European Road Trip Advise
Discussion
I have read through the various topics but I would really like some input on the following planned trip.
Probably 14 days with day 1 getting down to the tunnel.
Ideally looking for inspiration and suggestions for best towns or villages to visit and stay and also ideas for hotels that have safe parking and are low car friendly.
Driving days of around no more than 5 hours because I will have my son with me and I think the fun will wane.
I thought about Reims and a visit to the circuit. Where would you stay?
Driving through the Black Forest on scenic roads and staying somewhere traditional and interesting.
Through the alps. Do we stay a night or just over a pass into Italy?
2 nights in Como again which area and any suggestions for hotels. Not looking for super swanky but views and good parking.
Then a route down to Monaco for 2 nights. Again where to stay. I have heard the red rock road is good.
Then back up Route Napoleon stopping probably 2 nights in France and looking for suggestions please.
If you have been somewhere that you love or a road that is worth driving please let me know. I do not want just hours on the autoroute. Also what are the must haves that might be overlooked.
Many thanks for any input.
Probably 14 days with day 1 getting down to the tunnel.
Ideally looking for inspiration and suggestions for best towns or villages to visit and stay and also ideas for hotels that have safe parking and are low car friendly.
Driving days of around no more than 5 hours because I will have my son with me and I think the fun will wane.
I thought about Reims and a visit to the circuit. Where would you stay?
Driving through the Black Forest on scenic roads and staying somewhere traditional and interesting.
Through the alps. Do we stay a night or just over a pass into Italy?
2 nights in Como again which area and any suggestions for hotels. Not looking for super swanky but views and good parking.
Then a route down to Monaco for 2 nights. Again where to stay. I have heard the red rock road is good.
Then back up Route Napoleon stopping probably 2 nights in France and looking for suggestions please.
If you have been somewhere that you love or a road that is worth driving please let me know. I do not want just hours on the autoroute. Also what are the must haves that might be overlooked.
Many thanks for any input.
You don t say when you are travelling? From your outline route I d make the following suggestions:
Hotels, you should give more of an idea of budget, although if you are going with your lad I m assuming you re not after 5star luxury? A lot of the road trip reports and others on here do recommend a few hotels and chains, I think formula 1 is one in France?
For good routes use the Harry Metcalfe method of the Michelin guide maps (or app), which gives scenic route options.
Reims is a good, popular stop, plenty of nice hotels and lodging.
From Reims to maybe Colmar/ Vosges mountains? Then across into Germany for the Black Forest etc. the B500 gets mentioned, but from recent reports it has a reduced speed limit and is quite busy, with many recommending other alternatives - do a search, there are several suggestions.
From there down into Switzerland. Many don t consider Switzerland great for driving, due to speed limits and enforcement, but it can t be beaten for scenery, and the main passes are great drives. My road trip in this year visits Interlaken in late June, with an outline plan to stay for 3 nights (we are away 6weeks), and to have one day on the passes, Susten/Nufenen/Grimsel/Furka etc etc, there are loads but these are located close to one another to give easy access and keep you busy for the day.
Como is a great stop, but can be busy in peak summer months. We are visiting lake Orta for a change this time.
French Riviera not my strong point, but there are some amazing roads in the Alps and foothills to the north, including the red rock road, but there are others, including the D2 which Chris Harris recently used for the new gt3 review - check the Michelin guide for further options.
Route napoleon is popular, we are doing part of it, maybe head from that area towards Burgundy/Beaune area for a stop on your way back?
Sounds like a great trip, and the planning is almost more fun than the trip!
Hotels, you should give more of an idea of budget, although if you are going with your lad I m assuming you re not after 5star luxury? A lot of the road trip reports and others on here do recommend a few hotels and chains, I think formula 1 is one in France?
For good routes use the Harry Metcalfe method of the Michelin guide maps (or app), which gives scenic route options.
Reims is a good, popular stop, plenty of nice hotels and lodging.
From Reims to maybe Colmar/ Vosges mountains? Then across into Germany for the Black Forest etc. the B500 gets mentioned, but from recent reports it has a reduced speed limit and is quite busy, with many recommending other alternatives - do a search, there are several suggestions.
From there down into Switzerland. Many don t consider Switzerland great for driving, due to speed limits and enforcement, but it can t be beaten for scenery, and the main passes are great drives. My road trip in this year visits Interlaken in late June, with an outline plan to stay for 3 nights (we are away 6weeks), and to have one day on the passes, Susten/Nufenen/Grimsel/Furka etc etc, there are loads but these are located close to one another to give easy access and keep you busy for the day.
Como is a great stop, but can be busy in peak summer months. We are visiting lake Orta for a change this time.
French Riviera not my strong point, but there are some amazing roads in the Alps and foothills to the north, including the red rock road, but there are others, including the D2 which Chris Harris recently used for the new gt3 review - check the Michelin guide for further options.
Route napoleon is popular, we are doing part of it, maybe head from that area towards Burgundy/Beaune area for a stop on your way back?
Sounds like a great trip, and the planning is almost more fun than the trip!
Edited by Imasurv on Tuesday 6th January 00:35
Not sure where you are located but we always give that there tunnel a big miss, it's often a complete effing mare to get to and if heading sarf there's a better option. Head towards Portsmouth, get an overnight ferry, land refreshed at Caen (or similar) get off boat before eight and you have a full day ahead of you. Whilst La belle France is a delightful place to tour Provence is often extremely busy and the main East West route is like the M6 in rush hour but busier and less fun. Beware speed cameras and the old delights of hurtling through sleepy French villes along dusty gravel roads accompanied by a vigorous tootling of the horn scattering hens and children in your wake is now very much a thing of the past. 20kph, aggressive speed humps (policiers endormis) and those beastly cameras have put a stop to that.
Personally agree with the above re the tunnel, we are from the north west and using the Portsmouth - St Malo ferry, but we are heading down through western France aiming for northern Spain, but coming back we are heading back across to St Malo from Alsace (Colmar), Burgundy (Chagny) and the Loire (Amboise), rather than head towards the tunnel.
Depends where you're coming from, but consider the Hull-Rotterdam or Harwich-Hoek overnight ferries. They sail reasonably late so if you can get to one after work you effectively increase your trip by a day as you arrive first thing in the next morning and can be in Germany by lunch time.
Como area is lovely, but generally pretty busy and lake roads give you a lovely view of the backs of the houses that have the lovely views. However if you head up in to the hills there are some fantastic roads that are generally pretty quiet. The road past Lake Valvestino was a highlight for me on a bike trip a few years ago.
Como area is lovely, but generally pretty busy and lake roads give you a lovely view of the backs of the houses that have the lovely views. However if you head up in to the hills there are some fantastic roads that are generally pretty quiet. The road past Lake Valvestino was a highlight for me on a bike trip a few years ago.
bentley01 said:
I have read through the various topics but I would really like some input on the following planned trip.
Probably 14 days with day 1 getting down to the tunnel.
Ideally looking for inspiration and suggestions for best towns or villages to visit and stay and also ideas for hotels that have safe parking and are low car friendly.
Driving days of around no more than 5 hours because I will have my son with me and I think the fun will wane.
I thought about Reims and a visit to the circuit. Where would you stay?
Driving through the Black Forest on scenic roads and staying somewhere traditional and interesting.
Through the alps. Do we stay a night or just over a pass into Italy?
2 nights in Como again which area and any suggestions for hotels. Not looking for super swanky but views and good parking.
Then a route down to Monaco for 2 nights. Again where to stay. I have heard the red rock road is good.
Then back up Route Napoleon stopping probably 2 nights in France and looking for suggestions please.
If you have been somewhere that you love or a road that is worth driving please let me know. I do not want just hours on the autoroute. Also what are the must haves that might be overlooked.
Many thanks for any input.
Firstly this place near Reims is where I generally stay - https://www.auclosdulac.fr/en/bed-and-breakfast-ch... it's very good and has secure parking. Some might disagree, but the 'circuit' is not actually that fascinating - it's worth a stop if you've never seen the abandoned grand stands, but it's not amazing. I know some will say that's heresy! There is also this chateau which I've stayed at too https://chateaudefere.com/en/ near Reims.Probably 14 days with day 1 getting down to the tunnel.
Ideally looking for inspiration and suggestions for best towns or villages to visit and stay and also ideas for hotels that have safe parking and are low car friendly.
Driving days of around no more than 5 hours because I will have my son with me and I think the fun will wane.
I thought about Reims and a visit to the circuit. Where would you stay?
Driving through the Black Forest on scenic roads and staying somewhere traditional and interesting.
Through the alps. Do we stay a night or just over a pass into Italy?
2 nights in Como again which area and any suggestions for hotels. Not looking for super swanky but views and good parking.
Then a route down to Monaco for 2 nights. Again where to stay. I have heard the red rock road is good.
Then back up Route Napoleon stopping probably 2 nights in France and looking for suggestions please.
If you have been somewhere that you love or a road that is worth driving please let me know. I do not want just hours on the autoroute. Also what are the must haves that might be overlooked.
Many thanks for any input.
I drive down to Provence every summer and spend 3 nights getting there and 4 nights getting back - I find around 250/300 miles per day to be perfect. When I was younger I regularly did the Med to home in Surrey in a single drive, not any more.
Unfortunately hours on the motorway is necessary if you want to get to your destination easily, while the back roads are lovely, it takes many hours to make very little progress. Part of the fun if you're not in a hurry I suppose, but I like to get to my destination first before exploring.I always use the tunnel as I can't bear ferries... I get to France more quickly and the car won't have had rucksacks scraped along the side.
Will you need a Crit'Air sticker for Reims?
Happy for you to PM me if your trip starts to come together - I don't know Italy at all, but I do know France quite well and do it every year.
t ton of space and often next to a lift. Cuts down considerably on idiots trying to squeeze past. Thanks very much for the information and suggestions. Toll widget and crit air stickers noted. Not sure about the tunnel or a ferry but I definitely don’t like the idea of bags and people squeezing past the car. Thanks for the offer of a DM which would be great and very much appreciated. Please keep the suggestions coming. Particularly any hotels en route that are good and any must visit locations or roads.
I've done several over the last few years, with either teenage son or daughter riding shotgun (GT4).
Always used the tunnel, great way to cross and never had a single delay, just don't go during school holidays.
Drove down to Ibiza in '22, fantastic trip via France/Andorra/Spain, drove back via Spain/France/Switzerland/Germany/Belgium.
We've since done parts of Northern Italy and some incredible roads in Austria, which comes very close to Switzerland for scenery (Grossglockner Pass is my favourite, Nochelmstrasse a close second).
I start by deciding where I want to go, mapping out 300 ish miles max per day to the next interesting spot. The motorways in Europe will get you places incredibly quickly compared to the dross in the UK, but they can be very boring. You can always find reasonable accommodation everywhere if you spend a bit of time on the search engines, then go direct to the hotel for a better price (usually).
Don't underestimate the time taken once you come off the motorways, we had a day going from Sachseln to Davos last year, took around 6 hours of driving over some of the best passes in Europe, total distance around 180 miles, conversely, covered 400 miles in 4 hours across the top of France into Germany on the Autoroute, (the D500 down to Switzerland from Baden Baden is fantastic by the way).
Spend a good while planning and you'll have an epic time. Just don't do Stelvio on a weekend, utter chaos.
Always used the tunnel, great way to cross and never had a single delay, just don't go during school holidays.
Drove down to Ibiza in '22, fantastic trip via France/Andorra/Spain, drove back via Spain/France/Switzerland/Germany/Belgium.
We've since done parts of Northern Italy and some incredible roads in Austria, which comes very close to Switzerland for scenery (Grossglockner Pass is my favourite, Nochelmstrasse a close second).
I start by deciding where I want to go, mapping out 300 ish miles max per day to the next interesting spot. The motorways in Europe will get you places incredibly quickly compared to the dross in the UK, but they can be very boring. You can always find reasonable accommodation everywhere if you spend a bit of time on the search engines, then go direct to the hotel for a better price (usually).
Don't underestimate the time taken once you come off the motorways, we had a day going from Sachseln to Davos last year, took around 6 hours of driving over some of the best passes in Europe, total distance around 180 miles, conversely, covered 400 miles in 4 hours across the top of France into Germany on the Autoroute, (the D500 down to Switzerland from Baden Baden is fantastic by the way).
Spend a good while planning and you'll have an epic time. Just don't do Stelvio on a weekend, utter chaos.
plynchy said:
I've done several over the last few years, with either teenage son or daughter riding shotgun (GT4).
Always used the tunnel, great way to cross and never had a single delay, just don't go during school holidays.
I start by deciding where I want to go, mapping out 300 ish miles max per day to the next interesting spot. The motorways in Europe will get you places incredibly quickly compared to the dross in the UK, but they can be very boring. You can always find reasonable accommodation everywhere if you spend a bit of time on the search engines, then go direct to the hotel for a better price (usually).
Don't underestimate the time taken once you come off the motorways, we had a day going from Sachseln to Davos last year, took around 6 hours of driving over some of the best passes in Europe, total distance around 180 miles, conversely, covered 400 miles in 4 hours across the top of France into Germany on the Autoroute,
Almost a carbon copy (minus the teenagers) of how I plan our trips to the south of France every year. I think around 300 miles a day is about right and it always takes much longer than you might think. Occasionally we might have a leg that's a 5 hour drive - usually to the first hotel - but the excitement of the first day erases the drudgery. Always used the tunnel, great way to cross and never had a single delay, just don't go during school holidays.
I start by deciding where I want to go, mapping out 300 ish miles max per day to the next interesting spot. The motorways in Europe will get you places incredibly quickly compared to the dross in the UK, but they can be very boring. You can always find reasonable accommodation everywhere if you spend a bit of time on the search engines, then go direct to the hotel for a better price (usually).
Don't underestimate the time taken once you come off the motorways, we had a day going from Sachseln to Davos last year, took around 6 hours of driving over some of the best passes in Europe, total distance around 180 miles, conversely, covered 400 miles in 4 hours across the top of France into Germany on the Autoroute,
The interwebs are perfect for researching towns, villages, hotels, restaurants etc etc even with Street View to whet the appetite.
Plan now in place but can be tweaked
Day 1 get down to Folkestone.
Day 2 to Luxembourg thinking of autoroute to Mons then scenic route?
Day 3 to Baden Baden
Day 4 B500 down into Switzerland staying in Disentis
Day 5 early start and over the Grimsel, Furka and Susten passes looping back to stay in Lauterbrunen
Day 6 over a pass then down to Como staying in Cernobbio
Day 7 to Monaco driving the coast route from Genoa? Is this any good
Day 8/9 staying in Villeneuve-Loubet
Day 10 Route Napoleon to Grenoble
Day 11 Grenoble to Troyes taking the D996 from Dijon
Day 12 Troyes to St Omer
Day 13 shuttle then home.
Happy for any additional tips and suggestions if you have done something similar thanks.
Day 1 get down to Folkestone.
Day 2 to Luxembourg thinking of autoroute to Mons then scenic route?
Day 3 to Baden Baden
Day 4 B500 down into Switzerland staying in Disentis
Day 5 early start and over the Grimsel, Furka and Susten passes looping back to stay in Lauterbrunen
Day 6 over a pass then down to Como staying in Cernobbio
Day 7 to Monaco driving the coast route from Genoa? Is this any good
Day 8/9 staying in Villeneuve-Loubet
Day 10 Route Napoleon to Grenoble
Day 11 Grenoble to Troyes taking the D996 from Dijon
Day 12 Troyes to St Omer
Day 13 shuttle then home.
Happy for any additional tips and suggestions if you have done something similar thanks.
bentley01 said:
Plan now in place but can be tweaked
Day 1 get down to Folkestone.
Day 2 to Luxembourg thinking of autoroute to Mons then scenic route?
Day 3 to Baden Baden
Day 4 B500 down into Switzerland staying in Disentis
Day 5 early start and over the Grimsel, Furka and Susten passes looping back to stay in Lauterbrunen
Day 6 over a pass then down to Como staying in Cernobbio
Day 7 to Monaco driving the coast route from Genoa? Is this any good
Day 8/9 staying in Villeneuve-Loubet
Day 10 Route Napoleon to Grenoble
Day 11 Grenoble to Troyes taking the D996 from Dijon
Day 12 Troyes to St Omer
Day 13 shuttle then home.
Happy for any additional tips and suggestions if you have done something similar thanks.
Sounds like a great trip. If you want somewhere to stay in Folkestone I can recommend the London and Paris hotel on the harbour. Top floor room has a great view. Folkestone itself is worth a couple of hours too. Day 1 get down to Folkestone.
Day 2 to Luxembourg thinking of autoroute to Mons then scenic route?
Day 3 to Baden Baden
Day 4 B500 down into Switzerland staying in Disentis
Day 5 early start and over the Grimsel, Furka and Susten passes looping back to stay in Lauterbrunen
Day 6 over a pass then down to Como staying in Cernobbio
Day 7 to Monaco driving the coast route from Genoa? Is this any good
Day 8/9 staying in Villeneuve-Loubet
Day 10 Route Napoleon to Grenoble
Day 11 Grenoble to Troyes taking the D996 from Dijon
Day 12 Troyes to St Omer
Day 13 shuttle then home.
Happy for any additional tips and suggestions if you have done something similar thanks.
bentley01 said:
Plan now in place but can be tweaked
Day 1 get down to Folkestone.
Day 2 to Luxembourg thinking of autoroute to Mons then scenic route?
Day 3 to Baden Baden
Day 4 B500 down into Switzerland staying in Disentis
Day 5 early start and over the Grimsel, Furka and Susten passes looping back to stay in Lauterbrunen
Day 6 over a pass then down to Como staying in Cernobbio
Day 7 to Monaco driving the coast route from Genoa? Is this any good
Day 8/9 staying in Villeneuve-Loubet
Day 10 Route Napoleon to Grenoble
Day 11 Grenoble to Troyes taking the D996 from Dijon
Day 12 Troyes to St Omer
Day 13 shuttle then home.
Happy for any additional tips and suggestions if you have done something similar thanks.
Thats very similar to something I done a few yrs back, day5/6 are epic, LOTS of driving, but the good kind. As others have said, the scenery is to die for, you dont need to go fast !Day 1 get down to Folkestone.
Day 2 to Luxembourg thinking of autoroute to Mons then scenic route?
Day 3 to Baden Baden
Day 4 B500 down into Switzerland staying in Disentis
Day 5 early start and over the Grimsel, Furka and Susten passes looping back to stay in Lauterbrunen
Day 6 over a pass then down to Como staying in Cernobbio
Day 7 to Monaco driving the coast route from Genoa? Is this any good
Day 8/9 staying in Villeneuve-Loubet
Day 10 Route Napoleon to Grenoble
Day 11 Grenoble to Troyes taking the D996 from Dijon
Day 12 Troyes to St Omer
Day 13 shuttle then home.
Happy for any additional tips and suggestions if you have done something similar thanks.
Did Calais to Baden Baden (Holiday Inn is spot on, own private car park and a short walk from town) in a day easily last year, boring 400 mile run across Northern France on the toll roads but gave us more time to spend in the Alps later in the trip. Cruise on 100, never encountered any police/cameras.
Something to consider unless you specifically want to go to Luxembourg.
Something to consider unless you specifically want to go to Luxembourg.
Thanks for the input and advice. Hotel in Folkestone I have already booked but thanks for the tip.
We have booked the Holiday Inn in Baden Baden mainly because of the location and the parking so I’m glad it’s ok. With regards Luxembourg it’s just seemed like somewhere nice to stop and visit without driving too long on the autoroute. Both cars have teenagers in them and they will get bored if the driving is too much.
We have booked the Holiday Inn in Baden Baden mainly because of the location and the parking so I’m glad it’s ok. With regards Luxembourg it’s just seemed like somewhere nice to stop and visit without driving too long on the autoroute. Both cars have teenagers in them and they will get bored if the driving is too much.
bentley01 said:
Thanks for the input and advice. Hotel in Folkestone I have already booked but thanks for the tip.
We have booked the Holiday Inn in Baden Baden mainly because of the location and the parking so I m glad it s ok. With regards Luxembourg it s just seemed like somewhere nice to stop and visit without driving too long on the autoroute. Both cars have teenagers in them and they will get bored if the driving is too much.
We (19 year old daughter & me) had a wander into town, went for a Masskrug in the Lowenbrau bar, then caught a pizza on the way back, decent restaurant on same side of the road to hotel, few hundred yards down, reasonable prices too. We have booked the Holiday Inn in Baden Baden mainly because of the location and the parking so I m glad it s ok. With regards Luxembourg it s just seemed like somewhere nice to stop and visit without driving too long on the autoroute. Both cars have teenagers in them and they will get bored if the driving is too much.
Very pretty town, shame it was lashing down while we visited!
Not sure of your route but there's a very good water park at Titisee on the way down to Switzerland, several in the area if you want to let the kids off the leash. Great fun. Although I was knackered driving after that.
Edited by plynchy on Sunday 1st February 16:58
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