Best Aire to stay overnight after Calais

RustyRuss

RustyRuss

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Autotrail Apache 632
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Hi gang!

We’re planning our summer hols for last 2 weeks of June next year. We plan to get a 9pm ish channel tunnel crossing, then drive for a maximum of an hour in the general direction of southern France. Can you guys suggest a good overnight stop in an aire, or in a town? Planning to take our toad with us too.


Cheers!


Russ
 
Many of the nice aires will be full to the brim by the time you get there.
 
RustyRuss said:
Hi gang!

We’re planning our summer hols for last 2 weeks of June next year. We plan to get a 9pm ish channel tunnel crossing, then drive for a maximum of an hour in the general direction of southern France. Can you guys suggest a good overnight stop in an aire, or in a town? Planning to take our toad with us too.


Cheers!


Russ
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Are you sure about the Toad,,trailer or A frame?.BUSBY.
 
A 9pm crossing will be a 10pm arrival, which is 11pm French time and a hour after that will be gone midnight.
Not a good time to arrive at a crowded aire, as you will wake the neighbours

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I thought using the tunnel at 9pm would get us to Calais at 9.30-45pm uk time and 8.30-45pm Euro time? What time do you guys think is sensible to start looking for an Aire in the afternoon?
Regards the Toad, I’ve read tonnes of stuff on here about A-frames, some say legal others say not, others say never been questioned about it. We’re not planning to use any peage type motorways in France, just non pay motorways and our equivalent of A & B roads, how likely are we to encounter plod? I don’t want to turn this into another interminable argument about the legality or otherwise of Toads!!

Cheers!


Russ
 
Just north of Abbeville is a small town called Nouvion, there is a fairly large car park on Rue de la Marie (not the one opposite Carrefour) where you should be able to park with a trailer. We've parked there a couple of times. It's a little more than an hour from the tunnel but not too much.
 
scousebird said:
Just north of Abbeville is a small town called Nouvion, there is a fairly large car park on Rue de la Marie (not the one opposite Carrefour) where you should be able to park with a trailer. We've parked there a couple of times. It's a little more than an hour from the tunnel but not too much.
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I was just going to mention Nouvion, stopped a few times too, coords if it helps..

50.21114 1.78030

Pete

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Larby said:
France is an hour ahead. So add an hour
I suggest Sangatte or Montreuil sur Mer
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No chance at Sangatte with a toad particularly late evening/night unless you park in the coach/bus turning area.
Same at Montreuil, the pitches are short but you could park in the old aire as long as you don’t get blocked in by the school buses.

Turning up on any busy aire at 11pm or later won’t make you flavour of the week.

Richard.
 
CET - Central European Time is based on the time in Hamburg.
As Hamburg is to the east of Greenwich it is ahead of GMT by one hour.
So whatever time you leave the UK it will be one hour later in France.

A 9pm (GMT) departure in the UK (10pm CET) will mean by the time you have left Calais it will be 11pm local time.

What time do you want to arrive on an aire in France ?
Personally I try to arrive in daylight.
Work backwards from there.

As for the TOAD on the A frame, they are illegal outside of the UK.
What your insurance situation is or weather you get caught are different issues.
 
RustyRuss said:
I thought using the tunnel at 9pm would get us to Calais at 9.30-45pm uk time and 8.30-45pm Euro time? What time do you guys think is sensible to start looking for an Aire in the afternoon?
Regards the Toad, I’ve read tonnes of stuff on here about A-frames, some say legal others say not, others say never been questioned about it. We’re not planning to use any peage type motorways in France, just non pay motorways and our equivalent of A & B roads, how likely are we to encounter plod? I don’t want to turn this into another interminable argument about the legality or otherwise of Toads!!

Cheers!


Russ
Click to expand...
France is 1 hour ahead so assuming you are on time you would arrive in France about 10:35PM, allow 15-20 minutes to unload and get out of station area you are looking at 11PM. then an hour to travel its midnight. Le Crotoy I mentioned above is about an hour (using toll road) away and works on number plate recognition so you could just drive up and go straight in and hopefully get a space, plenty of room for trailers if you can get a middle pitch you can just drive in without having to unhitch but as others have said arriving at midnight you may get some funny looks next day. Pity Cite Europe is not viable now as that would have been perfect which is what we used to do.

As for meeting Monsieur Plod, more likely on a A/B road than a toll motorway, can't answer regards the legality of an A frame.
 
RustyRuss said:
I don’t want to turn this into another interminable argument about the legality or otherwise of Toads!!
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Just make sure your passenger can drive your 'toad', if the police do stop you, they will make you uncouple it and leave it where it is.

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LesW said:
Just make sure your passenger can drive your 'toad', if the police do stop you, they will make you uncouple it and leave it where it is.
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Very well said . I have no experience of this but have read multiple times that if stopped you may need to unhitch and drive both vehicles separately.
 
As always :doh: :doh::doh:
You would not be going south, but at that time of night, you will always find room to park at gravelines, twenty minutes up the motorway, nice town to get your croissants five minutes walk away, get up fresh in the morning ready for away.
 
I would be trying to park up at the first opportunity. Bed early, up in the morning and find some croissants, coffee on and the holiday begins.
 
I always get the 6.30pm train and stay at Gravelines arriving about 9pm after a quick stop at the McDonalds just along the road.

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RustyRuss said:
I thought using the tunnel at 9pm would get us to Calais at 9.30-45pm uk time and 8.30-45pm Euro time? What time do you guys think is sensible to start looking for an Aire in the afternoon?
Regards the Toad, I’ve read tonnes of stuff on here about A-frames, some say legal others say not, others say never been questioned about it. We’re not planning to use any peage type motorways in France, just non pay motorways and our equivalent of A & B roads, how likely are we to encounter plod? I don’t want to turn this into another interminable argument about the legality or otherwise of Toads!!

Cheers!


Russ
Click to expand...
Police presence in France is much higher than UK.They actually come out of the police stations,,BUSBY.
 
When kids were younger we used to sleep on the ferry docks for free. Means going backwards from tunnel about 20 minutes but nice and secure.
 
We did this kind of timing last time we crossed in October ‘19. Weather was filthy and it felt very late when we arrived. We’re booked next week DV have opted for a morning crossing and aim for a less stressful and exhausting start up our break.
It may feel very different with the long summer nights of course.
 
I always arrive in Kent around midnight, have 4 hours kip, get a really early ferry/tunnel then when you arrive in France nice and early you're fresh to drive a good few miles.
 
Gravelines

50.969956 2.131928

///longing.gleaming.headliners
 
We overnight at Canterbury and cross to France mid morning. We are then well placed to go to Mesniers en Bray for a night. We don’t do stress, we take things easy.
 
138go said:
We overnight at Canterbury and cross to France mid morning. We are then well placed to go to Mesniers en Bray for a night. We don’t do stress, we take things easy.
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Great Aire 👍
 

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