Tolls or non tolls to south of France? (1 Viewer)

[Vlad The Impaler]

Leaving for France on Friday night and the best weather looks to be on the med.
Last year we went down via a visit to friends in Limoges and ended up near Beziers,on the way back up we went over the Milau bridge,Clermont Ferrand ,Chatres,Rouen etc.
This year we only have two weeks!What sort of time can you save by using the tolls and what are the approx costs class 2 ,Whats your favourite route to the med?
Last year we stopped at Chatres on the way back up which was a fair drive then a shorter day to Calais.We aim to have one overnight stop what would you suggest?



Vlad

 

[sean n maggie]

we go for the first time in july,,so sorry cant help you,,,,but hope you have a great time,,,:fatbuddha:have fun......

 

[jonandshell]

Just pay the tolls you tight git!

You have two weeks off, you don't want to waste 6 days travelling!!oh:

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[Vlad The Impaler]

Ok moneybags,which way and roughly how much?
Don't want any links to websites I'm too thick to work them out,rough costs and time will do .I did it last year with 1 stop so curious to see roughly what cost and how much time does it save?


Vlad

 

[jonandshell]

Calais to the Alps was €120 ish at class 2 if my memory serves me right.
11 hours at 56mph.

Tried it non-toll and sacked it halfway down because of lack of progress!!!

 

[JeanLuc]

Just had a look at the autoroutes.fr site - not great as it only gives the option to cost a 'light vehicle' (class 1) or HGV (class 3 upwards).

Calais to Montpelier is listed at €65 for a car and €161 for a class 3, so I guess you'd be in for about €100 each way for class 2 (under 3.5 tonnes and less than 3 metres high).

Sorry - should have included link to the route map.

http://www.autoroutes.fr/en/routes.htm?itiFrom=62100+Calais,+France&itiTo=34000+Montpellier,+France

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[Chris]

From memory we take the toll via Rouen, Toulouse, Perpignan.

Cost c£100 each way

We went via Bordeaux once and that was a lot more expensive.

Don't know how much time it saves but quite a few hours I should think.

 

[greyman1]

drove down to the med near toulon a couple of years ago[ non toll] in my vw campervan thinking i would see rural france in all its glory and be able to pull up in little villages and enjoy the odd coissant or two with the locals . in reality almost every village i passed through appeared shut ! in some places the roads were just one roundabout after another and i have never passed so many retail parks and mcdonalds in my life ! needless to say i came back toll motorway [some sections are free ] all the way . it cost about 150 euro though if i remember correctly . regards garry.

 

[ukbill]

the way u went is the best imho but paying tolls all the way would be via paris i have done both routes and are much the same but i would now not go via bordeaux it seems now that both the main roads down to spain are now toll and bloody expensive dont forget i dont think u save much time from clermont to Perpignan taking the non toll road which runs parallel with the toll road what ever way u go have a great trip and chill :thumb:

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[Clive]

this site gives you some good information about getting down quickly but keeping the tolls down
http://about-france.com/tourism/no-tolls-routes.htm

:thumb:

 

[Soozywoozy]

Try
fr.mappy.com/itineraire
Which does allow you to put in class of vehicle, car and caravan, class 2 or classe 3 if you want to calculate worst case scenario
You could also mix and match and go some of the way motorway which is non toll and come off for the toll sections. Look at the previously posted autoroutes link
or if you can be bothered:

http://www.autoroute-eco.fr/

Calculates tolls by coming off auto route and rejoining straight away which also reduces costs

 

[peterc10]

you don't want to waste 6 days travelling!!oh:

Surely the whole point of a motorhome (as opposed to a caravan) is that travelling is not a waste

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[ShiftZZ]

I love France,but, this romantic notion of travelling vast distances through pretty little villages, endless roundabouts, chicanes , farmers on tractors and the issues of driving on the right, are fine, but in reality I am convinced are an expensive option.
I travelled down to Port Vendre. Mostly via toll roads, I did at one point decide to go from Dijon to Lyon using non till roads, 120 miles TomTom estimated 4 hours. That was the longest 4 hours of my life, countless gear changes, stop start, yes nice scenery, but my fuel consumption went into orbit.
I am not a big fan of Motorways, but if you are in a hurry to get south ASAP, then do the tolls, a steady 90km per hour, safe, regular and consistent.
If you want to explore small villages then do so near your destination.

Lastly, I was travelling from Calais to Brezolles and there were no end of roadwork’s and diversions, it took forever, at the end of the journey, I was knackered.
To be honest, you need to balance the costs, I suspect that there is little difference between tolls and non tolls, but other will disagree.

 

[Stroppy Bird]

Just had a look at the autoroutes.fr site - not great as it only gives the option to cost a 'light vehicle' (class 1) or HGV (class 3 upwards).

In the light vehicle section there is a drop down menu option to select car plus caravan which is class 2:thumb:

 

[trophychap]

The A75 is free for its whole length apart from the Millau bridge. Some stunning scenery. Lovely motorway.

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[Sidney]

drove down to the med near toulon a couple of years ago[ non toll] in my vw campervan thinking i would see rural france in all its glory and be able to pull up in little villages and enjoy the odd coissant or two with the locals . in reality almost every village i passed through appeared shut ! in some places the roads were just one roundabout after another and i have never passed so many retail parks and mcdonalds in my life !.

Bang on Garry - most of us have this daft idea oh:


If tourist were in the London and planning to drive to Cornwall they might well think of taking the A4 rather than the motorway.

That way they could get to see real English life as they travel through Brentford, Hounslow, Heathrow...

and then take in the countryside as he drives through Slough, Maidenhead, Reading, Newbury...

 

[WillH]

Last year we used the autoroutes to get south fast, with a couple of days at Lyon before moving on. On the way back used the A75 and meandered a lot. If you stay in Millau overnight you get a great view of the bridge and ovoid paying the toll.

RGds
Bill

 

[MR. FUSION]

Bang on Garry - most of us have this daft idea oh:


If tourist were in the London and planning to drive to Cornwall they might well think of taking the A4 rather than the motorway.

That way they could get to see real English life as they travel through Brentford, Hounslow, Heathrow...

and then take in the countryside as he drives through Slough, Maidenhead, Reading, Newbury...

That's funny

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[Reallyretired]

Just pay the tolls you tight git!

You have two weeks off, you don't want to waste 6 days travelling!!oh:

Strange, we never waste any time travelling, that is the most enjoyable bit, in fact we don't have 'destinations' only different stops.

 

[jonandshell]

Surely the whole point of a motorhome (as opposed to a caravan) is that travelling is not a waste

All retired motorhomers say that!

Us poor folks paying for your state pension only a get a short time off work and need to get where we want to be more quickly!!!

 

[jonandshell]

Strange, we never waste any time travelling, that is the most enjoyable bit, in fact we don't have 'destinations' only different stops.

Oh No!!! Not another one!!!!!!!!

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[Billy23]

All retired motorhomers say that!

[HI]Us poor folks paying for your state pension only a get a short time off work and need to get where we want to be more quickly!!!

[/HI]

Well would you please do some overtime so that they put up the pensions a bit more, hard work never hurt anybody!!!!

Whatever work is

 

[peterc10]

All retired motorhomers say that!

Us poor folks paying for your state pension only a get a short time off work and need to get where we want to be more quickly!!!

Then get a caravan

 

[Vlad The Impaler]

All retired motorhomers say that!

Us poor folks paying for your state pension only a get a short time off work and need to get where we want to be more quickly!!!

I agree ,I want to get there as quick as possible!
Last year it was easily do-able in 2 days but I'm looking to find the shortest route time wise.
I Travel at a steady 70 to make optimum use of the cheaper diesel!





Vlad

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[MR. FUSION]

if I go above 60 MPH in my Elddis MPG tanks

 

[Soaringman]

All retired motorhomers say that!

Us poor folks paying for your state pension only a get a short time off work and need to get where we want to be more quickly!!!

Well if you need to get there that quickly, I found easy jet and renting a caravan a good option :

 

[Forestboy]

Well Im retired and I still use toll roads in France if I want to get somewhere quick even on the motorbike. Your certainly not going to make any rapid progress through France without using toll roads too many obstacles.

Last year going down to Spanish motogp on my motorbike the difference between toll and non toll to Biarritz was over 6 hours guess which I chose.

We like to meander around the French countryside like lots of others but not if we're trying to get to a destination.

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[Carol]

All retired motorhomers say that!

Us poor folks paying for your state pension only a get a short time off work and need to get where we want to be more quickly!!!

Keep up the good work, :thumb:

When we have a destination we prefer just to get there and use the tolls, although the A75 is a good alternative and beautiful run.

 

[Reallyretired]

All retired motorhomers say that!

Us poor folks paying for your state pension only a get a short time off work and need to get where we want to be more quickly!!!

I don't get a state pension yet but keep up the good work so it will still exist when I get there in 4 years.:thumb:

 

[AuldCodger]

Tag

If you're using the "tolls" would suggest you consider the Sanef Tag.
Had one now for a couple of years and saves a lot of hassle, no more good lady trying to hang out to pay the tolls and the smile it brings to the old boat race as you sail through the newer fast lanes
https://www.saneftolling.co.uk/

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