How to import a trip from a GPX file

Planning & editing trips

Switching trip planners shouldn't mean losing the trips you've already planned. If your old planner can export a trip as a GPX file — most can, including Garmin's desktop and web tools — VistaBound can import it. The stops are matched against VistaBound's own campground and attraction database, so the trip arrives as a normal VistaBound trip: campground details, reviews, and availability where the stops matched, and everything editable exactly as if you'd planned it here.

GPX import is available on every plan. On the free plan the whole trip imports, but the campgrounds after the third night stay locked — the same way a trip planned here works — and unlock when you upgrade.

Export the trip from your old planner

In your old trip planner, open the trip you want to bring with you.
Look for an Export, Send to device, or Save as GPX option and choose the GPX format.
Save the .gpx file somewhere you can find it. Repeat for each trip you want to keep.

A trip export lists the trip's stops as waypoints or a route. A recorded track (the GPS breadcrumb trail from a past drive) isn't a plan — VistaBound will ask for a waypoint or route export if it gets a track file.

Import it into VistaBound

Open My Trips and choose Import GPX. (There's also an import link at the bottom of the trip-planning form.)
Pick the .gpx file. VistaBound shows the stops it found, in order, plus whether the trip loops back to its start.
Give the trip a name, and set a departure date if you already know it — GPX files don't carry dates, so you can also leave it blank and add dates later.
Choose Import trip. VistaBound matches each stop against its campground and attraction database and shows you the result:

- Matched — the stop links to a campground record, so its detail card opens with photos, reviews, and booking info.
- Day visit — the stop matched a point of interest, so it's imported as a day-use visit rather than an overnight.
- As entered — no confident match; the stop keeps the name and location from your file.

Choose Open in planner.

Make it yours

The imported trip is a normal VistaBound trip, so everything in How to edit your itinerary applies:

Each stop imports as one night — use the nights stepper to match how long you actually plan to stay.
Every overnight stop arrives with nearby Worth Your Time suggestions, just like a planned trip — add the ones you like with a tap.
Drive distances and times are recalculated with RV-aware routing for your rig.
Swap any stop's campground, reorder stops, add attractions, and set your departure date.
Save the trip and it syncs to the iPhone and Android apps for turn-by-turn navigation.

Tips

Import works with any GPX trip export that contains waypoints or a route — not just Garmin's.
VistaBound's own GPX exports re-import cleanly, too.
Imports are capped at 30 stops per trip. If a trip is longer, split it in your old planner and import it in parts.