Import a Google Calendar into iCal and have it update Automatically

Hello DavidPowell149,

If you can obtain the URL for the calendar, it can be subscribed to in iCal.

iCal 5.x: Subscribe to calendars and reminder lists

http://support.apple.com/kb/PH4712

1. In iCal, choose Calendar > Subscribe.
2. Enter the web address for the calendar or reminder list you want to subscribe to, and then click Subscribe.
3. Type a name for the calendar or reminder list in the Name field and choose a color from the adjacent pop-up menu.
   • If you have an iCloud (or MobileMe) account, choose whether you want the calendar or reminder list to be located on that account.If you want to view a subscription calendar or reminder list in iCal and in the Calendar or Reminder app on devices with iOS 5 or later (iOS 4 or later for MobileMe) without resubscribing to it, choose your iCloud (or MobileMe) account.
   • If you want to receive any reminders or attachments, or hear any alarms associated with the calendar or reminder list, deselect the appropriate Remove checkboxes.
   • If you want iCal to update your copy of the calendar or reminder list when changes to it are published on the Internet, choose the update frequency from the “Auto-refresh” pop-up menu.
4. Click OK.
   A calendar you subscribed to appears in your Calendars pop-up list under the heading “Subscriptions.” To make changes to the calendar, click Calendars, select the calendar, and then choose Edit > Get Info.

All the best,

Allen

The advice here did not solve my problem, but I did figure out a way to make this work (from another Apple Support forum post).

I needed to get into iCal the calendar of a business partner. I have it set up to access easily in Google Calendar, but wanted it in iCal for convenience.

I had been trying to subscribe without success, following the instructions on this page to use the private ICAL link I had copied from the Google calendar. I kept getting an error saying there was no calendar available at that address.

The solution was to go to the Google Calendar Sync Settings page:

https://www.google.com/calendar/syncselect

On the syncselect page, I checked the box to enable that calendar for syncing, and then iCal sync with that calendar worked like a charm.

Explanation: My iCal was already connecting to my Gmail account successfully. It synchronized both ways very nicely (my calendar items can be created or updated in either iCal or in Google Calendar, and they appear and update in the other one). The trick was telling Google that I wanted to ALSO sync this "guest" calendar, using the checkbox on the syncselect page.

I hope this is helpful to someone else who runs into this challenge.

BTW - I am on Lion 10.7, but will soon be upgrading to Mavericks - I hope it works there too!

Eric Bobrow

http://www.bobrow.com