My husband and I are planning our first driving trip to Europe.
We have been to Europe before, but have used trains and planes to get around - but that was with children.
this time it will be just the 2 of us.
I have worked out a basic itinerary of the way we want to drive and what areas we would like to see, but I am a bit worried.
We have never driven in France and Italy before, and we live in Australia - so of course we drive on the 'left' side of the road.
I am trying to avoid staying in the main cities.
I have not worked out the number of days in each place, but we have about 5 weeks in total
Would love some advice as to whether my route is a doable one, and suggestions of alternatives
1) fly into Paris and spend 4 nights (have been a few years ago so this is just a re visit)
2) take train to Dijon and pick up a car. this part I am not sure about Not sure whether to pick up car from Dijon or Lyon? Stop over for a few nights and visit the area
3) make way towards Italy and the Italian Lakes. - we will need to stop somewhere on the way - again not sure where and for how long.
4) Italian Lakes - which area would be the best to stay with a car?
5) From Italian Lakes north Eastwards to Verona - would like to stay around this area. Base myself here for a few days.
6) drive and stay around Florence - again not sure where.
7) from Florence to Rapallo and stay for a while
8) from Rapallo to the French Riviera and then on to Aix En Provence - stay for a bit.
9) drive back north of France to Sarlat and stay for a bit
10) Sarlat back to Lyon where we drop off the car.
would love some opinion of my ideas and suggestions of how to comfortably drive this without doing really long driving days.
thanks in advance
millie.
First time driving in France/Italy/Switzerland - ??
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Venice - another trip report (deja vu all over again)
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Two thoughts !
How may days will you have the car? Have you looked at the French buy back program?
Learn how to use the routing program at www.google.maps.com to get your best options and timing for legs of the trip. I always add about 20% to the times given.
When we drive in Europe and want to tour a larger city, we always book at a hotel on the outskirts with good public transportation to the center. This usually means free parking and hassle-free sighseeing. And don't even think of driving into Florence. I understand there are huge fines for driving in certain restricted areas of the city. I don't know if you have a favorite booking site for reserving hotels but I can recommend www.booking.com which we have used extensively and find their prices, hotel description and ratings to be fair and accurate. Sounds like you'll have a great trip!
Ifyou look at via michelin.con it will show you alternate routes (fastest, cheapest, most scenic). You will alos need a full set of detailed soer maps. I know people love GPS - but if there is a detour or accident or construction - then you really don;t know what your options are for getting around it - without a detailed map. (Also download from michelin or yahoo detailed driving street maps of any town you will enter - including one-way streets).
We have done numerous road trips and the key to really enjoying it is to never schedule more than 4 hours on the road on any one day. This is long enough to do a day trip from a central town. Or to drive from one place to another - and still have time to stop during the day to explore a planned town - or a serendipitious castle or other site that you might encounter - as well as have a relaxing lunch break.
We never do a circle - it's much easier to avoid returning to your starting point - open jaw tickets are no more expensive and much more convenient. Yes, there is a drop off charge - but it's really minimal in terms of the total cost of the trip. Be aware that drop-off charges can differ a lot based on which agency you use and what class of car you rent. Also you must tell the agency what countries you will be visiting - since they don;t allow some cars into certain countries.
Also, be aware that driving rules are taken very seriously. There is no sitting in the left land - it is for passing only - and for just as long as you need to get by the car you are passing.