Road trip to Monaco
Discussion
Being huge F1 fans me and a mate are going on a road trip down to Monaco in september so we can drive and explore the Monaco Gp circuit in our 1.8 Focai..
At the moment this is the route I have planned down to Monaco and then onto the Col de Turini, the route home will be left open but my mate has said about going back via germany. http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?f=d&source=s_d&a...
I have done a search on the site but was wondering if people could post some links to maps showing where some of the other great roads in the area are located. Also if anyone could recomned any cheap but tidy accodation it would be much appreciated. We have at most 8 days to do the trip and would ideally like a whole day in Monaco.
Thanks for any help
At the moment this is the route I have planned down to Monaco and then onto the Col de Turini, the route home will be left open but my mate has said about going back via germany. http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?f=d&source=s_d&a...
I have done a search on the site but was wondering if people could post some links to maps showing where some of the other great roads in the area are located. Also if anyone could recomned any cheap but tidy accodation it would be much appreciated. We have at most 8 days to do the trip and would ideally like a whole day in Monaco.
Thanks for any help
Edited by Allyc85 on Saturday 11th July 20:02
Chers for the help so far guys thats superb, would love to see your route
Deffo want to go to Reims as im a huge F1 nut and so will hopefully be able to visit the abandoned pit garages. Then as you say theres so many options over the mountains and its just a case of squeezing them all in
Alot of people ive spoken to think we are nuts doing this road trip as its so far. Plus they dont see the point in us taking separate cars but we both want to drive the great roads and I think chasing a mate or being chased on a road trip makes it alot more fun.
Deffo want to go to Reims as im a huge F1 nut and so will hopefully be able to visit the abandoned pit garages. Then as you say theres so many options over the mountains and its just a case of squeezing them all in
Alot of people ive spoken to think we are nuts doing this road trip as its so far. Plus they dont see the point in us taking separate cars but we both want to drive the great roads and I think chasing a mate or being chased on a road trip makes it alot more fun.
Oh yes, will be up very early for the nosey round!
Gillet said:
Sorry for jumping on this post, but seemed to make more sense than creating a new one just for me.....
I'm off to Monaco next month, and am looking at routes to get there from the Alps. I think i've found a great route, but not sure if its too long, or more importantly if its going to be scenic and full of decent mountain passes.
My proposed route:
http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?f=d&source=s_d&a...
Anyone done this or a similar route? i specifically want decent mountain roads and good scenery, so if this won't be provided by this route let me know and i may aswell take the motorways and spend more time in Monaco itself.
cheers
No problem mate, that route you just posted might just be the start of our route home I'm off to Monaco next month, and am looking at routes to get there from the Alps. I think i've found a great route, but not sure if its too long, or more importantly if its going to be scenic and full of decent mountain passes.
My proposed route:
http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?f=d&source=s_d&a...
Anyone done this or a similar route? i specifically want decent mountain roads and good scenery, so if this won't be provided by this route let me know and i may aswell take the motorways and spend more time in Monaco itself.
cheers
Well the ferry is now booked at 2pm on the 20th of September we leave British shores for Monty
As we are going in autumn does any one have a good b plan in case the Stelvio pass is shut as the snow a couple weeks ago has got me a bit concerned lol. Also can anyone recommend any cheap accommodation near Davos and Monaco?
Cheers for any advice.
As we are going in autumn does any one have a good b plan in case the Stelvio pass is shut as the snow a couple weeks ago has got me a bit concerned lol. Also can anyone recommend any cheap accommodation near Davos and Monaco?
Cheers for any advice.
Its not looking good for the trip at the moment as my Focus is giving me loads of grief 
Theres a knocking noise coming from the rack when I rock the steering from the centre to right. Theres no play but sometimes the steering will pull to one side.
Also the front suspension bottoms out on steep dips in the road and over certain bumps, especially with passengers in the car. its lowered 30mm on Eibach springs and ive already replaced shocks and springs once with no difference.
So after spending £800 on it in the last month (Tyres, tax, PAS problems etc) ive got to decide very soon wif im going to spend more money on it trying to fix the problems or try and find myself something newer with a maximum of 2k to spend. Not great when we leave in 4 weeks time!
Theres a knocking noise coming from the rack when I rock the steering from the centre to right. Theres no play but sometimes the steering will pull to one side.
Also the front suspension bottoms out on steep dips in the road and over certain bumps, especially with passengers in the car. its lowered 30mm on Eibach springs and ive already replaced shocks and springs once with no difference.
So after spending £800 on it in the last month (Tyres, tax, PAS problems etc) ive got to decide very soon wif im going to spend more money on it trying to fix the problems or try and find myself something newer with a maximum of 2k to spend. Not great when we leave in 4 weeks time!
Cheers thats great info as I was looking at maybe doing the route napoleon, though it could be difficult to add it into the Col De Turini, we will have to see how things are going.
What ive put into google earth is right isnt it?
http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?f=d&source=s_d&a...
edit: this is the start of our route home that ive planned so far
http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?f=d&source=s_d&a...
What ive put into google earth is right isnt it?
http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?f=d&source=s_d&a...
edit: this is the start of our route home that ive planned so far
http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?f=d&source=s_d&a...
Edited by Allyc85 on Wednesday 26th August 17:22
Gutted about the Col, but thanks for letting me know before hand, would have been even more annoyed wasting time getting up there. I was really looking forward to following in the wheel tracks of my fav rally drivers on such a famous stage but still gives us more time to relax and find some other great roads
itsnotarace said:
Another option (but leave lots of time for this as average speed will be 20mph or less) is the Routes Des Grand Alpes http://www.grande-traversee-alpes.com/index.php, I would recommend at least 3 days for this if you actually want to stop and do touristy things, but it can be done in 2 x 12 hour stints if you just want to drive pretty much non stop
the link dosnt work mate.scoobyjam said:
Ally, hope you dont mind if I jump in on this thread.
I have managed to fit in my first driving trip to Europe and I am planning on leaving early this Saturday. Its a bit last last minute but I am having a nightmare with planning my route.
I have been scanning the threads for ideas of good roads and passes and have come up with a few ideas and put them down on a map. I have got into my 3rd/4th day and now dont know where to go or if I am trying to cover too many miles?
Any ideas and advice would be appreciated. I have outlined my plan below and attached my route so far.
Day 1 Calais - Lyon via Troyes D966 to Dijon
Day 2 Lyon - Monaco via Grenoble - Route Napeleon - D2 Vence - Monaco
Day 3 Monaco - F1 Route - Through Italy - Simplon Pass - Furka - Grimsel
Day 4 Grimsel - St Gotthard - San Bernadino - Davos to Stelvio
Day 5 Return to Calais Via ? - Catch Train in the evening
My problem is do I take in Stelvio at the same time?
Am I trying to squeeze too much into each day - I would like to enjoy it?
Can you recommend any alternatives to what I have planned?
Any ideas on where to stop day 3/4th and 4/5th night in the mountains?
http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?hl=en&tab=wl
Thanks for your help
James
Not sure if I can really help you as im totally new to going on european road trips myself and im not sure if we will squeeze all of ours in without rushing too much. We are staying in the youth hostel at Davos which is cheap and should be a hell of alot more comfier than the tent im using for the other nights lol.I have managed to fit in my first driving trip to Europe and I am planning on leaving early this Saturday. Its a bit last last minute but I am having a nightmare with planning my route.
I have been scanning the threads for ideas of good roads and passes and have come up with a few ideas and put them down on a map. I have got into my 3rd/4th day and now dont know where to go or if I am trying to cover too many miles?
Any ideas and advice would be appreciated. I have outlined my plan below and attached my route so far.
Day 1 Calais - Lyon via Troyes D966 to Dijon
Day 2 Lyon - Monaco via Grenoble - Route Napeleon - D2 Vence - Monaco
Day 3 Monaco - F1 Route - Through Italy - Simplon Pass - Furka - Grimsel
Day 4 Grimsel - St Gotthard - San Bernadino - Davos to Stelvio
Day 5 Return to Calais Via ? - Catch Train in the evening
My problem is do I take in Stelvio at the same time?
Am I trying to squeeze too much into each day - I would like to enjoy it?
Can you recommend any alternatives to what I have planned?
Any ideas on where to stop day 3/4th and 4/5th night in the mountains?
http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?hl=en&tab=wl
Thanks for your help
James
It looks like youve got a cracking route and im sure someone will be on here soon thats done this kind of thing before to help! Just make sure you stick some pictures up here when your back
Well at 4.22am this morning I got home from an amazing 2437 mile road trip around some of the most stunning roads ive ever seen! We ended up doing a lot of motorway miles but when we were on normal roads they make anything weve got in this country look a bit plain! I will do a write up with pics in a few days!
Just copied and pasted my write up that I did on FEOC-uk.com...
Last week me and a mate took our Focai on a 2437 mile road trip to europe to find some of the best roads and to take a drive around the Monaco GP circuit and it went something like this..
[u]Day 1[/u]
At 8.30 we left Hemyock in Devon for Dover where we caught a Norfolk Line ferry to Dunkirk, no amazing cars onboard but there was 2 massive great trucks from the Kawasaki World Superbike team heading for Imola. We were going to visit the old F1 pits at Reims once we got to France but time got on but time got on and we ended up going straight to the campsite in Val-de-Vastle.
432 miles covered
Filled up with 50 Euros worth of very expensive fuel.
[u]Day 2[/u]
Day to started off really foggy which the sat nav hated so for the morning we went by old style maps until we could get a signal. We did a shed load of motorway miles going through Metz, Stasbourg and Basle which was madness with heavy traffic and again the sat nav going mental when we got into the many tunnels. Once we got deep into Switzerland the scenery was stunning with huge mountains and great wide lakes, which made the motorways a hell of a lot more interesting. That night we stayed at a Youth Hostel in davos which was cheap and provided dinner and breakfast.
One of many fuel stops on the trip..
Scenery en-route to Davos..
View From the Youth Hostel..
Miles covered that day 433, had to pay 12 Euros in road tolls and 40 Swiss francs for a motorway pass that lasts a year.
Fueled up at one point, didnt write down how much!
[u]Day 3[/u]
Day 3 was one I had been looking forward to and planning for ages and was the one when we took on some of the amazing mountain passes in the area. Every one of them we drove was brilliant fun, twisting though the stunning scenery. The first one we drove was the Fluelapass and I managed to cook the brakes on the first long, down hill section causing massive clouds of smoke from the front Luckily they cooled down ok and were fine for the rest of the trip, though I was alot more cautious on the down hill sections after that!
Fluelapass..
We then did the short and very twisty Rauchenpass (spelling?) and entered Italy where we got to the Stelvio Pass which was shown on top gear. This road was one of the highlights for me as I love sharp hairpins and this had loads of them and the pictures just sum up the view! The only bad thing was the altitude really sucked the power out of my 2.0 engine so when I go back it will have to be in something alot faster
mug shot
Mystery 4x4 on test..
One of the Minis that squeezed past us up the hill..
We then did the Ofenpass, which had a great gravel section and hairpins... the handbrake proved effective
With time getting on we then took the road from Zernez to Lecco via St Moritz which had a beut of a road beside the Lago di sils lake and a very twisty section which dropped extremely quickly in a very short distance. That night we camped at Belleriver campsite in Lecco right next to a river, which was a beutiful end to an epic days driving.
[u]Day 4[/u]
The next day was a lot of motorway driving down to Menton, near Monaco where we would stay the night. A lot of the time was spent shouting banter down the walkie talkies and listening in on the radio conversations from the lorries that they would pick up. We left the motorway early at Albenga but the coast road to Menton was spoilt by some stupid bint in a Fiat 600 who wouldnt do more than 30mph and braked for every little kink in the road, I wasnt very impressed lol.
The weather was baking hot now and got hotter the closer we got to Monaco and must have been 30 degress We got to Menton in the evening and went for a swim and the Mediterrainen was lush n must have been twice as warm as the english channel that im used to. We then grabbed a traditional french meal at Mcdonalds and again camped at the ST Micheal Plato Campsite.
Total miles 1305
[u]Day 5[/u]
Thursday was pretty much the reason we had driven over a 1000 miles through europe, for me to realise an ambition and drive around the Monaco GP circuit..... only for there to be a massive Yacht show on causing the harbour front to be closed off. Still despite that and the heavy traffic it was well worth the journey, just seeing how tight and twisty the circuit actually is as on TV you dont get the true sense of height and all the cambers etc.
Lowes Hairpin where I got told off by a local for drivng to fast around the bend, but I couldnt care less as I had wanted to driver it since I was about 7 lol.
Other parts of the circuit..
And the scenery..
Some of the supercars *drool*
This Maserati Granturismo is the best looking car ive ever seen, love it..
After we had seen as much as possible in Monaco we stayed the night in Cannes, with our camp site seeming to be beside the local scooter racing circuit!
Total miles 1353, filled up with 27 litres of fuel.
[u]Day 5
[/u]
Day 5 we started the long journey towards home up the Route Nepoleon to Grenoble and what a road! Loads of tight hairpins, open sweepers and loads of camber in some of the corners so you could really chuck the car into the bends. At one point I was made to realise how slow my car is when getting skinned up a hill by a Mini Cooper S! Not only was the Route Nepoleon good because of the road but the scenery was once again stunning and I do kind of regret not stopping a bit more to take it in but when youve been making "commited" over takes to get past the dawdlers you just dont want to let them through again. We made pretty good progress and ended up camping in the St Vital site in Cluney, right next to the main railway line to Lyon <_<
Total miles 1674
Filled up with 36 litres of fuel at 41 euros and paid 14.50 Euros in road tolls.
[u]Day 6
[/u]
Saturday started off with a long haul up the motorways which was pretty boring apart from the faster paced quiet sections, the random waves from other british motorists and getting cut up by some tw@t on a motorbike who didnt check that I was about 10 yards from passing him!
The aim for the day was to visit the old pits from the Reims racing circuit that was used in the 50s and get some pics of our cars by the garages and do some kind of dirve past. But we managed to stumble accross a massive car show which had massive range of historic racing cars and modern day super cars hammering around the circuit. Was great to see but I was a bit dissapointed that I couldnt take a proper look around the site, bu its just another excuse to go again!
At the show was one of the greatest motorcycle racers of all time Giacomo Agostini and I was too awestruck to say anything to him lol.
And Phil Hill was another motorcycle racing great.
That night after another traditional French meal of KFC we headed back to the campsite at Val-de-Vesle.
Total miles now 1972, filled up with 37 litres of fuel at 52 Euros.
Paid 37 Euros in road tolls, ouch!
[u]Last Day.[/u]
For the last day we had loads of time before catching our 10pm ferry home to Dunkirk so we took the brilliant D966 to Maubeurge which had massive long, fast straights and open sweeping bends with concrete rumle stips kerbing on the apexes so you cut the corners race car style :lol:
We eventually got to Dunkirk after driving on the worst motorway surface ever seen on the A25 (E42) and chilled out on the beach, before taking a look around the WW2 defences.
The sun goes down on a perfect trip.
We got back to England at 11pm Uk time and after getting split up (My mate got lost coming out of Dover :lol started the most depressing and boring drive home with the only highlight being left for dead by a GT40 heading towards London. I was so tired driving back and eventually rolled up at home on Monday morning at 4.22am sleeping like a log for pretty much the whole day! I couldnt believe how perfectly the trip went. Both cars used no water or oil despite the enthusiastic driving and the only problem we had with them was one of my dipped beam bulbs going
Filled up with 34 litres of petrol at 45 Euros and again filled up once back in England for the drive home
Total Mileage for the trip 2437 miles!!
I deffo want to do it again and im thinking of saving up for a return to the Alps next September to explore more mountain passes as I feel we rushed them a bit and once youve done Monaco theres not alot else to see apart from the GP.
Cheers for reading
Last week me and a mate took our Focai on a 2437 mile road trip to europe to find some of the best roads and to take a drive around the Monaco GP circuit and it went something like this..
[u]Day 1[/u]
At 8.30 we left Hemyock in Devon for Dover where we caught a Norfolk Line ferry to Dunkirk, no amazing cars onboard but there was 2 massive great trucks from the Kawasaki World Superbike team heading for Imola. We were going to visit the old F1 pits at Reims once we got to France but time got on but time got on and we ended up going straight to the campsite in Val-de-Vastle.
432 miles covered
Filled up with 50 Euros worth of very expensive fuel.
[u]Day 2[/u]
Day to started off really foggy which the sat nav hated so for the morning we went by old style maps until we could get a signal. We did a shed load of motorway miles going through Metz, Stasbourg and Basle which was madness with heavy traffic and again the sat nav going mental when we got into the many tunnels. Once we got deep into Switzerland the scenery was stunning with huge mountains and great wide lakes, which made the motorways a hell of a lot more interesting. That night we stayed at a Youth Hostel in davos which was cheap and provided dinner and breakfast.
One of many fuel stops on the trip..
Scenery en-route to Davos..
View From the Youth Hostel..
Miles covered that day 433, had to pay 12 Euros in road tolls and 40 Swiss francs for a motorway pass that lasts a year.
Fueled up at one point, didnt write down how much!
[u]Day 3[/u]
Day 3 was one I had been looking forward to and planning for ages and was the one when we took on some of the amazing mountain passes in the area. Every one of them we drove was brilliant fun, twisting though the stunning scenery. The first one we drove was the Fluelapass and I managed to cook the brakes on the first long, down hill section causing massive clouds of smoke from the front Luckily they cooled down ok and were fine for the rest of the trip, though I was alot more cautious on the down hill sections after that!
Fluelapass..
We then did the short and very twisty Rauchenpass (spelling?) and entered Italy where we got to the Stelvio Pass which was shown on top gear. This road was one of the highlights for me as I love sharp hairpins and this had loads of them and the pictures just sum up the view! The only bad thing was the altitude really sucked the power out of my 2.0 engine so when I go back it will have to be in something alot faster
mug shot
Mystery 4x4 on test..
One of the Minis that squeezed past us up the hill..
We then did the Ofenpass, which had a great gravel section and hairpins... the handbrake proved effective
With time getting on we then took the road from Zernez to Lecco via St Moritz which had a beut of a road beside the Lago di sils lake and a very twisty section which dropped extremely quickly in a very short distance. That night we camped at Belleriver campsite in Lecco right next to a river, which was a beutiful end to an epic days driving.
[u]Day 4[/u]
The next day was a lot of motorway driving down to Menton, near Monaco where we would stay the night. A lot of the time was spent shouting banter down the walkie talkies and listening in on the radio conversations from the lorries that they would pick up. We left the motorway early at Albenga but the coast road to Menton was spoilt by some stupid bint in a Fiat 600 who wouldnt do more than 30mph and braked for every little kink in the road, I wasnt very impressed lol.
The weather was baking hot now and got hotter the closer we got to Monaco and must have been 30 degress We got to Menton in the evening and went for a swim and the Mediterrainen was lush n must have been twice as warm as the english channel that im used to. We then grabbed a traditional french meal at Mcdonalds and again camped at the ST Micheal Plato Campsite.
Total miles 1305
[u]Day 5[/u]
Thursday was pretty much the reason we had driven over a 1000 miles through europe, for me to realise an ambition and drive around the Monaco GP circuit..... only for there to be a massive Yacht show on causing the harbour front to be closed off. Still despite that and the heavy traffic it was well worth the journey, just seeing how tight and twisty the circuit actually is as on TV you dont get the true sense of height and all the cambers etc.
Lowes Hairpin where I got told off by a local for drivng to fast around the bend, but I couldnt care less as I had wanted to driver it since I was about 7 lol.
Other parts of the circuit..
And the scenery..
Some of the supercars *drool*
This Maserati Granturismo is the best looking car ive ever seen, love it..
After we had seen as much as possible in Monaco we stayed the night in Cannes, with our camp site seeming to be beside the local scooter racing circuit!
Total miles 1353, filled up with 27 litres of fuel.
[u]Day 5
[/u]
Day 5 we started the long journey towards home up the Route Nepoleon to Grenoble and what a road! Loads of tight hairpins, open sweepers and loads of camber in some of the corners so you could really chuck the car into the bends. At one point I was made to realise how slow my car is when getting skinned up a hill by a Mini Cooper S! Not only was the Route Nepoleon good because of the road but the scenery was once again stunning and I do kind of regret not stopping a bit more to take it in but when youve been making "commited" over takes to get past the dawdlers you just dont want to let them through again. We made pretty good progress and ended up camping in the St Vital site in Cluney, right next to the main railway line to Lyon <_<
Total miles 1674
Filled up with 36 litres of fuel at 41 euros and paid 14.50 Euros in road tolls.
[u]Day 6
[/u]
Saturday started off with a long haul up the motorways which was pretty boring apart from the faster paced quiet sections, the random waves from other british motorists and getting cut up by some tw@t on a motorbike who didnt check that I was about 10 yards from passing him!
The aim for the day was to visit the old pits from the Reims racing circuit that was used in the 50s and get some pics of our cars by the garages and do some kind of dirve past. But we managed to stumble accross a massive car show which had massive range of historic racing cars and modern day super cars hammering around the circuit. Was great to see but I was a bit dissapointed that I couldnt take a proper look around the site, bu its just another excuse to go again!
At the show was one of the greatest motorcycle racers of all time Giacomo Agostini and I was too awestruck to say anything to him lol.
And Phil Hill was another motorcycle racing great.
That night after another traditional French meal of KFC we headed back to the campsite at Val-de-Vesle.
Total miles now 1972, filled up with 37 litres of fuel at 52 Euros.
Paid 37 Euros in road tolls, ouch!
[u]Last Day.[/u]
For the last day we had loads of time before catching our 10pm ferry home to Dunkirk so we took the brilliant D966 to Maubeurge which had massive long, fast straights and open sweeping bends with concrete rumle stips kerbing on the apexes so you cut the corners race car style :lol:
We eventually got to Dunkirk after driving on the worst motorway surface ever seen on the A25 (E42) and chilled out on the beach, before taking a look around the WW2 defences.
The sun goes down on a perfect trip.
We got back to England at 11pm Uk time and after getting split up (My mate got lost coming out of Dover :lol
started the most depressing and boring drive home with the only highlight being left for dead by a GT40 heading towards London. I was so tired driving back and eventually rolled up at home on Monday morning at 4.22am sleeping like a log for pretty much the whole day! I couldnt believe how perfectly the trip went. Both cars used no water or oil despite the enthusiastic driving and the only problem we had with them was one of my dipped beam bulbs going Filled up with 34 litres of petrol at 45 Euros and again filled up once back in England for the drive home
Total Mileage for the trip 2437 miles!!
I deffo want to do it again and im thinking of saving up for a return to the Alps next September to explore more mountain passes as I feel we rushed them a bit and once youve done Monaco theres not alot else to see apart from the GP.
Cheers for reading
Edited by Allyc85 on Monday 5th October 19:45
Cheers guys, thought it would be useful for the people planning a trip of their own.
Ive just put together this rough map of where we went. Its not very accurate around the mountain passes of of the Fluella, Ofen and Stelvio pass but if you zoom in you get a good idea of the area and it wont let me cross the channel from dover to Dunkirk for some reason!
http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?f=d&source=s_d&a...
Ive just put together this rough map of where we went. Its not very accurate around the mountain passes of of the Fluella, Ofen and Stelvio pass but if you zoom in you get a good idea of the area and it wont let me cross the channel from dover to Dunkirk for some reason!
http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?f=d&source=s_d&a...
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