Free POI collections for Garmin - where can you find them?
In order to import POIs, so-called point (s) of interest, free of charge on a Garmin navigation device, you first need a large and freely accessible collection of such places. But the search should be worth it: be it sights, the nearest gas station or the legally controversial "accident focal points" aka speed cameras in Germany. You get all of these (and much more) locations when you import a POI collection on your device - but where can you find something like that?
Requirement for additional points of interest: Garmin POI loader
In order to be able to access a large database provided by Garmin, you have to install the "Garmin POI-Loader". You also need this software to import CSV or GPX files - such as from POIplaza (see below).
Contact point for POI collections: POIplaza
"POIplaza" offers a worldwide, extensive and free database of POIs. The only downside is that you can't download all the points of interest for a country at once. The reason for this was the frequent server breakdowns due to the excessive traffic.
- Large collections for Germany include: "Fix Speedcams", "Free Toilets" and "Hotel".
- After you have selected a list for download, you must select your navigation device (here: Garmin). The downloads must first be unpacked before you can import them with the "Garmin POI Loader". Make sure that you allow the import of individual (customized) lists.
You can also download POIs here: Pocket navigation (only partially free)
You can create a partially free list individually on the homepage of the "Pocket Navigation".
- First, select your navigation device (Garmin).
- Then select the country (Germany, Austria or Switzerland) for which you want to download the POIs.
- Now you can select the POIs that interest you and you would like to have on your navigation system. Free points of interest include pharmacies, car service and petrol stations, whereas white speed cameras (fixed and mobile) and gas petrol stations are subject to charges.
- The integration of the points happens, just like with POIplaza, via the "Garmin POI-Loader".
Alternative program for POI collections: POIbase
An alternative to Garmin's POI Loader is the "POIbase". The free program enables you to directly import over 375, 000 points of interest on your navigation device.