This year's road trip: through France to Côte d'Azur
Discussion
We've been enjoying our Euro road trips since the the '90s, but mostly due to COVID we've not been since 2019. To say we were looking forward to it is an understatement!
Early May is a good time for us as Mrs 2SB doesn't like it too hot & I love the clear roads, empty service stations & service in the restaurants is generally perkier.
In between us making all the arrangements and setting off somebody kindly made May 8th a bank holiday. This meant all the usual pinch points between Nottingham & the tunnel were absolutely clear! As a result we got to the tunnel an hour quicker than expected. We always buy the Flexiplus ticket, so just drove onto the first train. I was a bit surprised the dedicated check-in for Flexiplus was coned off, but due to it being a bit off season there were no queues at all, so no matter.
We were a bit fearful of passport control (first time under Brexit rules, but it was a breeze).
All the above is about timing I think, when we came home about three weeks later they were setting up an 11 mile queuing system on the M20!
Anyhoo, toll tag attached (an absolute must) we were very soon cruising down really quiet Autoroutes.
Our first stop off point is often somewhere near Reims. Up to now we've never really found a place that felt more part of the holiday, rather than just a stop off. To be fair that's probably more a mindset thing.
This year, however, we really enjoyed: https://www.loisium.com/en/champagne/cuisine/
Lovely views from the restaurant:
Early May is a good time for us as Mrs 2SB doesn't like it too hot & I love the clear roads, empty service stations & service in the restaurants is generally perkier.
In between us making all the arrangements and setting off somebody kindly made May 8th a bank holiday. This meant all the usual pinch points between Nottingham & the tunnel were absolutely clear! As a result we got to the tunnel an hour quicker than expected. We always buy the Flexiplus ticket, so just drove onto the first train. I was a bit surprised the dedicated check-in for Flexiplus was coned off, but due to it being a bit off season there were no queues at all, so no matter.
We were a bit fearful of passport control (first time under Brexit rules, but it was a breeze).
All the above is about timing I think, when we came home about three weeks later they were setting up an 11 mile queuing system on the M20!
Anyhoo, toll tag attached (an absolute must) we were very soon cruising down really quiet Autoroutes.
Our first stop off point is often somewhere near Reims. Up to now we've never really found a place that felt more part of the holiday, rather than just a stop off. To be fair that's probably more a mindset thing.
This year, however, we really enjoyed: https://www.loisium.com/en/champagne/cuisine/
Lovely views from the restaurant:
The next leg was a blast down to Lyon, and we stayed here:
https://hotelabbayelyon.com/en/
Lovely place, which is just as well as we'd booked to stay there again on the way home.
Lyon can be a challenge to drive around, but we kept our wits about us & took it steady.
https://hotelabbayelyon.com/en/
Lovely place, which is just as well as we'd booked to stay there again on the way home.
Lyon can be a challenge to drive around, but we kept our wits about us & took it steady.
By the way, we try not to spend massive time driving (always aim to be supping the first beer by 4pm!) and this year we used Mrs 2SB's Golf GTD.
I've got to say that is a superb car. Comfy, economical with some get up & go if you need it. It's got all modern stuff like ABS & aircon too! We only had to stop once for fuel between Nottingham & Aix-en-Provence, which I find remarkable. (We've been known to fill up six times for a similar journey back in the TVR days
)
Leg three, was as mentioned above was Aix.
https://renaissanceaixenprovencehotel.com-hotel.co...
Hotel was clean & fresh and really well located for a stroll into the old town.
Aix is a nice town to hang around for a few days, which is what we did. We ate in some decent "casual" restaurants and enjoyed a few beers (as you do)
The mountain that so fascinated Paul Cézanne
Random trip out to a dam!
Caught in a rain shower...unfortunately had to take refuge in a bar!
I've got to say that is a superb car. Comfy, economical with some get up & go if you need it. It's got all modern stuff like ABS & aircon too! We only had to stop once for fuel between Nottingham & Aix-en-Provence, which I find remarkable. (We've been known to fill up six times for a similar journey back in the TVR days
)Leg three, was as mentioned above was Aix.
https://renaissanceaixenprovencehotel.com-hotel.co...
Hotel was clean & fresh and really well located for a stroll into the old town.
Aix is a nice town to hang around for a few days, which is what we did. We ate in some decent "casual" restaurants and enjoyed a few beers (as you do)
The mountain that so fascinated Paul Cézanne
Random trip out to a dam!
Caught in a rain shower...unfortunately had to take refuge in a bar!
A MAJOR advantage of going this time of year is you are more likely to be able to walk Massif des Calanques. When we've been in high season the hiking trails have been closed due to "risque d'incendie".
We mostly left the car parked up during our stay at Cassis, but did have a run out to La Ciotat.
Whilst been toured the area several times I'd never even heard of La Ciotat. I was very impressed with how it blends major ship building/refurb with a lovely old port, and the way the mountains meet the sea!
We mostly left the car parked up during our stay at Cassis, but did have a run out to La Ciotat.
Whilst been toured the area several times I'd never even heard of La Ciotat. I was very impressed with how it blends major ship building/refurb with a lovely old port, and the way the mountains meet the sea!
The next leg, and always our favourite was five nights in Villefranche sur Mer.
En route we did a detour to Mougins, a charming hill top town and where Picasso spent his final days.
I only mention the detour as it gave us a tricky bit of stress! A combination of avoiding the Cannes "bouchon" and me being a dork resulted in a sat-nav special. We managed to find a two way street, barely wide enough for one car & with no passing places. Just for good measure the last few yards had a gradient of what seemed like steeper than 1/1. (All I could see was the sky!)
Anyhoo, as these things do, it all sorted itself out (eventually!)
En route we did a detour to Mougins, a charming hill top town and where Picasso spent his final days.
I only mention the detour as it gave us a tricky bit of stress! A combination of avoiding the Cannes "bouchon" and me being a dork resulted in a sat-nav special. We managed to find a two way street, barely wide enough for one car & with no passing places. Just for good measure the last few yards had a gradient of what seemed like steeper than 1/1. (All I could see was the sky!)
Anyhoo, as these things do, it all sorted itself out (eventually!)
So...Villefranche sur Mer is a place we love. I reckon we've been there nine times over the last twenty five years.
We always stay at the Welcome Hotel: http://www.welcomehotel.com/english/
I don't know why we love it so much, but we really do.
Probably no better place to watch the world go by with a beer!
A walk round the bay gets you to https://www.villa-ephrussi.com/en which is a lovely place to spend an hour or two
We always stay at the Welcome Hotel: http://www.welcomehotel.com/english/
I don't know why we love it so much, but we really do.
Probably no better place to watch the world go by with a beer!
A walk round the bay gets you to https://www.villa-ephrussi.com/en which is a lovely place to spend an hour or two
One of the disadvantages of this time of year is the weather can be unpredictable. One day it was a bit damp so we jumped on the train to Monaco, a 14 minute trip.
Now, for most of the year Monaco is like Stevenage next to the sea but with posh boats and cars. In May, however, the whole vibe changes when the F1 circus hits town.
The train tips you out at Sainte-Dévote, so you are straight in it all!
We waited at a crossing for the traffic to stop, which eventually it did. I glanced at the car which was letting us across & it was Fernando Alonso! We then bumped into him again later in the shops near Mirabeau!
We, naturally, walked the whole circuit.
Now, for most of the year Monaco is like Stevenage next to the sea but with posh boats and cars. In May, however, the whole vibe changes when the F1 circus hits town.
The train tips you out at Sainte-Dévote, so you are straight in it all!
We waited at a crossing for the traffic to stop, which eventually it did. I glanced at the car which was letting us across & it was Fernando Alonso! We then bumped into him again later in the shops near Mirabeau!
We, naturally, walked the whole circuit.
Having said we always struggle with our first night stopover, it's ditto for the last night.
This year I think we cracked this too, albeit a bit differently.
We stayed here: https://www.auclosdulac.fr/en/bed-and-breakfast-ch...
It was lovely, as was the village, Not much there so we opted for a hamper of goodies to nosh in the evening.
We were the only guests too!
It also has the benefit of being very close to:
This year I think we cracked this too, albeit a bit differently.
We stayed here: https://www.auclosdulac.fr/en/bed-and-breakfast-ch...
It was lovely, as was the village, Not much there so we opted for a hamper of goodies to nosh in the evening.
We were the only guests too!
It also has the benefit of being very close to:
2 sMoKiN bArReLs said:
Our first stop off point is often somewhere near Reims. Up to now we've never really found a place that felt more part of the holiday, rather than just a stop off. To be fair that's probably more a mindset thing.
This year, however, we really enjoyed: https://www.loisium.com/en/champagne/cuisine/
Lovely views from the restaurant:
Sounded like a great trip. We love driving down to the South of France and can highly recommend https://royalchampagne.com/fr/ as a first or last stop if you want somewhere special. Very close to Loisium. This year, however, we really enjoyed: https://www.loisium.com/en/champagne/cuisine/
Lovely views from the restaurant:
We are trying Loisium this year. I believe the hotel is newly opened - is it completely finished?
DeuceDeuce said:
Sounded like a great trip. We love driving down to the South of France and can highly recommend https://royalchampagne.com/fr/ as a first or last stop if you want somewhere special. Very close to Loisium.
We are trying Loisium this year. I believe the hotel is newly opened - is it completely finished?
99%. There are cables in the car park where I’m guessing chargers will be and one relief road looks unfinished. There are some snagging issues too. We really enjoyed it. I did leave a Tripadvisor review with more detail. We are trying Loisium this year. I believe the hotel is newly opened - is it completely finished?
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