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For the past few years we have been driving down to the Costa Brava in Spain for our summer holiday. This year we decided to do the journey down in one go, towing a trailer tent. We took the Newhaven to Dieppe Ferry (£300 return including 2 cabins). The Ferry left at 11pm and arrived in Dieppe at 4am local time, luckily we all managed about 4 hours sleep on the Ferry.

Following advice on this site, I ordered a TAG so that I could avoid queuing for the AutoRoute tolls

I drove the first leg, while the family slept in the car. Typically the first bit of the journey is slow as we drive through Dreux and Chartres, invariably getting held up behind slow lorries and the odd traffic jam. However, this year, in the early hours, progress was swift, I estimate reducing the journey by at least 30 minutes. The TAG was also a blessing as we sailed through the  Tolls without waking my wife

By the time the family all woke up around 7:30am we were past Orleans. We stopped in a service for breakfast. My wife drove the next leg to Clermont Ferrand, while I had a sleep. Unfortunately the Services just after Clermont had no fuel, so we headed off the AutoRoute to find some Diesel. I drove the next leg to the services after the Millau Viaduct, where we stopped for Lunch. The last leg from Millau to Spain was very clear, and we arrived at the campsite just after 4pm. This left time to get the tent setup and organised, and a quick trip to the beach before dinner

Total driving time was about 11 hours, of which the family was asleep for more than 3 hours

I towed the trailer tent at 65 to 70 mph. Even though my GTM was over 3500 KGs, technically the max speed limit was 90 kph (56mph). Pretty much everyone towing (including caravans) was doing the same speed irrespective of type of car (and most had a GTM above 3500 KG) so the law does not appear to be well enforced

The A71 between Clermont Ferrand and Bezziers (450km) is very mountainous. For the past few years, I have used a Mercedes E320, which has 230 BHP and with the automatic gearbox, made the hills seem trivial, however, I now have a Manual Kia Sedona with 190 BHP and an extra 250kgs; I was able to maintain at least 65mph, but really noticed some of the hills and had to use 4^th and 5^th gear to maintain my speed. The Mercedes was definitely more economical through the mountains. A lot of cars with Caravans were struggling up some of the climbs, so that should be factored into the journey time

This was without doubt the easiest journey to Spain that we have ever done. I was a little apprehensive when organising the route, however, I really need not have worried. If you have 2 drivers it is the best way to get to Spain (or south of France) and much less stress and cost than stopping half way down.

Hi Trekkin Trekkie

The plan to do the journey in one go came about by chance - normally we take the Portsmouth Le Harvre or Poole to Cherbourg crossing. Unfortunately this year there were no fast craft which could take a trailer, and the other crossing times meant that we would loose most of the day, and the overnight crossings were all over £600. I am not keen on Dover Calais as it adds considerably to our driving time. The only other crossing was Newhaven to Dieppe, which gets into Dieppe at 4am and is relatively cheap at £300 including cabins, so I thought why not give it a go

The journey was far less stressful than I had expected, however, we were always planning to stop if it was too hard. When planning the journey, I expected to arrive in Spain between 7 and 8pm and just put up the sleeping area of the Trailer Tent and leave the unpacking to the following day - so it was a massive bonus to arrive so early

I think that because we were able to unpack and set-up fully and spend an hour on the beach relax and get an early night, the next day we were all in really good shape.

We have experienced really bad traffic before and vowed never to travel again on a Saturday in August; 4 years ago, we left Clermont Ferrand at 8am and arrived on the site in Spain at 9:30pm (Normally a 7 hour journey) - we almost didn't make it before the site closed reception for the night. Now we travel on Thursday and Friday or Sunday and Monday and have not had any problems (Thursday is the best though - even in early August the traffic is incredibly light). This year, we travelled on Thursday

The key to success was the early start - since my wife and kids slept for the first 3rd of the Journey - by the time that they woke up we were only 1.5 hours from where we normally stop overnight anyway. For the first time ever, I don't think that we had "are we nearly there" comments until we were within 30 minutes of the Spanish border

Maybe it is just me, but I find overnight stops stressful - with 3 kids we require 2 rooms, plus the cost of dinner so it is always between 150 to 200 Euro. Then you have to find the hotel, sort out overnight bags, find somewhere for dinner, pack the following morning, worry about how safe the parking is........ OK it is not a really big deal but I can happily do without it.

My kids are age 9, 11 and 14. All of them are OK on long journeys, however, I wouldn't describe them as especially great travellers. The whole family all agreed that we should do the same thing next year

We only did this on the outbound journey, on the return we stopped off in Bourges as we have done for the past 4 years

We left the campsite (3 miles from Escala) at 12:45 and arrived in Bourges at 20:15

We went up the A71 and kept the speed between 60 and 70 mph where allowed, many parts had a speed limit of 70 or 90 kph.

I am not sure how much time it will add going via Limoges

Quote: Originally posted by Trekkin Tekkie on 28/8/2013

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Have you used the trailer tent main unit for stopovers at all?

- I see my current car is similar to your old one - (E320) I like mine too much to get rid.

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Unfortunately, my TT had 3 bikes and a roof box on it, so is a more significant job to unpack than most. The car has 3 windsurf boards and many masts and sails on it.

I really miss the Mercedes - in fact I didn't realise that the hills on the A71 were quite so steep - even fully loaded the Merc would just fly up them without fuss and loads of power to spare.

On the other hand, the Space in the Kia was fantastic, the extra space was one of the main reasons why the kids found the journey much easier. We also took a second fridge and there was still loads of space in the boot, even with the 2 extra seats folded in the boot

On the way back, we have to pack up the Trailer Tent, so rarely manage to leave site before 12pm (12:45 this year due to drying out after heavy rain the previous afternoon)

We drive from Spain to Bourges, which is about 7 1/2 hours including stops. We stay in the Ibis Style Hotel (formerly All Seasons Hotel) which is a fantastic family hotel and is 30 seconds from the Autoroute.

We like Bourges as an overnight stop as it is "just" a 4 hour drive to Dieppe or Le Harvre to following day

We usually take a late Wednesday afternoon train at Folkstone & ( I ) drive through the night to Issoire, where we had a one night stopover. As the wife doesn't drive abroad, (or tow for that matter), I have no alternative but to stop for the night. At least we're totally refreshed when we arrive in Spain (Las Dunas) the following afternoon and no arguments persue when putting the awning up.

On the return journey, we had a night stopover at Salbris, just south of Orleans, which took 8 hours from Spain. It was a 6 hour drive the following day to Calais.

We always avoid travelling on Saturdays due to half of France hitting the motorways at the same time.