# which way to Italy



## PJ'S (Mar 5, 2015)

Hi everyone, just joined, so be kind:smile2:

This our first motorhome, first forum and now planning our first trip to Italy!

I know looking back on the other posts, that the question has been asked before, but considering my brain is at stage one of meltdown, I thought it may be easier just to ask the question myself.

We are booked on the tunnel in July, for our intended destination......Rome.

Can anyone advise a very newbie, routes to take. Places to stay. Things to see. Places to avoid?

I am concerned about tunnels or passes in the southern alps, as if full weight, I could be 4250kg.


Thanks


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## Pudsey_Bear (Sep 25, 2008)

M1 Southbound first, or Northbound if you're not in a hurry.



Baby steps > >





.


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## barryd (May 9, 2008)

How long are you going for as there is tons to see on the way down. 

I would have thought Dover to Dunkirk, through Belgium on the free motorway, Luxembourg (Cheap fuel), Down through the Alsace or for a detour through the Black Forest in Germany and through Switzerland and either the Gotthard Tunnel or over the pass which spits you out into the Italian Lakes which are just stunning.

I wouldnt be afraid of any of the main routes or tunnels in the Alps. HGVs, bin wagons etc go up them and all motorhomes are more than capable of tackling any routes throughout the Alps. Switzerland and the Italian Lakes and Alps are going to be the most stunning part of the journey and it should be good weather in July. You will need a Vignette in Switzerland which you can buy at the border or soon after you cross.


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## nicholsong (May 26, 2009)

barryd said:


> . You will need a Vignette in Switzerland which you can buy at the border or soon after you cross.


Barry is mistaken/wrong with the word 'Vignette' which applies to under 3500kg and lasts for a year.

Over 3500kg, as you are, you have various options but if you are just transiting the 10-day pass is probably the best - it covers 10 days in Switzerland(whether moving or not) but unused days can be used on the way back(within 1 year)


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## peejay (May 10, 2005)

Hiya,


One cost effective route we use, there are other versions...

Toll free A16 - Dunkerque A25 Lille, Tournai, Namur A4 south into Luxembourg

Then either

Toll free A8 A620 Saarbrucken, Sarreguemines B1062 Bischwiller & pick up A35 Sth

or 

A31 Metz A4 (toll) Strasbourg & pick up A35 Sth


then...

Toll free A35 Basel

>3500kg = Heavy Veh Tax at border *

A2 Luzern, San Gottard Tunnel, Como

Then Autostrada (toll) to Rome via Milan, Bologna, Firenze.


* If you're just transiting Switzerland then the 10 day heavy Vehicle tax option is probably the best bet as you are over 3500kg, loads of info about that in the Swiss touring forum funnily enough 


Pete


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## PJ'S (Mar 5, 2015)

*That was quick*

Hi all,

Thankyou for taking the time to reply to my question, although the answers just give me more questions:nerd:

I will get the maps out and try follow your advise.

In answer to barryd.....we are going for three weeks.

Please keep replying and i'll try and keep digesting:laugh:

Thanks again

Lloyd


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## adonisito (Nov 6, 2009)

If it's your first van and first trip in a van abroad, I would suggest that Rome and back in 3 weeks leaves little time for meandering or seeing everything in between. North and Eastern France and Black Forest area of Germany would seem more sensible.

Mind you there are those who don't mind motorway driving and enjoy the scenery that way, in our case I rarely drive more than 3 hours a day, and normally avoid motorways. In July driving is not much fun in the heat either, better sipping a beer (or 4) at lunchtime, putting your feet up and having a swim. 

Whatever you choose have fun.


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## peejay (May 10, 2005)

Lloyd,

For more info on the Heavy Veh tax see >here<

You can download and view the form used (15.91) to give you a view of the form and what to expect which is attached below.
The actual one you fill out at the border has carbon copies though so its just for info.

Pete


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## barryd (May 9, 2008)

Wow! Its a long way to go and come back again in three weeks.

You wont want to dawdle then really. You will probably want to use toll roads a lot then really. Top places roughly on route would be

Either the Black Forest in Germany or the Alsace region around Colmar in France

Maybe the Rhine falls just over the border in Switzerland

The Junfrau Valley in Switzerland above Interlaken is amazing but a bit if a detour. Lake Lucern is also stunning which is en route.

Lake Maggiore or Lake Orta in Italy. You will also be driving through or near to Tuscany but I have not been that far.

If its your first adventure I would be tempted to not go as far really in that time but I hate driving long distances in one go.


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## HarryTheHymer (May 1, 2005)

Hope you've got at least cab aircon in the van - down towards Rome it can get unbelievably hot and humid during July (and even June & August).

It's a tad cooler and less humid further north ie. Italian Lakes. That's why the campsites are heaving at that time of the year. Maybe you might have to think about pre-booking, if you want to stay at the lakes. We had difficulty getting into a campsite by lake Garda in June. There are other lakes of course. 

I'm sure others will be able to advise whether booking is essential in this area in July.

If you've only got 3 weeks, I would tend to just stick to the northern part of Italy and miss out Rome altogether.


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## DJP (May 9, 2005)

Hi Lloyd
Welcome to MHF.com. I said you would get some answers pretty quick.
Have a great trip

Dennis 

ATOC


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## aldra (Jul 2, 2009)

Take care and think it through

Rome takes at least a week

And then it's a whistle stop tour

It's a holiday

Relax and reassess what you want to do

See a bit more

Do a bit less

Aldra


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## mgdavid (Nov 27, 2014)

My route (avoiding Switzerland and expensive tunnels):
Calais - Reims - Dijon - Lyon - Grenoble - Briancon - Turin - Genoa - Florence - Rome.
The Lyon - Turin bit should be a fair bit quieter than the more northern routes.


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## vicdicdoc (May 14, 2005)

For just 3 weeks . . . I'd leave the van at home & fly to Rome THEN hire a car when you leave Rome (unless you like driving amongst some of the worst idiot drivers this side of the great wall of China) - seriously, in 3 weeks constant driving you'll be glad to get back to work for a rest 'cause you'll be frazzled ¡


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## GEMMY (Jun 19, 2006)

Sounds like someone likes driving for the sake of it without seeing anything at less then 60mph 


tony


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## mgdavid (Nov 27, 2014)

GEMMY said:


> Sounds like someone likes driving for the sake of it without seeing anything at less then 60mph
> tony


perhaps he does, why should that be a problem to us? Without knowing the OP's intentions, likes & dislikes etc I wouldn't judge. 
OP, if you don't dally on the way Rome is a comfortable 4 days each way. Using the route I gave earlier I did Genoa in 2 days from Calais. There's nothing too daunting about the Briancon route, the slopes are reasonably gentle. We were towing, approaching 4.5 tonne train weight and had no problems.


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## PJ'S (Mar 5, 2015)

Once again, thanks for all the advice, positive and negative!

I don't mind driving, and thought four days to get there would be ok-ish.

Feel like I may have opened a hornets nest with the question tho!

Thanks to Dennis for pointing me to this forum and everyone else for bothering to suggest.

looking on Google earth for your route mgDavid.......thanks.

Lloyd


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## barryd (May 9, 2008)

You go for it Lloyd if your heart is set on it. As its your first trip I think some are just pointing out that its a long journey to take on in a short space of time.

Its surprising sometimes how slow travel in a motorhome can be but if you make good use of the free and toll road motorways you will cover some good ground. I think its just over 1000 miles to Rome from Calais so you need to be doing 250 plus a day. So no time for any site seeing en route if you want to do it in 4 days.

Good luck.


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## Pudsey_Bear (Sep 25, 2008)

IT's also summer time with long days so, you really don't need to race around if you can rise early and park late.

@ 50 mph 250 miles = 5 hours, so it could be done and still stop and wander around.

I'd not want to do it that way, think of all the small and interesting towns and villages you'd miss, which is the real part of any country, sod the big attractions queuing with all the other noisy tourists, no where to park etc that's what Youtubes for   link > >


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## vicdicdoc (May 14, 2005)

Kev_n_Liz said:


> . . .
> @ 50 mph 250 miles = 5 hours, so it could be done and still stop and wander around. . .


If only ! No matter how much I try, even at 55mph I only 'average' 45 - mind you I do like to stop for 5 or 10mins every couple of hours


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## barryd (May 9, 2008)

vicdicdoc said:


> If only ! No matter how much I try, even at 55mph I only 'average' 45 - mind you I do like to stop for 5 or 10mins every couple of hours


Doable on Motorways only. As soon as you get off the toll roads in France and Italy your unlikely to achieve much more than a 35-40 mph average tops.


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## GMJ (Jun 24, 2014)

We are off to Italy in July. The route I have planned is


Kent - eastern Belgium - Luxembourg - NE France - Lucerne (2 nts) - Lichenstein - southern Switzerland - Lake Garda (1 week) - Lake Iseo (1 week)...then back via the Stelvio Pass - Innsbruck - Germany - Belgium - Kent (taking a week to do this).


The whole trip is 30 nights from memory.


I always stop in Kent the first night and the last night so that it breaks up a long day either side of the holiday. The routes I have planned involve no more than a 4 hour drive each day (or so) at sensible speeds avoiding tolls/MWays wherever possible.


There is always some debate over how much time it takes folks to travel anywhere but do what you want: its individual to each person. We do more daily travelling than most because my wife has MS so we cant stop here there and everywhere and spend a few hours looking around. For use the journey is very much part of the holiday.


Graham:smile2:


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## barryd (May 9, 2008)

GMJ said:


> We are off to Italy in July. The route I have planned is
> 
> Kent - eastern Belgium - Luxembourg - NE France - Lucerne (2 nts) - Lichenstein - southern Switzerland - Lake Garda (1 week) - Lake Iseo (1 week)...then back via the Stelvio Pass - Innsbruck - Germany - Belgium - Kent (taking a week to do this).
> 
> ...


Sound a good trip. We were at Lucerne in 2011 and stayed at a wonderful little farm site about a mile from the lake here. No set pitches, go where you like. *GPS Co-ordinates: 47.03775465700756 / 8.415098190307617

Loved it.

We never got to see Lake Iseo in August 2012 as there was literally nowhere to stop. The few Sostas were stacked and all the campsites were pretty much full as well. Looked lovely though.*


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## GMJ (Jun 24, 2014)

Hi Barryd


Cheers


Yes we are looking forward to it.


With the exception of 1 aire in France, I have booked all the other sites we are staying at as it suits us to do that....knowing we have somewhere waiting for us takes a weight off my mind:smile2:


Graham:smile2:


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## Sprinta (Sep 15, 2010)

*good thread*

I've been told we are going to Italy and Rome taking a total of 19 days. We're taking our 2 dogs, and so accordingly I've discussed this with them both and we now outnumber SWMBO :wink2:

Thanks to the answers on here they seem to echo my own thoughts on which way to go, which was basically Calais, Luxembourg, Basel, Gotthard, then to the lakes

Once there I'll prove that Rome is still too far to get to, we'll meander around and come back by Mont Blanc-ish and back up through the Jura (I think)

To see how do-able it'll be I'm going to do a similar trip one week in June on the Triumph, alhough I'll be starting from Le Havre.


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## chermic (Feb 15, 2013)

I hope you enjoy Rome, we went there for my 60th and its wonderful. The main sites; Trevi Fountain, Colosseum etc have lots of men dressed as Roman Centurions. Just so you know, they will charge you to have a photo taken with them. I had mine taken but we bartered him down to 3e.

Rome is a lovely city and I would go back tomorrow given the chance. Have a good trip and keep your hand on your wallet, especially on their underground, we walked just about everywhere as its easy. The zebra crossings are interesting so just do as the Romans do and keep walking, the traffic will go around you ha ha ha. 

Enjoy


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## barryd (May 9, 2008)

Sprinta said:


> I've been told we are going to Italy and Rome taking a total of 19 days. We're taking our 2 dogs, and so accordingly I've discussed this with them both and we now outnumber SWMBO :wink2:
> 
> Thanks to the answers on here they seem to echo my own thoughts on which way to go, which was basically Calais, Luxembourg, Basel, Gotthard, then to the lakes
> 
> ...


I think you and the dogs are talking sense.


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## aldra (Jul 2, 2009)

Rome is indeed great

Not that we ever took the hound from, well you know from where

He was safe in an air conditioned van

The distance though with two dogs would worry me

We had 8 weeks and we dawdled around Venice and Assissi 

It's quite a long way to get there

And some lovely places on route

It's a shame to apply heads down and go for it

After all you can always do a city break
Which could well have advantages

Carry your passport and ask for concession

The Colosium is free to aged ones

As are many more

But you need to ask

Of course I look so young>
He doesn't 
But they obviously don't notice

Aldra:wink2:


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