Touring the UK? - you deserve a medal ! (1 Viewer)

Apr 13, 2012
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Compared with Europe how does the UK compare?

Roads - here full of potholes, sunken manhole covers............Europe, most roads smooth

Traffic - here, so much congestion........... Europe, apart from big cities, roads are quiet

Where to stay - here, sites and CLs..........Europe, sites, Aires in most towns and villages

In France for example you can enjoy driving at almost anytime of the day or any day of the week......

Here you have to plan your journeys to avoid rush hours and roadworks

Travelling in France and Spain is a joy, the UK is a pain, needs so much more planning

.
 
May 31, 2015
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Yes there are some beautiful places in the uk but it’s just not worth the hassle and the feeling of being ripped off on many occasions, plus there is the feeling of not being wanted..... even on campsites...(n)

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Jul 29, 2007
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I have struggled through french towns, and I have sat in French traffic jams, I have paid lots of money to avoid that by using toll roads. I have driven on Belgium roads which which looked like they had been bombed in WWII and never repaired, so apart from tolls just like UK really.:D
 
May 31, 2015
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We love the UK ,some beautiful places here.Got no interest in going abroad at all :):cool:
Brian & Jo

Great respect for you Brian in what you want to do.... serious question though, have you been abroad with your Motorhome..? no offence intended...

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Aug 18, 2011
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UK is beautiful and this year for a change the weather is great but its too congested,,,you pay to park any where interesting,,,and motorhomes are not really welcome,,,,Europe is so geared up for camping and motorhomes are so well catered for,,,BUSBY,
 

Badknee

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the feeling of being ripped off on many occasions, plus there is the feeling of not being wanted..... even on campsites...(n)
Naaaaaa, that's just you 'cos your an awkward git.

Just sayin it as it is Smiffy............ :imoutahere:

:giggler::giggler:
 

Brian and Jo

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Great respect for you Brian in what you want to do.... serious question though, have you been abroad with your Motorhome..? no offence intended...
Absolutely none taken ,yes we toured France many years ago when we were caravanning ,it was ok but we much prefer the uk,everyone is different and the weather suites us here,albeit is too hot at the moment we are not sun worshipers.We have never had trouble getting around even in our RV,s.and we have certainly never come across this unwanted feeling that some have mentioned.Enjoy your travels and travel safely.
Brian & Jo

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Badknee

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Your best English is shite 'cos yer a bladdy suvvener encha! :p

Great Gary thanks, luvvinitt (y)
 
Feb 22, 2011
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I can second comments on how bad Belgium N roads are. Motorways ok but I made mistake of selecting avoid motorway on sat nav, never again.

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scotjimland

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Jul 25, 2007
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France,

aires are overnight parking places.. not sites and certainly not destinations. Popular ones are rammed out by late afternoon.. parked so close you may not be able to open your windows or get access to a garage .. has happened to us on many occasions.
There are many lovely rural aires by canals etc .. great if you love fishing. Many aires are free and for good reason, no one wants to spend more than a day in a deserted French village with two shops . Aires near tourist attractions and coastal towns are rarely free and many are now quite expensive.. €15 or more in some of the most popular

Camp sites in France near resorts are expensive and many are only open for the summer season.. Easter until end of August ..

Autoroutes are very expensive.. avoiding them will save money but you will spend hour after hour going through villages, endless roundabouts, traffic chicanes and the local traffic is not in a hurry.. after half a day and having covered less the 100 miles you submit and hit the Autoroute

Fuel is now more expensive than the UK

Getting across the channel is not cheap either.. ferry fares are now quiet expensive and if you have a pet that's another added cost, we have two dogs, so that's £68 ferry fare (£17 each dog each way ) and another £60 for worming coming back

Don't get me wrong, we have toured and enjoyed France for many many years but it's now so busy and expensive that we plan to spend more time in the UK..


UK.. don't go away on Bank Holidays or during School holidays .. avoid these times and it's a lot less busy.. CLs are a fantastic way to tour the UK, average £12 -15 .. many less than a tenner ..
There are no toll on Mways (except M6 bypass)
Avoid the over- hyped NC500 .. find your own secret places away from the tourist traffic ..

Don't go to the West Country July and Aug .. Wales is closer and has as many lovely coastal towns and villages and rarely packed out , even during summer.
 
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Barclaybasher
Apr 13, 2012
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France,

aires are overnight parking places.. not sites and certainly not destinations. Popular ones are rammed out by late afternoon.. parked so close you may not be able to open your windows or get access to a garage .. has happened to us on many occasions.
There are many lovely rural aires by canals etc .. great if you love fishing. Many aires are free and for good reason, no one wants to spend more than a day in a deserted French village with two shops . Aires near tourist attractions and coastal towns are rarely free and many are now quite expensive.. €15 or more in some of the most popular

Camp sites in France near resorts are expensive and many are only open for the summer season.. Easter until end of August ..

Autoroutes are very expensive.. avoiding them will save money but you will spend hour after hour going through villages, endless roundabouts, traffic chicanes and the local traffic is not in a hurry.. after half a day and having covered less the 100 miles you submit and hit the Autoroute

Fuel is now more expensive than the UK

Getting across the channel is not cheap either.. ferry fares are now quiet expensive and if you have a pet that's another added cost, we have two dogs, so that's £68 ferry fare (£17 each dog each way ) and another £60 for worming coming back

Don't get me wrong, we have toured and enjoyed France for many many years but it's now so busy and expensive that we plan to spend more time in the UK..


UK.. don't go away on Bank Holidays or during School holidays .. avoid these times and it's a lot less busy.. CLs are a fantastic way to tour the UK, average £12 -15 .. many less than a tenner ..
There are no toll on Mways (except M6 bypass)
Avoid the over- hyped NC500 .. find your own secret places away from the tourist traffic ..

Don't go to the West Country July and Aug .. Wales is closer and has as many lovely coastal towns and villages and rarely packed out , even during summer.

I agree, but the problem with the UK is actually just getting to places.............traffic and when you get there finding somewhere to park a MH - somewhere convenient that is

Try and get away for the weekend in the UK..........Friday afternoon ?..................:rofl:

If I just want to get to any Channel port from the Midlands I try and travel on a weekend (Sunday preferred) or get up at the crack of dawn - any other time is a bad start to a holiday
 

scotjimland

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I agree, but the problem with the UK is actually just getting to places.............traffic and when you get there finding somewhere to park a MH - somewhere convenient that is

Try and get away for the weekend in the UK..........Friday afternoon ?..................:rofl:

If I just want to get to any Channel port from the Midlands I try and travel on a weekend (Sunday preferred) or get up at the crack of dawn - any other time is a bad start to a holiday

Yes, I Agree ..

Uk, you have to plan when you travel.. that's the benefit of being retired, you don't need to travel when it's busy

In the UK parking a motorhome can be problematic.. and for overnight stops, there are not many aires, so you generally have to use sites , CLs ( we don't do wild camping) so it was this and other factors that had us re-think and come to the conclusion for touring and holidays in the UK a caravan was far more practical.. hence selling the Moho

We will still go abroad , probably for a winter break to Spain or Portugal where a caravan is also more practical, many snowbirds have caravans for that reason.

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mfw

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Probably view differently here than some people but dependant on how long you tour from a week to whatever would be the decision maker for me up to a couple of weeks i'd do uk
If longer break i'd do europe, but i'd be in no rush with either option and take my time and stop where i wanted on route.
Personally i would not do caravan because i feel it would restrict my flexibility and also i would get bored sitting at same place for more than about 5 days but that is me and everyone is different
 

Allanm

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The trouble with the U.K. is that you can’t be spontaneous, everywhere has to be booked, most sites insist you give them arrival times, everyone is obsessed with how good ( or bad) the toilets are.
We spend quite a while travelling around England every year visiting family and we don’t look forward to driving on overcrowded badly maintained roads and paying high prices to park in a field.
We have been motorhoming in France for over 30 years and love it.
Roads are good on the whole and rarely congested. Aires are generally excellent, mostly free or very cheap, unless you visit busy resorts. Municipal campsites, should you prefer a campsite, are always good value and great places to immerse yourself in local culture.
We were at Cap Frehel last week ( in the car with a couple of friends over from the U.K.) We walked through a Campsite set amongst the dunes with many spaces overlooking the sea next to a beautiful beach.
Cost was €5 a night. Only a few metres from the entrance was an aire. €4 a night.
I can’t ever remember an aire costing as much as €15 anywhere, the most expensive we have seen are run by private companies and can be up to €12 a night with free services, but we rarely use them.
Of course, the best place to tour is where you feel most comfortable, many people don’t like to travel abroad and the U.K. has so many beautiful places to visit.
Every year, we talk about planning a 3 month tour of the UK after visiting family. We tried last year, we managed about a month before giving up. Everything was so expensive and just a hassle to get anywhere, we decided to head back to France.
 
Mar 23, 2012
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I think a lot depends how you use your m/h and the type you have. If you like to tour staying a night of two then moving on m/h are way better than a caravan (you have less spce but so quick to get up and go) and France for me wins hands down. If you have a huge m/h or tend to use it in one place for a week or two britain might be better (not sure never paid for a site in france).

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scotjimland

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i would get bored sitting at same place for more than about 5 days

there is no rule that says you have to stay in the same place for 5 days with a caravan or motorhome , but many do because they want to see the area and get to know the place you need more than 1 or 2 nights.. driving every day isn't a holiday ..

when we had young kids we went to France with a caravan and often stayed on a site with a pool for three weeks so they could enjoy themselves.. sometimes we stoped for a week and moved on.. we toured France, Switzerland and Spain with the caravan. Nowadays we generally stop for 5 - 10 days.. enough time to relax, see the local area .
 
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Barclaybasher
Apr 13, 2012
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Drove to Bath and back from Derby yesterday, left after rush hour.........heavy traffic - expected, no surprise

On the way back M4 accident...........30 minutes in queue, then queuing on M42, no particular reason

Signs said A38 closed, take diversion........more queues....got home knackered even in a comfortable automatic car..

Driving in the UK is rarely a pleasure for me unless planned - early start or Saturday/Sunday, as I said getting to and from a ferry point spoils the beginning and end of a trip to France or Spain......

..............Off the ferry scanning the road for potholes, we're back in the UK !

.
.

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mfw

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there is no rule that says you have to stay in the same place for 5 days with a caravan or motorhome , but many do because they want to see the area and get to know the place you need more than 1 or 2 nights.. driving every day isn't a holiday ..

when we had young kids we went to France with a caravan and often stayed on a site with a pool for three weeks so they could enjoy themselves.. sometimes we stoped for a week and moved on.. we toured France, Switzerland and Spain with the caravan. Nowadays we generally stop for 5 - 10 days.. enough time to relax, see the local area .
You have missed the bit i said on the end everyone is different what suits 1 person does not suit another
 

scotjimland

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Thats why your better off with a caravan for us the travelling is a big part of the holiday

I first travelled to south of France in 1971 .. long before it was popular, and toured in a sports car with a tent.. and I can assure you I have done lots of 'travelling' in motorhomes, large and small and also with caravans.. from the N of Scotland to the Moroccan desert in an RV.. but that doesn't mean you don't stop for a few days to enjoy the area and to make it worth while spending the money just getting there.

travelling should have a purpose, .. In my view, simply just driving day after day to see service stations and stopping on aires for 24 - 48 hrs is not what 'travelling' is about. If it were I would never do it.

I keep saying this, there is no right or wrong for travelling ... thats the beauty of it.. rich or poor , be you on a bicycle or 40ft RV .. it's where you go and what you actual do that counts.. I envy the 'traveller' who crosses continents under pedal power.. that is travelling with a capital T

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