Trip to Spa - any advice?

[2Btoo]

I'm off to Spa next week to help a friend who is racing out there. The route will be Dover-Calais and on from there.

I've never driven in Belgium before - if anyone has any advice I'd be grateful to hear it, thanks. What's the situation with speed cameras, speeding, general driving standards and so on?

I've driven in France and Germany frequently so can't imagine it's that different. However last time I was in France there was a small run-in with Les Flics which involved a fine that still smarts a little. The silver lining to the cloud was that no points appeared on my UK licence. Is it still the case that points don't transfer across, or has this changed?

Route-wise, it looks like the A40 to and around Brussels and then the A3 around Liege looks sensible - is there a better option? Also, how nutty does the Brussels ring-road get at rush hour?

All advice welcomed, thanks.

[2Btoo]

Thanks for the answers guys. All much as I expected.

dcb said:

Brussels ring road can be tricky at times, so suggest the E42.
Lille, Charleroi etc. It's only 16 km longer than the E40 route,
but Lille takes some care to navigate.

This is the alternative - stay down in France for more of the journey. How much of a hassle is Lille? More or less of a hassle than Brussels? From the map it looks like you just stick on the E42 all the way, or isn't it that simple? It looks like a more scenic route, and driving scenic routes in Europe is always enjoyable.

Thanks again.

[2Btoo]

Back now, many thanks for all the advice given. FWIW, I went via Lille on the way out and Brussels on the way back. There's not much to choose between them I now understand.

Yes, Spa is a great circuit. Yes, the drive there isn't fascinating, but it's always a pleasure to drive fast on decent roads around other drivers who drive well (the Belgians seemed to drive just fine to me, although that may be because I am used to the imbeciles who take the wheel in East London). I did come across one police motorbike while pedalling at somewhere around 160kph and he put his lights on, waved with his hand to indicate that I should slow down and buzzed off into the distance! All fine by me!

5potTurbo said:

Lille ring road is easy. It's not Paris' Peripherique!
I regularly drive around Lille, Mons, Charleroi. The roads are fairly good, EXCEPT the E42 when you cross the French/Belgian border beyond Lille towards Tournai. There, the road is absolutely CACK! You'll be playing dodge the mahoosive pothole at 75mph!

Now that was absolutely spot on, in every single respect. There speaks a man who knows ....