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[Travel] Driving in Europe (Holland/Gemany) advice, experiences etc



southstandandy

southstandandy

WEST STAND ANDY
Jul 9, 2003
6,038
If you get the chance and have a powerful car get yourself on to the autobahn for 20 or 30 miles.

Brilliantly smooth road - and great to test the speed of your car. I went there in 2018 in a Porsche Taycan turbo with my brother in law. That was a brilliant experience getting up to 180mph in the outside lane.

Seems mad now thinking about it, but it was a lads weekend (ironically spent mostly in Holland) and had to be done.
 




LANGDON SEAGULL

LANGDON SEAGULL

Well-known member
Dec 9, 2004
3,541
Langdon Hills
Did a similar journey this summer . Went across to Dieppe , through Belgium , Germany , Switzerland and back through France. Really enjoyable . As others have said , make sure you check the environment criteria for cities , but most cities have a park n ride in the outside . Turn on the ‘avoid tolls’ option on google maps - went through some lovely bits of countryside and villages doing this. Limit driving to three hours or less a day. The only minor issue I had is overtaking on a single carriageway road as you can’t see what’s coming towards you if you are overtaking a lorry or large vehicle . And goes without saying plan your route and accommodation in advance . I also recommend a cabin if taking the overnight Dieppe ferry - a bargain at £65. Make sure you’ve got red triangle , hi-viz and breathalyser kit in boot, and bring oil, screen wash and water coolant with you
 


studio150

studio150

Well-known member
Jul 30, 2011
30,208
On the Border
If you've been driving on motorways or dual carriage ways for some distance, a word of caution when you then comes to a junction. It is very easy to automatically look to your right as you would when driving here, but you need to look the other way for traffic.

Not a issue when driving around town.

Have a safe and fun trip.
 


South Stand Bonfire

South Stand Bonfire

Who lit that match then?
NSC Patron
Jan 24, 2009
2,504
Shoreham-a-la-mer
Bruges is very touristy but has to be visited and is easily walkable in the centre. . It’s a car free city but very easy to park and reasonably priced to leave your car at the purpose built multi storey car parks near the station on the edge of town and then walk in (15 mins) or get a shuttle bus into the centre.

Watch the film “ In Bruges” before you go to get a different perspective!
 








thedonkeycentrehalf

thedonkeycentrehalf

Moved back to wear the gloves (again)
Jul 7, 2003
9,327
While in Switzerland, keep an eye on your speed. They put speed cameras in sneaky places (tunnel exits) and the fines are very high.
 


jackanada

jackanada

Well-known member
Jul 19, 2011
3,497
Brighton
Avoid Antwerp at anything vaguely near rush hour.
Belgium and Germany have cheaper fuel than Holland so fill up before you enter or after you exit.
If you're off the main routes in Holland you may come across places (including petrol stations) that only take some weird Dutch only bank card, so do have a stash of euros just in case.
 




Jack Straw

Jack Straw

I look nothing like him!
Jul 7, 2003
7,103
Brighton. NOT KEMPTOWN!
At junctions, I always say to myself, "Left, right. Left right left", whilst looking that way, the opposite of us. Take your time, and double check before any manoeuvres. I found the hardest bit, turning left, as you have to go across to the far side of the road. Once that's mastered, it's very easy.
My number one tip - Use a Sat nav.
 


J

junior

Well-known member
Dec 1, 2003
6,632
Didsbury, Manchester
Electric car or petrol/diesel?

Mrs Junior is from Dortmund, so we drive from home in Cheshire over to Germany a couple of times a year as I hate flying, love driving, and we take the dogs.
I've never had any issues driving there, and agree with others that the worst bit of our travels is usually the beginning and end of UK roads😆.

This autumn will be our first time doing it as electric car owners, so let's see what that brings!
 


ATFC Seagull

ATFC Seagull

Aberystwyth Town FC
Jul 27, 2004
5,350
(North) Portslade
Drove to Munich and back (route was via Reims and Stuttgart) a couple of years ago with young kids.

Main advice would be if you are trying to get from one place to another through France and don't need to stop, pay the tolls. Best roads I've ever seen anywhere in the world.

Services a bit hit and miss, but picnic areas in France amazing so if you can do packed lunches do so. However in Germany (and maybe we were unlucky) we struggled to find services with areas to eat your own food.
 




Thunder Bolt

Thunder Bolt

Silly old bat
Aug 18, 2009
67,802
Beside the seaside, beside the sea




R

raymondo

Well-known member
Apr 26, 2017
7,266
Wiltshire
studio150 said:
If you've been driving on motorways or dual carriage ways for some distance, a word of caution when you then comes to a junction. It is very easy to automatically look to your right as you would when driving here, but you need to look the other way for traffic.

Not a issue when driving around town.

Have a safe and fun trip.
Click to expand...
Can also be an issue when emerging from a petrol station/car park
 




el punal

el punal

Well-known member
Aug 29, 2012
12,530
The dull part of the south coast
Avoid Antwerp like the plague - major, humongous road works on their version of the M25. Well, there was when we did our trip to Amsterdam for our Europa League match against Ajax. Of course it might all be sorted when you go. :thumbsup:
 


schmunk

schmunk

Why oh why oh why?
Jan 19, 2018
10,325
Mid mid mid Sussex
el punal said:
Avoid Antwerp like the plague - major, humongous road works on their version of the M25. Well, there was when we did our trip to Amsterdam for our Europa League match against Ajax. Of course it might all be sorted when you go. :thumbsup:
Click to expand...
I was reading down the thread and going to post exactly the same - Antwerp is a twat to drive through.

We drove from the tunnel to near Eindhoven for a holiday last year, then down to the "three country point" where Belgium, Germany and the Netherlands meet - well worth a visit, and a quick stop in Aachen nearby.

www.outdooractive.com

Three-Country Point

www.outdooractive.com www.outdooractive.com

Driving everywhere was very leisurely and easy to manage, except for f***ing Antwerp.

We also drove back via Bruges and that was a very nice place to spend a few hours.
 


W

worthingseagull123

Well-known member
May 5, 2012
2,682
Don’t worry about speed cameras.

I got flashed at in France. Never heard anything back.

But have a great trip. France has roads we can only dream of. Fast autoroutes that extend over the country.

Compare it to the pathetic amount of dual carriageway we have in East Sussex.
 


AK74

AK74

Bright-eyed. Bushy-tailed. GSOH.
NSC Patron
Jan 19, 2010
1,362
If you’re using any of the autoroutes in France, get one of the automated tags for the peage (toll) stations. Available in to motorists in the UK here:

www.emovis-tag.co.uk

Emovis Tag UK

Travel without stopping on European Motorways. Emovis Tag UK can provide UK customers with a tag for automatic payment of motorway tolls in France, Spain & Portugal.
www.emovis-tag.co.uk www.emovis-tag.co.uk

We’ve found it very useful over the years, as we drive to the alps every winter.
 






South Stand Bonfire

South Stand Bonfire

Who lit that match then?
NSC Patron
Jan 24, 2009
2,504
Shoreham-a-la-mer
AK74 said:
If you’re using any of the autoroutes in France, get one of the automated tags for the peage (toll) stations. Available in to motorists in the UK here:

www.emovis-tag.co.uk

Emovis Tag UK

Travel without stopping on European Motorways. Emovis Tag UK can provide UK customers with a tag for automatic payment of motorway tolls in France, Spain & Portugal.
www.emovis-tag.co.uk www.emovis-tag.co.uk

We’ve found it very useful over the years, as we drive to the alps every winter.
Click to expand...
And it’s quite amusing when you use them in the “non stop” lane with a Uk number plate when the French driver behind you thinks you’ve made a mistake and in the wrong lane and holds back 30m as they think you’ll have to reverse out.😎

I wouldn’t say they are essential, but they are very handy if you are driving on your own otherwise you have to unbelt and try and pay from the passenger side of the car.
 


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