Last weekend, we were strolling down a busy street in Barcelona when suddenly an odd looking bright yellow open-top vehicle passed us with its high pitched moped engine in full verse. Tattooed across its side were the words ‘The Talking Tour Car’ - that was it, we were hooked!
Back at the hotel we found GoCar via the web and soon discovered how clever this innovation is. GoCar have created a fun looking 3 wheeler and loaded it with advanced GPS navigation capabilities to not only guide you round the city but also highlight points of interest along the way, just like a personal tour guide.
All you have to do is turn the key, listen and drive where your virtual guide directs you. You can stop where you please and even turn off route - unlike rigid group tours. GoCar is also way more fun than renting a car for a city tour. The only surprise is that it’s not battery powered.
Having booked our GoCar we were within minutes ready to take to the busy streets of Barcelona. The GoCar was very easy to drive – its controls originate from a moped and the GPS took away the pain of driving on unfamiliar roads. Our virtual navigator (no name!) gave clear directions, pointing to the various sites and giving us the city's history - topped with quirky, humerous interjections!
GoCar charge by the hour and offer two different tours of the city. Disclosure - we took up GoCar’s promotional offer of the first two hours free in return for a writing a review of our experience.
The only navigational problems surfaced whilst up on Montjuic - as we approached a roundabout we were not given instructions as to where to exit - so, unknowingly we took a wrong exit and were left to find our own way back onto the set tour – the navigator doesn’t say much when you go off course to re-direct you back to the guided tour - a minor irritant. We were also directed to Montjuic’s peak only to discover the road was closed which meant we had to improvise!
But these little problems aside, this is a fantastic combination of technology and one which could revolutionise city touring. It was an exhilarating afternoon out and we discovered places we would not have seen otherwise. And it was as much about the experience as it was about sightseeing.
So if you’re visiting Barcelona, or the other cities in which they operate – Lisbon, Miami, San Diego and San Francisco – this is a really fun way to discover the city and highly recommended.
