Good evening all, we are heading down to dorset in july with our 2021 sprite quattro fb twin wheel caravan from nottingham . and its our first time down there. we are staying at East fleet near weymouth. right my question is which way is best for us .i was thinking going down the M5 and stopping at gloucester services overnight then do the rest of the journey that way in. or would you reccommend the M1 and oxford route ,but we like to stop overnight then continue our journey in the morning . does any of these routes have any obstructions for our caravan. thanks again shaun.
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nottingham to weymouth 224 miles taking a34 route travelling down to southampton and then off to weymouth takes 4 hours, no need for turning it into an overnighter really
we cant leave till 5 on the friday afternoon , and we cant get on the site till 12 in the afternoon day after .we love the stop-overs.and its only a couple of hours then. no rush for us thanks thou.
224 miles in 1 go? not for us, but we are retired. And we would never overnight at a service station. If you are members of the Caravan and Motorhome Club (CAMC), use their small Certified Sites (CLs), there are several around Oxford for £20 pn or less. Agree with the A34 route.
Quote: Originally posted by marg6 on 18/6/2022
nottingham to weymouth 224 miles taking a34 route travelling down to southampton and then off to weymouth takes 4 hours, no need for turning it into an overnighter really
4 hours is pretty optimistic, the last 30 miles into and out of Haycraft near Swanage took us over an hour and a half, then another hour and a quarter negotiating 12 miles on the Oxford by-pass a couple of weeks ago (no accidents, just volume of traffic).
A34 is still the best route (`best` being relative). Took us just short of 7 hours (including one stop) to do the 295 miles there - and not hanging about.
We live in Worcester and have gone to East Fleet a couple of times. Down M5 to Taunton and then cut across to Weymouth. After turning off at Taunton it is a slow easy drive to Weymouth.
Think the suggested 4 hour journey is wildly optimistic! If you did the ENTIRE journey door to door at 60mph it'd take you 3.75 hours! - and you can be certain you'll only average about 40-45mph in reality on pretty clear roads (unless driving well over 60mph caravan limit!), so more like 5 hours as a realistic minimum, and likely longer.
M1/A34 or M5, don't even consider M1/M25/M3 route, you'll likely get snagged near Luton on M1 and anywhere on M25! Could be a choice between a rock and a hard place at the wrong time. I've got caught in some horrible holdups on M5 after lunchtime last few times I've been that way, the section between Bristol and Taunton seems prone to major delays on occasions, just a simple accident and lane closure is all it takes to introduce an hour's delay.
A34 is OK as A roads go, but quite a few Accident Blackspots south of Oxford that can bring it to a halt! Had to change plans/route last minute in the past to avoid delays. A roads can work OK, but it's a long journey to be coping with junctions, roundabouts, towns, varying speed limits etc. for most of the way, it can be a relief from the boredom of motorway cruising, but also quite hard work, and not great for the fuel consumption.
More than a 3 hour stop at M5 Gloucester Services will cost you £23 parking fee (with a £5 food voucher) with nothing more than a parking space to show for it, might be better considering a camp site in the region if you really want overnight break in journey, prices can be comparable. In it's favour Gloucester services has a proper caravan parking area rather than dumping you in with the trucks (where the constant noisy comings and goings pretty much stop sleep!). I'm never very comfortable parking up in services and either leaving van unattended or sleeping so I'm not aware of what's going on, too many thieves around service areas.
My personal choice would be an early morning start, M5 route, do the whole journey in one hit, with a comfort break somewhere before Bristol. But the choice isn't mine to impose on you, you have to pick your favoured journey type and route.
TomTom route planner is my favourite planner for caravan journeys, as you can set the vehicle option to car and caravan, and even dimensions (for compatible routing), and max speed. It's not perfect, and I deviate in areas I know better routes, but it's far better than many, and never sent me anywhere impossible: https://mydrive.tomtom.com/en_gb/#mode=routes+viewport=51.80639,-2.14481,7,0,-0+ro........
If a member of CAMC, you could always stay at a CL overnight in Gloucestershire or Somerset that is not far off the M5. Even from Somerset it is a 2 - 3 hour if everything goes smoothly.
Whichever way you look at it towing a caravan you are restricted to 60mph so a journey time of about 5 hours. If you encounter traffic add on another hour or two.
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Hil,we are doing the same trip next week from Ashby de la Zouch to Corfe Castle. We did it last year and have vowed never again to the M1 route.,we are going M42, M40 then A34 past Oxford, then down past Winchester. We did this route on our return last time and it was much better. Even if the satnav says the M1 is faster it never is - we go to Guildford regularly and know this to our cost….
Be aware if you're going via M5 Taunton, personally I'd avoid Axminster which pushes you across to Honiton. The issue there is the A35 will have road closures until some time in July. So perhaps the A34 route might be better? As for staying over, I'd not want to stay overnight on a Service Station, there'll be plenty of sites en route a quick Google search should find you something close to your route.
My personal choice would be to do the journey in one hit, leaving at around 7am and use the M5 as far as Taunton as has been suggested above. The alternative route would be M40 to Oxford followed by A34 to Southampton and then across - I don't imagine there'd be a lot in it.
If you do prefer to overnight there are a reasonable number of sites in the Gloucester and Oxford areas, just search on this site for something suitable.
I'd avoid the M1 and M25 like the plague.
------------- "Don't wait for the perfect moment. Take the moment and make it perfect."
Quote: Originally posted by SamandRose on 28/6/2022
My personal choice would be to do the journey in one hit, leaving at around 7am and use the M5 as far as Taunton as has been suggested above. The alternative route would be M40 to Oxford followed by A34 to Southampton and then across - I don't imagine there'd be a lot in it.
If you do prefer to overnight there are a reasonable number of sites in the Gloucester and Oxford areas, just search on this site for something suitable.
I'd avoid the M1 and M25 like the plague.
I agree with this. We do the trip in one go, with a couple of service station stops. Start early and be prepared for it to take six hours, no matter what your friendly satnav says. It’s a bit of an epic drive but stopping overnight part way just prolongs the pain :)
I’m with the OP. “ To travel hopefully is a better thing than to arrive.” RL Stevenson is quoted as saying.
Why beat yourself up with an early start & a long drive? Head off the night before, break the journey somewhere nice, sleep well, arrive at the final site feeling fresh & ready to enjoy the holiday.
A day of all things motorhome and campervan. The show is held both in the main indoor arena and across the grounds. Catering, hot drinks and food options are available. Easy access to the site and free parking included. Win one of five pairs of day tickets
Topic: DORSET Best route
via mobile 18/6/2022 at 7:07pm
