iPhone app for European campsites

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RickH
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Joined: 5 Mar 2012, 6:39pm
Location: Horwich, Lancs.

Re: iPhone app for European campsites

Post by RickH »

nmnm wrote:
al_yrpal wrote:GOOGLE MAPS - does show the site?
No, the "point of interest" database has an entry of "camping municipal Revest-du-bion" (I put it there, a couple of years ago), and so it's visible onscreen. But it doesn't show as a campsite if you type "camping" into the search box, because I didn't know back then to categorise it as "campsite". The results that do show are all categorised as such. The red pin in the screengrab pic is from searching for the village, I believe. It's a great tiny wee campsite btw, for anyone heading towards ventoux.

Hopefully it will be marked as a campsite there shortly (I've added a campsite marker - don't know how long it will take Google to update it) :D

Rick.
Former member of the Cult of the Polystyrene Head Carbuncle.
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bikes4two
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Location: SE Hampshire, UK

Re: iPhone app for European campsites

Post by bikes4two »

andymiller wrote:Unfortunately campsites can and do go out of business, get converted into holiday villages, or get redeveloped. I would always be sure to google the campsite and check that it is still in business - most have a live website.

Oh and if you are travelling in say April or May or after mid-September, it's worth checking the site you are interested in will be open (look at the price list it will normally tell you).


+1 for Archies Camping which usually includes a telephone number to call if you really need to be sure. I think though, that you need a wifi or data connection for Archies (to bring up the map detail) and if your phone has GPS then all the better.
Without my stoker, every trip would only be half a journey
Psamathe
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Joined: 10 Jan 2014, 8:56pm

Re: iPhone app for European campsites

Post by Psamathe »

bikes4two wrote:
andymiller wrote:Unfortunately campsites can and do go out of business, get converted into holiday villages, or get redeveloped. I would always be sure to google the campsite and check that it is still in business - most have a live website.

Oh and if you are travelling in say April or May or after mid-September, it's worth checking the site you are interested in will be open (look at the price list it will normally tell you).


+1 for Archies Camping which usually includes a telephone number to call if you really need to be sure. I think though, that you need a wifi or data connection for Archies (to bring up the map detail) and if your phone has GPS then all the better.

I have used Archies POI gpx download with my offline mapping app. Mapping app pre downloads maps you want (chose) when on WiFi (I've downloaded all UK ages ago so it's a do once and update at your convenience (or very rarely)). Then download Archies gpx to the same app and load it and all the sites (and descriptions) are shown on the map and kept for offline use.

Ian
andymiller
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Joined: 8 Dec 2007, 10:26am

Re: iPhone app for European campsites

Post by andymiller »

bikes4two wrote:
andymiller wrote:Unfortunately campsites can and do go out of business, get converted into holiday villages, or get redeveloped. I would always be sure to google the campsite and check that it is still in business - most have a live website.

Oh and if you are travelling in say April or May or after mid-September, it's worth checking the site you are interested in will be open (look at the price list it will normally tell you).


+1 for Archies Camping which usually includes a telephone number to call if you really need to be sure. I think though, that you need a wifi or data connection for Archies (to bring up the map detail) and if your phone has GPS then all the better.


Archies seems to be a pretty good starting point for research, it's just a pity it doesn't include links to websites, but it takes literally seconds to Google a campsite you're interested in, check the opening time, prices, whether you like the look of the place, whether it's a naturist campsite etc etc. Maybe I've turned up at too many campsites that were closed or had turned into mobile home villages, but I can't see why you wouldn't spend an hour or two, before you go away, preparing a list of likely campsites along your route. Saving to Google Maps is a good way to store the list, but I also mark up my paper map with them.

To give an extreme example: I'm planning on starting my tour this year in Corsica in April. Archies list 190 campsites. I've checked a load along my route (Bastia to Bonifacio along the west coast) and I've found only 21 that are open in April. As I said, an extreme example - the figures for May would be better -and if you travel in July and August it's probably not going to be an issue for you.

EDIT: I was just thinking of my last tour where I took a punt on a campsite that was listed by ACSI but I couldn't find anything about on Google. It seemed odd, but I took a chance and made the detour. It turned out to be some sort of swingers club (porn magazines in the reception and bathrobes hanging up in the bar) I made my excuses (actually there was no one around) and left. I should say that I don't know whether it is listed by Archies.
doodah
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Joined: 9 Aug 2008, 2:26pm

Re: iPhone app for European campsites

Post by doodah »

Thank you all for your input and experience using these apps etc. One of the problems for people like me who are "new" to apps / iPhones / androids etc is that advice given can often conflict - so which do you choose without screwing up what little is left of my scrambled brains? I would like to outline my scenario. I know there will be some of you out there who think it's a bit overkill on the hardware etc, but I do believe in the right tool for the job. I am not interested in using / relying on an app from a smart phone to navigate across Europe, apologies for any offence caused to such users. Although reasonably technically competent, I struggle to keep up with the lingo applied to everyday technology, so please be patient with me :oops:

The details:-

I am cycling from St Malo to Istanbul using the EV6 - well that's the intention.
I have bought the full set of EV6 maps and also bought an Oregon 600 c/w maps of Europe. I have also downloaded Google maps to my iPhone as well as maps.me and archies maps app - overkill already?
Up to and including Austria, the campsites seem in abundance along the way, so no problem there. I will try using the occasional warm showers host as well as the occasional hostel / B&B for a good scrub up - well I don't want to disappoint the local talent, do I? :roll: In my dreams!!

So, the problem is finding campsites on the hoof, mainly from Romania onwards to Bulgaria and Istanbul. Google show campsites that others don't and vice versa. I have actually found that maps.me has been the best to use whilst being out and about in the Uk, not just for campsites but info in general. When I reach Istanbul, I would like to cycle home via the Balkans and Adriatic coast, but that will depend on my physical well being, not to mention the grey matter. Garmins offering for info, especially campsites leaves a lot to be desired, but they come up trumps on navigating - no doubt.

I have downloaded the POI and BMP for Bulgaria from Archies as a trial run and it has shown up all the campsites on Basecamp. I was impressed!! If I connect my Oregon to my iMac, will all those campsites be retained in the Oregon's memory? If so, then I can safely download all the other 10/15 or so countries that I want. Unlike me, I don't want my Oregon or SD cards with mapping on to be corrupted :evil: I would prefer to arrive at a campsite at the end of the day. Wild camping gives me the willies, what with the thought of wolves, bears, vampires and Count Dracula climbing into the tent, and then there's the werewolves as well. At least on a campsite, there's safety in numbers!!

Then there is the issue of using getting a sim card for every country that you pass through. I have thought of taking an old spare phone with me, just to keep putting these sim cards in, thus leaving my iPhone intact for sending / receiving texts from home. Is this overkill again? I hope this doesn't start another thread here. You may have guessed by now that I'm a bit of a novice at this, but not quite so. I have cycled and camped in Spain and France along more familiar routes and have been able to properly plan my logistics. It's a different story when on the hoof. I know that I cannot plan every day of this trip, but I want to understand how to use all the technology available to me, so that I am not like a rabbit in the headlights when either lost, or it's getting late and the bats are out :shock:

I will be away from computer for a few days - just going to get a massive Cross tattooed on my chest as insurance :lol:

As the motto goes:- Fail to prepare and prepare to fail.

Any and all help will be welcomed.

Thanks

Doodah
andymiller
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Joined: 8 Dec 2007, 10:26am

Re: iPhone app for European campsites

Post by andymiller »

doodah wrote:So, the problem is finding campsites on the hoof, mainly from Romania onwards to Bulgaria and Istanbul. Google show campsites that others don't and vice versa.


If there's a website it's fairly certain that the campsite exists and you can check it. If there isn't, the (normal) Google search results may show up other results - eg there may be a Facebook page or it may be listed by eurocampings or Zoover or TripAdviser. eurocampings is a pretty good guarantee that a site exists and you can check the opening times. If Google doesn't show up anything well it might exist, but it would be a good idea to phone ahead when you get closer, or have a Plan B. Yes I know it's a faff and if you are going in the main tourist season to somewhere that has a range of places to stay, you may need to do less checking. But on the other hand if the campsite is the only one for miles around then you might want to do more cross-checking.

doodah wrote:I have downloaded the POI and BMP for Bulgaria from Archies as a trial run and it has shown up all the campsites on Basecamp. I was impressed!! If I connect my Oregon to my iMac, will all those campsites be retained in the Oregon's memory?


Your best bet is to load them as POIs (there's a limit on the number of waypoints you can load - but I can't remember what it is). You need to use Garmin POILoader to create the file from either the .csv file provided by Archie —or you could export a selection of waypoints from Basecamp (which might be the better option if you are following a pre-determined route). There's a bit of a learning curve: there's probably a tutorial on his site somewhere.

doodah wrote:Then there is the issue of using getting a sim card for every country that you pass through. I have thought of taking an old spare phone with me, just to keep putting these sim cards in, thus leaving my iPhone intact for sending / receiving texts from home. Is this overkill again? I hope this doesn't start another thread here.


For most (probably all) of your route your best bet will be to use roaming with your usual operator - because one of the many useful things the European Union has done is cap mobile phone roaming charges. Internet is another matter at the moment. Your best bet is probably to rely on wifi along the route and maybe get a global data card for emergencies.

Local SIM cards generally cost, and there's usually a minimum amount you can load onto them so you end up with unused credit.

Oh and I don't know if I'm allowed to suggest this, but there's a guy called Vernon who visits CycleChat who seems to have done the further reaches of eurovelo 6. It might be worth seeing if you can contact him.
Psamathe
Posts: 17650
Joined: 10 Jan 2014, 8:56pm

Re: iPhone app for European campsites

Post by Psamathe »

doodah wrote:Thank you all for your input and experience using these apps etc. One of the problems for people like me who are "new" to apps / iPhones / androids etc is that advice given can often conflict - so which do you choose without screwing up what little is left of my scrambled brains? I would like to outline my scenario. I know there will be some of you out there who think it's a bit overkill on the hardware etc, but I do believe in the right tool for the job. I am not interested in using / relying on an app from a smart phone to navigate across Europe, apologies for any offence caused to such users. Although reasonably technically competent, I struggle to keep up with the lingo applied to everyday technology, so please be patient with me :oops:

The details:-

I am cycling from St Malo to Istanbul using the EV6 - well that's the intention.
I have bought the full set of EV6 maps and also bought an Oregon 600 c/w maps of Europe. I have also downloaded Google maps to my iPhone as well as maps.me and archies maps app - overkill already?
Up to and including Austria, the campsites seem in abundance along the way, so no problem there. I will try using the occasional warm showers host as well as the occasional hostel / B&B for a good scrub up - well I don't want to disappoint the local talent, do I? :roll: In my dreams!!
...

Doodah

Completely ignoring the campsite aspect,one app you might also want to consider is MapOut (for the iPhone by Valnova https://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/mapout/id477094081?mt=8). Mapping, being OSM/OCM (with contours) is free unlimited and you only pay for the app. It uses OpenStreet/Cycle map mapping, has probably the best rendering around and most importantly of all is very "altitude" focused (the two authors being keen cyclist and hikers). In the UK it marks most of the cycle routes and tap on one and you get an altitude profile for a distance either side of your tap (and as authors are German or Swiss (unsure) I would expect the same for Europe (though I've not tried that - so can't say what it does or does not do outside my own area where even Regional Cycle Routes are included). Touch two fingers on the map and it plots an altitude graph for a section line between your two fingers. Does all the pre-downloading (but it's vector based so very small so you can pre-load far more, etc.), Does all of the (pre-)loading routes, POI lists (gpx) records your track, etc.

Video showing much of what it can do https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yhgd8uStPDI&feature=youtu.be&noredirect=1

Ian
doodah
Posts: 164
Joined: 9 Aug 2008, 2:26pm

Re: iPhone app for European campsites

Post by doodah »

My sincere thanks to all of you who have given input.

I have looked into everything that everyone has contributed and at the same time, come to learn the applications of the Oregon. It seems to me that most applications seem to conflict with each other, and, depending which application one is au fait with, it is a minefield for the novice. Being a control freak ( being wrongly informed) I do like to plan my journey in advance. However, given my proposed logistics, it is natural to introduce a buggerment factor, say after, week 2! I will then have to wing it - as one has been accustomed to saying now.

Using the Oregon, I can plan routes and upload them to Google earth and get a profile 24/7 as opposed to using bike hike and the server being down - for whatever reason. Please do not be deceived by my recent acquiescence to this new found info. So in conclusion, I will have my maps of Europe (inc Balkans) loaded onto my Oregon and I will also have maps.me and archies loaded as back up apps on my iPhone. This really should be enough to get me from A - B via Q + Z given what we had only 20 years ago.

So, my friends, unless I've missed anything out e.g. AA recovery for cyclists, run flat tyres, cruise control etc, I would like to thank you all for your time and consideration, it is appreciated. If I complete what I feel I want to do, then perhaps, I can revisit this forum and give informative knowledge to others, based on actual experience - inshallah.

Doodah
BE1
Posts: 120
Joined: 22 May 2009, 10:56pm

Re: iPhone app for European campsites

Post by BE1 »

andymiller wrote:[quote="doodah"

Oh and I don't know if I'm allowed to suggest this, but there's a guy called Vernon who visits CycleChat who seems to have done the further reaches of eurovelo 6. It might be worth seeing if you can contact him.


Sadly, Vernon is no longer with us, but would no doubt encourage doodah to just jump on his bike and sample as much, tarte, kuchen, strudel, burek and pita as he can :)
doodah
Posts: 164
Joined: 9 Aug 2008, 2:26pm

Re: iPhone app for European campsites

Post by doodah »

BE1 wrote:Sadly, Vernon is no longer with us, but would no doubt encourage doodah to just jump on his bike and sample as much, tarte, kuchen, strudel, burek and pita as he can

I have just read your post and it has hit me like a ton of bricks . My condolences to all his family.

I will name my new Thorn Raven Tour - Vernon - in memory of him, believe me!! And I hope his spirit shadows me along my adventure.

Goodnight Vernon - long live Vernon

doodah
doodah
Posts: 164
Joined: 9 Aug 2008, 2:26pm

Re: iPhone app for European campsites

Post by doodah »

doodah wrote:BE1 wrote:
Sadly, Vernon is no longer with us, but would no doubt encourage doodah to just jump on his bike and sample as much, tarte, kuchen, strudel, burek and pita as he can

I have just read your post and it has hit me like a ton of bricks . My condolences to all his family.

I will name my new Thorn Raven Tour - Vernon - in memory of him, believe me!! And I hope his spirit shadows me along my adventure.


As promised, BE1, please find attachments of Vernon. It's not a reincarnation of him, but a reincarnation of his spirit built into my bike.

Don't worry, we'll take good care of each other.

12 .jpg

5 .jpg

6 .jpg


I hope you like the look of him all togged up and approve. He looks good and strong undressed as well 8)

All the best to you BE1

doodah
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