Trip UK To Europe Anyone?

[Mattias_2]

Folks I’m looking to travel across to Europe via the ferry to Santander then in to southern France, northern Italy and back up through France and back to the uk via the tunnel. I’m hoping to leave around the 12th May with a very vague route which is totally open to change. I have to be back in the uk by the beginning of June. I am looking for anyone around my age (36) give or take who fancies an adventure. I’m open to camping depending on weather or sharing hotels etc. This trip is 99% going to happen for me either going solo or with a buddy or buddies. Any advice on where to go and what to see is mostly welcome. Answers on a postcard please (well actually a reply is preferred )

[Gerontious]

Its a bit short notice fella.. looking for a travel companion just 4 weeks in advance, especially when the Santander ferry is involved. Thats >£205 plus the price of a berth, if booked TODAY and is only going to rise or even worse sell out. very soon.

Also.. May is very VERY early in the year for the Mountains. you might easily find pass after pass closed to vehicles not wearing snow chains and be forced to use the most busiest roads and even then be forced to turn back by heavy snow. You can go from 30c heat in the valleys to -10c at the top of a pass. And the gear you take needs to be able to cope with these extremes.

My only tip is quite simple.. stay away from the coastal roads in southern France. Stay inland. The coastal roads are absolutely mad... especially near any of the larger towns and cities. Avoid Monaco. and the coastal road from there to the Italian border. Cross much further north... Maybe even use one the Tunnels.

I went down that way with Snod Blatter 5 years ago in early JUNE.. and though we had a good time, so much of where we wanted to go was closed. due to snow. And we saw a lot of that almost everywhere in the mountains. We also were slow baked at lower levels. We had a good time.. but that was mainly through good luck and the fact we were camping and so had the option to head in a completely different direction at the drop of a hat if the weather seemed dodgy.. or i considered the risks just that little bit too high.

Its a nice idea you have.. but, perhaps have a bit of a rethink. stay in the foothills, rather than aiming for the higher passes.. go 'round' or under rather than over. And if you do have any passes in mind.. keep a close eye on this website: https://www.alpen-journal.de/alpenpaesse - in German, but easy enough to understand. which lists almost every pass popular with bikers in the Alps and Pyrenees and shows their status. green is good. anything eles is either very VERY bad or at the very least.. you might arrive to find its closed and be forced to turn around. A pass that might be open on one day, can be closed the next due to snow.. or ice. snow melt/runoff freezing overnight and not thawing is as high a risk as Snow this early in the year.

[Mattias_2]

Hi. Thanks for advice. Maybe I will consider just keeping it too Spain. Like I said I going with no real plan so I can adapt very easily. I will get the maps out today and have good look.