In reply to A newbie all over again! by Annec
In reply to A newbie all over again! by Annec
Thanks for taking the time Alan, its much appreciated. I quite like the idea of avoiding the tolls, and the route sounds scenic.
Cheers again
Geoff
In reply to A newbie all over again! by Annec
Hi,
Arezzo could be a good 3rd stop but you are still looking at 6-7 hrs ish. drive. There are some hotels just off the Arezzo A1 motorway toll so would be very convenient to get off quickly the next morning. But it would be a shame to miss Arezzo.
BUT, I KNOW YOU SAID YOU HAD TO COME IN AUGUST , but it is going to be very very very very very hot, and very very very very crowded. And you will have to queue queue queue to see anything at Pompeii and Herculaneum .
Would be best if the car had air-con esp. with 4 passengers.
If you want to visit these sites why not an Easter/whitson trip, with a budget airline/budget type package.
Good Luck and mail me if you want some hotel info in arezzo.
ps. During the summer weekends in Italy lorries are not allowed on the motorway so traffic will be just a little less stressful, but in august the motorways are always busy but it would take hours and hours if you didn't use the main A1 Milan to Naples.
We tried using the a section of the coast road south of rome/north of naples and it is very slow through town and village alike. Not very pretty either.
[url=http://www.tuscanyfortwo.com]Tuscanyfortwo.com[/url]
In reply to A newbie all over again! by Annec
All sound advice above, I just follow the Viamichelin route off the net and can recommend Express by Holiday Inns at Parma and Luzern, the latter being in what all motorway stops should be like - even locals go there to eat out! Yes August is not the month I would choose, I live an hour or two from Pompeii and even at 800m. elevation all you will want to do in the afternoon is siesta! Just as an aside you would find Ostia Antica quieter and to my mind getting near to Pompeii in interest. Air-con a must, allow plenty of room in front and use autoroutes wherever possible, despite charges
Well, a couple of days gone by, and no-one has posted - so here goes.
Its a longish journey, about 1200 miles, so about 20 hrs driving, from Boulogne.
You can do a 'search' of the threads for suggestions on routes - but here is mine;-
[This route avoids Tolls all the way to Switzerland and isn't much longer than the toll route]
Take the N42 towards Lille, and then onto the E42 past Lille and into Belgium and past Charleroi and Namur , where you take the E411/A5 towards Luxembourg [the country not the city], which you pass through on the way towards Metz.
Carry on due south past Metz on the E23, all the way past Nancy and Epinal, then over the mountains to Mulhouse, on the only bit of non dual carriageway/motorway.
After Mulhouse go south to Basel Switzerland - either on the French or German motorways [German if you want to buy the Swiss Carnet at the service station a few miles before the border [or buy it on-line]]
Through Switzerland by Lucern and Gottard Tunnel [or over the top if you have an hour to spare - great views] into Italy, then its past Como and round Milan and on to the south of Italy
Assuming you've had a bit of a drive to get to the ferry [avoid M25 Mon-Fri between 0600 and 0900] you'll need 3 overnight stops if you want to enjoy the holiday when you get there
Overnight stops?
Assuming you have caught a midday ferry, I'd suggest you stop around Dinant [about 3.5 hrs from Boulogne] - The Mercure is pretty good [google Accor hotels].
Second night around Lucern area [about 6 to 7 hrs drive from Dinant] As its just overnight - do a google on hotels in the area.
Third stop ? - probably around Arrezzo- not sure of this area, but others will probably advise. This gives a final day's drive of about 5-6 hours.
Hope this helps.
.