Best trip planner

S&T isn't so much for finding campgrounds.

Yes, you do need a destination location, but I use customized POI files or some I've setup myself from recommendations, reviews, etc.

It is for route planning, which roads to take, how long the drive will be for each day (you can customize it so the route time works out to an average of 50 or 60 mph if you wish).

When I see S&T try to route me through I-35E in downtown Dallas, it is a simple click and drag to change the route. Other changes are useful.

I use S&T to setup a maximum drive time zone for a day's drive. That then tells me where to look on Allstays, RV Park Reviews and other sites for a campground near my target distance.

I strongly prefer to have everything about my trip on my computer. I've been caught with no cell service/ internet connection too often while traveling.

Once you get off the major interstates, there are gaps in coverage.

One thing I like about S&T is that it is very easy to review the planned drive for a day by looking at the details in the computer with my coffee before we pull out.

I can choose any level of zoom, to see the whole day, or to look at a particular intersection (sometimes S&T shows me something complicated, and I then go to Google Earth/Bing Maps - always check the date of the images to look for new construction.

I don't get to highway changes or intersections and not already know which way the turn will be. I've worked it out in advance.

Another thing is I keep an S&T file for each year's travels. Nice to look back and know exactly where we went, where we stayed, etc.

S&T has for me the best interface, the easiest to work with. Yes, the data is getting old, there have been some roadway changes. (Was recently on I-35 near New Braunfels/ San Marcos, TX - S&T has the revised exits wrong, so do current Garmin and Rand McNally GPS maps.)

OldRacer wrote:
it looks to me like there are MANY apps on Google Play for campgrounds. None of you guys have tried them yet?

The OP is lamenting the loss of MS S&T updates, which does show many, but not all, CGs.

Apps like RVParky are great. So are some of the trip planners. The thing is, what good are they when you are in an area where there is no cell service & you want or need to make a change of route plans?

it looks to me like there are MANY apps on Google Play for campgrounds. None of you guys have tried them yet?

I still use S&T 11 as well. My long distance travel is primarily on expressways. I supplement with state maps as I visit gas stations.

I like the Good Sam trip planner. Combine that with your own research and you can't go wrong.

Another MS S&Ts fugitive here. Still working with ver 2011.

The point that all of the internet app users miss is the ability of a stand alone mapping program to make changes on the fly. It operates anywhere it can recieve the GPS signal. You can 'look around' on the fly just like having very detailed county maps across the US, Canada & Mexico right at your fingertips & make route changes. You don't need an internet connection. A stand alone works just fine anywhere on the Alaskan Highway or the mountainous West where cell service does not exist.

We travel with a stand alone GPS too. The destination for the day is put into it & it plots the shortest route. That is rarely our intended route so the stand alone GPS is there as a backup. A 'Daily Trip Route' file is created on S&T, separate from the overall trip file, & that is the one the navigation is done by.

Giving MS another year or so to come to their senses & re introduce S&Ts then I might have to get Delorme.

I've been using RV Parky lately and it works pretty well for planning. Will show your route with all RV parks/parks, walmarts, truck stops etc. available on your chosen route. Will export to GPX also. Requires internet connection for full functionality. They have an app of course for searching while on the road.

Dave

jjrbus wrote:
I was a big fan of Streets and Trips on a laptop for travels but they have ended service. I preferred it to a GPS. Is there a good alternative using a laptop. A program that shows campground would be even better. Jim

I share your pain. Route planning used to be both easy and thorough, but as more and more people settle for phone- or online-based alternatives, it's getting harder and harder. FWIW, I still used MS S&T 2013 as a start. Then dump the .gpx file into Garmin MapSource, and still use my Garmin Zumo 665 as the dashboard display. (I like the 665 because I have the external antenna, which gives me NEXRAD weather on the route map as I drive.)

Threads like this come up from time to time and I keep waiting for a super-duper option to appear. I hope that someday there will be options like the gazillion of general aviation apps for flying, but I'm getting more and more pessimistic as time goes on.

I'll follow this thread... hope springs eternal. :)

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I've found when I do my own home work the trip goes better.
Google maps is your friend.

We like roadtrippers as planning on the desktop transfers directly to the phone app.