Hello Folks,
I have booked two weeks at Du Letty,Benodet Brittany.(due to crackin reviews on this site ta)
Its our first hol in France and I am thinking,,,,,I will set off as early as I can on the travel day friday,try and get a ferry crossing Dover/Calais around 8 or 9 pm.
Could anyone recommend a site we can stopover the night 20 or30 mile from Calais on the brittany route.
Haven't booked the ferry yet,trying to suss how long it will take us to get down to dover. when I get an idea I will feel more confident in booking the ferry,and more to the point getting on it in time.
we are booked in to du letty from saturday.so I am hopeing to get the hassle of the uk driving and ferry out of the way,then stopover ,to wake up on the saturday and mosey on down to Benodet.
harty
Don't forget to leave a review of the French and other European campsites you have visited!
The drive time down to Dover can be calculated pretty easy depending which way you go and will be mainly motorway even though the initial part would be a bad time on a Friday evening. However the drive on the French side from Calais to Benodet (739kms about 460 miles) I would consider a trifle ambitious especially considering it's your first time and the route consists of mainly national roads. These roads can be very good but are not autoroutes. To get there on Saturday with a 9:00'ish start you certainly won't be moseying.
the family are very good on long journeys and will only ask to stop when bursting, thank goodness for caravans, legs down, kettle on and empty the toilet when I get there.
I chose the early Sunday morn Ferry as I was advised if I managed to get in early I could get an earlier ferry something to do with the wagon drivers, ie less of them.
When you say national roads what would you compare them too in north east?
Cheers
Don't forget to leave a review of the French and other European campsites you have visited!
Thanks for that greenplum ,yes looking on the map that was the wrong word "mosey"
I see there are motorways down to Rennes then around 130 miles on non m/way to benodet .
Hello shielsy yes I agree with you there, pull in kettle on ha ha.We are booked in Du letty 16th august to the 28th.
It's quite exciting for us too,we usually take our chances with the english weather Wales or Devon.We have almost always had ok weather but every year we are struggeling to find somewhere to go.A mate told me of his holidays further down the west coast of France and I was hooked.
Hopefully this will be the first of many.
harty
You can stay at La Bien Assise, Here which is actually not far from Calais, but accepts 'late arrivals' and is set up for overnight stays. You can set off early, from here, too. There's also a service area on the autoroute to Boulogne called 'Les Deux Caps' which is set up for caravanners, and you can hire a hook-up on a meter. It has showers you can use in the morning. Further on, on the same route, is the Aire de la Baie de Somme, which also has an area where caravanners can stop - no hook ups here, but a cul de sac, with bays, and picnic tables - and showers for the morning. I have a photo somewhere, which I'll add to my gallery if someone wants to look at it.
I wouldn't worry too much about the ferry crossing, once you've booked - we set off from West Yorkshire mid to late afternoon and catch a Friday night ferry - and if you're early (or late) for the one you've booked they usually put you on the next crossing. Normally there's no charge for this - they obviously have experience of all the possible reasons someone might be late, or early.
Looks like you're very local to me; I'm in Chorley too.
We usually set off (if towing) about 6.30am and book to sail at about 3ish from Dover. That allows us time for lots of stops (kids with small bladders....) and time just in case there're traffic issues. Usually if we arrive early we'll get on an earlier ferry than the one booked.
We then do a drive of about 2-3hrs on the French side. But I guess if it's your first time then the suggestion above of Bien Assise might be favourite.
TT.
Don't forget to leave a review of the French and other European campsites you have visited!
Many thanks Val A and TT all you share gives me a better idea of how to tackle the journey.we would be stuffed without message boards such as this.
It's all coming together.
harty
the family are very good on long journeys and will only ask to stop when bursting, thank goodness for caravans, legs down, kettle on and empty the toilet when I get there.
I chose the early Sunday morn Ferry as I was advised if I managed to get in early I could get an earlier ferry something to do with the wagon drivers, ie less of them.
When you say national roads what would you compare them too in north east?
Cheers
The roads are generally quieter from around midday on Saturday when all non essential trucks are supposed to be resting till midnight Sunday/Monday.
National roads are the equivalent of our A roads but all (most) roads in France apart from around big city's Paris, Lyon etc. are better to drive on than here as the density of traffic is much less and the condition is generally much better
Im with Harty, your responses has settled my nerves. Harty I'm there 27/07 - 08/08
The lad that recommended the site goes to France every year, he says he will never camp in UK again. What a shame, I too have had some fabulous weather and hols in the UK.
Amazing family weekend with old steam engines, classic car displays, market stalls, and full catering and bar. And camping on site - Save £25 by booking in advance.
Topic: Booked our holiday
