A GPX file is the most faithful record of a day out that you will ever have. It holds every GPS point of the route you took, in order, down to the loop around the car park at the end. Printed, it shows the shape of that day in a way a photo cannot. This guide covers how to turn any GPX file into a poster, what ends up on the sheet, and what happens to your file afterwards.
Get the file
Every common app and watch can export one. If you have not done it before, these guides walk through the apps people ask about most:
- Exporting a GPX file from Strava, from a phone or a computer.
- Exporting from Komoot or Garmin Connect, and the catch in each.
- Getting a GPX file from an Apple Watch, which needs a small helper app.
- Our GPX export guide for AllTrails, Ride with GPS, COROS, Suunto, Wahoo and Hammerhead.
If the activity is on Strava you can skip the file and connect your account on the poster page instead.
Upload it and see the poster
- Open the activity poster page and choose Upload GPX.
- Pick the file. We draw the route straight away.
- Type a title. It can be the name of the trail or something only the two of you will understand.
- Choose a style and a colour, then a size and a finish.
The preview you see is the poster we print. There is no proof email to wait for, because the image on screen is the one that goes to the printer.
What goes on the poster
The route itself, drawn from every point in your file. We never smooth or simplify it, so a switchback stays a switchback and the wrong turn you took stays in. Some people find that is their favourite part of the print.
The distance prints beneath the line. If your file has timestamps, the moving time and the date can print with it, and the climb joins them when the route gains more than 50 metres. You can turn any of these off. Nothing about your heart rate or pace goes on the sheet.
The look is yours. There are 11 styles, from a single clean line to rippling bands and elevation profiles, in 13 layouts and 10 colourways. The styles page shows them all on one route if you want to compare before you start.
Sizes, paper and price
We print to order in Australia on 200 gsm matte art paper, giclée at 300 dpi. Sizes run from A4 to A1, plus 18 × 24 and 24 × 36 inch sheets, the largest being 61 × 91 cm. Framed prints have a protective front and arrive ready to hang, in a choice of timber finishes.
An unframed A4 print is A$59. Prints are dispatched within 2 to 4 business days and tracked across Australia, and delivery is free over A$120. A digital file is A$20 and arrives by email in about five minutes.
What happens to your file
We use your GPX to draw your poster and for nothing else. It is never sold or shared, and never used to train anything, and our printer only ever receives the finished image. The file is stored privately, read once to print your poster, and deleted as soon as your order is fulfilled, or after 30 days if you do not order.
Did not record it?
If it was a well-known road or trail, we have probably drawn it already. Our famous routes are ready-made posters on the exact line, such as the Great Ocean Road, the trek to Everest Base Camp, Norway's Atlantic Ocean Road and the Amalfi Coast. Each one takes your own title and any style.
Questions people ask
My file holds a whole week. Can I print it?
One trip per file works best, because the poster fits the whole file to the sheet. For a multi-day walk, export each day and print the one that matters, or combine the days in your app before you export if it lets you.
Can I print a route I planned but did not do?
Yes. A planned route exported as GPX draws the same way. It has no timestamps, so the poster shows the distance without a moving time.
The upload failed. What now?
Email the file to hello@youwentthere.com as an attachment and we will look at it.