I'm planning my route down for a months visit in July.
alan h's activity
Questions Asked
I logged on this morning to my local webcam, to look at the snow on the ski slopes.
Thu, 01/05/2012 - 04:47
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-14995588Loved the note about changing the locks!
Wed, 09/21/2011 - 09:20
Mon, 07/25/2011 - 05:21
For many years now I have used the likes of 'mappy', 'via michelin' etc for calculating different routes down to Italy - for us its a part of our holiday, so we don't always want to take the quickest/shortest route down. We prefer to vary the rou
Wed, 06/01/2011 - 09:25
Today I received an email from the Swiss Travel Centre. The relevant portion is;- "The GBP price for a Vignette will increase from 01 June 2011 and we wanted to give you the opportunity to purchase this years’ Vignette before the pric
Mon, 05/23/2011 - 09:45
Mon, 04/04/2011 - 05:02
P&O have introduced a new ferry on the Dover - Calais route - its called the Spirit of Britain. They seem to have a special offer on at the moment [on this ship only] I've just booked a return crossing [car + 2] for £60 - significantly less th
Sat, 01/29/2011 - 06:08
Does Tomato soup exist in Italy? We were feeling a bit under the weather when we went out to Italy 2 weeks ago. As part of the R&R process, I fancied some soup, and looked around the supermarket. There were lots of different soups, but I rea
Mon, 01/24/2011 - 08:29
The route/timings for next years Giro d'Italia have been posted http://www.steephill.tv/giro-d-italia/ My son rang me up to inform me that the route passes about 100m away from
Sat, 11/06/2010 - 07:04
Comments posted
29 hours and counting.
You can buy the vignette at the services just before Basle on the German Autobahn
" ....will be in Calais - is it worth cutting up into Belgium from there and following that route or would this change things in your opinion ...?." Definitely worth popping up into Belgium - just take the coast autoroute up to Dunquerque and turn left towards Lille and Belgium - the extra distance is minimal
From where you live - 3 hrs to Dover [£1.50] across Dartford Bridge Dover - Dunkirk [Norfolk Line] cheaper than Dover - Calais [and no greater distance to Italy] Belgium - Luxembourg - France [Metz, Nancy, Mulhouse] - Germany [on to Basle Bye Pass route] - Switzerland [Lucerne, St Gotthard Tunnel/Pas] and on into Italy No motorway charges except for Switzerland vignette [Approx £30] until Italy Good roads [All dual carriage way/motorway except for a stretch from near Epinal to Mulhouse [but great views and a pleasant break fro motorways]] Petrol - see previous posts, but definitely fill up in Luxembourg - prices on motorway is same as off it in Luxembourg - big petrol stations as you enter and leave the country Scenery is pretty good throughout, especially Switzerland Accommodation - worth spending extra to make the trip enjoyable - Novotel has 'kids go free offer', so aren't as expensive as they seem - especially if you book well in advance and get the free breakfasts. However there are plenty of cheaper places to stay as well [see the Accor website for some possibilities] Where to stay? - obviously depends on when you start the trip, and how long you want it to take - but I'd suggest that 300 to 350 miles a day is a reasonable max [equates to about 6 to 7 hrs driving] There is something to be said for doing an early evening Channel crossing and stopping near Dunkirk the first night, then around Mulhouse for the second and Italy for the third [avoiding Swiss hotels] Hope this starts to help
"The traffic through Basel however was horrendous both ways" The route I use to avoid Basel, when travelling down to Italy is - Come down the German autoroute towards Basle [if coming from France, join it from Mulhouse], take the exit to Lorrach [jcn 68] and follow this road to the Swiss border where it joins the Swiss motorway system. The road is now fully dual carriageway and it has always been a quick route into Switzerland that avoids the delays that often occur in Basle I travelled this route [in reverse, from Italy to UK] on Friday afternoon - totally free of holdups - border crossing delayed us by about 3 minutes
"small retaining wall type structure ..... about 2.4 m long and would need to be about 6 - 8 feet high" That height of wall over such a short distance is difficult to construct [not enough mass/inertia for stability], and I'm not sure that sleepers would do the job I'd suggest using gabions see http://www.weld-mesh.com/gabion.htm for examples Rather than buy them in, build your own using mesh from a builders merchants. keep the size small [approx 0.5m x 0.5mx0.5m] as this makes them easy to handle and fill. Slope them backwards [about 20 - 30 degrees from vertical] and they should be pretty solid - I'd suggest a double thickness of these small gabions [i.e. 1m thick wall] for extra stability Good Luck
It would help if you gave a bit more info on what you want doing. Others may then be able to advise you Also you need to ask yourself whether you need an Architect or a Geometra [Many people use geometras very successfully] My only advice would be to use a local guy [they know what the Comune like, etc] who has personal recommendations from local people - ask your neighbours etc You can find Architects and Geometras in your area in Italian Yellow Pages - http://www.yellow.com/380.html Good Luck
"You could consider an overnight stop in Mulhouse" We always used to do an overnight stop in Mulhouse on the way down to Italy - There are plenty of places to stay - we used the Novotel at Sausheim, as its good quality and on the 'Swiss' edge of Mulhouse. However, Mulhouse is that bit farther from Italy than Lucerne area, so we now stop in Switzerland overnight, so we can be at our house mid afternoon the next day
It does depend upon whether you are living permanently in the house, or just using it as a holiday home. I'd suggest that the amount of money you spend depends on this - if its a holiday home it may 'pay' just to go down the 'cheap to install' electric route - but if its permanent it would be well worthwhile choosing something [like a heat pump etc] that costs more to set up
Castel Focognano has [I believe] mains natural gas [metano] - is there a reason why you don't go for natural gas central heating?