Touring by car on the continent

Would appreciate some advice about planning to take 4 weeks travelling on the Continent by car.

We are 4 %26quot;60 somethings%26quot; , one American couple and one British couple, who have been friends for MANY years. In fact our last travel adventure together was canal boating in the UK. Our friendship survived almost 100 locks on the Cheshire Ring so this trip should be a breeze!

Also, I have a limited knowledge of basic French and Spanish and have travelled in several countries with no problems using my trusty language guide for each country. (The other 3 speak only English!)

People everywhere have been very helpful and kind to me and we managed to communicate via signs and a few words.

Questions:

Would May or June be better for travel in France,Germany, Italy, Spain?

We will meet in the UK so

we are thinking of taking the channel tunnel train to Calais and renting a car there to begin our %26quot;road trip%26quot;-sound like a feasible plan?

We are not sure that we will spend overnights in any cities- maybe villages outside of major cities if we want to do some sightseeing in the city.

We%26#39;d like to meander along without making reservations, going where the %26quot;spirit%26quot; takes us %26amp; staying as long as we want in each place-will lodgings be difficult to find?

We don%26#39;t need 5* accomodations -just clean with ensuite facilities. B%26amp;B%26quot;s or small hotels are fine.

Has anyone done anything like this or have any advice?

Sorry this is so long, but I am just beginning to research this and we would leave the UK possibly as soon as the 8th May, 2006!

Thanks in advance,

Carol, South Carolina, USA

|||

Yes..I have done this often. No problems and wonderful surprises around every corner.

1:Either month would be fine...I%26#39;d probably pick May. Less likely to have a heat wave and miss USA A/C!

2:Rent the car in France..you can drop it off anywhere w/o a penalty. Might consider a mini-van w/ 4. (we are 4 in April/May this year and did reserve one) Try Autoeurope who likely may use EuropeCar as their supplier.

3:We usually do the free-lance type of touring..try to rough out where we would like to go in general..Provence?? Loire? Alsace?Dordogne? Normandy? We usually would try to stop early about 5 ish and find a hotel in %26quot;centerville%26quot; and if is %26quot;complete%26quot; they often can send you to another comparable...but always we have very good luck and they are often walkable to close bistros/cafes in village. Another reason to free-lance is you do not waste time FINDING that hotel you reserved or someone recommended..just go to the middle and hotels will be there...pick and choose what looks best!

I would never dream doing this kind of touring WITH reservations..how do you know where you want to sleep tonite when you have yet to see the villages? LOL

The one exception is if we are going to end up in Paris we do reserve but otherwise...wing it...it is glorious!

But you will need to do a lot of research to decide areas/sites you do want to see...with 4 weeks you can (example only) plan Normandy/Brittany for 1 week...Provence all along the coast could easily be 2 weeks..etc etc..

Good luck!

|||

I have been doing just this type of traveling through out France for many years. Several thoughts:

I should choose May, fewer people

Rent a car before you leave, I am a longtime customer of Autoeurope www.autoeurope.com

Remember that the trunks of european cars are decidely smaller that what you may have become used to. A Laguna or larger car will accomodate 4 roll aboards (22%26quot;) bags and some handbags but luggage space can be a problem. Get the largest car you can.

Always ask for a diesel. The fuel is much cheaper and always available. Better milage also.

I recommed the Michelin Red Guide for finding hotels and restaurants on the road. You can find a copy at most large book stores in the US.

Buy a good map, I like the detailed %26quot;book%26quot; type that contain pages easily accessed while driving.

Good luck