Driving to Alpe d'Huez

miss notax

Hello

In just over 2 weeks time Notax and I are driving down to Alpe d'Huez with the bikes - we are getting the Eurostar to Calais, and with the magic of sat nav I can see that we will be facing a 9 hour or so drive the other side :?

We should arrive in Calais about 2.30pm on the Sunday, and I though it would be a plan to drive for a few hours (get the other side of Paris?) and then stop for the night before resuming the next day and getting to Alpe d'Huez mid afternoon. What I can't quite decide about is where to stop and whether to ever bother abut booking a hotel or not. I am generally a total control freak so this goes against the grain, but I am clueless as to where would be nice / suitable. Notax is the opposite and would never bother booking anything if he could get away with it

So, anyone used to doing this trip? Will I need to book for a random Sunday night stay somewhere nice? Any ideas on where to stop? The next day we will be joining everyone for the Megavalanche week, so I like the idea of one relaxing evening before all hell breaks loose!!!

Thanks

Majski

Whenever we've stopped on the way down we've just parked up in an Aire and slept in the car. Albeit we picked a big Aire that was open 24hr and parked outside the shops so it was safe.

DodgeT

Whats an "aire", guessing it's a kind of service station?? (might be doing the trip too....)

miss notax

Hmmm, thanks but I am definitely after a hotel stop on the way - a 'nice' evening before the madness of Mega week

miss notax

Well, we have blown the budget and booked a nice hotel just south of Paris in Fontainebleau

nicklouse

miss notax wrote:

Well, we have blown the budget and booked a nice hotel just south of Paris in Fontainebleau

dont forget the beathalisers.

well you will have a few months grace (november) but for 6 quid.

Majski

Aire is basically a French service station, though some of them are just rest stops with nothing more than a bog and a picnic bench

miss notax

nicklouse wrote:

miss notax wrote:

Well, we have blown the budget and booked a nice hotel just south of Paris in Fontainebleau

dont forget the beathalisers.

well you will have a few months grace (november) but for 6 quid.

Thank you - I wasn't aware of that. Off to find some breathalisers then....!

nicklouse

miss notax wrote:

nicklouse wrote:

miss notax wrote:

Well, we have blown the budget and booked a nice hotel just south of Paris in Fontainebleau

dont forget the beathalisers.

well you will have a few months grace (november) but for 6 quid.

Thank you - I wasn't aware of that. Off to find some breathalisers then....!

not needed yet like i said. but if you are going to EuroTunnel have them available as do the ferry companies i guess.

have a read http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-18662555

weeve

stay at a Hotel Formule 1 ...they are everywhere near motorways and cost f'all (circa 40 quid and can sleep 2-3)

shared bathroom and low grade but safe and fine...use them all the time

http://www.hotelformule1.com/gb/home/in ... EC-41-GOO-[ppc-for-mar-goo-uk-en-bro-sear-bp-cen]-[for]-S-[hotel%20formule%201]&xtdt=22362834

miss notax

I am now confused about sat nav's and the rules regarding speed camera alerts

We have a Tom Tom which gives the fixed camera locations, which I understand is now illeagle in France and we can be fined for having this :shock: Any idea how we can switch this function off? Or is it ok as it's an old sat nav?

I would like to stay within the law if we can, but need to use the sat nav to stand any chance of realistically getting there!!

nicklouse

you have to disable it.

IIRC there is a how to on TomTom webby.

and here we are http://uk.support.tomtom.com/app/answer ... era-alerts

miss notax

Damn, i'm rubbish at technical stuff (Notax is even worse) - i'll probably end up wiping everything off the bloody sat nav :?

Thanks for pointing me in the right direction though - I shall bravely attempt this at home tonight over a glass of wine (cause that'll help )

nicklouse

link added.

miss notax

Ah - thank you