how organised are your trips (1 Viewer)

Aug 9, 2019
285
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2 weeks
Not been anywhere we need to book ferry and only been as far as mid wales but when we have found ourselves with several days spare chucked a few clothes in, (shorts for him:hot:, thermals for me :cold:)added some munchies, stuck some diesel in and off we go, decide where to go en route !
 
Jul 5, 2013
11,713
13,681
Tunbridge Wells, Tunbridge Wells, UK
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26,797
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A class
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Since 2013
I thought following on fro how far do you drive it would be interesting how much people plan, Our planning normally extends to booking ferry seeing how many weeks we are away looking at the furthest place we will be traveling to dividing mileage by number of days and thats it.
We aim to get daily mileage done but not in any hurry stopping when and where we want we don't book sites or aires we don't organise food before we leave buying what we need on the trip
You are much more organised than us.

We just book the late afternoon tunnel crossing out a few days before we think we want to go and look at the European weather map when we wake up in Cite Europe to help us decide which way to point. We don't normally book the tunnel back until we decide to start heading home.

Daily mileages can be anything from 10 to 300, and when we leave in the morning we only occasionally know where we will be stopping for the night .

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romany

romany

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Jul 3, 2018
714
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Oxfordshire
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Wildax aurura xl
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since 2014 camping since1968
The only three things I make sure we do is keep gas tank topped up when there is an opportunity not wait for it to get low, always empty cassette when you have the facilities again not necessarily full and keep water tank topped up
 
Dec 4, 2014
1,372
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Cheshire
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34,422
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Van Conversion
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Been around the block a few times😉
We generally set off south on the M6 mid October phone the tunnel en route for a ticket preferably late evening arriving in France early morning.
Visit/stay wherever we fancy for however long we wish eventually phoning ahead for a ferry ticket from Cadiz to Lanzarote - Fuerteventura
before doing the journeys in reverse but this time we pre book the ferry crossing then arriving back home for spring.

Sadly not sure what we will be doing this year ☹️
 

vwalan

Funster
Sep 23, 2008
8,835
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lynton5th wheel
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since a child
normally book the ferry both ways . we are going to spain.
say land in santander early november .
end of november we will be in spain.
xmas ,we will be in spain.
january ,we will be in spain.
february, we will be in spain ,etc etc
april we will be on the north coast as soon we will be catching the ferry.
if we are going to spain we arent allowed in portugal. or call into gibralter.
we are going to spain. dont need to know anymore , if we dont like where we are drive somewhere else.
sometimes we do spain and portugal etc .
not allowed on toll roads or motorways etc.
we are getting more childish every year and children arent allowed to play on busy roads .

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May 29, 2016
1,027
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Hampshire
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Since 2016
I love planning...its what keeps me going until the next trip :D2

Once we've agreed roughly where we want to go and have booked the time off work, we book the tunnel and that's pretty much it as far as pre-booking is concerned. Apart from if we want to go somewhere specific that we know will be busy....in which case we'll book that too.

And then I get my trusty spreadsheet out and start planning where we'll be, where to stay, what's nearby to see and how long the driving will take. The plan changes almost weekly as we get new ideas or change our minds, but that's fine.

By the time its holiday time we have a good idea of where we plan to go but just because we have a plan, doesn't mean we actually stick to it! If the weather isn't looking great, or one of us spots something interesting then we're happy to change things around a bit. We also generally leave the last few days unplanned and decide on the details once we're there - with a combination of Campercontact, France Passion and ACSI there's always somewhere to stay.

If we were able to take as long as we wanted then I'd do things a bit differently, but as we're constrained by time planning is essential if we want to maximise our holiday time.
 
Mar 15, 2019
518
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The prospect of just jumping on the tunnel and going wherever you feel with no forward planning sounds exciting and daunting at the same time.

The thought of driving on the right in something 7m without taking the side out on the first roundabout is bad enough.
 

vwalan

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Sep 23, 2008
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The prospect of just jumping on the tunnel and going wherever you feel with no forward planning sounds exciting and daunting at the same time.

The thought of driving on the right in something 7m without taking the side out on the first roundabout is bad enough.
we drive on the right side here in uk .hee hee.
if we drive on the other side it would be the wrong side. hee hee.
but drive slowly and its amazing how soon you get used to it,
when you get back its often then that its worse.
just learning how to place your vehicle at junctions etc to get the best view comes in the end .

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Jan 6, 2017
613
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East Devon
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Ferry out, Ferry back - up until now!

When the new van arrives it will be ferry out only, and back when it suits us.

That feels very exciting!!

CamperContact / Park4Nite and a discussion over dinner along the lines of 'Where shall we go tomorrow?' Often dictated by chasing the sun!!
 
Jan 6, 2017
613
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East Devon
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One thing we do though, if we read or hear about places we like the sound of, we drop a little green 'want to go' flag on Google Maps and then when we have our 'where shall we go tomorrow chat' we can instantly see when we open the maps up if there is anywhere nearby on our bucket list.

Quite useful!
 

Hymie

LIFE MEMBER
Nov 29, 2013
810
1,005
Essex
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29,215
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Classic Hymer B564
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Since 1981
Book ferry, decide on ferry if we'll turn left or right.

Some months later book ferry home and have a leisurely 10 to 14 day meander to the ferry port.

Job done.

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Ridgeway

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Mar 10, 2012
3,626
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We (i) used to plan each step of the route, each stop over, each refill point etc etc

Now we just check if the fresh water tank is full and drive South until we find something interesting. We only ever book in the Summer hols and prefer to make it up as we go. We just need to make sure we have someone at home to take care of the "zoo" and we are FREE:D

Will be "free" this weekend, not sure if Italy or Spain yet though.
 
Jan 26, 2017
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Eight Years and 28,000 Miles.
I find it hard to believe that some folk just drive about aimlessly not knowing where they might end up, I always do a bit of research to see what's what in any given area.

I once went to France on motorbike many years ago with someone who did something similar (pre satnav).

'Just Winging It' he said, no plan just enjoy the ride, it wasn't until much later in the trip I found out we'd ridden within ten miles of Oradour-sur-Glane (amongst other places) he had no Idea!!
 
May 29, 2016
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I once went to France on motorbike many years ago with someone who did something similar (pre satnav).

'Just Winging It' he said, no plan just enjoy the ride, it wasn't until much later in the trip I found out we'd ridden within ten miles of Oradour-sur-Glane (amongst other places) he had no Idea!!
That's precisely the reason I like planning! There's nothing worse than finding out too late that there was something interesting/amazing that you just drove right past.

Actually, thinking about it, when we're planning we tend to research the things to do/things to see first, and then we plan the places to stay and driving around them.

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vwalan

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Sep 23, 2008
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sometimes you find places by accident.
we used to go down past daroca,stopping at baguena was an old mill site so ideal for a nights stop.
then one year my youngest kept going on about going for a swim in the lake not far away at gallocanta .we decided to go. when we got there the lagune was covered in birds cranes . seems its there november resting place. we were told there was about 30 thousand birds that time.
we have been back several times . one of the chaps in the info center there is from scotland , my mate is from scotland so now they know us and its fantastic.
yes just travelling around you can miss some things . but you can also just follow signs like the route of don quixote. picking up info on the way.
have an adventure and pretend you are the wild explorer.
have fun , should you find out you missed something then possibly find it next time .
 

irnbru

LIFE MEMBER
Jun 27, 2013
13,503
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Benimar 264
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11 yrs
Very unorganised for us! Just sitting chatting we are now heading off in next 2 days ....Yaay! :)
 
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romany

romany

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Jul 3, 2018
714
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sometimes you find places by accident.
we used to go down past daroca,stopping at baguena was an old mill site so ideal for a nights stop.
then one year my youngest kept going on about going for a swim in the lake not far away at gallocanta .we decided to go. when we got there the lagune was covered in birds cranes . seems its there november resting place. we were told there was about 30 thousand birds that time.
we have been back several times . one of the chaps in the info center there is from scotland , my mate is from scotland so now they know us and its fantastic.
yes just travelling around you can miss some things . but you can also just follow signs like the route of don quixote. picking up info on the way.
have an adventure and pretend you are the wild explorer.
have fun , should you find out you missed something then possibly find it next time .
We once found a whole country by accident it was Switzerland , we were skiing in Italy and took a wrong turn the Swiss were not amused especially as all our documentation was back in our hotel

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vwalan

Funster
Sep 23, 2008
8,835
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lynton5th wheel
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since a child
We once found a whole country by accident it was Switzerland , we were skiing in Italy and took a wrong turn the Swiss were not amused especially as all our documentation was back in our hotel
once we went along way into algeria in the desert . they sent tanks and 4x4,s to catch us .
we told them we hadnt seen any border lines ,hee hee .
they were ok but escorted us all the way back for miles then said we were back in morocco so dont go east further than about here.
it was fun.
couldnt have been nicer folk if they tried...they laughed at our speaking a bit of arabic .
the amazing thing was our mobile phones still worked .
 
Jan 28, 2008
10,104
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Dovercourt, Harwich, UK
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One thing we do though, if we read or hear about places we like the sound of, we drop a little green 'want to go' flag on Google Maps and then when we have our 'where shall we go tomorrow chat' we can instantly see when we open the maps up if there is anywhere nearby on our bucket list.

Quite useful!
can you describe how you do that it sounds like a great idea
 
Oct 27, 2017
1,396
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Perth
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51,142
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Hymer A Class
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Since 2014
Booked the chunnel for early September with a view to driving to Romania. Decided, on the spur of the moment, to sell-up and downsize so moved chunnel booking by a month. Sold house, moved stuff on 2nd October. Shut door on new home with dozens of unopened boxes on 3rd, drove 10 hours to Folkestone on 4th, and here we are near Le Mans. No plans other than south for at least a month. Not looking forward to opening those boxes in mid-November. I’m an ex-project manager. So, “ex” is the operative word!

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Jan 6, 2017
613
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East Devon
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46,775
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Murvi Morocco XL
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since 2014
can you describe how you do that it sounds like a great idea
Search for and click on the location on Google Maps - a side panel pops up with an option to save. Click on Save, then click on Want to go, and then next time you open Maps (if you are logged into your Google account) a little green flag will be flying over the location.
 
Oct 2, 2014
575
1,722
West Yorkshire
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33,675
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Rapido 866f
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Since 2014
We need to do more planning now. My wife’s mobility has deteriorated and she needs to rely upon a mobility scooter, consequently we look at sites that have a footpath and near to a village, we look at towns for m/h parking so we can get there in the van and unload the scooter to roam around the place of interest. I don’t plan each day but research the possibilities and list parking and sites that look like they will work for us.
To add a further layer of complication we have a wonderful but energetic Dalmatian and I like to find places where me and him can have a good walk of a few miles.
Despite these complications we have made some really successful tours. This year our plan for a Welsh trip consisted of weekend rally in Cotswolds, then Brecon Beacons, Pembrokeshire coast, up the coast to Snowdonia and then wild camping on Anglesey. Involved a lot of research but we were able to decide what to do the following day from various options.
 
Oct 2, 2014
575
1,722
West Yorkshire
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33,675
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Rapido 866f
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Since 2014
Booked the chunnel for early September with a view to driving to Romania. Decided, on the spur of the moment, to sell-up and downsize so moved chunnel booking by a month. Sold house, moved stuff on 2nd October. Shut door on new home with dozens of unopened boxes on 3rd, drove 10 hours to Folkestone on 4th, and here we are near Le Mans. No plans other than south for at least a month. Not looking forward to opening those boxes in mid-November. I’m an ex-project manager. So, “ex” is the operative word!
Your new neighbours probably think they’ve got a cannabis farm next door and are anxiously awaiting developments.

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PhilG

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Mar 8, 2016
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I think its down to the individual , for some , planning is half the fun, for me its not something i need to or want to do. Luckiily all my trips are pretty much the same, out thursday, 3 days at a track and back, either by boat or fly, depending on distance.

What this thread has made me realise is that i have eaten more meals in the DFDS restaurant in the last 12 months than anywhere else .
 
Nov 27, 2016
811
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Notts
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46,260
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A Class
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since 2000
This year came of tunnel and turned left. Ended up in Czech Republic after Moselle, Rhine, Black Forest, Bavaria.
Then Austria, Italy, France and Spain 4500 miles later. No planning.

Year before, turned right. Meandered through France, Into Northern Spain Right again and into Portugal. 3500 miles No planning.

Just follow my nose.

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Aug 22, 2007
2,461
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essex
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145
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2017 sunlight t69s euro6
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since 1999
2 years ago we went down to narbonne then along the coast towards marbella then thought lets keep going along the coast along to portugal then along the coast to finisterre then along the north coast to irun then turn left towards home
 
Jul 4, 2017
969
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Newton Stewart, UK
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2 years ago we went down to narbonne then along the coast towards marbella then thought lets keep going along the coast along to portugal then along the coast to finisterre then along the north coast to irun then turn left towards home
Thinking of doing this early next year. How long were you away? Is it possible in 6/7 weeks?

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