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Travelling with 2 kids to the Vendee, France in June 2013, with 2014 update

  • 01-05-2013 9:55am
    #1
    Registered Users Posts: 28


    Hi Everyone,

    I know a lot of people will roll their eyes with what i'm going to ask but since it's the first time we're travelling abroad with our 3 yr old and 1 yr old I would love some advice.

    We're going to the southern Vendee region of France in June (St Julien-des-Landes). Travelling by ferry to Roscoff. My question is really about feeding small kids on long journeys. The 3 yr old is very good and will eat on the go. The baby is a little bit more particular with what she eats. She is great to eat but mostly when it's food i've cooked myself. I could bring some meals for her and put them in an icebox but keeping the icebox cool for an overnight journey on a boat might be difficult and I don't want to end up making her sick! :eek:

    Also, we're arriving in France of a Sunday and I've been told not many supermarkets/restaurants are open on Sundays. It's a 4-5 hr drive to where we're staying, does anybody have any tips on best thing to do and a few stops along the way?

    Is it easy to get from Roscoff to St Julien-des-Landes? Is it well signposted?

    Thanks again for your help!
    CW


«1

Comments

  • Registered Users Posts: 1,223 ✭✭✭MuffinsDa


    We did the same 2 years ago with a 5 year old and a 2 year old.

    1. Food: cooked food should keep fine in an icebox overnight, just put enough ice, or preferably dry ice packs.

    2. Roads are well signposted but I highly advise you to use a GPS Sat Nav for that journey.

    3. Motorways are tolled and tolls are quite expensive but it's worth it.

    4. Some major supermarkets, especially nearer to the port, are open on Sundays. Look for Auchan, L'eclrec or Carrefour "hypermarkets". I'm not familiar with Roscoff as I always go via Cherbourg but I'm sure there's some open near there too.


  • Registered Users Posts: 1,033 ✭✭✭Baybay


    Roads are generally very well sign posted in France but if you're holidaying with one of the camping companies or renting a villa, instructions are usually sent nearer the time. Failing that, a satnav or printing directions from the AA or Mappy might be an idea.

    With regard to your baby, maybe encouraging her to eat non cooked easily available foods in the weeks before you leave Ireland could make your journey easier. Not too sure sure I remember what or how much food babies that age eat but maybe mashed banana or other fruits might be enough while travelling. I bought a little cooler bag that fits three small lunch boxes and a slim ice pack to bring treats to my mother when she was hospitalised but perhaps you could cook a few things you know baby will like and you can freeze them for use during the journey. A small cooler bag would also be handy on day trips or for keeping things cool at the pool. Fluids will be important in the heat so allow for extra there.


  • Banned (with Prison Access) Posts: 5,737 ✭✭✭MidlandsM


    consider a small cool box for the boot of the car, very handy with some ice in it too, will keep foods and drinks for the kids and adults chilled. Reasonably priced and you'll always have it.....

    http://www.amazon.co.uk/Royal-12v-cooler-Coolbox-25L/dp/B000W4EJE2/ref=sr_1_6?ie=UTF8&qid=1367404469&sr=8-6&keywords=car+fridge


  • Registered Users Posts: 589 ✭✭✭MorganIRL


    Hi we're heading over to france in sept with a 2 1/2 yr old and 11mth old for 1st time. Was pondering the same re food and saw a chill bag in lidl. Basically u plug it into ur cig lighter in car and it keeps all stuff chilled most cars have a cig point in boot or back seats nowadays so that cud be an option for u. Saves giving ice packs to boat crew and looking for them the nxt day. Have a great time.


  • Registered Users Posts: 28 Curly_Wurly


    Hi everyone thanks for all the input on this..will go with some kind of coolbox to have in the car!!

    Thanks again,
    CW


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  • Closed Accounts Posts: 7,410 ✭✭✭bbam


    We've done France 10 times.

    The super markets open Sunday morning until 11 or 12 depending on region and store.

    We would eat at Buffalo Grill restaurants. They are reasonably well distributed along the motorways. Good grub at decent prices and open all day Sundays.

    If your ferry gets in early, this is what we did. Pack ceral and bowls. Buy milk and juice on the boat and stop as soon as its warm enough to have a brekie picnic.

    Along the motorways there are plenty of great rest stops. Good facilities and restraunts


  • Registered Users Posts: 2,501 ✭✭✭zagmund


    The cool boxes (hard sided) that we got from Lidl before had dual power - you could plug them into the lighter socket in the car and you could also plug them in to ordinary sockets. This would be the best option for keeping things cool while en-route. Once you leave the car you just plug the cool box in to a socket in your cabin.

    Just remember to bring a 2-3 pin adapter on board with you. You don't want to end up in a cabin with a 3 pin plug and a 2 pin socket. From (admittedly sketchy) memory, Irish Ferries had 3 pin sockets and Celtic Link had 2 pin, but it may depend on the cabin for all I know.

    z


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 7,410 ✭✭✭bbam


    We've done France 10 times.

    The super markets open Sunday morning until 11 or 12 depending on region and store.

    We would eat at Buffalo Grill restaurants if driving to-from ferry on a Sunday. They are reasonably well distributed along the motorways. Good grub at decent prices and open all day Sundays.

    If your ferry gets in early, this is what we did. Pack ceral and bowls. Buy milk and juice on the boat and stop as soon as its warm enough to have a brekie picnic. You can fill a small flask with hot water on board, usually for free. Makes tea or coffee later if you want.

    Along the motorways there are plenty of great rest stops. Good facilities and restraunts. Ham rolls will go down a treat and again you can eat outside, many have greens and playgrounds for the kids to burn off some built up energy.

    When you hit the campsite go straight to the shop, they close early enough and you'll just need to get enough to do overnight as they are expensive.. Then straight to Super U or similar early on Monday and do a weeks shopping, cheaper than here. Monday morning is busy for grocery shopping in France, suppriseingly so.

    We never bothered with the cool boxes, I've even heard of them running down batteries and even not being that good. Badly stored food wouldn't be great for a young child.

    We have a few kids CDs for the car and might throw on a film on the laptop but were lucky and the girls amuse themselves.

    If your traveling with Brittany Ferries dis embarking down to the car decks is a disaster. They could do with lessons from Irish ferries. Make really sure you know where your car is, what deck and what stair is closest, so often see families squabble as they've lost the car, and then you hold up all other cars waiting on you.

    We don't socialise too much on the ferry. Usually sleep for 8-10 hours of the time on board, spend time up top in the wind amd sun, It can be expensive and I'd rather be well tested for the trip.

    We managed for four years without a sat nav. But it makes life easier.
    I would sit down with google maps before the trip and add in as many locations as possible before we go, campsite, attractions, supermarkets. And even a few Buffalo Grill restarunts that we might use along our route. It's easier and better use of time to have this done in advance as spelling of some locations is a bit tricky in French. About €15 will get you a good sized 2013 Mitlichen map of France. Worth it IMHO. Preparation is key to making the most of France.


  • Registered Users Posts: 9,222 ✭✭✭keithclancy


    Hi Everyone,

    I know a lot of people will roll their eyes with what i'm going to ask but since it's the first time we're travelling abroad with our 3 yr old and 1 yr old I would love some advice.

    We're going to the southern Vendee region of France in June (St Julien-des-Landes). Travelling by ferry to Roscoff. My question is really about feeding small kids on long journeys. The 3 yr old is very good and will eat on the go. The baby is a little bit more particular with what she eats. She is great to eat but mostly when it's food i've cooked myself. I could bring some meals for her and put them in an icebox but keeping the icebox cool for an overnight journey on a boat might be difficult and I don't want to end up making her sick! :eek:

    Also, we're arriving in France of a Sunday and I've been told not many supermarkets/restaurants are open on Sundays. It's a 4-5 hr drive to where we're staying, does anybody have any tips on best thing to do and a few stops along the way?

    Is it easy to get from Roscoff to St Julien-des-Landes? Is it well signposted?

    Thanks again for your help!
    CW

    A good icebox with a bag of cubes at the bottom will keep overnight on the ferry.

    We have one of these:
    http://www.amazon.co.uk/Campingaz-205370-Camp-Bistro/dp/B000Y854WC/ref=sr_1_1?s=sports&ie=UTF8&qid=1368530329&sr=1-1&keywords=camping+stove

    Handy for heading stuff up on the road (soup/tea/coffee etc) if you bring a small pot.

    Eggs and bread a pretty nice at a rest stop on the way :)

    The cartridges last a good while, 1 cartridge lasted us 3 days for 5 people making tea, breakfasts and lunch/dinner.


  • Registered Users Posts: 28 Curly_Wurly


    MorganIRL wrote: »
    Hi we're heading over to france in sept with a 2 1/2 yr old and 11mth old for 1st time. Was pondering the same re food and saw a chill bag in lidl. Basically u plug it into ur cig lighter in car and it keeps all stuff chilled most cars have a cig point in boot or back seats nowadays so that cud be an option for u. Saves giving ice packs to boat crew and looking for them the nxt day. Have a great time.

    Just wondering when in LIDL did you see those cooler boxes? Can't see anything on the website! Anybody know where else you can get the ones that turn on with cig lighter and has the 3-pin plug also?


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  • Banned (with Prison Access) Posts: 5,737 ✭✭✭MidlandsM




  • Registered Users Posts: 7,797 ✭✭✭munchkin_utd


    If you stick with prepack meals that dont require refrigeration then you can save yourself the hassle and valuable bootspace of carrying a coolbox. Ellas kitchen stuff is spot on.
    Also something like boiled plain pasta will keep without being chilled and you can add a ready made sauce handily to it.
    And not being chilled, it might go down better without having to be heated up?
    Or if you have a gas stove you can bring something like an uncle bens savoury rice or such similar thing?
    You've loads of options, but you shouldnt be creating hasle for yourself by trying to keep fresh food fresh.

    Definitely beg steal or borrow some class of a dvd player as with our 1 and 3 year old it was our saviour and we ended up upgrading to a 2 screen effort to keep both happy. Best money we ever spent. We did London to Munich last september (incl breaks and tunnel 17hours straight, after 12hours the day before) and the kids were no bother at all at all once they were fed and had a decent break somewhere along the line.


  • Closed Accounts Posts: 172 ✭✭Anne Other


    Bumping this up Curly Wurly to see if you've anything to add since you've travelled, I am making this journey this year!


  • Registered Users Posts: 7,988 ✭✭✭Stone Deaf 4evr


    Anne Other wrote: »
    Bumping this up Curly Wurly to see if you've anything to add since you've travelled, I am making this journey this year!

    Are you sailing into Roscoff? Its pretty much a ghost town on Sunday morning alright.

    We did it last year (our 2nd time)with my 2 and a half year old and our 6 week old - i was very nervous about the newborn but she wasnt a hassle at all, she slept most of the way apart from one stop for a feed. The most awkward part was trying to get stuff up to our cabin from the car deck on the boat - but again, with the newborn, we were carrying a bit more than most.

    Its not really as daunting as you might make it out in your head, personally I'd take it any day over trying to organise my lot onto a flight. We're going again this year and I'm already looking forward to the reduction in luggage!


  • Registered Users Posts: 7,797 ✭✭✭munchkin_utd


    Stone Deaf, youre right about carting all the stuff, a right pain.
    If you find/wait for the lift though, at least youre avoiding the stairs. You can also try and do it in a couple of runs. The overnight ferry boards over an hour before departure so youve plenty of time to shuttle.
    On arrival though its a little more paniced!


  • Registered Users Posts: 28 Curly_Wurly


    Hi Anne Other, oh what a difference a year makes!! Would totally do the France trip again this year..to be honest, fitting everything into the car and organising what to take onto the ferry was prob the hardest part. In hindsight I packed wayyyyyyyyy too much stuff. We didn't really need a buggy cos we could have hired one in the campsite for a few euro a week. I bought a coolerbox in Halfords that runs off the cigarette lighter and also got an adapter for the mains...we cud use this on the boat and in the car. This was very handy for drinks and chilling cooked meats and fruit.

    To be honest I was worried about nothing. The food thing was fine on the trip over. The food on the Irish ferries boat was grand and the kids didn't go hungry. I had given the kids a big dinner earlier that day so they had a small supper and some treats on the boat...Then the next morning we had cereal and toast on the boat. Travelling down to the campsite (5 hrs) I had lots of vacuum packed meats which were ideal to make some quick sandwiches on the way..we were lucky in that the kids slept 3.5 hrs so made life much easier. When we got to the campsite the little supermarket was still opened so we could get bread and milk. The takeaway at the site was fab so we could get a whole chicken with roasted vet and potatoe gratin so was all very good.

    My advice is that you won't starve and the kids will see it as an adventure out of their usual routine.. plan the food part around getting over and to where you are staying. Your ferry will prob leave later that day so make sure everybody has a good dinner at lunchtime. If the baby has bottles or anything you could bring the ready made formulas and clean sterilised bottles and put them in a cooler. All in all its a fantastic place..would love to go back this year only decided to do some home décor so its a staycation for us!!!! Enjoy!! :-)


  • Registered Users Posts: 3,379 ✭✭✭CarrickMcJoe


    Another tip is to vac pac your clothes before loading them in the boot/roofbox.
    (makes room for more wine on way home).


  • Registered Users Posts: 18,440 ✭✭✭✭_Brian


    Another tip is to vac pac your clothes before loading them in the boot/roofbox.
    (makes room for more wine on way home).

    Fine from home but you won't have access to a vacuum on campsites in Framce.


  • Registered Users Posts: 7,988 ✭✭✭Stone Deaf 4evr


    _Brian wrote: »
    Fine from home but you won't have access to a vacuum on campsites in Framce.

    There was one in our mobile home for definite (siblu - bois dormant). but I'd say that it varies from home to home. A lot of them are owned by private individuals and siblu act as a letting agency, so whatever appliances that are there is a matter of luck.


  • Registered Users Posts: 66 ✭✭metrostation


    _Brian wrote: »
    Fine from home but you won't have access to a vacuum on campsites in Framce.

    We were in Lidl today and they were selling off vac packs for very cheap, it said on the packaging that a vacuum isn't required for this particular one, I wonder how effective they will be.


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  • Registered Users Posts: 7,988 ✭✭✭Stone Deaf 4evr


    We were in Lidl today and they were selling off vac packs for very cheap, it said on the packaging that a vacuum isn't required for this particular one, I wonder how effective they will be.

    how do you get the air out then? with your lungs? :pac::eek:


  • Registered Users Posts: 7,667 ✭✭✭whippet


    i'll be doing my third year in a row on the ferry to france with two young kids (2yr & 5yr) ... and each time I get a little better prepared!

    I am staying near Saintes .. about a 6 hour drive from Roscoff (including a stop), the few little things I have learned are:

    - Don't bring too much, the temptation with the car is to bring everything; don't bother. A lot of basic stuff can be picked up if needed in the hypermarkets.
    - Have a bag organised for the ferry, just the one would be ideal .. nothing worse than in the tight confines of the car deck trying to root out multiple bags and dragging them up the stairs / queuing for the lifts with young children dragging out of you.
    - For the ferry - be prepared for vomit - have a change of clothes (just shorts and teeshirt) as I discovered when both of our kids puked everywhere on the ferry back (very bad weather) and we had not clothes whatsoever to wear - luckily the girls at reception put a wash on for us!
    - Get up as early as possible the following morning .. get a decent breakfast in to the kids and let them wander around and play as much as possible, so when you are getting off the boat they have used up as much energy as possible.
    - Once you start driving, keep going until you absolutely have to stop .. with tired kids you will get a good few hours of the journey done before they get restless.
    - When you do stop, don't rush back to the car .. you will end up with cranky kids a few miles further down the road. Let them burn off steam and if they have eaten you don't want full tummys in the back of a car in the summer sun!!!
    - Make sure you know your route and ideally have a sat nav with the traffic info function ... this was a life saver for me last year when there was major delays on one of the routes .. it diverted us around the problems and saved us some time.
    - If you land on a saturday .... make sure you get to a shop for the essentials as depending on where you are your choices are limited to non-existent on sundays.


    enjoy ..... four years ago I would never have considered doing the typical french holiday, but now I can't wait to get back again ... such a great stress free holiday (once you are there) with so many options as you have your own transport.


  • Registered Users Posts: 846 ✭✭✭tantipie


    I'd love to go to France with the kids but don't have a clue about nice areas or campsites.Do I need to bring everything but the kitchen sink packed in the car and can you not go back to the car during the ferry trip??any tips advice would be fantastic:)


  • Registered Users Posts: 7,797 ✭✭✭munchkin_utd


    whippet wrote: »
    i'll be doing my third year in a row on the ferry to france with two young kids (2yr & 5yr) ... and each time I get a little better prepared!

    I am staying near Saintes .. about a 6 hour drive from Roscoff (including a stop), the few little things I have learned are:
    <snip >
    great synopsis and theres not a lot I could add to it except (which is mentioned earlier) employing a dvd player to keep the kids amused in the back when restless and getting a proper decent paper map


  • Registered Users Posts: 7,667 ✭✭✭whippet


    tantipie wrote: »
    I'd love to go to France with the kids but don't have a clue about nice areas or campsites.Do I need to bring everything but the kitchen sink packed in the car and can you not go back to the car during the ferry trip??any tips advice would be fantastic:)

    you can bring as much or as little as you want. The campsites will have everything you need to either buy, hire or borrow - or you can pick it up in the hypermarkets ....

    anywhere down the west coast is a good start .. the further north you are the bigger risk you run in to with not having ideal weather (I met people on the boat last year on the way back that didn't see sun for the two weeks they were there in britanny and had plenty of rain)

    I quite like parts of the Charente Maritime area, and is not too far from the ferry (about 5 -6 hours drive) ... have a look at Trip Advisor for suggestions on campsites. I did use a campsite the first year but with very young children I prefer the Gite type accommodation .. smaller, quieter and you can relax a little more with younger children than you can in a large busy campsite.


    Once you set sail you can't go near the car deck. But you can get just about everything onboard should you forget.

    Don't let the drive put you off .. I have memories of four of us bouncing around the back seat of an Opel Record for 6 hours enroute to west cork for a holiday and surviving the trip with no DVDs, AC or seat belts!!!


  • Registered Users Posts: 7,988 ✭✭✭Stone Deaf 4evr


    tantipie wrote: »
    I'd love to go to France with the kids but don't have a clue about nice areas or campsites.Do I need to bring everything but the kitchen sink packed in the car and can you not go back to the car during the ferry trip??any tips advice would be fantastic:)

    I cant recommend the trip highly enough. my top tips for an easy time are as follows

    1. Luggage - before you pack, lay everything you need out on a bed. then put at least half of it back in the wardrobe as you'll never use it. Unless you're exceptionally messy eaters as adults, you'll manage a fortnight with 3 tshirts, 2 pairs of shorts and a weeks supply of underwear. A hoodie will be plenty to keep you warm in the evenings and you can wear "irish weather" clothes on the boat over. There are laundry facilities on the campsites and they're cheap as chips. Its worth it (IMO) to book the bedlinen at the campsite as its more space spared in the car (do bring towels though). Also, when packing the car, try to resist the temptation to load up the back seat in between the kids with stuff, it'll only make them cranky / claustrophobic - if you cant fit it in the boot / roofbox, then you probably dont need it.

    2. Bags on the boat - we have 2 kids, so adjust accordingly - my wife brings 1 bag containing a change of clothes, toothpaste & brushes and a few toys for the kids. I bring a second bag containing cereal bars, an empty bottle, a Flask with some milk in it and teabags - I'll explain these in the next point. its also worth noting that they don't give out seasickness tablets on the boat any more, so make sure you get them before you leave if required.

    3. Breakfast on arrival in france is very early, and its totally jammers, your time is better served by getting a head start on getting down to the car deck and getting off the boat rather than waiting for the masses to filter out.before you leave, Boil the kettle in your room. While its boiling, transfer the milk from the flask into the empty bottle, then fill the flask with the boiling water.

    4. Leave the boat, then drive a short distance to somewhere you can pull in and have yourself a light breakfast of cereal bars and tea. (I told you there was a method to my madness).

    5. Hit the road. Sat Nav is a major plus, but its worth making sure that the route it takes is the preferred one - for example, last year our satnav brought us from the vendee to roscoff via all back roads. It might have essentially been a shorter distance, but it took a good bit longer to drive.

    6. On the drive, Mc Donalds is your friend, regardless on your views on feeding the kids junk. They'll see it as a welcome treat and most roadside ones have great playgrounds and outside seating areas.

    7. When you arrive at your campsite, if its a sunday, in all likelihood, the main shops in the area will be closed, so it might be best to budget for having your first evenings meal at the restaurant. (or else pack something like pasta and sauce in your luggage)

    8. The supermarkets, for whatever reason, are total pandemonium on a monday morning in france. If your kids are young, i'd recommend one of the adults to take the kids to the pool /playground while the other hits the supermarket for the essentials - Its best to try and avoid picking up stuff in the campsite shops as they are very expensive in comparision to the lidl / E Leclerc / Super U shops.

    9. On the return trip (if leaving from roscoff), try and allow yourself some time in the town of roscoff, its actually a lovely little spot to while away a few hours. Also, there is no point in being overly early for the boat home, waiting in a carpark in the heat with kids is not a fun time.

    10. Have fun!

    if I think of anything else I'll add it on here later.


  • Registered Users Posts: 3,379 ✭✭✭CarrickMcJoe


    I cant recommend the trip highly enough. my top tips for an easy time are as follows

    1. Luggage - before you pack, lay everything you need out on a bed. then put at least half of it back in the wardrobe as you'll never use it. Unless you're exceptionally messy eaters as adults, you'll manage a fortnight with 3 tshirts, 2 pairs of shorts and a weeks supply of underwear. A hoodie will be plenty to keep you warm in the evenings and you can wear "irish weather" clothes on the boat over. There are laundry facilities on the campsites and they're cheap as chips. Its worth it (IMO) to book the bedlinen at the campsite as its more space spared in the car (do bring towels though). Also, when packing the car, try to resist the temptation to load up the back seat in between the kids with stuff, it'll only make them cranky / claustrophobic - if you cant fit it in the boot / roofbox, then you probably dont need it.

    2. Bags on the boat - we have 2 kids, so adjust accordingly - my wife brings 1 bag containing a change of clothes, toothpaste & brushes and a few toys for the kids. I bring a second bag containing cereal bars, an empty bottle, a Flask with some milk in it and teabags - I'll explain these in the next point. its also worth noting that they don't give out seasickness tablets on the boat any more, so make sure you get them before you leave if required.

    3. Breakfast on arrival in france is very early, and its totally jammers, your time is better served by getting a head start on getting down to the car deck and getting off the boat rather than waiting for the masses to filter out.before you leave, Boil the kettle in your room. While its boiling, transfer the milk from the flask into the empty bottle, then fill the flask with the boiling water.

    4. Leave the boat, then drive a short distance to somewhere you can pull in and have yourself a light breakfast of cereal bars and tea. (I told you there was a method to my madness).

    5. Hit the road. Sat Nav is a major plus, but its worth making sure that the route it takes is the preferred one - for example, last year our satnav brought us from the vendee to roscoff via all back roads. It might have essentially been a shorter distance, but it took a good bit longer to drive.

    6. On the drive, Mc Donalds is your friend, regardless on your views on feeding the kids junk. They'll see it as a welcome treat and most roadside ones have great playgrounds and outside seating areas.

    7. When you arrive at your campsite, if its a sunday, in all likelihood, the main shops in the area will be closed, so it might be best to budget for having your first evenings meal at the restaurant. (or else pack something like pasta and sauce in your luggage)

    8. The supermarkets, for whatever reason, are total pandemonium on a monday morning in france. If your kids are young, i'd recommend one of the adults to take the kids to the pool /playground while the other hits the supermarket for the essentials - Its best to try and avoid picking up stuff in the campsite shops as they are very expensive in comparision to the lidl / E Leclerc / Super U shops.

    9. On the return trip (if leaving from roscoff), try and allow yourself some time in the town of roscoff, its actually a lovely little spot to while away a few hours. Also, there is no point in being overly early for the boat home, waiting in a carpark in the heat with kids is not a fun time.

    10. Have fun!

    if I think of anything else I'll add it on here later.

    Excellent advice. Maybe add a bit about petrol stations.


  • Registered Users Posts: 7,988 ✭✭✭Stone Deaf 4evr


    Excellent advice. Maybe add a bit about petrol stations.

    To be Honest Joe, I don't have much to add, the only thing I could say, is that most of them have very good facilities. Also, I find that its the moment when you pull out of a petrol station that you're most likely to start driving on the wrong side of the road , as if you were at home. Its just that your reactions are pretty much automatic and its times like that where your concentration can slip. I've heard of people putting stickers on the dash saying "keep right" but never felt the need myself.


  • Registered Users Posts: 15 jmapell


    Every Summer until I was 17 my family and I took the ferry to France. Amazing holidays every time.

    For families with older kids I would recommend an ad hoc approach to accommodation, especially if you are sailing with a camper/caravan/trailer tent or even standard tents. On arrival in France my parents would hand my brother and I the Michelin guide and give us a vague area in which they wanted to stay. We then would argue out the pros and cons of different campsites for hours before deciding on a shortlist of places we would check out.

    If we didn't like the first campsite we would move on to the next one. :-)

    Great craic altogether.


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  • Registered Users Posts: 7,797 ✭✭✭munchkin_utd


    I cant recommend the trip highly enough. my top tips for an easy time are as follows
    <snip>
    3. Breakfast on arrival in france is very early, and its totally jammers, your time is better served by getting a head start on getting down to the car deck and getting off the boat rather than waiting for the masses to filter out.before you leave, <snip>.
    The once a week CORK ferry lands very early to Roscoff.

    The other 2 more regular ferries from Stena and Irish Ferries from Dublin/ Roslare to Cherbourg and Roscoff land at a more humane time at 10.30 or 11 at the earliest.

    Still, the idea of having a brekkie in the room yourself and saving the guts of 40euro (4*€10?) by bringing a relatively small stash of bread, cornflakes, milk and the likes is something to keep in mind.
    If it goes right, its something you lug to the room that wont have to be lugged back down again to the car!

    irish ferries : http://www.irishferries.com/ie-en/french-sailing-timetable-2014/
    brittany ferries : http://www.brittanyferries.ie/ferry-routes/ireland-france-ferries/cork-roscoff/timetable
    stena : http://www.stenaline.ie/routes/rosslare-cherbourg


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