Summer Road Trip - France

[John Laverick]

Alright Guys & Girls,

Me and a couple of mates are gonna do a road trip this summer [on the bikes]. It'll be our first tour abroad.

We think our destination should be Monte Carlo as there is lots to see and do once we get there + there should be some fantastic roads in the surrounding mountains [WRC rally stages].

I think we'll take 6 days [Thursday to Tuesday] probably. 2 days travelling there, 2 days in Monte Carlo and 2 days travelling back.

Can anyone offer any advice? Places we should visit on-route? Good routes down through France etc...etc.... Is it possible to get cheap accomodation in Monoco?

[mtbr]

IMHO, the ride across France to the South can be a bit dull. You might want to consider putting your bikes on the train and unloading in Nice. That way you would have more time to explore the region and to ride some of the great roads down there.

If you book (you can't just turn up) directly with SNCF in France and load in Lille (Seclin) rather than Calais, it's not too pricey, especially if you take into account the fuel, tolls and squared off rear tire a blast south costs. (There is an outfit based in Picadilly that have some sort of exclusive deal for the Autotrain from Calais, they don't offer the 2nd class couchette and generaly cost lots more)

Even low end accom' in Monaco will be expensive, however you will find plenty of places in France or Italy close by. I used to try and book everything before I set off, these days I just "wing it", ride till around 4pm and then look for somewhere to stop for the night. I have never been stuck and the bike has always ended up under cover, secure for the night.

I'll look out some of my diaries for roads I particularly enjoyed and post here later on.

M.

[Heebeegeetee]

For booking inexpensive accommo I can recommend
www.logis-de-france.fr/uk/index.htm

[fredd1e]

Would say the ride across northern france is the dour bit. About to do the same in a couple of weeks
Will be taking the N85 from Grenoble south to Nice. its the Route de Napoleon and gets very twisty , other roads south to the med are similar get a map (or a GPS) and have a look.

[sybaseian]

If you can, extend and change the route back via Italy, Switzerland, Germany (Nurbergring).

[black-k1]

As already mentioned, I’d avoid actually staying in Monte Carlo/Monoco as it is very expensive. Better to stay a little outside and drive in. It’s also easier/cheaper to get hotels a little way away from the coast.

For hotels check out site like

www.accor.com

www.activehotels.com/

If you get a chance, check out the D955 from Draguignan up to the Canyon du Verdon. The road up is superb and the canyon is very impressive.

Have a great trip