Talk Quesada forum

hi people just wondering for those that have driven over which would be the best route to take any helpful tips for on the drive would be appreciated thanks Julie

Can’t help you routes but, do get your International Driving Permits before you leave. Obviously, one for Spain and, if your driving through France, one for there too. You never know, we might need them

I have driven down from the South of England annually since 2012. We drive for around 6 hours a day and have 3 nights in hotels and spend the late afternoons and evenings enjoying the local towns. However, you can just take one or two stopovers depending if you want to make it part of the holiday, or are in a hurry.
Personally, I avoid the central and eastern route nowadays. Paris can be a nightmare and the AP7 down the coast through Barcelona and Valencia is very busy and the tolls are expensive.
Therefore, you should take the route through the Somport Tunnel under the Pyrenees. My suggestion for a 3 night stopover is:
Stopover 1) Loire Valley, such as Saumur, Chinon or Amboise.
Stopover 2) St Emilion or Bergerac.
Stopover 3) Huesca.
By going through the Somport Tunnel you have good roads through Spain and can avoid tolls there.
Of course, if you are in a hurry you could stopover at a motel or hotel off the motorway. Maybe you could drive as far as Pau for a stop over and then onto Quesada. Whatever you do, the route from Calais is about 1250 miles and about 19 hours of driving.
I hope this helps.

great post Graham. We did Zaragossa up to the border, Bordeaux, Le Mans. Agree avoid Paris and surrounding area like the plague. The via Michelin website is a brilliant resource. With overnight stops, food, petrol, tolls crossing fees up to the midlands we worked it out as about 1000 euros each way.
It sounds a lot but we made the journey part of the holiday and we did have to work around the fact that we had our two dogs with us. If you do the Portsmouth/Plymouth route to Santander/Bilbao. You avoid about half the car journey and accommodation etc but its the same cost overall when you include the ferry charges.
4-6 hours a day driving is plenty for us but I have spoken with folk who do it non stop saving money but that to me seems crazy.
Milau bridge was disappointing as you don't get a view.

Thanks for the info guys sounds like a lovely drive actually be nice to make the most of it and we would make it part of the hols

I drive between UK and Spain several times a year.Ferries,while very pleasant,are too expensive.1000€?Strewth.The journey can be as cheap or quick as you wish.From Quesada via Zaragoza to either Somport or Irun there is no need to pay any toll.It is mostly dual carriageway.From Somport to Bordeaux via Pau has a good national road,toll free,or a motorway cost 20€.Irun to Bordeaux has 5 tolls adding up to around 20€.Bordeaux to Poitiers via N10 is no toll dual carriageway.Then via Loudoun/Le Lude or Saumur to Le Mans.To avoid numerous villages take A28 to Alencon Nord(10€ish)then N138 to Caen or Rouen via good national road.Roen to Abbeville is free motorway then 10€ish to Calais.Personally,after 20 years on permanent nights driving HGVs I enjoy quieter overnight trips and don't bother with hotels.However,as a tourist the entire journey is very pleasant.

I have got my Calais to Costa Blanca (virtually toll-free) route notes stored as a Word document.
I've done the run quite a few times and gradually honed the route.
Please send me a pm with your email address if you would like a copy.
Geoff.

I recently found out that you can tell Google maps on your phone to plan your route to avoid toll roads.

Using this, you can then see how long it will take you with or without the tolls and then decide whether the time savings are worth it. I use it in the morning to see how long my work commute will take, as the journey time is live and you can avoid traffic jams etc .

Bring up Google maps on your phone. It asks for your location and underneath it asks for your destination. Beside your location are 3 dots, tap them and then tap Route options. Tap avoid Toll roads and away you go.

Some people may not know that,in France,in July 2018 the maximum speed permitted on single carriageways was reduced to 80 kph(50 mph).Recently it was reported that "gilets jaunes" protestors had destroyed over half of the speed cameras.Apart from that,if you have the skill and patience all information regarding speed camera locations and tolerances can be accessed on line.

Hi, i am driving back to England in June, via the eurotunnel, and I am looking for accommodation in Spain and France where we can have stop overs with a dog. As anyone got any suggestions.

Thanks