Estimate please for fuel & toll costs for France/Spain trip?

[Effortless]

Hi all,

looking for some advice from you experienced trans-European trippers out there please.

I'm mulling over a trip to visit the elderly Memsahib over Easter next year. She has retired to Spain, been there nearly 20 years now, and I've not been to visit her as much as I should have. Thinking of visiting for a week, and thinking of taking my 13 year old daughter along too.

She lives in Denia, about mid way between Valencia and Alicante on the Costa Brava, and I live near Maidstone in Kent, and according to my Tom Tom, she's about 1,172 miles distant. I have a 330d, so should be able to manage 45-50 mpg sat at 70-80 all day.



Give or take a few miles, I reckon that's about £350 for 2,400 miles over a week, assuming 45 mpg and 1.44 Euro/Li.

However, any one have any ideas what the tolls might total? The drive is just a "get there" drive, not a "scenic" drive, so I don't mind going motorways all the way as that will be substantially quicker.

The Tom Tom reckons about 17 hours for the trip. Is this realistic?

Thanks in advance for any advice.
Effortless.

Edited by Effortless on Wednesday 28th November 19:29

Edited by Effortless on Wednesday 28th November 19:41

[garos]

When in Spain the autopista can be confusing but you can avoid tolls by taking the a7 instead of the ap7, kind of run alongside each other, but the toll is the better faster road. Also fuel and tolls will be cheaper in spain than France. Not sure what the total tolls will be but it soon adds up, great trip though.

[treetops]

One word: FLY.

[Superhoop]

Have you tried entering your route into the Via Michelin route planner?

Not sure if it's changed as I haven't used it for a while, but it used to give you toll costs, and I think will give you estimated fuel costs too

[Effortless]

treetops said:

One word: FLY.

Ha ha!! Thank you!!

That would indeed maximise my time with The Memsahib, but my thoughts were that 2 Easyjet tickets over Easter would add up to much more than that, and I am not a powerfully-built company director with a goatee and big bank balance.

Besides, I'm a member of that forum called P-I-S-T-O-N-H-E-A-D-S, and a long-distance, trans-Europe trip in a car burning lots of fossil fuel seems much more adventurous. Not quite as adventurous as my trip in '92 all the way around Australia in a knackered old Land Rover at 16mpg however, but a decent length trip nonetheless!!

Cheers,
Effortless.

[CharlieCrocodile]

Tolls will be about 70 euros, you'll fill up twice doing steady 85 with aircon on.

[spitfiresteve]

Done a very similar journey in August this year.Calais to El Vendrell, so not quite as far as you are proposing.
You will need to allow at least £100 each way for tolls. Cost us £170 in total (even using the a7 on the way back).
We were in the car for 15 hours from Calais, so I would think 17.5 is about do able. However, if you are doing all the driving yourself, you will be totally knackered by the time you get there. So you should factor in some rest stops.
Fuel costs in France and Spain are pretty much the same as here now, so your fuel calculations are about right. Unless you detour to Andorra where you will pay 1 euro a litre and see some absolutely stunning scenery. Might be a bit out of the way though!

Steve

[martin mrt]

I drove to Vinaros from Aberdeen in January/Februaryand from memory the Tolls were around 250 euros there and back, but i went lyon,dijon, don't ask me what road numbers they were as i can't remember, i just picked up points and followed the main road

Fuel in a Transit connect van was horrendous a 1.8 TDCi 75bhp powerhouse AVERAGED 30mpg there and back at a steady 75-85mph indicated

NEVER AGAIN in anything so st

[Effortless]

Superhoop said:

Have you tried entering your route into the Via Michelin route planner?

Not come across this before, useful site. Thanks for posting. Route very similar to Tom Tom, and does also give fuel and toll costs.

£360 for fuel (there and back), and £210 for tolls (there and back) if anyone is interested. So bang-on spitfiresteve!!

Cheers,
Effortless.

[Engineer1]

VIAMichelin has proved good for toll costs in France in the past and gives good routes.

[Effortless]

Ooops!!

Man maths obviously doesn't work... just looked at the EasyJet website, and against my expectations, they are booking as far ahead as Easter, and its £358 for bin-lid and me to fly, and £570 to drive...

Hmmmm..... What price adventure (or a boring drive)?

Cheers,
Effortless.

Edited by Effortless on Wednesday 28th November 21:07

[Ozzie Osmond]

treetops said:

One word: FLY.

^^^ This

Your air fares will probably not exceed the cost of just taking your car through the Channel Tunnel. Then add fuel, tolls, meals along the way, time taken etc, etc....

[wheedler]

If she has a car there you can use then probably fly, otherwise drive.

[B17NNS]

This is why aeroplanes were invented. To cover long distances in relative comfort quickly.

Add Europewide AA into your calcs as well if you don't already have it. A bit for servicing, a bit for tyres...

Fly and enjoy an extra day on a sunbed rather than at the wheel.

Edited by B17NNS on Wednesday 28th November 22:41

[treetops]

Effortless said:

Ooops!!

Man maths obviously doesn't work... just looked at the EasyJet website, and against my expectations, they are booking as far ahead as Easter, and its £358 for bin-lid and me to fly, and £570 to drive...

Hmmmm..... What price adventure (or a boring drive)?

Cheers,
Effortless.

Edited by Effortless on Wednesday 28th November 21:07

And you'll be burning up way more fuel, going faster, be able to consume lots of beer or wine too on the plane, so its really PH heaven!

[Robin Hood]

I drove to Moraira not far from Denia ONCE. Never again, it was the most boring 2 days sat on the motorway when it's only 2 hours or so on a plane.

[jamoor]

That won't be an adventure imo.

[FisiP1]

treetops said:

plane going faster

Don't be too hasty, car might be mapped.

[Fleckers]

i did welling kent to Alicante last summer

was about £200 in tolls and about £300 in go go juice in S type jag 2.7

its an Ok drive if your 13 year old likes being in a car for long hours

I am lucky as in laws live about an hour from spain so we stopped there for 4 days

the route planner is showing via paris, may be shorter route but hell no, go calais, rouen, le mans will save a few hours

next time if we go we will fly

[anonymous-user]

What about getting the ferry from Plymouth to Santander then just driving the Spanish leg? I was shocked by the French road tolls as in places you pay 20 Euros to drive 50 miles 180 in total from Dunkirk to the German french Border (Strasbourg), also driving in France is stupidly boring.