Advice on Euro road trip

[Steve Bullman]

Agreed but you are looking at 24-30 hours non stop driving and longer if not taking the Toll roads in France. Plus about £80-100 each way in tolls.

It depends on how long you have got.

 

24-30 hours to reach where exactly? Venice which is going to be our mid way stop off is only 12 hours ish on paper

[Martyn Honey]

Oh Sorry I thought we where talking about my Spain trip to Costa Almeria and Granada etc

[Steve Bullman]

Oh Sorry I thought we where talking about my Spain trip to Costa Almeria and Granada etc

gotcha

 

 

Everythings an option at this point

[djbobbins]

24-30 hours to reach where exactly? Venice which is going to be our mid way stop off is only 12 hours ish on paper

 

 

I have done Cannes to Calais in about 10 hours, once when I was young, single and daft. Wouldn't want to do that with family in the car though. Off to the French Alps this summer which we will do from Dover as a single day's travel and I think will be a bit of a killer.

[teepeeat]

watching this one with interest as thinking of doing similar at some point in the next few years.

Ferry to Spain is pricy, so hows about the shorter crossing to France, then through Normandy/Brittany down the west coast. Never been attracted to the south so would skip across to Verdon gorge then Italy then Croatia (dalmatian coast and Istria highly recommended by a Croatian doctor I worked with for a few years. Had to do a 2 day course in Zagreb last year found the people very friendly and relaxed. Everyone is really proud of their local foods and very keen for visitors to have a good experience) then into Slovenia and Austria, Slovakia, Czech Republic and back via Black forest.

 

Would personally base myself in a few places and explore those areas well with limited time in the car then move onto the next with biggish jumps, perhaps broken up with specific things to do or see along the route. Most of us dont have the time to see it all in one go so a big loop with specific things/areas to do this time and get a feel for other places in between that you can come back to in a few years.

Get the children involved in deciding what they want to do on this trip - mine loved the virtual exploring. Wanted to do everything of course so started with a long list which we whittled down to something sensible and do-able. This was not Europe - that will be the next trip.

 

Take stuff to do in the car - games etc as they will get bored, but also try to knock off some millage when they can get some sleep perhaps. Say into the evening or early morning - 3 or 4 hours shared between you and the missus can knock off a fair few miles quickly on the motorways.

Not been on the chunnel for a long time but they used to be very flexible about departures - if you pitched up early at the terminal and there was space they would just put you on. Think it is a bit more controlled now - ie cheaper deals are on fixed departures etc.

[Martyn Honey]

Sounds a good trip as well. Alps in the summer is great!

[djbobbins]

Have been looking at the same thing over the last couple of weeks. I notice no one has mentioned the west coast of France . We like beaches and mountain bikes would this area be suitable ?

 

Possibly taking a new sprinter tl9 minibus could be expensive on the ferry but advantages are full aircon , high driving position and bikes and kit inside.

 

Lots of really useful info on here with places I never heard of and would never think to visit reading with interest .

 

Eventually I might drive to Crete to visit my father but much to see closer to home first.

 

 

We went to the west coast (Vendee, between Brittany and La Rochelle) a few years back, but later in the year - October half term I think.

 

Lots of beaches and resorts, the Ile de Re was very pretty but I would imagine would be absolutely heaving during summer.

 

We got the ferry to and from Le Havre and from there it was about 4 or 5 hours as I recollect. There are a couple of different routes, one of which saved about £30 in tolls for the sake of doing an extra ten miles or so, all still on dual carriageway.

[djbobbins]

Google Venice Verte as well, that's a region of drained marshland with loads of drainage canals which are navigable by boat plus some nice (not very strenuous) cycling. Same area of France.

[NFG]

Hi Steve,

 

Weve used Brittany Ferries recently, Caen to Portsmouth & St Malo - Portsmouth, no problems. The problem with the tunnel is it makes it a much longer drive to get to Spain, I would say by 300Km maybe a bit more.

 

If you want to make a road trip out of it, then I'd consider Portsmouth - St Malo then drive south, fairly easy from St M, you want Rennes, Nantes, Bordeaux after which it might be signposted to Spain although you probably have Sat Nav. Its 2 lane no paige for about the first 180Km south from St Malo & after which there is a choice, but the paige can be boring unless you just want to transit from A-B.

 

The West coast of France has a very nice vibe, Jard sur Mer being our Favourite but Salbes d'lonne, Il d'oleron, il de Noirmoutier & further north into Britany is all very nice. You'll have to call in if you intend to transit the A83 we are near Fontenay le Comte.

 

Agreed, the Venice Verte is very pretty

 

Then Id get the ferry back from Santander or Bilbao to Portsmouth.

 

Bon route

 

 

N

Edited June 7, 2017 by NFG