Roadtrip to Monaco & Route Napoleon (Photo heavy)
Discussion
We've not long returned from our third European roadtrip and as the previous two were received positively I've done another little write up.
First one (Germany, Luxemburg, Italy and the Swiss alps) is here : https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...
And then 2 years ago we did we did part of the Pyrenees and Andorra, which is here :
https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...
And for this year I wanted to drive the Monaco grand prix circuit in my own car as well as doing Route Napoleon, so I sepnd a few weeks researching where to go, what route I wanted to drive, and where to stop, ideally finding hotels with private parking and a swimming pool.
The itinerary was :
- Col D’Aubisque
- Col De Soulor
- Col du Tourmalet
- Col D’aspin
I don't have/want a dashcam, but most of the road photo's (bar a few made with our mobiles) are made with this little Go Pro I mounted next to the rear view mirror with the remote switch next to my steering wheel so anytime the road/scenery looked pretty I could just snap a picture without having to ask my wife every 2 seconds to get her phone out
Spot of lunch in Portsmouth's Marina, watching our ship come in.
Couple other petrolheads who were driving to Portugal, might look at that for our next trip :
Both times we've used the ferry for this crossing we booked the C-club lounge, which serves not only breakfast, lunch and dinner, but also has snacks throughout the day and unlimited drinks (including wine) throughout your crossing, well worth the money every time!
Our first stop of the trip, this lovely B&B with pool & jacuzzi and secure parking :
Narbonne hotel, with roof terrace and private garage
Beautifull Narbonne :
Lunch stop in Marseille, on the way to St. Tropez
St Tropez, great for car and yacht spotting! Feeling rather poor in my little Porsche Boxster here...
Looking at the yachts, playing millionaire or billionaire...
Coastal drive to Antibes
Antibes hotel with private underground parking :
And on the beach the Gopro ('dashcam') goes into a waterproof case and along into the sea, before going back on the windscreen :
Coastal route to Monaco
Arriving in Monaco, going over the start line of the Grand Prix circuit and following the preplanned Satnav route to drive the entire circuit, prior to going to our hotel.
Fairtmont hairpin :
Great car spotting here...
Ok, not quite an exotic, but I'm a paramedic so it's the obligatory holiday shot...
Heading to the Starting point of route Napoleon, which was lovely and quiet. Detoured via the Verdon gorge which was stunning as well :
From google: "The Gorges du Verdon is a stunning 25-kilometer long and 700-meter deep river canyon in southeastern France, often called the "Grand Canyon of Verdon." Famed for its striking turquoise-green water, it offers world-class hiking, kayaking, and scenic driving between limestone cliffs.
Overnight stay in this stunning castle, https://www.chateau-de-trigance.fr/
Made a friend the next day, and even stopped for a chat (being Dutch myself helped) and followed him for another little local blast before continueing towards Grenoble.
Going over the bridge in the background
Next stop, another little Chateau just outside Grenoble
Grenoble :
Final overnight stop in Troyes, also a very pleasant town with enough to see and do, and perfect to break up the journey to Calais.
First time we booked that Flexiplus lounge at the Eurotunnel as well, so you can just turn up and take train and don't have to worry about getting there for a certain time but I still think I prefer the Ferry over to Spain, as it just cuts out a large chunk of the boring French tollroutes.
Having done the pyrenes twice now I think I definitely prefer them over the Swiss alps, mainly before they're so much quieter, the longest stetch (on a fun road) without having anyone in front of me was over 1.5 hour, it was brilliant!
Route planning started on google maps, and then copied across to the Tomtom website so I tweak them, and then save the individual routes and sync them to the Tomtom app on my phone.
First one (Germany, Luxemburg, Italy and the Swiss alps) is here : https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...
And then 2 years ago we did we did part of the Pyrenees and Andorra, which is here :
https://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&...
And for this year I wanted to drive the Monaco grand prix circuit in my own car as well as doing Route Napoleon, so I sepnd a few weeks researching where to go, what route I wanted to drive, and where to stop, ideally finding hotels with private parking and a swimming pool.
The itinerary was :
- Home (Essex) to Portsmouth and take the night Ferry to Santander in Spain.
- Drive the Pas D'arlas and the Col de la Pierre Saint-Martin, end up (just outside) Arette and stay the night.
- Drive 5 of the big Col’s through the Pyrenees (listed below), stop for lunch in Arreau, and finish in Narbonne.
- Col D’Aubisque
- Col De Soulor
- Col du Tourmalet
- Col D’aspin
- 2 nights in Narbonne, then head to St. Tropez, stop for lunch in Marseille on the way there.
- Spend the night in St. Tropez and explore the Marina and famous beach clubs.
- Drive the coastal route of the Cote D'azur, all the way along the water to Antibes (Jean le Pin) and stay there for 3 nights.
- Continue along the coast to Monaco, drive the Grand Prix circuit in my own car, stay for 2 nights, sightseeing and car spotting.
- Start route Napoleon, and take a detour via the Verdor Gorge, finish in Trigance (just outside Castelle) and stay overnight in a stunning castle.
- Do the 2nd part of Route Napoleon, end up (just outside) Grenoble and stay another night.
- Head towards Troyes, taking a detour via the lovely D996 route and stop for lunch in Djion, stay overnight in Troyes.
- Troyes to Calais, back home via the Eurotunnel.
I don't have/want a dashcam, but most of the road photo's (bar a few made with our mobiles) are made with this little Go Pro I mounted next to the rear view mirror with the remote switch next to my steering wheel so anytime the road/scenery looked pretty I could just snap a picture without having to ask my wife every 2 seconds to get her phone out
Spot of lunch in Portsmouth's Marina, watching our ship come in.
Couple other petrolheads who were driving to Portugal, might look at that for our next trip :
Both times we've used the ferry for this crossing we booked the C-club lounge, which serves not only breakfast, lunch and dinner, but also has snacks throughout the day and unlimited drinks (including wine) throughout your crossing, well worth the money every time!
Our first stop of the trip, this lovely B&B with pool & jacuzzi and secure parking :
Narbonne hotel, with roof terrace and private garage
Beautifull Narbonne :
=======================================================================================
Lunch stop in Marseille, on the way to St. Tropez
St Tropez, great for car and yacht spotting! Feeling rather poor in my little Porsche Boxster here...
Looking at the yachts, playing millionaire or billionaire...
Coastal drive to Antibes
Antibes hotel with private underground parking :
And on the beach the Gopro ('dashcam') goes into a waterproof case and along into the sea, before going back on the windscreen :
Coastal route to Monaco
==========================================
Arriving in Monaco, going over the start line of the Grand Prix circuit and following the preplanned Satnav route to drive the entire circuit, prior to going to our hotel.
Fairtmont hairpin :
Great car spotting here...
Ok, not quite an exotic, but I'm a paramedic so it's the obligatory holiday shot...
==================
Heading to the Starting point of route Napoleon, which was lovely and quiet. Detoured via the Verdon gorge which was stunning as well :
From google: "The Gorges du Verdon is a stunning 25-kilometer long and 700-meter deep river canyon in southeastern France, often called the "Grand Canyon of Verdon." Famed for its striking turquoise-green water, it offers world-class hiking, kayaking, and scenic driving between limestone cliffs.
Overnight stay in this stunning castle, https://www.chateau-de-trigance.fr/
Made a friend the next day, and even stopped for a chat (being Dutch myself helped) and followed him for another little local blast before continueing towards Grenoble.
Going over the bridge in the background
Next stop, another little Chateau just outside Grenoble
Grenoble :
Final overnight stop in Troyes, also a very pleasant town with enough to see and do, and perfect to break up the journey to Calais.
First time we booked that Flexiplus lounge at the Eurotunnel as well, so you can just turn up and take train and don't have to worry about getting there for a certain time but I still think I prefer the Ferry over to Spain, as it just cuts out a large chunk of the boring French tollroutes.
Having done the pyrenes twice now I think I definitely prefer them over the Swiss alps, mainly before they're so much quieter, the longest stetch (on a fun road) without having anyone in front of me was over 1.5 hour, it was brilliant!
Route planning started on google maps, and then copied across to the Tomtom website so I tweak them, and then save the individual routes and sync them to the Tomtom app on my phone.
Great Trip Report 
The perfect car for roadtripping.
GT40 looks classy compared to the modern supercars IMO.
Love the Elephant Cocktail glass holder, I've never seen one of those before.
Thanks for taking the time to upload all of that. Your hotel accommodation looks rather smarter than I tend to go for, but nice to see how the other half do it.
The perfect car for roadtripping.GT40 looks classy compared to the modern supercars IMO.
Love the Elephant Cocktail glass holder, I've never seen one of those before.
Thanks for taking the time to upload all of that. Your hotel accommodation looks rather smarter than I tend to go for, but nice to see how the other half do it.
Great write up and pics . Wife and I with two friends ate in the restaurant in the final picture a couple of nights ago . It's a great little town we have stopped there maybe 5 times now .
As a bit of a practice question. What do you do for breakdown cover and repatriation in the event of a problem.
It's always in the back of my mind on these type of trips .
As a bit of a practice question. What do you do for breakdown cover and repatriation in the event of a problem.
It's always in the back of my mind on these type of trips .
Really enjoyed that - thanks for taking the time to do it.
I've just come back from nearly a month in Provence in a 911 cab... great cars for the tour!
We stopped near Troyes on the way down - and had lunch in the centre, right where you took one of the pics. A lovely town, although parking was tricky - I found somewhere but it took a while.
I've just come back from nearly a month in Provence in a 911 cab... great cars for the tour!
We stopped near Troyes on the way down - and had lunch in the centre, right where you took one of the pics. A lovely town, although parking was tricky - I found somewhere but it took a while.
M11rph said:
Great Trip Report The perfect car for roadtripping.
GT40 looks classy compared to the modern supercars IMO.
Love the Elephant Cocktail glass holder, I've never seen one of those before.
Thanks for taking the time to upload all of that. Your hotel accommodation looks rather smarter than I tend to go for, but nice to see how the other half do it.
I've found by booking nice hotels it keeps the wife happy after a day of spirit driving... The perfect car for roadtripping.GT40 looks classy compared to the modern supercars IMO.
Love the Elephant Cocktail glass holder, I've never seen one of those before.
Thanks for taking the time to upload all of that. Your hotel accommodation looks rather smarter than I tend to go for, but nice to see how the other half do it.
The elephant cocktail holder was a bit of a surprise to me as well, the bar and that particular cocktail had like an African jungle theme, but I was not expecting that
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