Euro trip.....maybe!

[pops]

Always fancied a Euro trip. into France, into Germany, into Switzerland and visit the Alps.

Back into France via Geneva then home.

We read about this road, that road, this pass, that pass however, does anyone know of a sensible route that can be taken?

I appreciate I can look at Google maps but asking for real life experiences of various roads. Not expecting to be able to get on every single road that's classed as a "must see", just some sort of route that would cover some decent ones.

Have thought about this for a few years now, planned to take the GP and have tried making plans for it. The main stumbling block has been the one sat next to me on the sofa

Can't say I blame her as I'd find it boring being a passenger! The difference this time is I have Cesil to go in and would be quite happy to go on my own, even get her a plane ticket to Geneva or somewhere so she only has half a trip to do.

Thoughts are, straight to Geneva, pick her up and take the scenic route home or vice versa. Current work commitments mean that by taking just 4 shifts of, I end up with 12 off which would give me about 10 days to be away. Possibly looking at August time, or would September likely be a bit quieter?

Thanks in advance.

[digi]

I covered the whole of Western Europe last time, but done it in a car I brought specifically for the trip (LEXUS - no breakdowns compared with Benz ). Took me about 1.5 months and loved every bit of it.

Long haul drives would be a killer in the CSL, but the passes mentioned in Topgear etc will be heaven in the cesil. Was drab in the Lexus, but still great as I saw quite a few petroheads with their GT3's and M3 running around. Was magic!

Petrol is dead cheap in Spain though.

Don't forget the tracks, I done the track rental hires and it wasn't ideal, but atleast dotted the I's and cross the T.

[Clubber]

I take a Euro Trip every year since 2007 and I am never tired of it. Good call.

Last year was my first with the cesil. I started in Italy and finished in France. You can rotate the start to your preference. My trips are always mixed with track, sightseing, beach and nightlife.
Last year my route was, Trieste-Munich-Stuttgart-Ring-Zurich-Como-Monoco-Cannes-St.Tropez-Toulon. With this route I split most of the long drives with mid city stops and my longest single drive is usually 400-500kms. In that timeframe CSL is bearable. Anything longer could be tiresome.

Munich is a must see for every BMW enthusiast as Welt and Museum is enough to make it worthwhile not to mention the nice atmosphere of city life of Munich.

Stuttgart is a good midway stop to the ring in my case and I usually see a few friends there while at it. Porsche museum is ok but not extraordinary. The city is super alive on weekend nights.

Ring is... RING. Track,people,laps,pistenklause, forrest roads to hotel etc.

I would avoid Geneva as it is very boring and super expensive. Zurich is a bit better but still no match for France or Italy for entertainment. Passing the Alps from Zurich to Como was amazing as always, beautiful lake side scenery and amazing tunnels and ribbon of tarmac.

Try to make it down to Cote d'Azure if possible as it makes whole distance worth it.

Stay in one city there and sightsee the near cities by train,taxi if you like. I usually stay in Cannes as it is the center of Monaco and St.Tropez which both are my favorite places to chill.

I did a south to south circle so in your case it would make more sense to do ; Ring-Stutt-Munich-Como-Cote d'Azure, Zurich and back...

Either way you can't go wrong with any of these choices.

[Lefty]

There are so many good roads in Europe, it's very difficult to point you in a specific direction.
I'm not a big fan of Alps since in the summertime it is usually jampacked with cyclists and/or motorhomes, neither of which I want to encounter.
I really enjoy the French Vosges region for the pure driving fun, mindblowing roads and a bit more quiet. But it's not a lively region, so not a place I'd take my girlfriend to for multiple days.

For you Islanders I'd arrive in Calais, go south east to Spa, cross into Germany via the backroads and stop at the Ring (preferrably on a day when it is open).
If you haven't crashed your car by then (), I'd take a bit of derestricted Autobahn further south and then cross west into France towards the Vosges. Route des crêtes, route Napoleon en then arrive at Cannes, enjoy some beach and attention whores. Then it's up to you...there are a lot, a lot of options..

[pops]

Not too keen on the idea of getting tied up in a horde of cyclists and motorhomes!

[aussie]

This was our last Euro drive, tiring, I think we ran 7 passes on one day

pics of below trip

http://www.pistonheads.com/gassing/t...R%2E&mid=56397



Col de Turini
Col de la Bonette
Col d’Izoard
Col du Galibier
Col de l’Iseran (highest in the Alps at 2770m)
Col des Aravis
Grimsel Pass
Furka Pass
St. Gotthard Pass
San Bernardino Pass
Fluela Pass
Ofen Pass
Umbrail Pass
Stelvio Pass
Gavia Pass
Nockalmstrasse
Grossglocker High Alpine Road
Gerlos Alpenstrasse

[pops]

That is excellent mate.

Thank you

[glendog74]

Here's one we did a couple of years back:

http://www.cslregister.com/forum/showthread.php?t=9085

[pops]

Thank you, some good routes and ideas coming in