Decent Map Of Greater Bangkok

[2long]

Firstly, I'm not sure where to post this, so it's going on Motor and Travels forums.

Ok, so it's my fault for living in Taling Chan and often travelling out of town in the road south, but I just can't find a decent map (in English) that has these roads on the north-west part of town.

Any ideas?

[corkscrew]

Firstly, I'm not sure where to post this, so it's going on Motor and Travels forums.

Ok, so it's my fault for living in Taling Chan and often travelling out of town in the road south, but I just can't find a decent map (in English) that has these roads on the north-west part of town.

Any ideas?

I like the map produced by Thinknet. It is an extremely detailed bilingual map of Bangkok and the surrounding area that is GPS surveyed. It comes with a disk so you can display it on your computer and perform searches in English. I bought mine in Robinson's.

Have you thought of getting a navigation GPS? I love the one I have.

[taxexile]

how much was that system corkscrew ? and do thinknet provide a regular update service ?

[2long]

Thanx. Another poster recommended the same. Off to B2S or Se-ed for me.

[Farma]

Do you find the GPS better than a map? Just curious as SKY News today has a report for Britain.

"Abigail Waraker, Editor, Computing Which? magazine, said: "With all the hi-tech software available to direct drivers from A to B, it's remarkable that the traditional road atlas came out top."

I wondered if this was the same for Thailand.

The British report is here.

http://news.sky.com/skynews/article/0,,301...3551591,00.html

[corkscrew]

how much was that system corkscrew ? and do thinknet provide a regular update service ?

The Garmin was about 30,000b. The Thinknet was a couple hundred baht. The Garmin was updated in 2005....the Thknet in 2004. Both are very useful.

[corkscrew]

Do you find the GPS better than a map? Just curious as SKY News today has a report for Britain.

"Abigail Waraker, Editor, Computing Which? magazine, said: "With all the hi-tech software available to direct drivers from A to B, it's remarkable that the traditional road atlas came out top."

I wondered if this was the same for Thailand.

The British report is here.

http://news.sky.com/skynews/article/0,,301...3551591,00.html

Believe me....the Garmin is the most useful and valuable thing I have in my car. It has given me the freedom to drive anywhere without getting lost. When driving in Bangkok where there are few signs in Engish this English voice (actually she is Aussie...and sort of sexy) takes me anywhere and always brings me home. Better than a 'mia noi'.

[Farma]

I can see the advantages of the GPS when it comes to the street names in Bangkok. I'm easily lost once in the Sois. It's definately comforting to know you can back out of the maze.

I'll have to look for a version without the aussie twang though.

[Plus]

I don't like Thinknet map at all. It's far from being "detailed" in my opinion. It doesn't show a common shortcut I take every morning through residential area, for example. It's not helpful in little sois off Ratchada, too. Sometimes they let you avoid heavy traffic and long u-turns, but if you don't know all the little twists, that map is of little help.

I got an atlas recently, it's based on the same geological sirview, I think, but it's far more convenient in a car than a large single sheet map.

[Meerkat]

I bought the same model as Corkscrew on his recommendation (thanks again, CS). It's a cracking piece of kit, but it is by no means infallible. The maps are incredibly detailed, and the database is loaded up with what must be tens if not hundreds of thousands of locations. Stuck in the middle of nowhere and need an ATM? Press a button. A restaurant/hotel/police station/KFC(!) etc? Press a button. It really is useful. You can also add your own database entries.

Downsides.

Well, it makes a meal out of some of the elevated highways; not realising if you're on it or underneath it. When planning a route, it doesn't always take the quickest way (although it almost always gets you there in the end).

Some database errors. We were recommended a small hotel near Kanchanaburi a couple of weeks ago, and I was pleasantly surprised that it was in the database. Er...except that the hotel wasn't where it should have been. The GPS literally tried to take us through the River Kwai! Good job the wife was with me or I'd have said to myself "Right, let's see exactly how capable the Fortuner really is off-road..."!

Transliteration of names is appalling. We live near Rangsit Khlong 3. Various database entries for that road in the machine are entered under "Khlong 3", "Khlong Sam", and "Khlong Saam". There is no standardization (a bit like transliteration in the rest of life out here), so you have to learn to be imaginative when searching for what you want.

All-in-all though, it was a great purchase. We're driving down to Phuket and Samui next week so will be giving it its biggest road-test so far.

Oh...and most importantly you can switch the Australian voice for a Brit (or Yank).

[corkscrew]

I don't like Thinknet map at all. It's far from being "detailed" in my opinion. It doesn't show a common shortcut I take every morning through residential area, for example. It's not helpful in little sois off Ratchada, too. Sometimes they let you avoid heavy traffic and long u-turns, but if you don't know all the little twists, that map is of little help.

I got an atlas recently, it's based on the same geological sirview, I think, but it's far more convenient in a car than a large single sheet map.

What is the title of the atlas? Thanks in advance.