Family Holiday - drive to Spain
Discussion
We are going on a family holiday over the summer, meeting the in-laws who have hired a Villa near Malaga for a week. Holidays are always have to be in school holidays, O/H is a teacher and 3 kids at school. So after going online and hunting for flights seems all day long the 'cheap' flights are going to be around £1,700 + car hire looking likely to be around £2,000.
So I started looking around at options - thought about driving. This gives some more flexibilty, head to the South of France of 5 day (Eurocamp), then drive to Malaga for family holiday. Head back up via Bilbao and the get the Ferry back to Portsmouth.
Initial prices seem to be not a million miles off flights but we get an extra 5 days holiday, and a bit of fun coming back on a big boat.
Split across the holiday would be 3 serious days of driving - 1 through France, 2 through Spain. I relish the idea....BUT with 3 children under 12 is this madness??
We've done DisneyLand Paris by car but nothing further, so would this be just too much?? Would need to factor in moaning kids, toilet breaks, fuel stops etc. My kids are fairly used to being chucked in the car for family visits and doing 4 hour stints. But I've done little driving in France let alone Spain.
Any thoughts on this?
So I started looking around at options - thought about driving. This gives some more flexibilty, head to the South of France of 5 day (Eurocamp), then drive to Malaga for family holiday. Head back up via Bilbao and the get the Ferry back to Portsmouth.
Initial prices seem to be not a million miles off flights but we get an extra 5 days holiday, and a bit of fun coming back on a big boat.
Split across the holiday would be 3 serious days of driving - 1 through France, 2 through Spain. I relish the idea....BUT with 3 children under 12 is this madness??
We've done DisneyLand Paris by car but nothing further, so would this be just too much?? Would need to factor in moaning kids, toilet breaks, fuel stops etc. My kids are fairly used to being chucked in the car for family visits and doing 4 hour stints. But I've done little driving in France let alone Spain.
Any thoughts on this?
We've done this just once. Would never do it again, especially with kids. By the time you add up the cost of ferry crossings, overnight stops/meals, expensive road tolls, fuel, breakdown cover it's an expensive way of getting there. Once the novelty has worn off, driving down French/Spanish motorways is mega boring too.
It's only just over 2 hours on a plane, as I kept saying on the 2nd and 3rd day getting there. Depends where you start from in the UK but it's best part of a days job to get to the channel crossing from the Midlands for a start.
It's only just over 2 hours on a plane, as I kept saying on the 2nd and 3rd day getting there. Depends where you start from in the UK but it's best part of a days job to get to the channel crossing from the Midlands for a start.
Edited by Robin Hood on Monday 21st January 00:01
My parents used to take us to south of France, but would either drive through the night (doing shifts driving) or stop over midway, and that was starting from Kent.
Google maps says 25 hours of driving, plus obviously ferry/train time, and you lose an hour on the crossing too. Start at 6am, get a late morning ferry, and you really only have 5-6 hours before you'll need to stop (assuming you keep fuel/rest stops short, and that can be tricky with kids). That means Tours or Poitiers is about as far as is practical for day 1.
The autoroutes are great and you can make decent progress just by sitting at 80mph (the french like their speed traps), rest areas are plentiful too.
www.viamichelin.co.uk is good for routes, and it can tell you tolls too. You're looking at about £90 in tolls just to get down there if you take the quicker autoroutes.
Google maps says 25 hours of driving, plus obviously ferry/train time, and you lose an hour on the crossing too. Start at 6am, get a late morning ferry, and you really only have 5-6 hours before you'll need to stop (assuming you keep fuel/rest stops short, and that can be tricky with kids). That means Tours or Poitiers is about as far as is practical for day 1.
The autoroutes are great and you can make decent progress just by sitting at 80mph (the french like their speed traps), rest areas are plentiful too.
www.viamichelin.co.uk is good for routes, and it can tell you tolls too. You're looking at about £90 in tolls just to get down there if you take the quicker autoroutes.
Before the days of cheap flights Dad (with a bit of help from Mum) would drive us to Torrevieja (south of Alicante) to a family appartment for the summer hoildays. Starting in the late afternoon from Kent, we would be in France and on our way within 2 hours and Dad would drive all night before stopping around late morning for rest, we had no air con so it used to get really hot!
This would get us most of the way to the south of France, we would then make slower progress during the day with more stops before Dad would hit it again at night, mainly due to the heat and quiet roads getting us there early the next day.
It is possible with a big enough car and a long (3 weeks+) holiday, for us each year would get more expensive as tolls and fuel increased. Towards 2000 it started to get unecconomical when cheap flights started and I had a Saturday job so could pay for my own flights.
The key for our family was that we could have a 4 week holiday for cheaper than a 2 week package deal, basically if we didn't drive we didn't go!
This would get us most of the way to the south of France, we would then make slower progress during the day with more stops before Dad would hit it again at night, mainly due to the heat and quiet roads getting us there early the next day.
It is possible with a big enough car and a long (3 weeks+) holiday, for us each year would get more expensive as tolls and fuel increased. Towards 2000 it started to get unecconomical when cheap flights started and I had a Saturday job so could pay for my own flights.
The key for our family was that we could have a 4 week holiday for cheaper than a 2 week package deal, basically if we didn't drive we didn't go!
as a kid we would often drive to puglia in the south of italy for out summer holidays. a three day drive really, one stop in france just north of switzerland, a stop in northern italy around the lakes, or in rome or tuscany, as well.
It was great, we had brilliant summer holidays and whilst the car journeys weren't great, we managed. I am sure we moaned a lot and my parents were pretty good about it. We used to get a sweet to eat every hour or so. lots of audio books too. of course, we did it without air con and the main problem was the heat. nowadays, not a problem. \\
so I think: do it!
It was great, we had brilliant summer holidays and whilst the car journeys weren't great, we managed. I am sure we moaned a lot and my parents were pretty good about it. We used to get a sweet to eat every hour or so. lots of audio books too. of course, we did it without air con and the main problem was the heat. nowadays, not a problem. \\
so I think: do it!
I was looking at some flights to Malaga myself last week, and like you found them too expensive to 'work' for what I wanted to do.
One thing I did notice which could work for you, was flights with an stop en route - look at lastminute.com and don't click the direct only option. I ruled thm out as they turned a 2hr flight into 5-6hr flight (although it halved the cost and put you on scheduled flights), but compared to the drive you are considering, the could be an option.
One thing I did notice which could work for you, was flights with an stop en route - look at lastminute.com and don't click the direct only option. I ruled thm out as they turned a 2hr flight into 5-6hr flight (although it halved the cost and put you on scheduled flights), but compared to the drive you are considering, the could be an option.
It will effectively be 2 days driving from Lincs to the Spanish border, and another 2 days to the Costa - 6 days solid in the car (if you take the ferry back from Bilbao) or 8 days if you drive back, out of a 14 day holiday. Sounds nuts to me.
Try the www.viamichelin.com routeplanner to calculate driving times (add 20% for a realistic journey time, and check the Bison Fute website to see if you will be travelling at the same time as everyone else in Europe, in which case double the journey time or travel on a different day) and toll and fuel costs. Add in your hotel and meal costs. The flights and car hire will probably come out cheaper plus you will gain extra holiday.
Try the www.viamichelin.com routeplanner to calculate driving times (add 20% for a realistic journey time, and check the Bison Fute website to see if you will be travelling at the same time as everyone else in Europe, in which case double the journey time or travel on a different day) and toll and fuel costs. Add in your hotel and meal costs. The flights and car hire will probably come out cheaper plus you will gain extra holiday.
had never seen that one.Are we nearly there yet?
OP, you know your children, is it fair to subject them to the journey? I am fortunate as my two will travel without fretting or bickering but it is big ask for your family and yourself even if things go to plan.
Have you thought about breakdowns, punctures, accidents,speeding fines, sickness etc ? Add in the cost of food on the journey and the risks of driving whilst tired?
I loathe flying but I would take the plane under your circumstances.
PS Can you put the car onto a train down to the Med?
OP, you know your children, is it fair to subject them to the journey? I am fortunate as my two will travel without fretting or bickering but it is big ask for your family and yourself even if things go to plan.
Have you thought about breakdowns, punctures, accidents,speeding fines, sickness etc ? Add in the cost of food on the journey and the risks of driving whilst tired?
I loathe flying but I would take the plane under your circumstances.
PS Can you put the car onto a train down to the Med?
Tonker's idea is a good one.
I know it's not Spain - we do the Alps in one hit(12 hours door to door) every year and have done since they were small. Essential for us is entertainment - we use individual DVD players and a wallet of discs to keep them occupied. Recent additions are ipods and an ipad.
I know it's not Spain - we do the Alps in one hit(12 hours door to door) every year and have done since they were small. Essential for us is entertainment - we use individual DVD players and a wallet of discs to keep them occupied. Recent additions are ipods and an ipad.
Thanks for the suggestions and opinions so far - keep um coming....
Good to hear experiences of people who have done this and shows it's all in the planning. Just to clarify - I'm not thinking of trying to do Spain in 1 run - it will be split and be part of a longer holiday. Currently thinking something like -
Leave Lincs on Saturday, go and visit Kent based family.
Leave Kent early hours of Monday and aim for early Ferry - this will mean the kids will be tired after we arrive in France having had breakfast on the ferry, so hopefully go to sleep. Then head south - going for Toulouse area.
Stay there on our own holiday until Saturday. Leave early on Saturday and head for Malaga - aim to arrive Saturday evening. Spend week with in-laws at Villa.
Then leave early following Saturday heading for Bilbao - ferry is 20.30 sailing. Sleep on ferry and have all Sunday on ferry - arrive in Portsmouth 7pm Sunday night - settle kids in car and head for Lincs arrive home midnightish.
We (will have) a diesel estate by then Mazda 6/508/Accord size - looking about 16 months old so should be quite reliable (hopefully but will have full breakdown cover).
Kids will have ipods/ipads/dvd and lots of sweets/snacks games and other stuff.
I will have stash of red-bull/monster
The only day we would have a real deadline is the Saturday heading home for the 20.30 sailing.
The idea is to perhaps try something a bit different and on the face of it for roughly the same cost as the flights we get a weeks extra holiday. Ok spending money etc needed.
So we either do a standard trip to airport - flights to Spain 7 day holiday.
Or try having a bit of an adventure and building it into the whole holiday. I think that due to the key places involved it would be 3 days of the 15/16 that would involve serious driving and 'are we nearly there yet?' moments.
Anyway thanks for the ideas. Any more thougths welcome.
Good to hear experiences of people who have done this and shows it's all in the planning. Just to clarify - I'm not thinking of trying to do Spain in 1 run - it will be split and be part of a longer holiday. Currently thinking something like -
Leave Lincs on Saturday, go and visit Kent based family.
Leave Kent early hours of Monday and aim for early Ferry - this will mean the kids will be tired after we arrive in France having had breakfast on the ferry, so hopefully go to sleep. Then head south - going for Toulouse area.
Stay there on our own holiday until Saturday. Leave early on Saturday and head for Malaga - aim to arrive Saturday evening. Spend week with in-laws at Villa.
Then leave early following Saturday heading for Bilbao - ferry is 20.30 sailing. Sleep on ferry and have all Sunday on ferry - arrive in Portsmouth 7pm Sunday night - settle kids in car and head for Lincs arrive home midnightish.
We (will have) a diesel estate by then Mazda 6/508/Accord size - looking about 16 months old so should be quite reliable (hopefully but will have full breakdown cover).
Kids will have ipods/ipads/dvd and lots of sweets/snacks games and other stuff.
I will have stash of red-bull/monster
The only day we would have a real deadline is the Saturday heading home for the 20.30 sailing.
The idea is to perhaps try something a bit different and on the face of it for roughly the same cost as the flights we get a weeks extra holiday. Ok spending money etc needed.
So we either do a standard trip to airport - flights to Spain 7 day holiday.
Or try having a bit of an adventure and building it into the whole holiday. I think that due to the key places involved it would be 3 days of the 15/16 that would involve serious driving and 'are we nearly there yet?' moments.
Anyway thanks for the ideas. Any more thougths welcome.
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