; no data connection required

3 - Generate your desired Melbourne routes and export them as kml or kmz files
(Ride With GPS is a good free means of doing this, to generate and export kml files)

4 - Import these kml or kmz files to maps.me

Once you’re in Melbourne, you can then follow these routes.

It won’t give you full functionality of a Mio/Magellan or Garmin, but you’ll be able to follow the route without getting too lost. And it’s all free.

[MattyK]

Leave the mapping computer at home. Pull your phone out if you get lost. Enjoy getting lost and looking at the scenery.

[RonK]

Generate your desired Melbourne routes and export them as kml or kmz files
(Ride With GPS is a good free means of doing this, to generate and export kml files)

Why bother with all this exporting/importing. If you generate the routes in Ride With GPS, why wouldn't you just use the Ride With GPS app?

[Toyopet]

Generate your desired Melbourne routes and export them as kml or kmz files
(Ride With GPS is a good free means of doing this, to generate and export kml files)

Why bother with all this exporting/importing. If you generate the routes in Ride With GPS, why wouldn't you just use the Ride With GPS app?

True. It's easier and simpler to do it directly via the app. But you would need the RWGPS upgrade for offline use, and/or data connection. I prefer the maps.me option because I also use it for general purposes, not just cycling routes.

[NASHIE]

Leave the mapping computer at home. Pull your phone out if you get lost. Enjoy getting lost and looking at the scenery.

+1 some of my best travel memories are from lost of the beaten track.

[Tamiya]

I'm in Melb. Around the city mapped GPS is useless due to constant roadworks & closures everywhere (metro train tunnelling), your best up2date hope is via GoogleMaps... at least they're on the ball with updated info. By comparison even Apple Maps is miles behind; don't even bother with Waze etc. CBD is a simple NS/EW grid anyway & a boring place to cycle - use the free tram!

Get out into the hills (Dandenongs) or down the coast (west to Geelong, east to Portsea) & there's generally only one scenic road anyway. Stay off the freeways, bikes aren't allowed except on interstates & imho suicidal. Roads are well signposted.

Better still jump on a train and travel out to the end of each line with your bike then ride back.

[stevebni]

Thanks for all the help, decided to go the phone route after all. Bought one of those phone bungee things, seems to work OK.

If anyone has or knows of any good routes around the Melbourne (Lalor) region, ideally mostly rough or "gravel" roads, I'd appreciate some pointers.

Thanks.