GuideAlong | GPS Audio Tours 4+

We recently took along the Gypsy audio trip thru both of these parks. We downloaded prior to our visit. There was no cell service or internet at the park. The narrator was always with us. A map was included to follow along, but we chose only to listen to the narrator. We just activated the audio as we came close to the park. The narrator started to tell us about the park, the history and made suggestions for photo op’s. The narrator told us when the pull off’s were coming up and what to expect. This audio trip made our adventure much more exciting. We didn’t miss a thing at the parks. If we chose not to stop, the narrator just knew and continued on the trip. I can’t say enough about these trips. We have used them before in Glasier and Yellowstone. We are presently working on Bryce and Zion. Most of all, my husband found the narrator quite amusing, not annoying. After all, he is with you quite awhile along the trip. We made sure our iPad was being charged as we drove and left it on all day. The narrator would come on and off as we approached areas of interest. We definately recommend and will continue to use when we travel to other areas. Just downloaded Grand Canyon. Gypsy, keep up the good work. Well appreciated.

First I want to say that we started out early in the morning hoping to beat the crowd. Although we thought most of the tour guidance on the app was good, all of the “have to” locations that the app suggested were completely full when we approached them. We later found that there were some other obtainable waterfalls that we not crowded that were not mentioned. So we ended up driving for hours and only stopped at 2 tourist stands to get banana bread and a treat. Ugggg, it was a really long day of just driving. I wish we had had a “heads up” that all the sights would be full and we would have cut our trip short. Also learning on the app the day of the trip that we needed tickets to the park 24 hours ahead of time was not helpful information. Last but not least, the history of the rulers was repetitive and was not what we wanted to listen to the whole way down the mountain. We thought the guide was giving directions to get down but instead gave an account of the rulers. Although I think this app is a great idea and had some great info going up, it missed some opportunities to see some sites that our guide book had mentioned. On the morning of we chose to forgo the guidebook info and solely use this app. We would use the guidebook next time. As I shared before, without opportunities to park and explore because of the crowdedness, we ended up with a very long day of driving.

In Maui. Wanted to do the Road to Hanna. Heard bad things about van rides, bus rides, motion sickness, “trapped” feelings. Decided to rent a car and give it a go. Facebook group for Pride of America (NCL) cruise postings about GuideAlong were very promising. Comparing costs of tour excursions against car rental, gas and the app I was way ahead. The big surprise was just how very cool this app is. Even better with Apple CarPlay on the car. We set out and out of the blue this friendly guy starts telling us all about the journey we are on. He knows just where we are every minute and gives spot on advice about what to do and what not to do. I swear it’s like I’m sitting next to the local tourism expert. His sense of humor was appreciated, lightening the mood. What I’m amazed at is, though many times I was without any cell service, he kept right on telling me what to look for, recommending food stops, the best sights to see and those to avoid. He warned me of dangerous turns and road conditions. Then, on the way back, he gave us an entire history of Hawaii. Fascinating. We have decided to plan our next outing through the Catskills just to hook into the GuideAlong for that route. Now…if only he could take over the driving.