tuscan holiday--most interesting route calais to florence
Discussion
i am planning a trip to florence in late june , and would be grateful for advice/suggestions as to :
1) potential routes from calais to florence----pros and cons of going through the benelux countries and /or switzerland VS solely france and directly into italy
2) interesting roads, that i should not miss (i hope to be able to build in sufficient time to allow the odd diversion from the most direct route)----tunnels/passes---st bernard/ stelvio/frejus
this is the start of my investigations, and i have used the search function, but would appreciate your help as to alternatives to the stelvio pass, particularly as i am getting the impression that the stelvio pass is often very crowded
please bear in mind that on this occassion i will be in a 1993 series 1 mx5 with 114 bhp, so i suspect that i may be holding up the caravans ,rather than the other way around
3)interesting car places to visit --- mulhouse schlumpf museum/lambo museum/ferrari museum/pagani
thanks for your help
mods--please move this if you feel that it would be more appropriate elsewhere
1) potential routes from calais to florence----pros and cons of going through the benelux countries and /or switzerland VS solely france and directly into italy
2) interesting roads, that i should not miss (i hope to be able to build in sufficient time to allow the odd diversion from the most direct route)----tunnels/passes---st bernard/ stelvio/frejus
this is the start of my investigations, and i have used the search function, but would appreciate your help as to alternatives to the stelvio pass, particularly as i am getting the impression that the stelvio pass is often very crowded
please bear in mind that on this occassion i will be in a 1993 series 1 mx5 with 114 bhp, so i suspect that i may be holding up the caravans ,rather than the other way around
3)interesting car places to visit --- mulhouse schlumpf museum/lambo museum/ferrari museum/pagani
thanks for your help
mods--please move this if you feel that it would be more appropriate elsewhere
I'd get to Switzerland in one and forget seeing France and the rest. Whether you go via Belgium and Luxembourg is about whether you want a cheap fill up in Luxembourg, and whether you want to pay French tolls. Time wise, there isn't much in it.
I would personally suggest Belgium/Luxembourg just so you don't pay the tolls on a point of principle.
However, south out of Luxembourg, back into France, head to Strasbourg, but come off exit 45 and go through Molsheim. You will need to pay about 10E of toll in France, but it's well spent.
Then into Switzerland via Basel.
Switzerland is not expensive at the moment, unless you really must stay in a big city. If you get onto the back roads and have time, there are deals to be had - anything from 35-45E per person per night in the small towns. Loads of those offers last year. Switzerland last year was practically empty.
Roads to take in whilst in Switzerland - any - hardly a bad one there. If you head to Lucerne you have Grimsel/Gotthard/Nufenen/Furka/Susten to play on, if you are on the Chur side you have Julier/Lenzerheide/Albula/Stelvio/Umbrail to play on.
If you get to Stelvio then I strongly STRONGLY recommend that you do not head south on the eastern side of Stelvio. It doesn't look to awful on the map, but in reality you'd shoot yourself it's so slow. The road is slow and then the Autostrada is slow. Head south on through Aprica/Edollo (do not head to Sondrio or Lake Como unless you really want to see Lake Como).
Next road to hook up with in Italy is the SP55. No one knows about this road so don't go onto a forum and tell everyone
It's a big biker road, which means it's great for cars. It runs beside the A1 from Bologna to Florence. Enjoy it for all it's worth.
Another good set of roads is from Maranello through to Florence. These are the test roads for Ferrari and Lamborghini. More country than the SP55, but not quite as fun.
I would personally suggest Belgium/Luxembourg just so you don't pay the tolls on a point of principle.
However, south out of Luxembourg, back into France, head to Strasbourg, but come off exit 45 and go through Molsheim. You will need to pay about 10E of toll in France, but it's well spent.
Then into Switzerland via Basel.
Switzerland is not expensive at the moment, unless you really must stay in a big city. If you get onto the back roads and have time, there are deals to be had - anything from 35-45E per person per night in the small towns. Loads of those offers last year. Switzerland last year was practically empty.
Roads to take in whilst in Switzerland - any - hardly a bad one there. If you head to Lucerne you have Grimsel/Gotthard/Nufenen/Furka/Susten to play on, if you are on the Chur side you have Julier/Lenzerheide/Albula/Stelvio/Umbrail to play on.
If you get to Stelvio then I strongly STRONGLY recommend that you do not head south on the eastern side of Stelvio. It doesn't look to awful on the map, but in reality you'd shoot yourself it's so slow. The road is slow and then the Autostrada is slow. Head south on through Aprica/Edollo (do not head to Sondrio or Lake Como unless you really want to see Lake Como).
Next road to hook up with in Italy is the SP55. No one knows about this road so don't go onto a forum and tell everyone
It's a big biker road, which means it's great for cars. It runs beside the A1 from Bologna to Florence. Enjoy it for all it's worth.
Another good set of roads is from Maranello through to Florence. These are the test roads for Ferrari and Lamborghini. More country than the SP55, but not quite as fun.
JDRoest said:
I'd get to Switzerland in one and forget seeing France and the rest. Whether you go via Belgium and Luxembourg is about whether you want a cheap fill up in Luxembourg, and whether you want to pay French tolls. Time wise, there isn't much in it.
I would personally suggest Belgium/Luxembourg just so you don't pay the tolls on a point of principle.
However, south out of Luxembourg, back into France, head to Strasbourg, but come off exit 45 and go through Molsheim. You will need to pay about 10E of toll in France, but it's well spent.
Then into Switzerland via Basel.
Switzerland is not expensive at the moment, unless you really must stay in a big city. If you get onto the back roads and have time, there are deals to be had - anything from 35-45E per person per night in the small towns. Loads of those offers last year. Switzerland last year was practically empty.
Roads to take in whilst in Switzerland - any - hardly a bad one there. If you head to Lucerne you have Grimsel/Gotthard/Nufenen/Furka/Susten to play on, if you are on the Chur side you have Julier/Lenzerheide/Albula/Stelvio/Umbrail to play on.
If you get to Stelvio then I strongly STRONGLY recommend that you do not head south on the eastern side of Stelvio. It doesn't look to awful on the map, but in reality you'd shoot yourself it's so slow. The road is slow and then the Autostrada is slow. Head south on through Aprica/Edollo (do not head to Sondrio or Lake Como unless you really want to see Lake Como).
Next road to hook up with in Italy is the SP55. No one knows about this road so don't go onto a forum and tell everyone
It's a big biker road, which means it's great for cars. It runs beside the A1 from Bologna to Florence. Enjoy it for all it's worth.
Another good set of roads is from Maranello through to Florence. These are the test roads for Ferrari and Lamborghini. More country than the SP55, but not quite as fun.
Pretty much this.I would personally suggest Belgium/Luxembourg just so you don't pay the tolls on a point of principle.
However, south out of Luxembourg, back into France, head to Strasbourg, but come off exit 45 and go through Molsheim. You will need to pay about 10E of toll in France, but it's well spent.
Then into Switzerland via Basel.
Switzerland is not expensive at the moment, unless you really must stay in a big city. If you get onto the back roads and have time, there are deals to be had - anything from 35-45E per person per night in the small towns. Loads of those offers last year. Switzerland last year was practically empty.
Roads to take in whilst in Switzerland - any - hardly a bad one there. If you head to Lucerne you have Grimsel/Gotthard/Nufenen/Furka/Susten to play on, if you are on the Chur side you have Julier/Lenzerheide/Albula/Stelvio/Umbrail to play on.
If you get to Stelvio then I strongly STRONGLY recommend that you do not head south on the eastern side of Stelvio. It doesn't look to awful on the map, but in reality you'd shoot yourself it's so slow. The road is slow and then the Autostrada is slow. Head south on through Aprica/Edollo (do not head to Sondrio or Lake Como unless you really want to see Lake Como).
Next road to hook up with in Italy is the SP55. No one knows about this road so don't go onto a forum and tell everyone
It's a big biker road, which means it's great for cars. It runs beside the A1 from Bologna to Florence. Enjoy it for all it's worth.
Another good set of roads is from Maranello through to Florence. These are the test roads for Ferrari and Lamborghini. More country than the SP55, but not quite as fun.
However...and this a big HOWEVER...understand the Alpine passes in June are packed. Busy, often nose to tail. If you want to do it the fun way I would suggest as above, you overnight out here and then hit the Passes by 6am.
JDR...are you sure you mean the SP55 though and not the 64, 65 or 325?
A lex said:
DJRC said:
Pretty much this.
However...and this a big HOWEVER...understand the Alpine passes in June are packed. Busy, often nose to tail. If you want to do it the fun way I would suggest as above, you overnight out here and then hit the Passes by 6am.
JDR...are you sure you mean the SP55 though and not the 64, 65 or 325?
We went over the Gotthard in late June and it was almost empty. Go figure!However...and this a big HOWEVER...understand the Alpine passes in June are packed. Busy, often nose to tail. If you want to do it the fun way I would suggest as above, you overnight out here and then hit the Passes by 6am.
JDR...are you sure you mean the SP55 though and not the 64, 65 or 325?
Did it two years ago in early July via Arbois (first night stop) and the Grand St Bernard. The only traffic we encountered was around Florence. The drive through the Jura, into Switzerland and then post-Swiss Autobahn up to the pass and down into Italy is wonderful.
Oh, and we did it with a six month old, a two year old and a five year old.
edit: tidying up iPhone errors.
Oh, and we did it with a six month old, a two year old and a five year old.
edit: tidying up iPhone errors.
Edited by Zod on Monday 28th January 15:48
A lex said:
1/2 way up:
Pedant, sorry, this isn't Gotthard.This is on the way up to Andermatt (one of my favourite places), and you've stopped at a very famous bridge.
A little bit of history (if you haven't already got the story). Where you are parked is in a deep gorge that 800 years ago was very difficult to cross. So the locals of Andermatt did a deal with the devil.
The devil agreed to build a bridge as long as he was given the soul of the first to cross it. The people of Andermatt agreed, and he built the bridge. Well, no one in Andermatt was minded to give their soul to the devil anyway, so they sent across a goat.
They sent a goat and the devil (who had obviously over-estimated the honesty of the future Swiss race) was so upset he picked up a boulder and went to smash the bridge. An old lady of Andermatt or the mountains then talked him out of his rage. He duly put the rock down and went off.
The modern part of this story is that they moved the rock during construction of the St Gotthard Tunnel, and the devil was so angry it was moved he caused the fire in the tunnel which killed a fair number of people.
If you look on the right of the picture you'll see a painting on the rock showing a devil and goat on a bridge.
=
Yes, it could have been the SP65. Drove it two years ago purely by chance. Fabulous road.
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