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Driving to France / Germany

tommers

tommers

Fuck it, it's fine.
Instead of going to a beach this summer we are going to drive down to the Black Forest. Through France on the way there and then back through Germany and Belgium. Anybody got any tips or things I need to do beforehand?

I can see I need a UK badge now, instead of GB :rolleyes:

and I need a badge to drive in France for LEZ, and a different one for Germany. And a permit for Ghent (cos we are going there).

I'm looking at the German permit. I can get one from TUV Sud for EUR 17.50, which I guess is official? But I can see other sites offering it for EUR 6. Are they dodgy? The one in France is less money so it's fine. And the one for Ghent is free.

I think I can adjust my lights in my car. I've got a hazard triangle and a hi vis jacket.

Anything else?

Having spent about two days booking various Air b&bs I think next year we'll be back on the beach.
 
Hi tommers you have to chose the Ferry or the tunnel. I usually came from places like Cardiff and the drive to Dover was already a good stretch so I would take the Dover Calais ferry and chill on the boat eat a meal and generally break the journey. Up to you.
 
tommers said:
Instead of going to a beach this summer we are going to drive down to the Black Forest. Through France on the way there and then back through Germany and Belgium. Anybody got any tips or things I need to do beforehand?

I can see I need a UK badge now, instead of GB :rolleyes:

and I need a badge to drive in France for LEZ, and a different one for Germany. And a permit for Ghent (cos we are going there).

I'm looking at the German permit. I can get one from TUV Sud for EUR 17.50, which I guess is official? But I can see other sites offering it for EUR 6. Are they dodgy? The one in France is less money so it's fine. And the one for Ghent is free.

I think I can adjust my lights in my car. I've got a hazard triangle and a hi vis jacket.

Anything else?

Having spent about two days booking various Air b&bs I think next year we'll be back on the beach.
Click to expand...
If you drive in any cities in France at least there are things similar to the congestion charge. You need to pay, or get a sticker for your car, or something. Definitely for Paris and maybe for some other cities.
 
I never had to get any permits, but the last time I drove to Germany was probably 10 - 15 years ago.

Wonder if Sasaferrato would know more?

Watch out on the German autobahn, they whizz along, as long as you keep an eye on your rear view mirror and get back into your lane immediately after overtaking you should be fine.
 
weltweit said:
Hi tommers you have to chose the Ferry or the tunnel. I usually came from places like Cardiff and the drive to Dover was already a good stretch so I would take the Dover Calais ferry and chill on the boat eat a meal and generally break the journey. Up to you.
Click to expand...
Yeah, one of the reasons we're doing it is that we live in the area ;) Never used it since we moved here, seems a bit daft.
 
I made a mistake driving to Stuttgart in Winter on summer tyres. There was snow and everybody else had winter tyres.

I don't know your route but it can be very pleasant in Germany to drive down the Rhine, certainly IIRC between Koln and Koblenz. Lots of castles etc ..
 
weltweit said:
I made a mistake driving to Stuttgart in Winter on summer tyres. There was snow and everybody else had winter tyres.

I don't know your route but it can be very pleasant in Germany to drive down the Rhine, certainly IIRC between Koln and Koblenz. Lots of castles etc ..
Click to expand...
We're going to cologne, so that will be good.
 
souljacker said:
Not any more.

Don't use a satnav that has speed camera detection/alerting. It's illegal in France and the french popo will pull you for it.

Get the thing that lets you use the tolls by just driving through. Makes any peage route driving much easier. Liber-t https://www.autoroutes.fr/en/payment-methods.htm
Click to expand...
Thanks.

Apparently waze is OK but that's exactly the kind of nonsense I want to know about.

www.connexionfrance.com

Can apps such as Waze show location of speed cameras on French roads?

Some countries in Europe have banned such applications
www.connexionfrance.com www.connexionfrance.com
 
tommers said:
We're going to cologne, so that will be good.
Click to expand...
The first bit, between Koln and Bonn isn't so great, Initially you go past a massive chemical plant / refinery but once you get towards and past Bonn you are on what is known IIRC as the romantic Rhine which continues down to Koblenz.

And at Koblenz you have options also, it's there that the Rhine and the Moselle join and you can slightly change direction and drive up the Moselle into vineyard country, some great sights there also.

1719089362317.png
 
From the RAC website
Emergency vehicles have right of way on the German Autobahn and when traffic is moving slowly it’s important to create a ‘Rettungsgasse’ or emergency vehicle lane.

If there are two lanes in each direction, you should move your car to the far right or far left depending on your position to create a middle lane for emergency vehicles.

If there are more than two lanes, drivers in the right-side lanes should move further right, while drivers in the third or fourth left lane should stay on the far left.
 
Bahnhof Strasse said:
You need a hi-viz jacket for every occupant of the car and they must all be in the cabin, even with estate cars they must not be in the boot.

And Europa Park is an awesome day out in the area.
Click to expand...
The law requires one vest per vehicle.
www.maaf.fr

Triangle, gilet de sécurité, quels sont les équipements de sécurité obligatoires dans votre véhicule ?

Triangle, gilet de sécurité et éthylotest dans un voiture, découvrez et ce que vous risquez si vous ne les avez pas.
www.maaf.fr www.maaf.fr


I don't know why a lot of sites claim one per every occupant, some still claim a breathalyser is mandatory.
 
keybored said:
The law requires one vest per vehicle.
www.maaf.fr

Triangle, gilet de sécurité, quels sont les équipements de sécurité obligatoires dans votre véhicule ?

Triangle, gilet de sécurité et éthylotest dans un voiture, découvrez et ce que vous risquez si vous ne les avez pas.
www.maaf.fr www.maaf.fr


I don't know why a lot of sites claim one per every occupant, some still claim a breathalyser is mandatory.
Click to expand...

Perhaps things have changed since the jillet jaune protests, Macron wanting less of those things in circulation maybe...
 
You shouldn't need a Crit'Air on the route through to Germany unless you're taking some serious detours. That said, it's cheap and easy to get. You must put it on the right side of the windscreen. Which is annoying for RHD cars, but that's how the cameras are set up.
 
Off the top of my head...

  • The French crit'air is dirt cheap and easy to get. You don't need it unless you're going through cities tbh but having it means you can make up your route as you go along.
  • I've got the stickers for headlights but they're still in the glovebox unfitted and have been for the last 2 years :facepalm:
  • Have all your docs to hand in your vehicle, (inc V5).
  • Halfords do a 'euro pack' with all the odds and sods you need - triangle/hi vis etc
  • Depending on your route, you could get a toll tag which means you can sail through without stopping
  • I use Waze and have never had any grief - though have been done for speeding in France a couple of times so their detection isn't 100%
  • If you set google maps to 'avoid tolls' but keep 'motorways' on, you take all the fast A/B roads which are still probably better/faster than UK motorways
  • When you get hungry, switch the satnav to avoid tolls & motorways and you'll end up going through little towns/villages with dirt cheap yet excellent menu du jour (some of these come with a bottle of wine...)
 
Spymaster said:
So the breathalyser isn’t mandatory?

I don’t think I’ve ever had one in a car, in France or anywhere else.
Click to expand...
No. I still keep the same one in the glove box from back when they were mandatory but it's got to be well past its use-by date now.
 
Having toured germany extensively over the last few years, i can state that i find the Autobahn genuinely scary...no matter how fast you go there'll always be someone going way faster, dodgy overtaking, cutting in, etc.
Be prepared to having to be fully alert at all times, and still experiencing the unexpected regularly.
 
klang said:
Having toured germany extensively over the last few years, i can state that i find the Autobahn genuinely scary...no matter how fast you go there'll always be someone going way faster, dodgy overtaking, cutting in, etc.
Be prepared to having to be fully alert at all times, and still experiencing the unexpected regularly.
Click to expand...
This is where the modern tech can be helpful. Find a speed you're comfy with, lock in the adaptive cruise and go the whole way without touching a pedal. (I only got adaptive cruise a few months ago and am a massive convert from someone who'd only previously used it to stop myself from speeding)
 
Chz said:
This is where the modern tech can be helpful. Find a speed you're comfy with, lock in the adaptive cruise and go the whole way without touching a pedal. (I only got adaptive cruise a few months ago and am a massive convert from someone who'd only previously used it to stop myself from speeding)
Click to expand...
I find it most useful for the 20 limits here too.
 
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