Booze Cruise?
Author
Discussion

Muncher

Original Poster:

12,235 posts

279 months

Wednesday 28th September 2005
quotequote all
What is the score with doing a booze cruise to France these days? Are the savings really that significant to make it worthwhile?

I have a free Ferry ticket to France to use and the alternative to a road trip in the VX would be to borrow a transit van and stack it with as much cheap beer as possible.

I've never done this before so I'm not sure on the rules or indeed how cheap the beer there is.

bga

8,134 posts

281 months

Wednesday 28th September 2005
quotequote all
I nipped over to France to load up with booze for my wedding. Taking all costs into consideration we saved about £500 and had a great day out too.

Plotloss

67,280 posts

300 months

Wednesday 28th September 2005
quotequote all
I'll have 1000 Marlboro Lights.

Theres a good lad

jessica

6,321 posts

282 months

Wednesday 28th September 2005
quotequote all
we usually do a wine cruise.
Not sure how much is the max you can b ring back. as much as you want so long as you can prove it is fro your own personal consumption.

Price wise not sure about beer. Must be good.

Wine is definately worth it though.

tampon

4,637 posts

255 months

Wednesday 28th September 2005
quotequote all
Yeah how do you prove it is for your own use, if went and fill up the back of my LWB van and came back with a few thousand ciggies, are they going to stop me and take the bloody stuff ? what do you need to prove it, how much roughly can you bring back?

timmy30

9,325 posts

257 months

Wednesday 28th September 2005
quotequote all
We normally go to Auchan in Calais, you can look it up on the net, they even has prices in £ and an online shop.

The savings on wine are huge, also you save around 30% on spirits.

Cheese, veg, detergents, batteries etc are all cheaper.

But if you like your wine that's the big saving.

We get a mixture of wine boxes and bottles ( best deals are on boxes containing 6 bottles ).

We go once every quarter, spend about £400 and probably save about £350 in doing so.

Kentish

15,169 posts

264 months

Wednesday 28th September 2005
quotequote all
Personal allowance is massive now, rules change a while ago.

I went last month and came back with loads of spirits and wine and beer.

Previously it was not much more than a couple of bottles of spirts per person.

timmy30

9,325 posts

257 months

Wednesday 28th September 2005
quotequote all
tampon said:
Yeah how do you prove it is for your own use, if went and fill up the back of my LWB van and came back with a few thousand ciggies, are they going to stop me and take the bloody stuff ? what do you need to prove it, how much roughly can you bring back?


There's no official limit, we always take the Renault Megane, it's a hatch back and we stick the seats down. Iv'e always suspected that unless you take a white van they're not going to stop you.

Having said that they have been told by the European Commission that they must stop seizing vehicles.

timmy30

9,325 posts

257 months

Wednesday 28th September 2005
quotequote all
anonymous said:
[redacted]


I presume that if someone goes over almost everyday they note the registration and then it's a simple matter to get the BIBs near where they live to keep an eye out for them selling on?

diddyman

3,646 posts

271 months

Wednesday 28th September 2005
quotequote all
Order online from Majestic for collection in Calais, tell em the date you're gonna pick it up and they have it all ready for you. No trollies needed as they have a warehouse and can wheel it out with a forklift.

Also, you get a choice of Ozzie, NZ S American and other European wines that are often hard to come by in a French supermarket.

I bought £1700 worth of wine and champagne from Majestic in Calais last year. A saving of £1000 on the same stuff in England. And they paid for my ferry ticket.

blanc

221 posts

269 months

Wednesday 28th September 2005
quotequote all
We saved about £800 on the wine for our wedding a few months ago.

Went to Majestic Wine, Calais.

BliarOut

72,863 posts

269 months

Wednesday 28th September 2005
quotequote all
Buy fags, even if you don't smoke You can offset the cost of the trip flogging them on (1000 Marlbies for Plotty and 2200 Embassy for me )
Selling them at a fair price, obviously

billynomates

2,101 posts

266 months

Wednesday 28th September 2005
quotequote all
anonymous said:
[redacted]



Fair point...Had a Merc estate(2yrs old) packed sold to the roof with booze and fags a year back.
Got pulled over ..the guy was a right pain..all the usual questions all for you sir, drink and smoke rather too much do you sir.

He keep us waiting on our own for 1/2 hour,came back and said "on yer way then".

Missed the next train ..thanks buddy.

And before you ask yep it was all for me

Got to be done saves a bloody Browns Ransom

Marki

15,763 posts

300 months

Wednesday 28th September 2005
quotequote all
Muncher said:
What is the score with doing a booze cruise to France these days? Are the savings really that significant to make it worthwhile?



OK how much is a bottle of sayyy Bacardi in the UK ?

Fags would give a massive saving ....

steveherb

250 posts

267 months

Wednesday 28th September 2005
quotequote all
Somebody said "Buy fags, even if you don't smoke You can offset the cost of the trip flogging them on (1000 Marlbies for Plotty and 2200 Embassy for me )
Selling them at a fair price, obviously"

I'll have a couple of boxes of B&H ta very much. Bloody good this PH thing, online shopping made easy!

krusty

2,473 posts

279 months

Wednesday 28th September 2005
quotequote all
Anyone fancy organising a "Beer, Wine Hoon" ???
Early morning ferry, blat around northern France for a few hours. Lunch, shop, ferry home.
Sounds a top idea, with the festive season rapidly approaching

billynomates

2,101 posts

266 months

Wednesday 28th September 2005
quotequote all
krusty said:
Anyone fancy organising a "Beer, Wine Hoon" ???
Early morning ferry, blat around northern France for a few hours. Lunch, shop, ferry home.
Sounds a top idea, with the festive season rapidly approaching


Well done ..count me in

Best to get in well before Xmas.

Got a route planned yet

K50 DEL

9,742 posts

258 months

Wednesday 28th September 2005
quotequote all
krusty said:
Anyone fancy organising a "Beer, Wine Hoon" ???
Early morning ferry, blat around northern France for a few hours. Lunch, shop, ferry home.
Sounds a top idea, with the festive season rapidly approaching


I'm in for that, I go every year anyway at around this time - any excuse to turn it into a PH meet!!!

diddyman

3,646 posts

271 months

Wednesday 28th September 2005
quotequote all
krusty said:
Anyone fancy organising a "Beer, Wine Hoon" ???
Early morning ferry, blat around northern France for a few hours. Lunch, shop, ferry home.
Sounds a top idea, with the festive season rapidly approaching

www.pistonheads.com/gassing/topic.asp?h=0&f=23&t=190418

mcflurry

9,190 posts

283 months

Wednesday 28th September 2005
quotequote all
Marki said:


OK how much is a bottle of sayyy Bacardi in the UK ?



£11 in uk, EUR11 in France, EUR9 in Deutschland..