Thanks to all the suggestions on here, i managed the journey with only a few hic-cups Going south, i had decided on the Bel-Lux-Fra-Swi-Ita route. first decision was to take the motorway towards Brussels. i'd now avoid the Brussels ring road (busy at this time) and take the motorway south at dunkirk towards lille-chareloi namur. We did this on the return and it was a good road. I made a mistake at Nancy and headed towards Mulhouse on the wrong road, which took us up over the hill through a load off towns, very frustrating. becuase of this we made a gamble at heading direct to Basel rather than the bypass. no delays and it was Fri afternoon. Stopped at the Holiday inn near sursee (very good) We did notice the san gottard tunnel is single carriageway (one lane each direction), not sure this is normal as there appears to be two tunnels (dual). should have noted this more carefully as there was a reasonable delay on the return. but a traffic light system at the tunnel entrance ensured it was efficient. Italy no problem, but its pretty expensive on the tolls. and the final mistake was to take the Modena to Garfagnana road. way to curvy. Had a few delays on the way back as mentioned. big issue (and it was probably more unlucky) but stopped near the Lux border on the return. obviously the car was packed, but it was broken into. With all the wine, expensive camera equipment and other items, all that was stolen was a food cool bag, with a reasonable amount of cheese. So not a huge loss, but the delay and inevitable rush back to the tunnel could have been avoided.
I'm going to be driving to Italy at Easter, and having done plenty of searches through the community and also a few route planners i'd like to ask a few questions. I'm only planning one stop over, possibly switzerland, depending on how much progree i'm making. is it worth booking somewhere or will i get something easy just walking in. it is going to be good friday. (since it is good friday, will i expect the traffic to be heavier) i'll be on the 4am eurotunnel so out of calais early morning, and plan to follow the advice on here of heading towards Luxembourg. There are a few routes i can take here and i wonder if any one has actually plotted the route on one of the planners. i was going to take the e42/a25 past Lille and then past Charleroi (avoiding going around brussels). Then heading south towards Metz-Nancy-Mulhouse, i understand the Nancy Mulhouse part is not on the motorway, is this correct? Is it after Mulhouse that you continue on the (e60/e54/a36 - why do they have so many numbers) into germany, heading south and taking the Lorrach route (Basel bypass)? No problems after this, but i am slightly concerned that when i hit the autostrada past Milan it will be busy, anytime i have been on this road its always busy - slow. is there any way to avoid this or have i been unlucky in the past. Looking at the route planners, the fastest route they suggest is down through france towards geneva, and into italy via the mont blanc tunnel. Is there any reason why this isn't recommended. i understand the toll cost in france and i believe mont-blanc tunnel is tolled. but having looked at route planners the main cost is fuel. any advice?
Thanks everyone for there comments and sorry for the delay (working away means i only get weekend access) Certainly a few links i can follow up on. Gala Placidia, I'm curious about insulation use in Italy. Its not something i have considered. The house is typical of the area, stone built with tiled roof, the underside of the roof is exposed in the upper floor. The reason i haven't considered insulation was mainly for the summer months, expecting the house to remain cooler without it. Maybe this is something i need to consider. Any thoughts on insulating a roof in these types of property?
I've been reading a lot of the posts on Heating and hot water and having dicovered that i need a qualified engineer to instal and certify a system, i wonder if there is anyone on here who actually works as one in the area. I'll only be using the house initially as a holiday home and i expect to visit at easter, summer, october so i may get away without heating, but i dont want to limit my use of the property by not having heating. I am looking options for hot water at the moment and trying to decide between and gas boiler using the small bottle, a hot water tank with immersion heater, or a air heat source tank like the Ariston Nuos, which i found a link to on another thread.
Hi, just thought i'd drop by and say hello to you all. I've been visiting Garfagnana for a number of years now and in the last few have been looking for a small place to buy. I finally completed on house in Mozzanella near Castiglione di Garfagnana recently to use primaily as a holiday. Have a bit of restoration to do, and i'll probably be asking the common questions about heating and hot water etc. Will be visiting the house as much as possible, particularly this year with the restoration ongoing.
Comments posted
Thanks to all the suggestions on here, i managed the journey with only a few hic-cups Going south, i had decided on the Bel-Lux-Fra-Swi-Ita route. first decision was to take the motorway towards Brussels. i'd now avoid the Brussels ring road (busy at this time) and take the motorway south at dunkirk towards lille-chareloi namur. We did this on the return and it was a good road. I made a mistake at Nancy and headed towards Mulhouse on the wrong road, which took us up over the hill through a load off towns, very frustrating. becuase of this we made a gamble at heading direct to Basel rather than the bypass. no delays and it was Fri afternoon. Stopped at the Holiday inn near sursee (very good) We did notice the san gottard tunnel is single carriageway (one lane each direction), not sure this is normal as there appears to be two tunnels (dual). should have noted this more carefully as there was a reasonable delay on the return. but a traffic light system at the tunnel entrance ensured it was efficient. Italy no problem, but its pretty expensive on the tolls. and the final mistake was to take the Modena to Garfagnana road. way to curvy. Had a few delays on the way back as mentioned. big issue (and it was probably more unlucky) but stopped near the Lux border on the return. obviously the car was packed, but it was broken into. With all the wine, expensive camera equipment and other items, all that was stolen was a food cool bag, with a reasonable amount of cheese. So not a huge loss, but the delay and inevitable rush back to the tunnel could have been avoided.
Brilliant, thanks to all. i'll maybe ploy my route on a google map when i return and give some feedback
I'm going to be driving to Italy at Easter, and having done plenty of searches through the community and also a few route planners i'd like to ask a few questions. I'm only planning one stop over, possibly switzerland, depending on how much progree i'm making. is it worth booking somewhere or will i get something easy just walking in. it is going to be good friday. (since it is good friday, will i expect the traffic to be heavier) i'll be on the 4am eurotunnel so out of calais early morning, and plan to follow the advice on here of heading towards Luxembourg. There are a few routes i can take here and i wonder if any one has actually plotted the route on one of the planners. i was going to take the e42/a25 past Lille and then past Charleroi (avoiding going around brussels). Then heading south towards Metz-Nancy-Mulhouse, i understand the Nancy Mulhouse part is not on the motorway, is this correct? Is it after Mulhouse that you continue on the (e60/e54/a36 - why do they have so many numbers) into germany, heading south and taking the Lorrach route (Basel bypass)? No problems after this, but i am slightly concerned that when i hit the autostrada past Milan it will be busy, anytime i have been on this road its always busy - slow. is there any way to avoid this or have i been unlucky in the past. Looking at the route planners, the fastest route they suggest is down through france towards geneva, and into italy via the mont blanc tunnel. Is there any reason why this isn't recommended. i understand the toll cost in france and i believe mont-blanc tunnel is tolled. but having looked at route planners the main cost is fuel. any advice?
Thanks everyone for there comments and sorry for the delay (working away means i only get weekend access) Certainly a few links i can follow up on. Gala Placidia, I'm curious about insulation use in Italy. Its not something i have considered. The house is typical of the area, stone built with tiled roof, the underside of the roof is exposed in the upper floor. The reason i haven't considered insulation was mainly for the summer months, expecting the house to remain cooler without it. Maybe this is something i need to consider. Any thoughts on insulating a roof in these types of property?
I've been reading a lot of the posts on Heating and hot water and having dicovered that i need a qualified engineer to instal and certify a system, i wonder if there is anyone on here who actually works as one in the area. I'll only be using the house initially as a holiday home and i expect to visit at easter, summer, october so i may get away without heating, but i dont want to limit my use of the property by not having heating. I am looking options for hot water at the moment and trying to decide between and gas boiler using the small bottle, a hot water tank with immersion heater, or a air heat source tank like the Ariston Nuos, which i found a link to on another thread.
Hi, just thought i'd drop by and say hello to you all. I've been visiting Garfagnana for a number of years now and in the last few have been looking for a small place to buy. I finally completed on house in Mozzanella near Castiglione di Garfagnana recently to use primaily as a holiday. Have a bit of restoration to do, and i'll probably be asking the common questions about heating and hot water etc. Will be visiting the house as much as possible, particularly this year with the restoration ongoing.