Help with first trip to Europe.. Please .... (1 Viewer)

mentaliss

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Be gentle we are newbies ..

Only had our van for a few weeks but are desperate to go over to Europe. Would really love to get something booked in the next few weeks.

We really haven't much of a clue where to start ! We did spontaneously jump in a large Transit van and head over to Germany many years ago when we took a bike over to the Nurburgring . Went ok but we got shafted on ferry costs as we did it with short notice.

Brittany is looking favorable as a destination . We just want to get away from the bloody awful weather for a few weeks.

So who or which ferry company is best to book with ? We have joined the Camping and caravan club but not sure if we can get discounts through them or mentioning them when we try to book ?

Truth is this is a bit daunting so would like to get stuck in and get the first European trip under our belts.

I think Portsmouth to St Malo might be better just now with the chaos at Dover. I think Portsmouth is easier for us anyway.

Thanks.

We have been using the Newhaven to Dieppe ferry for several years now four hour crossing yes but hasn't got the issues of Calais or the high cost of Portsmouth:)
 

madgeD

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I don't think anyone has mentioned reverse polarity ? it does happen on a couple of sites so its best to have another short plug to adapt yours, my O.H made ours up but Im sure you can buy them? someone else can advise on that Im sure.
 

bhs

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We used Brittany Economic route, Portsmout Le Havre, easy roads to brittany, we use Pont de Tancaville then non toll roads, stopping off at Cabourg Plage, ferry was basic but good

DFDS Newhaven/Dieppe for next trip super cheap and short for dogs

I agree about Brittany weather being iffy, we lived there for 6 years, get a bit further down if you can,
Charant Maritime usually has clearer skies, having said that Brittany is beautiful Carnac and the Quiberon penisular are lovely, be busy at this time though

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bhs

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Forgot to say, get a discount code from someone on the forum if you use BF, saves 10% and donor of code gets some advantage too
 
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Charlie

Charlie

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If you are looking for good weather then Brittany is not far south enough! Bit like Cornwall, could be good but could be awful!

Personally I would prefer to be south of Nantes.

Well this points out just how green/wet behind the ears we are. Geography is not my strong point !

Suggestions on where to go and which ferries for the destination would be fantastic.

Truthfully I/We just want to get booked somewhere nice and warm and get on with the job... I think once we have one trip under our belt there will be no stopping us !
 

DBK

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Well this points out just how green/wet behind the ears we are. Geography is not my strong point !

Suggestions on where to go and which ferries for the destination would be fantastic.

Truthfully I/We just want to get booked somewhere nice and warm and get on with the job... I think once we have one trip under our belt there will be no stopping us !
I think you just need to book a crossing then drive off into the sunshine! It really is as simple as that.

Given where you live Plymouth/Roscoff would be convenient but by all means check other crossings.

The coastal Aires are likely to be chocker in August but you should be OK inland. For campsites I suggest get a book, the Alan Rogers guides are OK but the AA do one as well. You can find a lot of stuff on line but this needs a connection although the campercontact app, which I strongly recommend works offline if you download the maps you need first.

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Abacist

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Apart from wanting nice weather it is difficult to advise when we know nothing about you, your family etc. Is it just you and your wife or are their kids and if so what age? Do you want to relax on the beach or do you want activities or museums, distilleries, vineyards, historical towns etc. It is the busiest time in France so you won't get the prime spots but you should be able to get in somewhere. Do you take bikes? How are you going to get around when you get where you want to go. Do you need ready access to local transport i.e. buses or trains. How are you going to do shopping - take the van or otherwise? I don't know enough to tell you what you want to know but hopefully I'm giving you a few ideas of things to take into account and consider. There are plenty of resort websites in France so take a look at a map and do some research.
 

bhs

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Plymouth Roscoff is a nice crossing, pretty expensive though.

We like it in this area specifically Sanguinet, fresh water shallow warm lakes with sandy beaches and only a few miles from spectacular sea side beaches,google has pictures

carte-detail-sanguinet.gif
 

filopastry

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Hi Charlie. Jump in you will love it in France. We have lived here 10 years . For the weather come a little further south to the Charente Maritime. La Rochelle, Royan, Saint George de didonne, Saint Palmyre all have excellent beaches and plenty to do. Ile de re, Il de Oleron excellent, a sea food eaters dream. Angouleme, Limoge, Oradour sur Glane for the history, Cognac for the tipples Bordeaux and st Emillion for wines.
Use the main roads and not the peages where you can A roads in France are designated "N" and are as good as autoroutes and free.
http://www.meteociel.fr/previsions/5383/virollet.htm use this website for the weather, change the village:town names for where you want normally very good forecasts
http://www.relais-routiers.com/ use this link to find "routier" truck drivers restaurants ... they are NOTHING like UK, you will eat and drink like a king for those days when you want a treat and including wine prices are in the region of 12-14 euros
Parking on motorway services is usually free and safe and there is toilet and showers frequently.Parking is supermarket carparks is frequently OK. The French in general love the English who "try" to speak the lingo and will help almost always. ONE tiny word, when you go into a small shop, restaurant etc if you have eye contact certainly, if not then almost always say "bonjour" it is French courtesy and will go a long way to smoothing your visit. If you feel brave and there are both ladies and gents in hear shot then say "bonjour messieur dame" pronounced "bonjur misyer dam". AND enjoy ... if you get down our way Gemozac, give us a nudge, we'll come and help you spend some money in a bar/restaurant .... BON VOYAGE

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Charlie

Charlie

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Apart from wanting nice weather it is difficult to advise when we know nothing about you, your family etc. Is it just you and your wife or are their kids and if so what age? Do you want to relax on the beach or do you want activities or museums, distilleries, vineyards, historical towns etc. It is the busiest time in France so you won't get the prime spots but you should be able to get in somewhere. Do you take bikes? How are you going to get around when you get where you want to go. Do you need ready access to local transport i.e. buses or trains. How are you going to do shopping - take the van or otherwise? I don't know enough to tell you what you want to know but hopefully I'm giving you a few ideas of things to take into account and consider. There are plenty of resort websites in France so take a look at a map and do some research.
Sorry I should have said..
It's just myself and my wife. We like both beaches and culture buildings architecture and so on. My wife has a disability so cycling for her is out of the question so is walking very far. So access to transport is helpful but we would look to either use the van to get around or hire a car .
Just to relax on nice beaches is what we really want to do..

I know I'm asking a lot but our inexperience is holding us back just now. But as above once we get a trip sorted and enjoyed our confidence will soar and we will be away.

Thanks .
 

Abacist

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St Jean de Monts and les Sables D'Olonne are both beach resorts and La Rochelle is a very interesting. Beaches are wide and shallow in that its takes a while to get to deep water.

A bit further down is the Charente Maritime region between La Rochelle and Royan again with lovely beaches which are very popular. Cognac is not far away and all the brandy distilleries do tours and samples.

Loads of seafood to eat and other good food as well. Royan good for a visit and with some wartime history if that interest you.

The Ile de Re and Ile D'Oleron are both excellent places to visit and are very popular resort destinations.

All these areas are much more likely to have good weather than Brittany. I love Brittany and travelling through it as its very picturesque and has lots of interesting places to visit but its weather can be very iffy.

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Candapack

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We were in the same position as you this time last year. Got loads of advice and info from forumites, (albeit another forum, hadn't joined on here then). Got on ferry with a mixture of excitement and trepidation.
Had the most fantastic holiday ever, went down the Loire, over to the coast, down to Bordeaux, inland to Cahors and then had to start heading back.
Used a mix of ACSI sites, Aires, and a couple of France Passion sites. Can't remember a single problem, just some great times. We spent our last few days on a site at Vannes in Brittany, end of September and the weather was superb. On the drive from there to St Malo for the ferry home, we were really down, we wanted to stay much longer than the 6 weeks we'd already had.
Nearly a year later, we are gagging for mid August when we start off again. France was brilliant, but thought we'd give Germany a go, maybe Austria and Slovenia. That's one tip, if you've planned a trip, don't be too rigid. Last year, just by talking to folk we met, we ended up going places we'd never thought of and never regretted anything.
Enjoy, you'll have a great time.
 

yellabellyex

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Hi Charlie, buy the ACSI book, check out french municipal sites on Google, set a budget, decide max mileage and get your crossing booked. I agree, avoid Dover- Calais.
If you use aires just for a night in transit then you can leave the solar setup for a while and spend your money elsewhere.
Enjoy it it's probably the best thing to do with a van
regards
alan b
 
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We were in Brittany last week. The weather was OK but not brilliant. You might be better off going a bit further to the Vendee where the weather is normally hotter and drier.
I have seen lots of good advice on this post and similar posts cover the last few months. However one thing I have not seen mentioned concerns swimming pools on camp sites. Budgie smuggler type or other tight fitting swimming trunks are compulsory at the majority of pools for men.
I am not sure why this is, but it is best to know about it before you arrive.

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Charlie

Charlie

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It seems most of you don't book camping sites and just follow your noses ?? Or am I not reading it right ?

Is it best to book sites or just roam till we find something ?

Are campsites plentiful and vacancies easy to find ?
 

magicsurfbus

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If you want good weather head for the Bordeaux area or further south. Charente-Maritime has a good selection of aires and places to visit including a range of beaches to suit all tastes. Ile de Re and Ile d'Oleron are nice but aren't especially good for local MH parking if you're relying on your vehicle for mobility. However, a well-chosen aire or campsite with easy beach access might solve this. Once you get below Bordeaux the beaches tend to be all big, wide and sandy, backed by dunes and pine forest (or modern resorts rather than quaint fishing villages) so accessibility is a bit hit and miss. La Palmyre might be worth considering if you want to park up and roam around by the sea.
Ferry miles are always more expensive than road miles, so Dover-Calais plus aires to your destination will always be the cheaper option if cost matters.
If playing it by ear, use common sense - the highest turnover on an aire or campsite is usually mid-late morning, so that's when to arrive and bag a spot. If using aires in the high season go for medium sized to large aires in the first instance. Aires will also be fuller at weekends than mid week. If you want to bag a good spot for the weekend, aim to be there by Friday morning.
We don't use an aire book, we use the free Satnav POI download from the CampingCar-Infos website, and I look at the visitor reviews and info on the main website well ahead of the trip so I can work out the likelihood of the aire being right. I usually have a 'Plan B' aire lined up, but rarely have to use it, and I also have their free mobile app as a backup.
The all-singing all-dancing 4 to 5 star campsites usually expect 7 day bookings in the high season but there's plenty of others that will take you for a day or two if you just turn up at the right time.
 
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Charlie

Charlie

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Struggling.......... I should declare I'm not to good on computers and add in I'm dyslexic.
I spent all morning trying to work out how and where to book a ferry from Portsmouth to Roscoff. I did finally get a price of 410 quid return but have no idea if it was for a return trip or one way,

I then went onto the Camping and caravan club website as we joined that a few weeks ago. I had absolutely no joy as the booking system on there completely flummoxed me. It was extremely frustrating. I tried several times to do it but every time the system beat me.

I think I'm approaching this the wrong way.

Do we book the ferry (If I can ever get even that far) and just head wherever our noses tell us and find places to stay ? It seems with the abundance of there Aires we at least wont get stuck ?

Or do we pre book proper (if that's the right way of putting it) and do it that way .

It can take me a while tp get used to how these things work and I'm sorry if I'm asking questions that have been answered above but confusion is getting the better of me just now.

I have a couple of ferry related questions but will ask them in another thread as it may help with me getting confused.

Thanks again everyone I genuinely appreciate it !

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Mousy

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Charlie, don't worry, try and get your ferry booked and then just drive. France is not like the UK there is always somwhere to park.

Take some of the above suggestions of places and maybe download an aire app and you will be fine.

What dates are you going?
 
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Charlie

Charlie

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Charlie, don't worry, try and get your ferry booked and then just drive. France is not like the UK there is always somwhere to park.

Take some of the above suggestions of places and maybe download an aire app and you will be fine.

What dates are you going?

Looking at the end of August and going for about a month.

I have asked some specific questions on a separate thread for my benefit really as I'm just getting so confused.
 

DBK

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I'm flummoxed too - was Portsmouth to Roscoff a typo? Did you mean Plymouth to Roscoff? Ferries from Portsmouth tend to be to ports further east: http://www.brittany-ferries.co.uk/ferry-routes/ferries-france/portsmouth-france

You could of course just ring them. If you ring the Brittany Ferries UK number you will normally get through to a Brit or if not then a French mademoiselle who will speak perfect English.

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Hi Charlie what size is your moho, also why go to Roscoff. Portsmouthto Caen/Oustreham 5 hr sail only 1 day's drive into Brittany(if thats where you plan to go) or from Caen it would be straight forward/down to the Vendee( thats just south of Nantes down to Ile de Re ).
We are going 1st Sept Brittany ferries 6.7mtr moho £330 return , (thats with a 10% discount using friends & family discount number from another funster). I'm traveling with 2 other moho's otherwise I' d offer to help.
 

Delboyarapaho

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My advice would be to decide on your crossing. Then look at the map and get a rough idea the tour you think you want to do. Our first trip we were too ambitous and didnt spend enough nights at each site. Then decide how far you want to drive on the first day you arrive taking account of what time you land and book you first one or two nights. That way you know exactly where you are heading for and you can decide to stay longer if you like it but if you don't or you want to move on you can. We were in Brittany last week of June to 12th and weather was fantastic, although cool in the evenings. Try Camping Du Letty, if you want to be that far west. Good quality site on the seafront. Also Sarzeau south of Vannes is nice. Vannes is a great place to visit and we also did the stones at Carnac which were really nice. Auray & Port Du Gustain were very nice and at Sainte-Anne De Auray there was a super war cemetery and Basilque. Nice little town. There are plenty of good campsites all round the coast in that area between Letty and Vannes so you don't need to drive millions of miles for your first trip (if you don't want to). good luck and enjoy
 
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I tour Europe around three times a year. Mainly totally unplanned, whether I go North or South, depending on weather in general. I use Aires 99% of the time. If you get the Aires books from Vicarious books (on the internet) and an updated Garmin or Tom Tom. They will navigate you to any Aire, and keep you off Toll roads. Everywhere in mainland Europe is welcoming to campers, more so than UK! My solar panel is useful if I stop somewhere more than a couple of days. A little 12volt to 230volt inverter is handy for little chargers. I tend to go Dover Dunkirk as I did a few weeks ago, but my hold up was the M20. Driving up to M25 took me three hours! Be careful of money changers, they all state commission free, but this is a lie. If you look at the buying rate, compared to the selling rate, they make at least 10% COMMISSION!! Anyway, have fun, and don't be nervous.

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Frenchsunlover

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Hi Charlie,
France is the place for motor homes, get an aires book from Vicarios books, Do NOT sleep on the motorway Aires, if using the motorways
Tolls top to bottom are about 70euros with no traffic on motorway, except the second weekend in August when the whole of France appears to be heading back home.
Mileage is not a problem in France because of the empty roads. If your looking to escape UK weather get to the Dordogne or below. The dordogne is on the edge of a Mediterranean climate and is only just over a day's drive.the Pyrenees and South only 600 ish miles. We leave Lincolnshire and head near Narbonne,
Two days across France, blue sky's and 30 odd degrees virtually guaranteed for our 3week break. Northern France is like UK weather and if you've bothered to cross the channel for warmth why not get some Sun.
Hope you enjoy whatever you decide to do.
Andrew
 

pilgrim55

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Hi Charlie,

Welcome to the joy of motorhoming.

Just like to say if your keen on going over to Brittany and think you might make a habit of it check out Brittany Ferries travel club. It may seem expensive with joining fee and annual membership but even though I only used it once last year I still made a saving after taking the annual membership into account.

This year even though I have only booked one way so when I go later this month (Pompey / Caen) I have made a saving on my annual renewal and I look to be saving another £80 odd if I come back Roscoff / Plymouth sometime in October.

Think the rest of going over and having fun has been covered but if "budgie smugglers" bother you then try naturists sites, saves a lot on taking clothes and washing them while your away as well, though you will need more towels.

Pete
 

Cobweb

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Looking at the end of August and going for about a month.

I have asked some specific questions on a separate thread for my benefit really as I'm just getting so confused.

Hi . I was under the impression that you were departing as soon as possible but going on the 30th of August gives you time to plan . One thing to remember is that virtually all of Paris in on holiday during the month of August and will be on their way back end of August which could mean total chaos on the roads . Also many campsites close end of August or mid September . Few stay open till end of October and even fewer all year. Otherwise this is a very nice time to travel after the crowds have departed and there is really no need to book anywhere. Once in early October we were the only ones on a nice campsite in the Loire region ! We also toured Brittany in September a few years ago and had great weather . Get the Acsi CC book as well as All the Aires and if you are online join the Searchforsites as well Campercontact and you will have more than enough choice .

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MattR

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It seems most of you don't book camping sites and just follow your noses ?? Or am I not reading it right ?

Is it best to book sites or just roam till we find something ?

Are campsites plentiful and vacancies easy to find ?

Roam :). No need to book. As others have said, use aires - some are large, some small. Many are on the edge of towns and villages and aim to encourage visitors - they are a great way to see more of France.

Lots of campsites, some run by the local municipality. Some sites will close in September but many will remain open later into the year.

Do you have a sat nav?
 

Rob Paula and Pablo

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Be gentle we are newbies ..

Only had our van for a few weeks but are desperate to go over to Europe. Would really love to get something booked in the next few weeks.

We really haven't much of a clue where to start ! We did spontaneously jump in a large Transit van and head over to Germany many years ago when we took a bike over to the Nurburgring . Went ok but we got shafted on ferry costs as we did it with short notice.

Brittany is looking favorable as a destination . We just want to get away from the bloody awful weather for a few weeks.

So who or which ferry company is best to book with ? We have joined the Camping and caravan club but not sure if we can get discounts through them or mentioning them when we try to book ?

Truth is this is a bit daunting so would like to get stuck in and get the first European trip under our belts.

I think Portsmouth to St Malo might be better just now with the chaos at Dover. I think Portsmouth is easier for us anyway.

Thanks.
 

Rob Paula and Pablo

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Hi Charlie

Just back from a 6 week road trip 4300 miles.
if you want the weather Brittany is a great place but the weather can be like home.
Drive down into the Dordogne much better weather.:)

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