Help with first trip to Europe.. Please .... (2 Viewers)

Rob Paula and Pablo

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We have a 9mt Auto Trail Arapaho. We try not to use the toll roads. set your Sat Nav to avoid Toll roads. It will send you on the national free roads the distance is not always longer. The money you save on tolls pays for your fuel.
 
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Charlie

Charlie

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We have a 9mt Auto Trail Arapaho. We try not to use the toll roads. set your Sat Nav to avoid Toll roads. It will send you on the national free roads the distance is not always longer. The money you save on tolls pays for your fuel.

Blimey are they that expensive ?

Thanks for the tip I will remember it (y)
 

Rob Paula and Pablo

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Diesel (Gasoil in France) is 1.09 cents a litre making it around 80p;) more miles for your money. Ching Ching

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Cobweb

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Diesel (Gasoil in France) is 1.09 cents a litre making it around 80p;) more miles for your money. Ching Ching

Hmmm ......We only got it at that price once in Luxemburg . Mostly it was in the 114 -112 range . You get the best deal from supermarkets and the worst on motorways. If you really want to get somewhere fast and hassle free then the toll roads are great with very little traffic on them most of the time . We find that sometimes trying to avoid toll roads there are diversions to minor roads etc which can take a lot longer.
 

Lynne Steele

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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 !


Hi Charlie, we booked DFDS Newhaven to Dieppe Sept 5th for £110 return got a cc discount, we are heading for Id de re for a couple of days and then onto the Vendee, but if it is raining we will drive to Narbonne area. Hope you get ferry sorted and have great fun.

Lynne
 
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Charlie, you have had lots of good advice, but at the end of the day it is what you want that matters. In September most of the campsites will be quiet and you should have no problems turning up in all but the most popular areas. And your ACSI card will get you them at reasonable prices. But the problem is that many will start closing during September.

We tend to use Aires and have found some brilliant ones, just by turning up. Most Aires are open all year around, but with some the water will be turned off when the weather gets cold. Aires are specifically for motorhomes, no caravans or tents are allowed usually. They are often much closer to nice towns, villages or beaches and that means that you often have lots to see within easy walking distance.

In September I would not bother booking. Just follow your nose and you can cover a lot of ground in a month. If you have a digital TV and aerial you will be able to pick up local TV, which will have weather forecasts that are easy to understand. Just follow the sun or a whim, up to you. But if you want really good weather then you need to head further south.

This spring we drove through France and Spain and spent a lot of time in Portugal. A lovely experience and we did the whole trip in a month. Again using mainly Aires and some wild camping.
 
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Charlie

Charlie

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Ferry booked !

We land at Roscoff at 3.0 in the afternoon and my wife has a plan for us to drive to Huelgoat and park up for the night before heading south the next day. It is not far so ideal for the first drive on the right hand side for 20 odd years !
So suggestions for where to stay on that first night greatly welcomed ! It does not have to be Huelgoat that's just a place the wife has picked as we have no idea .. An Aire or campsite it doesn't really matter ..

Thanks !
 
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Charlie

Charlie

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Silly question.... Well two ..

We have booked one way only with the view we will stay as long as we can / like.

So when we book the return ferry we wont be able to print a copy off.. Will this be a problem ? Is it just the reference number we need ? Daft I know but we really don't know .

It is one warning triangle or two required ?

Thanks
 

bhs

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It does have hook up but I think it may be time limited and operate off the central services area you see in the picture, you can never be sure til you get there!! Nearly every village in Brittany has a place for motorhome stops, you will see the signs, municiple sites with hook up are always nice and cheap tooit's very quiet in the northern parts, you can stop pretty much anywhere, all very relaxed.

If you like seaside the link I posted about campsite is on the Quiberon neck, if you are heading south you pass pretty close to it, one side sheltered other side wide open atlantic beaches, dogs delight!

If you see two poodles and an old bloke in a wetsuit it's me!!
 
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Charlie

Charlie

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Silly question.... Well two ..

We have booked one way only with the view we will stay as long as we can / like.

So when we book the return ferry we wont be able to print a copy off.. Will this be a problem ? Is it just the reference number we need ? Daft I know but we really don't know .

It is one warning triangle or two required ?

Thanks

That won't be a problem, I think just your name and registration number will suffice but the booking number will definitely be ok.

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bhs

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The aires and campsites will become less busy as August draws to an end, the Plouharnel aire ,(Le camping des Sables blancs) information says there are 40 places for camping cars, should be no problem. When are you off? We are now delayed til after 20th Aug but are certainly heading for this site.

There are a number of free aires (no electricity) close to this area, will post addresses tomorrow, from memory one is at Erdeven, one in Quiberon itself (at the end of the penisula) on in Carnac
 

bhs

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Forgot to mention there is a train stop at the campsite on the video. Have a great trip

Couple of aires close to Quiberon in case you need them, cost 6 0r 7 euro's per night

with electric

Accès/adresse :
Kerouriec
56410 ERDEVEN
Latitude : (Nord) 47.62722° Décimaux ou 47° 37′ 37′′
Longitude : (Ouest) -3.17999° Décimaux ou -3° 10′ 47′′



no hook up
Accès/adresse :
Boulevard de l'Atlantique
Keravel
56410 ERDEVEN
Latitude : (Nord) 47.61501° Décimaux ou 47° 36′ 54′′
Longitude : (Ouest) -3.15868° Décimaux ou -3° 9′ 31′′

No hook up
Accès/adresse :
Chemin de Pouldéeve
Square Illertissen
56340 CARNAC
Latitude : (Nord) 47.58587° Décimaux ou 47° 35′ 9′′
Longitude : (Ouest) -3.08263° Décimaux ou -3° 4′ 57′′
 
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Several of the above state " I don't like the idea of going through the tunnel due to the problems", . There are no problems if you travel during daylight hours, we have used the tunnel twice lately have not seen an illegal!

If you use ET Frequent Traveller deal it will only cost you £108 return, any time of the year and at sensible times of the day and if you wish to change no extra costs.

Our aires "bible" is Camperstop, you only need this one book for all of Europe,

colyboy

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LostOZ1

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We always found the cost a lot higher for the longer crossings so depends how big an issue cost is also we go shorter so its less time for the dog on his own. If you go after the end of the French holidays will be a lot quieter and make sure you try some aires.

David
Yes, we just did our first France in the van and nothing was open in land, ok by the beach. Had a great time.

We did Portsmouth to Caen, and came back via Calais with no troubles :)
 

LostOZ1

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If Brittany, or that side of France is your choice then Portsmouth is better than going all the way to Dover and then all the way back to the west.
If new to motorhoming then pick some nice campsites, there are loads to bre found on line but also try out an Aire or two.
Remember to drive on the right!!, get your fuel in supermarkets, take an electrical polarity tester and reversed polarity adaptor as well as a continental 2 pin socket adaptor. Learn a bit of French, certainly how to say please, thanks and good morning etc. Take some euros with you, good rate of exchange at the moment.
Unless you are in a hurry stay away from the payage motorways and use the A and B roads, you will see much more of France. Watch out for speed limits, breaking them can be costly as well as dangerous.
Main thing, enjoy yourselves, enjoy experiencing a different culture and join in the experiences.
Good luck. :happy:
I would also take some coins, we had 40 euros in 1 & 2 euro coins and they came in hand many times.

Anyone know how to get some Aire tokens in advance, as we got to a site late and the local places to get the tokens had shut :)
 

LostOZ1

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In my rather limited experience of just one motorhome trip to France last year, most do not have EHU, some do but they are usually claimed by the French / Dutch who are very keen to hang onto their supply !

We found a lot of the Aires had EHU, but the token only got you 10 minutes of water and 60 min of Electric, so needed three tokens (6 euros) to have water to top up the tank and clean black tank, with two hours to get the fridge really cold again, after a day on 12 volt.

We have two leisure batteries and 110 solar, and this is good for a few days without 220v

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DBK

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Ferry booked !

We land at Roscoff at 3.0 in the afternoon and my wife has a plan for us to drive to Huelgoat and park up for the night before heading south the next day. It is not far so ideal for the first drive on the right hand side for 20 odd years !
So suggestions for where to stay on that first night greatly welcomed ! It does not have to be Huelgoat that's just a place the wife has picked as we have no idea .. An Aire or campsite it doesn't really matter ..

Thanks !
If you are heading south from Roscoff there is a municipal campsite at Carhaix Plouger which I used on my first ever cycling trip to France. It is beside the river, flat and grassy and has a bar! It is on the west side of the town http://www.brittanytourism.com/accommodation/campsites/camping-municipal-de-la-vallee-de-l-hyeres

But if the weather forecast is good don't be in too much of a rush to go south. There are some super spots in Brittany and when the sun is shining - which isn't all the time of course but if it is make the most of the weather to see them. For example this aire beside the sea and a little village in the extreme west; http://www.campercontact.com/en/fra...93/motorhome-parking-aire-de-camping-car.aspx

Th Dorling Kindsy Eye-Witness Guide to France is a very good book for showing you the highlights in places you might be driving past. They also do regional ones - I've just bought the DK guide to Brittany and discovered that the largest megalithic burial mound in Europe is a 20 minute drive from Roscoff. I never knew it was there.:) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barnenez
 
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Charlie

Charlie

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If you are heading south from Roscoff there is a municipal campsite at Carhaix Plouger which I used on my first ever cycling trip to France. It is beside the river, flat and grassy and has a bar! It is on the west side of the town http://www.brittanytourism.com/accommodation/campsites/camping-municipal-de-la-vallee-de-l-hyeres

But if the weather forecast is good don't be in too much of a rush to go south. There are some super spots in Brittany and when the sun is shining - which isn't all the time of course but if it is make the most of the weather to see them. For example this aire beside the sea and a little village in the extreme west; http://www.campercontact.com/en/fra...93/motorhome-parking-aire-de-camping-car.aspx

Th Dorling Kindsy Eye-Witness Guide to France is a very good book for showing you the highlights in places you might be driving past. They also do regional ones - I've just bought the DK guide to Brittany and discovered that the largest megalithic burial mound in Europe is a 20 minute drive from Roscoff. I never knew it was there.:) https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barnenez

Noted. Thank you ..(y)
 

Bacchus

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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.

How does this work then? Surely the EHU is AC which means the polarity is changing 50 times a second or have I got something fundamentally wrong????

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DBK

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How does this work then? Surely the EHU is AC which means the polarity is changing 50 times a second or have I got something fundamentally wrong????
It's an old chestnut. The term is misleading but it means earth and live are swapped over. This means a device turned off with a single pole switch will still be live and could give you a shock if it was faulty. You don't in normal circumstances get a shock from the neutral wire.
The problem mainly effects old MHs of British make!
 

Bacchus

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It's an old chestnut. The term is misleading but it means earth and live are swapped over. This means a device turned off with a single pole switch will still be live and could give you a shock if it was faulty. You don't in normal circumstances get a shock from the neutral wire.
The problem mainly effects old MHs of British make!

Makes more sense, thank you (c:
 

denisejoe

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How does this work then? Surely the EHU is AC which means the polarity is changing 50 times a second or have I got something fundamentally wrong????
Reverse polarity is only likely to be a problem with British vans I think. Certainly not had a problem with any of the European vans we've had.

Joe

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It's an old chestnut. The term is misleading but it means earth and live are swapped over. !
Strictly speaking I think it means that the live and neutral terminals are swapped.

To Bacchus - have a read of this article, look under the AC bit.

Reverse polarity is only a problem if you have single pole switches (i.e. only switching the live terminal) and insist on fiddling with the electrics whilst only relying upon that switch being off.
 
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DBK

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Oops, yes, live and neutral swapped - I knew that, honest! Slip of the keyboard. :)
 
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Reverse polarity is only likely to be a problem with British vans I think. Certainly not had a problem with any of the European vans we've had.

Joe
Unless, like many, that van has UK type sockets with single pole switches. I keep a polarity tester in the motorhome along with two "continental" adaptor leads, one wired correctly and one wired in reverse. Simples.

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