back to basics.. 1. decide where you want to go. 2. when. 3. how to get there. 1.. is probably the easiest question of all. 2.. do you want to travel during the holiday season.. (school holidays) or not. Obviously during the main holidays roads etc will be busier. hotels and campsites charging more.. and possibly full. so booking in advance might be the only way. Are you heading for the Alps? then 'when you go' becomes very important.. too early and roads and passes can be closed. especially in the high alps. and even if they are open.. they can be extremely cold. it might be mid 20s in the valleys.. but climb a road to 3,000 meters and it can just as easily be 1c. even in June. will you have the gear for sub zero... in june? 3. how to get there... if you live midlands or south and can book in advance then think about the Tunnel. its not luxurious, but its quick and very convenient. also.. if you miss your crossing.. or arrive early they will nearly always put you on the next available train. at worse you might need to wait an hour or so. one other small benefit of the tunnel is it is a painless introduction to riding on the right. its very difficult to go wrong. In addition to that. i think a dedicated sat nav is extremely useful. so is a phone thats set up for roaming. with rescue numbers and ICE all easy to find. Pouring over maps.. including google maps can be a benefit so can taking a trip to waterstones and looking at and maybe buying any guide books for the local area. and entering any 'must see' places or things as POI's in your sat nav. If you are thinking of camping.. and your sat nav doesnt have a campsite database. then download one from Archies Camping. http://www.archiescampings.eu Take a little time to learn just a few words in the local language.. it doesnt matter if you're crap. if you make this effort it will pay off. Simply blurting out "do you speak english?" isnt always the best way forward. but a few words.. even if its just 'I dont speak.. ' - badly pronounced in the local language is much better. This will 99/100 immediately identify you as a Brit.. and people do tend to react better. Best biking roads is a great site to look at when planning routes. also.. dont be afraid to ask about routes on this and any other forum. you can virtually guarantee an answer, which might be first hand experience or a point to a website thats loaded with info. for instance.. if you have a sat nav, say a garmin. use their software as a search tool.. so, if you are heading for.. as an example, the pyrenees. type in "Pyrenees motorcycel GPX' or "GDB" and see what pops up. like this - http://bfy.tw/8wmC Using streetview is often a very good idea.. so, I was looking at campsites in the Dolomites and wanted to see what one in particular looked like, or rather, where it is looked like: https://goo.gl/maps/CqpeS6Drn1T2