How to use GeoWiki X to find campsites and plan your trip

GeoWiki X is a top-notch resource for those travelling in a caravan, camper or motorhome. Here's what it is, what it does and how to use it.


June 7, 2023

You’ve probably heard of WikiCamps and many of you have been caught out by Google Maps, which is well-known for being as useful as an inflatable dart board once you hit the Outback. But have you heard of GeoWiki X?

GeoWiki X is a resource for RVers Australia-wide that aims to simplify your time on the road. Use it to find free and paid campgrounds, caravan parks, dump points, national parks and other facilities and services generally used by those travelling in a caravan, camper or motorhome. If you’re a planner, you can use the ‘trips’ section to get organised. Likewise, if you like to wing it, simply search on the go.

With well over 200,000 points of interest, users can contribute to GeoWiki’s repertoire by adding images, submitting reviews and identifying new points of interest to help fellow campers.

How do I get GeoWiki X?

GeoWiki X is exclusive to members of Australia’s largest RV club, the CMCA (aka Campervan and Motorhome Club of Australia), which despite the name, does actually include caravans as well. Before you roll your eyes and say, “Ugghhhh, I have to join something!” … hear me out. 

The CMCA is cheap as chips to join (currently $44 per annum with a one-off joining fee of $16.50), and there’s a swath of additional benefits to joining, such as reduced insurance premiums, a fabulous monthly magazine and discounts on a range of RV-related products and services. But perhaps the most important is the opportunity to connect with other members.  

GeoWiki X can be accessed online via the CMCA website or via the CMCA Connect app for both Apple and Android devices. 

© Camplify

How do I use the GeoWiki X app?

If you don’t already have GeoWiki X, you’ll need to become a member of the CMCA and get it for this next bit. Joining the CMCA is instant, so you’ll have access to GeoWiki X immediately. Do you have it yet? No problem, I’ll wait.

Okay, great! Now that you’re a member of the CMCA and one of the cool kids, you’ll have instant access to GeoWiki X on your computer. However, you must download the free CMCA Connect app to use it on your phone. Depending on your internet connection, it only takes a minute or two. Just go to the App Store (for Apple) or Google PlayStore (for Android) on your phone and search ‘CMCA Connect’. 

The app symbol will look like this:

Once it’s downloaded, open up the CMCA Connect app and click on the symbol that looks like a teardrop at the bottom of your screen in the middle. Found it? Good. If you haven’t guessed by the map that now appears on your screen, this is GeoWiki X.

Let’s get started on the basics of using the GeoWiki X app! 

How to search for a place or point of interest (POI)

  • Tap on the ‘search’ button at the bottom of the screen. 
  • Here you will have a choice of searching by name or by town/suburb.
geowiki x

Searching by name:

  • Tap on ‘by name’ if it isn’t already selected, and begin typing the name of a point of interest (POI). E.g. to find a dump point, start typing ‘dump point’. The results will appear in a list ordered by those closest to your current location.
  • Tap on the POI, and you will now get a choice of ‘view on map’, ‘navigate to’ or ‘view more’.
  • ‘View on map’ will take you to the map page for an overall view. 
  • ‘Navigate to’ will open your maps and guide you on how to get there. 
  • ‘View more’ will give you more information about that particular POI. This is particularly useful as you can now view user reviews, costs and photos. You can even add your own in to help other travellers. 

Searching by town/suburb:

  • After you press ‘search’ at the bottom of the screen, now press ‘by town/suburb’ at the top of the new screen that has just opened.
  • Begin typing the town or suburb you wish to explore and clicking on the name when it comes up.
  • When you press a town or suburb, GeoWiki X will navigate to the map, and you can zoom in and out and explore the POIs available within that town from here. 
  • Press on any of the POIs on your screen for more information

How to search for POIs near you

This function is pretty cool too. Use it when you arrive somewhere and want to see what’s in the area.

  • Once you’ve got GeoWiki X open, tap the ‘near me’ button on the bottom left of your screen. This will bring up a list of POIs near you.
  • To switch between sorting the list by name or distance from you, tap the icon that looks like a diamond cut horizontally in the middle to make two triangles. You’ll find it on the top right of your screen.
  • Select either ‘sort by name’ or ‘sort by distance’ and then click on any of the POIs that take your fancy.
geowiki x

Using quick map filters

This is particularly useful as it allows you to find specific POIs and removes the clutter of all the other POIs on your screen.

  • Tap on the hamburger button (it looks like three lines on top of each other) in the top left-hand corner of GeoWiki X.
  • Tap the quick filter you wish to use and a map will open, showing only the filter you chose.
  • To turn off the filter, click the orange bar at the top that says ‘tap here to clear filters’ or click the hamburger symbol again and select ‘show all points of interest’.

To find more detailed filters or to select more than one filter, use the advanced filter section. This is found by pressing the funnel icon at the top right of your screen. Now you can toggle on and off the filters you wish to use.

geowiki x

How to add POIs for fellow travellers

  • Go ahead and tap on the hamburger icon in the left-hand corner of GeoWiki X again.
  • Scroll down and tap on ‘add new point of interest’
  • From here, you can fill out the details of your POI.
  • Please attempt to include as much information as possible for the moderators.
  • Tap on ‘next’ and fill out the details as best you can.
  • Click ‘submit’ when you’re done and your POI will be submitted to the administration portal for approval.
geowiki x

What happens when I go somewhere with no internet reception?

No problem. You can download the maps before you go, so they’re ready to use when you head off-grid. Here’s how to do it:

  • Tap on the hamburger icon again in the left-hand corner of GeoWiki X.
  • Tap on ‘map downloads’.
  • If it appears, click on ‘Australia Maps – CMCA OSM on-road’. If it doesn’t appear, just go straight to the next step.
  • Click ‘view maps’ and press the state you wish to download.

There is no need to switch to offline maps manually. The maps automatically turn to offline capability once there is no internet reception. 

These are just the basics of the GeoWiki X app

The above is just the basics and there’s a lot more you can do with GeoWiki X. The best thing to do is to start playing around with it, soon finding that you can add favourites, plan a trip in advance, switch to a satellite map and much more.

The layout is a little different if you’re using GeoWiki X on a computer compared to using the app on your phone but the functions remain the same. This means you can plan your trip on the computer, save your trip and access it on the app once you hit the road.

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Jessica Palmer
Jessica Palmer

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