Road Trip to Monaco...Advice Please!

[Blu Elettrico]

Planning a road trip to Monaco in May to hopefully watch the GP. Thinking of going from Calais down to Dijon (overnight booked already) and then onto Nice. The A996 road has been recommended? After having a mooch around thought we'd head to Genoa and then up to Lake Maggiore (overnight perhaps) and then up to Lucern onto Basel and into Germany towards Strasbourg, hopefully taking in an unrestricted Autobahn! Finally heading across to Reims and then back to Calais.
Would appreciate any suggestions or experiences of anyone who's done this trip and any "must do" roads.
Thanks in advance
Blu

 

[dem maser]

i always wanted to this......

 

[Parisien]

Route Napoleon is the way to go........so if weather good a great blast.........if poor........maybe take a route nationale.

These is a fulsome Monte Carlo or bust thread of dozens of pages long.......use Napoleon os a search word


P

 

[hodroyd]

I think I still have the routes we used in "TYRE", I could try and copy / paste them if that would help..??

 

[Emtee]

396 / 996 followed by Route Napoleon is a great route down. It's the route we (forum trip to MC) took last year. Route Napoleon gets a bit congested, but the 996 was gloriously deserted.

 

[Blu Elettrico]

Thanks for the replies chaps.
Route Napoleon has been mentioned before so I think this is a must.
Had a look at some old threads and some great info/ideas. Sounds like you had a great trip last year!
Hodroyd, appreciate any info you'd care to copy/paste.
Safrane, your vid clip on youtube was great. Were so looking forward to doing this trip.Never done before as previous Pork was never quite the touring car, the GTS will be perfect.
Do any of you bother with changing headlights (not sure if they can be switched easily?) or GB stickers?
Booked on tunnel already and hopefully by what I've read we'll get put on the bottom deck.
Anything else I should know please post.
Thanks again
Blu

 

[hodroyd]

I do not bother with changing headlamps, but I do carry the lens stickers you can get from such as Halfords just in case I get pulled. I also got a magnetic GB plate which I use, can't bear to use stickers they look naff. Take great care on the tunnel loading, you can very easily rip your wheels up on the high guide rails they use. I believe some try and get on the bus / caravan section, the guides are wider.
I will try and copy the route we took and paste it. Basically it is as Emtee says, the 396 & 996 roads were brilliant for driving and you can push really hard as the traffic is very light. Route Napoleon is an experience, absolutely loads of"S" bends as you go down the mountain, take care you don't get on the gravel at the sides of the bends when braking, I nearly rammed in to the back off Marcos in his DB9 Volante and missed the barriers by a couple of inches, we were being heavy on the throttle mind you, it was great fun..!! Keep your eyes out for the plain speed camera cars on the back roads, they use plain estate cars with cameras in the back window.
Have a great time, the roads are good for getting some speed up. I will now have a look at copying the route.

Cheers
R

 

[hodroyd]

Blu... Can you send me your email address by PM and I will try to send you the routes...do you use TomTom, or Garmin..??

 

[CatmanV2]

Rob, what's the issue with the tunnel? We're off to Champagne in June.
Also getting some number plates with the GB logo built in.

C

 

[hodroyd]

C..I have not used the Chunnel, but as far as I am told, the barriers that keep your wheels in the right place are quite high and the lanes are tight. If you can imagine a channel that you have to drive in with high kerbs either side..?? Loading and unloading I think is the issue as there is obviously a bend you have to negotiate inside these high kerbs, just take extra care..!!

 

[CatmanV2]

Ahh, OK. Did it in the 166 with no issues, but that gives the 4200 10cm.

I shall think on, cheers

C

 

[2b1ask1]

If you have xenon lights they have a flat dipped beam so no need to use stickers or beam benders.

 

[cobratwin]

The train is not a problem just take it slow. I can get a a 9ft10 wide 40ft long coach down there without scuffing the wheels. So your maser should be fine. Take the trip easy check and then double check all fluids, tyres/pressures etc. remember there are only a couple roads in Germany that are still unrestricted. You will see a sign post for the speed limit or if it is unrestricted you will see a sign a bit like our national speed limit sign but has 5 slash lines in place of our one thick slash line.

 

[CatmanV2]

Thanks, CT. Certainly never was aware of any potential issues

Tangentially, those xenons rock IMHO.

C

 

[hodroyd]

Just for my information, are all the vehicle carriages exactly the same then, no matter what vehicle you have, if so someone has been telling me porkies..??

 

[cobratwin]

There are 3different carriages. 1 -fright no passengers on this train except the lorry drivers. 2 -double deck and 3- single deck. Two and three are identical apart from the double deck has ...two floors and due to only cars and bikes can use it the single deck is the same dimensions wide and long but only have one deck and there for coaches aswell as cars and bikes use it, most of the time, a typical coach will take up a whole carriage by its self but if its a smaller coach then they will pop a couple cars or bikes in that carriage. But with all 3trains they have the same length and width.... Anyone in a car having problems getting onto the train or scuffing there wheels... Well IMO shouldn't be driving !. There are no "corners" to negotiate the only time you have to turn your wheels is when you drive onto the train and you have 50ft or space to do it in...

The double decker you have a little less room when driving on but the kerbs are a lot shallower than on the single decker

 

[hodroyd]

So someone was telling porkies then, they deserve something and I will come up with an idea to suit..!!

 

[cobratwin]

[video=youtube;c4-x2AFcklg]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c4-x2AFcklg&sns=em[/video] have a look at this

 

[hodroyd]

C,
That entrance looks massive compared to the car entry which is passed on the way to the bus entry point..??
R

 

[Parisien]

I think we asked for the wider carriage too last year....can't remember if it was wider or not....am over again in May....so will find out!


P