Driving to Spain

Hello sue,

We always do the euro tunnel route and then drive down through France to costa Blanca.

We try and do it over two days ( sometimes it’s  three) if you are in no rush and the French are more dog friendly for hotels etc .we break it up for dog walks and toilet stops and always plot up somewhere nice for evening meals etc.

We have done the Portsmouth route as well and that can be hit and miss with the weather as it takes a full 24 hours at sea and the bay of biscay and also we had a two hour wait at Bilbao only six weeks ago before you then have the 7/8 hour drive down thereafter.

Obviously it’s all down to personal circumstances and preferences and many people have shared the many different routes over the years on the forum……good luck with it especially doing all the driving!

Best regards

BB

Morning  Sue I've driven through France on many occasions  ,I always keep off toll roads ,as on a previous occasion 2010 ,I found it very expensive, others will disagree ,I do all the driving as my wife wont drive on continent ,if we are on an early ferry ,either to Calais or Dunkirk  il stop around Clermont Ferrand  for the night and then maybe Girona Spain the following night ,if a late afternoon  ferry il drive less on that day ,I use google maps ,tick avoid tolls and then where I wish to stop that day and allow google to direct  me we use budget places to stopover maybe booking.com ,always helpful to plan a bit ahead and remember  to take an adapter with you to charge phone overnight a nd keep  phone charged during the day through the adapter in cigarette lighter, good luck 

 Eurotunnel sounds good, but to minimise my driving as I’m not that confident I need to avoid Paris at all costs I thought to try and get a route further down? Bilbao isn’t running till the spring and Santander is full till next year. Luckily time is not an issue. Thanks for your reply, much appreciated.

Hi John, it would be great to avoid tolls but as I’m not really a confident driver they are less stressful. Though it may be possible to use major roads without tolls. I do have via Michelin app and that recommends routes, time isn’t an issue but more easy driving routes (probably the shortest way) Not a journey I’m looking forward to really, but taking the car is essential. Thanks for your reply.

Morning Sue, we've only done it twice so came to it as complete newbies. Both times we used the tunnel as it is so quick and easy with all facilities either side for dogs and their humans.

The first time we tried to avoid tolls and booked dog friendly hotels in advance. Hated it. 

The second time we stuck to the E15 route the whole way, paid all the tolls and booked hotels as we went depending on how tired we were. There was so much choice on Booking.com and we stayed in the basic level ones. This suited us much better and the only thing we planned was to hit Paris in the early hours and at 4am we sailed through (late June). All the motorway services had exercise areas for the dogs and we chose hotels just off the motorway.

Lots of good tips already given and I'd only add that you may need snow chains;

https://home.cern/news/announcement/cern/winter-tyres-mandatory-france-1-november#:~:text=From%201%20November%202021%20until,on%20snowy%20or%20icy%20roads.

https://n332.es/prepare-for-winter-driving/ 

Sue I mentioned 2010 ,that was my first time driving to Spain and that is why I used toll roads ,certainly easier but very expensive, I swore then never.to use the tolls again ,and on return journey  kept of tolls ,we do however pay the toll for the crossing of the amazing bridge at Millau, fantastic site ,I always drive to the road if it's a twisty road low speed ,straight road higher speed you have said time is not an option  there are some great sites driving through France  and some  really pretty villages ,but of course you must do what you're comfortable  with ,when you arrive at Villamartin, you will hopefully wonder what the worry was about ,best wishes 

Hi Sue,

We travelled from Spain to the UK last week, driving up via Zaragoza (to avoid the outskirts of Madrid) and stayed overnight in Pamplona.  We crossed the border into France at Irun and drove up the west coast route via the toll roads to Poitiers, where we stayed overnight.  The following day we took a slow drive up to Caen for the overnight ferry to Portsmouth.  The tolls in northern Spain cost €18 and those for the length of France totalled €102 (friends have told us the tolls are more expensive if you go the eastern route via Barcelona).

Originally, I planned to go via Le Shuttle, but that´s an extra 3 hours drive from Caen to Calais on the French side and then, for us, a similar journey time from Folkestone to Portsmouth once we arrived in England.  As the ferries go direct to Portsmouth, my husband persuaded me to go via ferry instead.  The cost of Le Shuttle was a little more expensive than the ferry, although when we added the cost of a cabin at €60, the overall costs were comparable.  It's worth noting that the Caen to Portsmouth crossing is around 5 hrs 45 mins; however, the overnight crossing is nearer 8 hrs - regular passengers told us that they sail slower during the overnight crossings!

We´re returning to Spain on Wednesday, travelling the same route but with overnight stops at Caen and San Sebastian.  Like Cheryl, I book our hotels via Booking.com and always double-check the room rates against the hotels' websites to make sure I'm getting the best rates.

When (if!) we do this journey again, I will try the route via Le Shuttle.  We were very lucky with the first ferry crossing being very calm and I have my fingers crossed for a similar return because I'm not a good sailor, but it felt to me like there was a lot of waiting around for check-in, customs procedures and boarding, which resulted in us leaving Caen 50 minutes late.  To avoid Paris, I think we could travel towards Caen on the tolls roads and then continue on to Calais via the A28 and A16, running parallel with the northern coastline, which will keep us well north of Paris.  You could do the same route, albeit you´d be doing the journey in the opposite direction.

We've previously done the journey with only one overnight stop, but that means two legs of 10 hours each - adding in the extra night gave us a chance to visit some nice towns en route.  When we arrive back in Spain next week, I'll try and remember to update this thread with the return trip.

Kind regards,

Kim

Hi Sue,

There are loads of options, many already quoted, the Newhaven-Dieppe is a nice crossing, it saves about 3-4 hours as an alternative to Calais, similar to Caen,  if you get the late ferry, I think its about 11pm, book a cabin, it arrives at 5am giving you a good early start with tolls most of the way to the Spanish border. 

Crossing the border is available at multiple points, North coast, Somport tunnel, or further down. A stopover somewhere South of Bordeaux (Pau or somewhere near, there is an Ibis in Pau where you can stop with the dog, its central with food outlets very close, and most importantly well lit and safe) Then an early start and full days drive to here. 

Depending on how many stops you have its roughly about 10-12 hours each leg. Each leg shows the fastest route as about 8 hours however realistically 10-12hrs with stops.  

Yes thank you for this.  Newhaven dieppe was my thoughts. So it’s nice to hear, like mentioned earlier cuts a few hours off the Calais crossing and I’m now looking at the routes thEse kind people have suggested, while time doesn’t matter, I may be better on autoroutes as it’s easy driving for me. My partner sadly can’t drive at all after intensive leg surgery on his right leg. the sound of the E15 route sounds easier for me I will take all the suggestions up when arranging my route. 

Thanks all.