French Auto Train
Discussion
I'm thinking of taking the TVR to the south of France this summer and making use of the Auto Train service from Lille.
Has anyone any experience of this service? If so, I'd be very grateful for your views, in particular if I should be wary of trusting them to look after the car!
I looked at Motorail (in which you travel 'with' your car) but the feedback I've read has been very negative. Plus it seems quite a bit more expensive.
Has anyone any experience of this service? If so, I'd be very grateful for your views, in particular if I should be wary of trusting them to look after the car!
I looked at Motorail (in which you travel 'with' your car) but the feedback I've read has been very negative. Plus it seems quite a bit more expensive.
I've used the Auto Train before (SNCF run, the one that goes all year). It was fine, actually very reasonable, think I paid less than £100 to go from Paris to Toulouse about 8 years ago. It's strange watching your car being driven onto the train though... Had a s
t nights "sleep" in a couchette but certainly was a lot better/cheaper waking up in the morning at my destination rather than driving all the way.
Having said that, I looked to do a similar thing this year and the costs were something around £800 IIRC for a return during the summer!
t nights "sleep" in a couchette but certainly was a lot better/cheaper waking up in the morning at my destination rather than driving all the way.Having said that, I looked to do a similar thing this year and the costs were something around £800 IIRC for a return during the summer!
jev said:
I'm thinking of taking the TVR to the south of France this summer and making use of the Auto Train service from Lille.
Has anyone any experience of this service? If so, I'd be very grateful for your views, in particular if I should be wary of trusting them to look after the car!
I looked at Motorail (in which you travel 'with' your car) but the feedback I've read has been very negative. Plus it seems quite a bit more expensive.
What about the ferry to Santander and driving across?Has anyone any experience of this service? If so, I'd be very grateful for your views, in particular if I should be wary of trusting them to look after the car!
I looked at Motorail (in which you travel 'with' your car) but the feedback I've read has been very negative. Plus it seems quite a bit more expensive.
mrmaggit said:
What about the ferry to Santander and driving across?
I'm going to Nice so its miles! I've done the ferry a couple of times on the TVR Spain trips and (whilst a little old) its a good way of cutting the miles. However it can get very rough!Latest plans are to take the overnight ferry to Le Havre (cuts out a few miles, looks like a more interesting route and allows for an early start in France) then take a couple of days driving down. After a week on the Rivera touring across to Italy and taking the Dutch Motorail most of the way back.
The Dutch motorail sounds a lot better than its French counterpart and has a mid week departure in the summer which works out as quite reasonable.
Has anyone used it? Or the Le Havre ferry?
If you do use a motor rail service don't make the mistake I made
1) Stay up really late finishing various projects and packing assuming: I can catch up with my sleep on the train before making my appointment in Nice at noon, then getting the 3 o'clock flight to Palma in order to be back at work in time for a very important engagement.
2) Drive through Parisian Friday evening rush hour traffic to make the train and arrive absolutely bksed.
3) Discover that a MK1 MX5 will go on the train, but not if it has been lowered 1" - DOH!
4) Drive through the night with your eyes on stalks surviving on chocolate and red bull in ridiculous quantities and cat napping every few hours.
I made the appointment and the flight safely but was amongst the worst nights of my life!
1) Stay up really late finishing various projects and packing assuming: I can catch up with my sleep on the train before making my appointment in Nice at noon, then getting the 3 o'clock flight to Palma in order to be back at work in time for a very important engagement.
2) Drive through Parisian Friday evening rush hour traffic to make the train and arrive absolutely b
ksed.3) Discover that a MK1 MX5 will go on the train, but not if it has been lowered 1" - DOH!
4) Drive through the night with your eyes on stalks surviving on chocolate and red bull in ridiculous quantities and cat napping every few hours.
I made the appointment and the flight safely but was amongst the worst nights of my life!
sassthathoopie said:
Is there an autorail service from London to Glasgow/Edinburgh? and if not why not?!
I have a highland hoon planned this summer
There used to be many years ago,as part of the sleeper trains. But it was withdrawn, due too costing too much/not making enough money around a decade or so ago.I have a highland hoon planned this summer
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