French Itinerary for first trip

[Amethyst]

We are planning our first trip to France from Yorkshire in April for a month.

Can anyone suggest a nice route for to get us started please. Also which port to use driving down from Yorkshire.

Thanks

Rob

 

[Amethyst]

Thanks *****

I am going to order the Mitchelin map and then try and trace your route!

Do you think a month is long enough or should we plan for longer?

Regarding ferry tickets who do you book with? and do you book a return or leave it open?

Thanks for help

Rob

 

[barryd]

France is massive. I would suggest you take as much time as you can. A month is a nice break but you wont even scratch the surface. There is tons of info and pics on my blog at Hank the Tank Motorhome website most of it is France.

If your going April and want good weather I would suggest getting down as far as the Dordogne and beyond. Last spring in April we did the Dordogne, Pyrenees from East to West along the middle on the French side then back up to the Dordogne and Lot vally and home via Brittany. Took us two months.

The Dordogne is lovely but we love the mountains and we travelled from Perpignon to Biarritz along the Pyrenees which was simply superb. Places like Cauterets and Gavarnie were simply stunning and it was 25 degrees and sunny in the valley but up at 7000ft people were still skiing and snowboarding.

On the other side if you go down as far as Provence in the Provence Alps you could pretty much draw a line from the Verdon Gorges heading slowly west towards the Dordogne to include L'Ardeche, Averyone region, Lot and Dordogne and its all fantastic. We did all that on this years trip. Aires will be quiet and there are some crackers. Personally Im not a big fan of the Med coast and I am yet to come across anywhere I would rush back to. Normandy and Brittany however are lovely but you cant guarentee the weather.

 

[Amethyst]

France is massive. I would suggest you take as much time as you can. A month is a nice break but you wont even scratch the surface. There is tons of info and pics on my blog at Hank the Tank Motorhome website most of it is France.

If your going April and want good weather I would suggest getting down as far as the Dordogne and beyond. Last spring in April we did the Dordogne, Pyrenees from East to West along the middle on the French side then back up to the Dordogne and Lot vally and home via Brittany. Took us two months.

The Dordogne is lovely but we love the mountains and we travelled from Perpignon to Biarritz along the Pyrenees which was simply superb. Places like Cauterets and Gavarnie were simply stunning and it was 25 degrees and sunny in the valley but up at 7000ft people were still skiing and snowboarding.

On the other side if you go down as far as Provence in the Provence Alps you could pretty much draw a line from the Verdon Gorges heading slowly west towards the Dordogne to include L'Ardeche, Averyone region, Lot and Dordogne and its all fantastic. We did all that on this years trip. Aires will be quiet and there are some crackers. Personally Im not a big fan of the Med coast and I am yet to come across anywhere I would rush back to. Normandy and Brittany however are lovely but you cant guarentee the weather.

Thanks for the info and links barryd

Its amazing to have this sort of detailed help to plan our trip

Rob

 

[Northerner]

Thanks *****

I am going to order the Mitchelin map and then try and trace your route!

Do you think a month is long enough or should we plan for longer?

Regarding ferry tickets who do you book with? and do you book a return or leave it open?

Thanks for help

Rob

I don't use the ferries and prefer the tunnel. Are you aware of the Tesco promotion where you can use Tesco vouchers and get three times their value for a tunnel crossing? Twice last year we used the tunnel and it cost us just over £40 worth of Tesco vouchers for a crossing that would have been at least £130 if we'd paid normally. Apart from the cost it's a wonderfully relaxing way to get to France. Drive on, stay in you 'van and read a book or whatever.

Where to go? I agree with whoever suggested the Tarn or Dordogne. In April you'll be better going as far south as possible where it will be warmer. The limestone gorges of France and the rivers that carve them are amazing. The Tarn area is my favourite followed by the Ardeche. The Dordogne is what God would have created if someone had asked him to make a perfect river valley, with beautiful little villages and gorgeous countryside.

For later in the year when it warms up, Brittany is super as well.

Wherever you go let me recommend the Michelin Green Guides. They are brilliant with a wealth of information, suggesting tours and a star system for all the towns and tourist sites, so a three star is a must whilst a one-star is worth a visit if you're in the area. But even some of the one stars are just terrific.

If you'd like to know more about Tesco's voucher scheme, get back to us. If you don't shop at Tesco of course then I've just wasted a lot of time!