20 x day Europe Itinerary Advice (1 Viewer)

[Stephen P]

Hi,
Any advice on the following 20 day itinerary would be most appreciated. This is our second motorhome trip, this first was Canadian Rockies last June. We want to visit and spend a bit of time exploring some of the places in Europe we haven't been. Just myself and the wife, early 50s. Motorhome is less than 3.5 tonne. Any campsite tips/recommendations, driving advice or alternative stops most welcome. Many thanks in advance. Stephen.

Sun 9th June- arrive Munich, stay for 2 x nights

Tues 11th June- collect motorhome from DRM Depot around 4pm, then shopping/supplies, then 2.5-3hr to a pre- booked Wolfgangsee Campground, Austria, for 3 x nights
Wed 12th June- Explore- Salzburg, do Grobglockner, Halstatter See
Thurs 13th June- Explore- Salzburg, do Grobglockner, Halstatter See

Fri 14th June- Leave early for 4hr to Bled, Slovenia- find campsite for 2 x nights
Sat 15th June- Explore- visit Ljubljana, Lake Bled

Sun 16th June- Leave early for 5hr to near Zadar, Croatia, pre-booked campsite for 3x nights
Mon 17th June- Explore Dalmatian Coast- Zadar area
Tues 18th June- Explore Dalmatian Coast- Zadar area

Wed 19th June- Leave early for 6hr to Trieste via Senj- find place for 1 x night

Thurs 20th June- Leave early for 4hr to Cortina d'Ampezzo/Dolomites, pre-booked campsite for 3 x nights
Fri 21st June- Explore Cortina d'Ampezzo/Dolomites
Sat 22nd June- Explore Cortina d'Ampezzo/Dolomites

Sun 23rd June- Leave early for 6hrs to Como for 4 x nights, pre-booked campsite
Mon 24th June- Explore Como
Tues 25th June- Explore Como
Wed 26th June- Explore Como

Thurs 27th June- Leave early for 3hrs to Chur, Switzerland for 2 x nights
Fri 28th June- Explore Chur

Sat 29th June- Leave early for 3hrs to Innsbruck, Austria for 2 x nights
Sun 30th June- Explore Innsbruck

Mon 1st July- Leave early for 3hrs to be at depot outside Munich for 9.30am

 

[Chris]

Crikey have you got OCD?

I can’t ever plan stuff to that extent.

Looks ok though I guess.

 

[Figaro]

Welcome to the forum.
Are you on holiday or doing an endurance challenge ?
That`s an awful lot of hours driving. The Croatia leg particularly looks much too brief.
Rather than go down to Zadar you might be better exploring Istria and / or going onto Krk ?
Both are beautiful and offer lots of great destinations.
I wouldn`t bother booking sites either, it just forces you into deadlines you have to meet.
Hardly relaxing.
There will be no problem finding space on sites at that time of year.
Sometimes you can plan plan plan and drive past many places worth a visit, but just sail past on the motorway.
it`s worth slowing down a bit and picking an area to explore more fully.
ACSI card is wothwhile for discount on camp fees.
You only get a limited number of posts on here as a guest so it`s worth paying for membership to get lots of useful info and to ask lots of questions.

^{_{Subscribers  do not see these advertisements}}

 

[two]

There's no harm in having a plan but no need to commit to it by booking ahead.
For me, the beauty of this hobby is the freedom to go as you please, when you please.
Try not to let your youthful enthusiasm carry you away. You should have plenty of opportunity to do more later. If you rush, you may need to go back and do it again.

 

[trophychap]

Jenny & I have rarely planned to that extent. However when we were at work and therefore limited to our time abroad we just decided which direction when we got off the ferry and then she looked up places en route and when she found anywhere that could be 'likely' on Michelin maps, Googled it to see what 'attractions' it might have, what sort of architecture, what might be interesting.

We've found numerous interesting things along the way over the years and we've also been disappointed sometimes - if the former we stay longer and if the latter we simply leave sooner and there's an end to it.

She always remembers meeting an American lad on a fairly remote beach in Corfu who asked what day it was - she replied Thursday. He said that yesterday he'd been in Basle and tomorrow he'd be flying somewhere else to another country. He wasn't very impressed with Greece apparently. Even less impressed with one of the most fantastic long established nudist beaches in Greece cos people had pink bits where they should have white bits. She burst out laughing and asked why the hell he'd deliberately chosen to go to it then.

Please please don't do that and always give places long enough to explore - or indeed bore - properly. You can always hare back to Munich at a rate of knots if you decide to dally!

 

[mitzimad]

Weve got our next trip planned
day 1 dover to dunkerque
day 14 dunkerque to dover

^{_{Subscribers  do not see these advertisements}}

 

[WynandJean]

Weve got our next trip planned
day 1 dover to dunkerque
day 14 dunkerque to dover

That's even more planning than we do. We book the ferry one way and just meander around finding places of interest and when we feel like it meander back towards the coast then book our return ferry for the next day or two. Much better than having to be anywhere at a particular time or worrying about how far we can go before turning back and the feeling that once having to head back you are no longer on holiday.

Wyn

 

[trophychap]

We still have to plan but not so much with work commitments - it's an awful lot more to do with health commitments in that we both rely on the NHS these days - although Sedge has had to virtually all her adult years only that didn't inconvenience her any more than work did, until she retired.

We also have other commitments in that we volunteered to get involved with a small local charity.

 

[The Dudess]

Sat 29th June- Leave early for 3hrs to Innsbruck, Austria for 2 x nights
Sun 30th June- Explore Innsbruck

Take a look at this campsite - one of the best we've ever stayed on and the shower block is better than a lot of 5 star hotels.

https://www.eurocamp.co.uk/campsite...VgrTtCh0dFwWCEAAYASAAEgJlTPD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds

^{_{Subscribers  do not see these advertisements}}

 

[gus-lopez]

 

[Figaro]

I understand if you're working that time is limited. I was 60 last year and took a three month sabbatical from work and did a similar route to the one you plan but from UK.
It still felt rushed in parts !
If I were you, I'd spend time exploring Bavaria, dip into Austria, across to Slovenia see lake bled and bohinj and soca valley (beautiful) and back to Munich. Saving Croatia for another time.
Even that maybe too much ? You could easily spend three weeks in Bavaria and only see a fraction of it.
Anyway think carefully about how much you want to see just through the windscreen.

 

[DBK]

Remember you don't have to use campsites. There are other places called aires, stellplatz etc depending on the country which are open to motorhomes. Some are free but not all by any means especially outside France. You can get apps ( I use "All Motorhome Parkings" aka "CamperContact") but there are websites and other apps, Search4sites and Park4night seem well regarded by those who use them. You shouldn't have to book but might be worth ringing ahead as you get near the end of June if you plan on using a campsite, which you will need to in Switzerland as wild camping is illegal. A few get away with it but I wouldn't try it in a hired MH which is probably covered in decals.

^{_{Subscribers  do not see these advertisements}}

 

[LesW]

Any advice on the following 20 day itinerary

We're hoping to go to Croatia this year, there are places we want to visit and things we want to see, so some planning is necessary, definitely don't do the 'wondering about aimlessly' bit.

I expect to take at least twenty days, probably more, to get to Dubrovnik via the Romantic Road and Plitvicka Lakes.

 

[Just smiffy]

We did Croatia last year and Mrs only wants to go away for 5 weeks max, we ended up staying a full two months and only fives days max in one spot.....

It’s lovely out there....

 

[denisejoe]

Weve got our next trip planned
day 1 dover to dunkerque
day 14 dunkerque to dover

That's us too!
Denise

^{_{Subscribers  do not see these advertisements}}

 

[Stephen P]

Many many thanks for the great replies and advice- keep them coming please- very much appreciated.
Yep- guilty as charged re over-planning, trying to cram in too much, bit heavy on the driving, etc. I'll put it down to being a bit 'OCD', 'youthful enthusiasm', and our only previous motorhome experience in the Rockies where we were advised to book ahead, which resulted in an itinerary. If it isn't necessary to pre-book campsites in June then the itinerary becomes a 'might happen/sort of plan'
Thanks for the advice and recommendations re Croatia, the ASCI card, the Natterer See Campsite, Aires and Stellplatz, Apps, ringing ahead towards the end of June, and generally trying to cram in too much that you don't really get to experience or enjoy where you are. Any other comments and recommendations greatly appreciated.
Stephen

 

[DangerMousy]

I'm also a planner....its all part of the anticipation for me Plus its kind of essential when you only have a limited amount of time and you need to get back to a tunnel crossing (or in this case to drop the MH off at the depot)...you need to plan realistically how far you can go before you need to start making your way back again.

Having said that.......we rarely actually stick to the plan The beauty of motorhoming is the flexibility to change things if the weather is bad, if you like or don't like a place, or even if you just feel like it. So have a plan, and use that as the basis for what you want to see, but don't be afraid to change it as you go along. And unless you absolutely need to be in a certain place on a certain date then don't bother booking things ahead...you'll always find somewhere to stay.

In terms of your itinerary....to me it looks like the start of a good one - its certainly not too much driving in 20 days for us (I know a lot of people on here would disagree, but we all travel in different ways!).

When you have limited time and lots of places you want to see you need to travel efficiently. So plan your routes out on Google maps and look to see where you can visit places with an overnight on the way to somewhere else.
For example: instead of staying on a campsite in Bled for two nights and (presumably) visiting Ljubljana as a day trip, then the next day driving past Ljubljana on your way to Zadar. You could arrive in in Bled around lunchtime, explore for the afternoon and evening and stay the night, then next day drive to Ljubljana and do the same. Then the following day your journey to Zadar is an hour shorter. You've seen the same places, but with less time spent driving and more time exploring places.

The Nattersee campsite is great, and there's a free bus down into Innsbruck which drops you off at the rail station. In Salzburg there's a great Stellplatz on a bus route that drops you right in the centre of town (much easier than staying out at Wolfgangsee).

Last point....we tend to find Google maps driving times a bit optimistic for motorhoming....add 15-20% to be a bit more realistic

 

[Stephen P]

Many thanks for the tips and taking the time Dangermousy.

^{_{Subscribers  do not see these advertisements}}