Critique my SoF route please?

[Bluerange39]

Hello,

Heading off next month to Provence. Taking a few days to get there with stops as follows:

First night - basic Ibis but with secure parking in Saint-Quintin a couple of hours outside Calais. Will take autoroute and get to Beaune early enough to relax and enjoy the town. Any restaurant rec’s?

Second night - Beaune. A6 to Lyon, A48 to Grenoble and then the N85/top part of R de N to arrive at

Third night - Chateau Arnoux Saint-Oban

It’s from here that I haven’t nailed things down. We need to end up in Roussillon by around 3/4pm. Thinking driving down as far as Castellane and then driving the Gorge du Verdon. I don’t what to miss out on some amazing roads but equally this will be day three in the car and I’ll be keen to get to the villa.

The D2 (just watched Harry’s road trip vid) is too far east I think.

Grateful for any thoughts

TIA

[hellorent]

If in no rush, my preferred route would be

Calais onto the A16, skirt round Paris onto the A10
then down the A71 to Orleans, then A75 at Clermont Ferrand
and then cross country to Roussillon, longer journey but
much nicer countryside.

[DB4DM]

If driving a RHD car, the Gorges de Verdon can be a visual challenge for passengers on the left side

[littleredrooster]

DB4DM said:

If driving a RHD car, the Gorges de Verdon can be a visual challenge for passengers on the left side

Agreed - mine became very religious!

[HocusPocus]

Suggest you look at the Michelin Guide for suitable places to stay with restaurants. They are often very affordable. A lesser hotel/restaurant brand will be Logis. Plenty along your route.

St Quentin is OK, but why not drive the extra hour to Reims, maybe a summer light show on the Cathedral and champers!

Rte de Vignobles from Dijon to Beaune is spectacular....a who's who of vineyards. All crammed in tightly.

Try Sisteron rather than Chateau Arnoux. Much prettier.

Gorge de Verdon is only as scary as your driving style, but spectacular. Try Hotel Restaurant Saint-Marc in Aups. The rooms and food will not disappoint.

[LunarOne]

If you're not aware of it, Harry Metcalfe has just released a video specifically on his favourite routes to get him to his boat in Antibes. He also shows us the boat, but the video is mainly about the routes he likes. Might be worth a watch.

[NormalWisdom]

When in Beaune - Be sure to visit Chateau de Savigny - Jaw-dropping museums, both auto and aero

https://www.chateau-savigny.com/

Edited by NormalWisdom on Friday 15th August 09:38

[Bluerange39]

Thanks for your thoughts everyone.

Reason for Saint Quentin is that we’re on a late tunnel crossing and will get there for midnight. I don’t really want to go any later. We stayed there recently and it’s clean and has gated parking.

I’m keen to visit Beaune, making sure we take the Route de Vignobles as friends have stayed there so I think I’ll stick with that side of France. Museums look well worth a visit.

I’ll look at Sisteron as an alternative to Château Arnoux - thanks. I really want to drive the gorge and my wife is pretty tolerant (she humoured me with a 72 hour trip to Switzerland last month just to drive Furka, Grimsell and Susten) so hopefully she’ll put up with some sketchy drops!

I guess where I have been most unsure of is whether I’m missing anything from the last leg but I think that as I’m getting some rte de Napoleon action, then the G du V, I’m likely to have some great driving experiences

Thanks again for your input - genuinely appreciated