Road Trip

mountain

After promising myself for a good number of years, I am heading off to Sweden in my 1963 Volvo 1800,
Travelling from Cork, up to Dublin, ferry to Hollyhead Wales, drive across England to Harwich, ferry to Esbjerg, drive to Fredrikshaven, ferry to Gothenburg.
back down through Malmo and into Cophenhagen.

Going to take a week or so to get there and back,

So, anyone got any tips, ideas etc on things to do either in transit or when I get there?

Thanks

Rory37

Some people dream of doing great things, while others stay awake and just do them.

You're making me jealous! Enjoy the trip.......

650Ginge

Tesco vouchers for the ferry.

AA 5 star membership. Get lots of rest along the way. Photograph everything.

Capri

P1800 ? It's a long way to go to get a spare part :P

Do-more is in Sweden , send him a PM http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/private.php?do=newpm&u=73876

Hired a car at Rovaniemi and drove from Rovaniemi (Artic circle Finland ) up to Tromsø (northern Norway ) in July 2011 - daylight all the way :cool:

Met a guy here who'd driven a bus from Tromsø to Ballina for the Fleadh http://www.busspage.net/Alle%20bilder/Norske%20busser/Troms/Diverse/080809-41.JPG

Do-more

When are you coming? By all means PM me and I can give you my mobile number in case you get into any bother!

I'm just outside Trelleborg near to Smygehuk the most southerly point in Sweden, about 35mins outside Malmö.

I only became aware of it last week, so I haven't been yet, but Sweden's largest car museum AUTOSEUM is in Simrishamn not far off your route. Here is a list of the vehicles on display.

Close to the bridge from Malmö to Copenhagen you will find Denmark's newly opened National Aquarium "The Blue Planet" it's supposed to be very impressive if you are interested in that kind of thing, I'm due to go to it in the next week or two when the kid's are on holiday.

A photo of the car in front of the Turning Torso in Malmö is a must!

Kenny Logins

Blog it.

Do-more

Oh and Sweden was never cheap but with the exchange rate at present you are going to find prices eye-watering! Stock up with what you can in the UK. Petrol prices fluctuate quite a lot from week to week but it's about €1.60-€1.65 a litre at the moment so just a little higher than in Ireland.

Everybody pays for everything here by Visa debit card right down to a 50 cent parking fee, make sure you have your PIN number with you. But check with your credit card company as you may get hit with a cross border transaction fee every time you use your card so it could prove costly!

If there is anything you are particularly interested in let me know and i will try to answer.

kermitpwee

Great Idea would love to do something like this in my mk1 Jetta. How does it work with insurance. A normal classic policy would hardly cover you?

w124man

This isnt a road trip ...... its a ferry trip! Get the ferry from Rosslare to Roscoff and drive ...... !!!

Enjoy .... I love Sweden and was there last week!

mountain

kermitpwee wrote: »

Great Idea would love to do something like this in my mk1 Jetta. How does it work with insurance. A normal classic policy would hardly cover you?

Im with Axa, and coverage outside of the country is included, as is breakdown assist, so I shouldnt need AA.

Door to door without diversions is close on 1700 miles, thats enough of a trip for me, without starting from Roscoff!!

Anan1

mountain wrote: »

Im with Axa, and coverage outside of the country is included, as is breakdown assist, so I shouldnt need AA.

You might already know this, but you'll get a 10% discount on the ferry with your AXA plus card too.

mountain

Anan1 wrote: »

You might already know this, but you'll get a 10% discount on the ferry with your AXA plus card too.

booked ferry a few weeks ago, didnt know that....

Leaving from Dublin next monday.

Capri

Do-more wrote: »

Oh and Sweden was never cheap but with the exchange rate at present you are going to find prices eye-watering! Stock up with what you can in the UK. Petrol prices fluctuate quite a lot from week to week but it's about €1.60-€1.65 a litre at the moment so just a little higher than in Ireland.

Everybody pays for everything here by Visa debit card right down to a 50 cent parking fee, make sure you have your PIN number with you. But check with your credit card company as you may get hit with a cross border transaction fee every time you use your card so it could prove costly!

If there is anything you are particularly interested in let me know and i will try to answer.

Easy knowing they haven't got Ulster Bank there :P:P

Thought this place was bad seeing people paying for the paper with a Card !

Wait til the ATM's etc all go down in a solar storm:eek:

Do-more

mountain wrote: »

Leaving from Dublin next Monday.

Not sure what your itinerary is but the Swedish Sports Car meeting is taking place at the Ring Knutstorp on July 5th, 6th. & 7th. which is on your route, everything from historics to modern day sports cars racing.

My parents are arriving here for 12 days on Tuesday so that's the spare room gone, I'm afraid I can't offer you a bed for the night.

If you do go to the car museum in Simrishamn you can carry on down the coast to Ales Stenar, an ancient Viking burial site right on the coast and the closest you'll get here to Stonehenge.



Then carry on down to Ystad which is an old Hanseatic trading town which still has a very old quarter that's a nice place to visit. The TV detective series Wallander is set and filmed around Ystad if you have ever seen it. Take the road 9 back along the coast towards Malmö and you will pass Smygehuk on the way.

Do-more

Sweden is one of the last countries in Europe where "wild camping" is still legal basically you are allowed to stop and camp almost anywhere as long as you are not disturbing any people or animals or destroying any crops, Google for more details, it's a cheap way to stay if you have a tent.

Like lots of things eating out can be pretty expensive here, by far the best value is to eat your main meal in the middle of the day when many restaurants offer a "Dagens" - daily special, it'll probably be listed on a chalkboard and be totally indeciferable, just ask in English what the daily special is. You normally get a main course, side salad and drink for around €8-€10. The other cheap options are kebab and pizza joints which are all run by immigrants like myself! Ask for a "kebab talrik" - kebab plate and you will get a huge serving of kebab meat, salad, French fries and garlic sauce for €4-€5. A large pizza is about €8.

DaveCol

Myself and a friend did much the same trip in 1995 travelling to an International Mini Meeting in Sweden in a 1976 Mini Clubman with a 1300 engine.

Dublin to Holyhead, drove to Harwich, sailed to Denmark, drove up through Denmark, arrived in Gothenburg.

The IMM was in a big campsite called the High Chapparal http://www.highchaparral.se/en/start/

We spent the weekend there, then drove up to Stocholm to visit the brother where we spent a few more days, sightseeing etc

Then back to Gothenburg, sailed to Newcastle, drove across the North of England and back down to Holyhead and home.

We had some car trouble in the UK on the way to Harwich but the AA cover sorted that out. The Swedish roads were great and great scenery, keep us posted on how you get on.

Do-more

Another few things for you...

There is a congestion charge in and around Gothenburg but you don't have to worry about it as foreign registered cars are exempt.

No such luck on the two toll bridges you will use though, the Øresundsbron, the bridge between Malmö and Copenhagen will cost you a whopping €47 and the Storebælt which you will cross travelling from Copenhagen back to the ferry at Esbjerg will cost you €33.

Some more suggestions for things along your route in Sweden.

If you don't have a pacemaker, the Liseberg Amusement Park in Gothenburg is right beside the E6 ring road and has some great rides such as AtmosFear Europe's tallest free fall tower with over 90m drop maxing at 110km/h and 4G of braking at the bottom.

For something more cultured, about 20 mins drive to the south east of Malmö at Höllviken you will find the Viking museum of Foteviken which is built up as a Viking village and at this time of year it is inhabited by Viking enthusiasts mainly from Germany, Poland, Denmark & Sweden who live there and recreate the life of a Viking village. There is also a Viking ring fort in Trelleborg called Trelleborgen You just miss the Viking market in Foteviken this weekend and it moves on to the Trelleborgen with re-enactments and so on July 5th.-7th. so there will be plenty of Viking enthusiasts around next week if that floats your boat!

mountain

thanks for all the advise,
unfortunately the ferry company has canceled the ferry from Harwich to Denmark for 5 days, which has really upset the plans,
the option is ferry to holland and then driving through germany and onwards,
any one got any experience of that? Bearing in mind that i will be driving a 50 year old car.

Capri

mountain wrote: »

thanks for all the advise,
unfortunately the ferry company has canceled the ferry from Harwich to Denmark for 5 days, which has really upset the plans,
the option is ferry to holland and then driving through germany and onwards,
any one got any experience of that? Bearing in mind that i will be driving a 50 year old car.

There are no problems, only solutions Maybe this will be more of an adventure :rolleyes:

Harwich-Rotterdam rather than Harwich - Esbjerg ??

AA routeplanner ( tho I don't trust it much going by it's Irish directions :eek::eek: ) Ferry from Rostock in Germany to Trelleborg Sweden seem a possible route ??
http://www.ttline.com/templates/CountryIndex2.aspx?id=3530&epslanguage=EN-GB

Post on NL / D /SE Volvo classic forums ( use Google translate toolbar to translate ) to get contact no's in case...

Volvo Holland
http://www.volvokv.nl/

http://www.volvokv.nl/forum/

http://www.volvokv.nl/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=29&Itemid=39

Northern Germany -
http://www.volvoniacs.org/treff.html

The Volvoniacs are not just a virtual meeting place on the web, but also exist in the real world. We screw together to our old Volvos, and offer the following public self-help Date:
Every Saturday 15-18 clock in the workshop hall of the honey factory, Industriestr. 125 in Hamburg-William Castle, anyone can tinker for a small fee in his Volvo. We'll be happy to help and advice (and VOLVO - Special Tool, Hydraulic Platform, a compressor, a welder, etc.) aside, however, we are not professionals and assume no repair orders! The theme is rather "self-help", and the idea is to work together to screw on old Volvos. Even if you just want to chew the fat, may like to stop by again.
If you want to screw into the Hofa, and want to use the stage as it is advisable to notify the relevant competent supervision. Who is in each case, you can see if you click on the left "THE supervisors".

http://www.volvoclubs.de/

Volvo Sweden -
http://www.volvop1800club.se/eng/

Do-more

There's a freight ferry which runs from Gillingham to Gothenburg it also takes cars, basic on board and expensive but would be a lot easier on the old girl if you can get a booking.

[Edit] Scratch that, I just had a chance to have a look for details of it and it no longer runs since last year.

Looks like the Hook of Holland is your only real option, I haven't driven that but have driven from Mannheim up to Sweden a number of times which looks pretty similar in terms of the road network i.e. motorway most of the way but a pretty hard slog in an old car I would imagine.

We always drove up through Denmark taking the short Rodby-Puttgarden crossing but there are other options such as Travemunde-Trelleborg that Capri pointed out or you could take Keil-Gothenburg which would cancel out much of the additional driving.

Capri

Main thing I'd imagine is carry a file of Volvo dealers en-route

mountain

Guys,

thanks to everyone for their help and suggestions,
For one reason and another, the timings etc of the ferries just don't work out for me.

I reckon I will have to postpone until August/Sept.

Capri

Pity, used to have travel problems when I had a 'steady' job and had to be back on time .

Luckily now I get to choose my own times

Had a few false starts when I planned Norway/Finland trip but it all came together in the end

unkel

Capri wrote: »

Post on NL / D /SE Volvo classic forums ( use Google translate toolbar to translate ) to get contact no's in case...

Great idea. Classic Volvos are very popular in NL. In case something happens for sure an enthusiast will help you out.

Enjoy the trip, and remember to post the pics right here, mountain

mountain

Right,

its back on!!!
Leaving West Cork, the 10th May.

kev1.3s

mountain wrote: »

Right,

its back on!!!
Leaving West Cork, the 10th May.

Hope you have a great trip! Take lots of pics.

Merrion

If it we're me, I'd give the south of England a miss and go via Hull instead. Roads are far less crowded north of Brum.

macplaxton

Merrion, Kenneth agrees!

mountain

First part complete. Overnight in U.K. Catch ferry to Denmark tomorrow.
One of the nice things about driving an old car is that , young kids wave and grown ups smile and give you the thumbs up.

mountain

Sitting in petrol station in Denmark.
Nice 1960s roller on ferry along with a rough looking stag.
After coming off ferry got a big wave from a triumph spitfire.

alastair

mountain wrote: »

Sitting in petrol station in Denmark.
Nice 1960s roller on ferry along with a rough looking stag.
After coming off ferry got a big wave from a triumph spitfire.

Photos please!

I'll be taking my Volvo 1800ES to France at the end of June, including the Le Mans Classic, so it'll get a good run too.

Henry Ford III

Good luck on the trip OP!

I'm just back from the UK last w/e. 880 miles in a MkII Ford Escort RS2000. Makes you appreciate how comfortable modern cars are.

mountain

Do-more wrote: »

When are you coming? By all means PM me and I can give you my mobile number in case you get into any bother!

I'm just outside Trelleborg near to Smygehuk the most southerly point in Sweden, about 35mins outside Malmö.

I only became aware of it last week, so I haven't been yet, but Sweden's largest car museum AUTOSEUM is in Simrishamn not far off your route. Here is a list of the vehicles on display.

Close to the bridge from Malmö to Copenhagen you will find Denmark's newly opened National Aquarium "The Blue Planet" it's supposed to be very impressive if you are interested in that kind of thing, I'm due to go to it in the next week or two when the kid's are on holiday.

A photo of the car in front of the Turning Torso in Malmö is a must!

As requested by Do More....

Do-more

Only spotted now that you had made the trip Mountain. Hope all went well for you. This summer is the last chance to get to Scandinavia the "short way" as the Harwich to Esbjerg ferry ceases to run from September 29th. 2014