Driving across Europe

Jodotman

Anyone done it and recommend a route. I'll be staying off the motor way and travelling by myself.

Happy_Harry

Europe is quite big... where do you want to go and why would you stay off the motorway ? Sure , there are some nice scenic routes , but I wouldn't dream of going across Europe without using the motorways

Jodotman

Heard the charges are mad, probaby a bit of france, Austria, Germany ausschwitz in definitely on the cards as well.

Happy_Harry

Alright, yes , France is ridiculously expensive for long journeys on motorway but they have a good road network of non tolled dual carriageways.
So how long do you have ? Would definitely recommend taking the ferry from Rosslare to France rather than driving through UK. 
Maybe in France drive towards Lyon, cross the alps to Italy, go to the Garda lake area , Venice perhaps, then up through Austria , Czech Republic towards Krakow and Auschwitz, then back through Poland towards Berlin, driving through Germany, take in Holland or Belgium, and either back to Brittany to take ferry or take boat from Rotterdam to UK and then to Wales.
Germany, Holland, Belgium - no tolls Austria you pay a reasonable 10 day pass, similar for Czech Republic, Poland tolls (between Krakow and Wroclaw) but not that expensive, Italy tolls but much better value than France..
Or, if you are not planning on bringing too much luggage- rent a car on the continent. See where Ryanair flies you cheapest and rent from there...but, be aware some companies still feel Poland and Czech Republic (and sometimes even Italy) are high risk and may not let you drive their cars there..

Jodotman

Jodotman wrote: »

Heard the charges are mad, probaby a bit of france, Austria, Germany ausschwitz in definitely on the cards as well.

What you save on the tolls you will spend on the extra petrol it will take you to get to where you want to go not to mention possible wear and tear on the car, although continental primary roads are much better than ours, secondary roads can be about the same.

Happy_Harry

Deleted User wrote: »

Jodotman wrote: »

Heard the charges are mad, probaby a bit of france, Austria,  Germany ausschwitz in definitely on the cards as well.

What you save on the tolls you will spend on the extra petrol it will take you to get to where you want to go not to mention possible wear and tear on the car, although continental primary roads are much better than ours, secondary roads can be about the same.

I would agree with this for most countries, just not France (I guess depending where in France you will be driving). Last time I drove in France, last year, from Bordeaux to Lille, I spent more money on tolls than fuel. There is a perfectly fine road from Bordeaux to Paris without tolls, it will just be slower, I was driving for work so didn't care about the tolls, but if I was paying myself, I would think twice. Generally the route national is good quality, just slower than toll roads.

kerry4sam

Thread moved to where it would be better suited.

Thanks,
kerry4sam

quadrifoglio verde

French backroads are absolutely wonderful to drive on. Like a private racetrack, just don't get caught speeding.

My one piece of qdvice is to pick small cities or large towns to stop off in for the night. You can explore a small city or large town in half a day. You can barely see one or two parts of a city in that time and it will feel rushed.
I've drove around Europe twice.
Last year as far as Prague, stopping g off at the nurburbring. Prague was rushed, the city of erfurt wasn't. I love Prague, but I enjoyed erfurt more as I had time to wander around and see the place.
Berlin consisted of driving to the Brandenburg gate and parking my car on the plinth.
The point I'm trying to make is you can fly to capital cities any day of the week, but you can't fly to some obscure city in Germany or France.
I can say ive been to Dijon, Milan, Turin, Salzburg and Lyon, but all I've done is sleep and drink wine in them. I've never gone out and explored the actual cities though.

It's definitely worth doing but when I go again, no capitals will be visited

Happy_Harry

Happy_Harry wrote: »

I would agree with this for most countries, just not France (I guess depending where in France you will be driving). Last time I drove in France, last year, from Bordeaux to Lille, I spent more money on tolls than fuel. There is a perfectly fine road from Bordeaux to Paris without tolls, it will just be slower, I was driving for work so didn't care about the tolls, but if I was paying myself, I would think twice. Generally the route national is good quality, just slower than toll roads.

Well the OP said he is interested in driving across Europe. France is just the start of Europe. :pac:

Speaking of France though, OP, take it from personal experience avoid driving anywhere near Paris like the plague. The sign postage in and around Paris is not non-existent, there's lots of it but its contradictory at best. It will save you a lot of time to do a big dogleg around Paris.

Also, make sure you have all the things you need to have in the car when driving in France, e.g. Hi Viz vest, warning triangle, spare bulbs, headlight converters etc.

ironclaw

If you have time, I'd recommend staying off the motorways. Sure the Autobahn is great, but we literally had breakfast in Austria, lunch in Germany and dinner in France. Sounds great but we saw a motorway all day.

I'd drop a gear and take the back roads, echoing again to avoid major towns. They are cheaper to stay in, far more authentic and the roads to and from are far more enjoyable.

biko

Where are you driving to?

Jodotman

Maybe to Lyon, alps, Milan, germany, Krakow, Belgium and back to cherbourg.
I'm used to driving six hours a day

oscar2

Don't drive a car into central Milan. https://www.italybeyondtheobvious.com/dont-mess-with-ztl-zones.

Congestion rules limited vehicular access rules apply to a lot of Italian cities. As a general rule of thumb for Europe unless you are heading to a specific hotel with a car park try and get parking on the outskirts. Railway stations and airports are ideal if close enough.
Use public transport to access the centre. Even if there is a car park it can be cheaper to park outside the centre and use public transport. Its not just money you save you will save time.

goz83

Back in 2010 I drove Dublin-UK-France-Belgium-Netherlands-Germany-Denmark-Sweden (Eslov) and back.

Did this in a 2.5 Diesel Mazda Bongo with a very full load on the return journey (including 2 Quad Bikes in the van). The whole lot cost a couple euro over 1k.

It was all motorway.

quadrifoglio verde

oscar2 wrote: »

Don't drive a car into central Milan. https://www.italybeyondtheobvious.com/dont-mess-with-ztl-zones.

Congestion rules limited vehicular access rules apply to a lot of Italian cities. As a general rule of thumb for Europe unless you are heading to a specific hotel with a car park try and get parking on the outskirts. Railway stations and airports are ideal if close enough.
Use public transport to access the centre. Even if there is a car park it can be cheaper to park outside the centre and use public transport. Its not just money you save you will save time.

We parked a 166 on the plinth of il duomo in Milan.
Ded zebra is still waiting for the congestion charge.

I'm still waiting for the 20 odd speeding tickets I racked up in France and Germany last year from the flash for cash. Still haven't arrived. Also still waiting for the emissions fine for not having a green sticker displayed in the German cities

They just never come.

Op how long are you planning on staying in each of the cities? From experience unless you have 2-3 days to spend in each you'd be mad going near them.