I thought that I would share a few photos of our recent holiday in France.

We set off in the wife's Crossfire and went through the Eurotunnel at stupid o'clock on Monday 18th June, arriving in France in heavy rain. As usual, I headed for Rouen and then Chartres to avoid the horror of trying to negotiate the Paris ring road. We stopped in Chartres for a pleasant petit-dejeuner opposite the magnificent Cathedral and headed for Montlucon for an overnight stopover in the Etap Hotel there, which comes highly recommended incidentally.

The weather was brighter on Tuesday morning and we set off from Montlucon heading for our accommodation in the Gorges de la Dourbie, about 20 miles from Millau. We stopped in Millau to pick up a few essential supplies and arrived at our destination in heavy rain at about 16:00.

By Wednesday morning the rain had stopped, the roads had dried out and we enjoyed eleven consecutive days and nights without seeing any more wet weather. With temperatures soaring well into the thirties on more than one occasion, the roof of the Crossfire was down every day and we had some great trips out visiting many of the local tourist spots, including the nearby Gorge du Tarn, Gorge de Jonte, Cirque du Navacelles and Meze on the Etang du Thau.

Sunday 1st July was wet and cool all day and we left our accommodation on Monday, visiting Rocamadour on our way to our overnight stopover at the excellent (for a budget hotel) Ace Hotel in Brive, before reluctantly heading back to Calais for our return trip on Eurotunnel.

We saw no other Crossfires in France. Are there any there? The car certainly attracted a fair amount of attention when parked and when refuelling. We were also flashed and waved at on the M25 on Tuesday night on our way back home from Folkestone after getting off the Eurotunnel by a couple in another Crossfire Roadster, who slowed down to wave at us before accelerating away.

The Crossfire performed faultlessly, returning no less that 27mpg and up to 36mpg cruising on the Autoroutes, covering more than 2,200 miles in total. All in all, a fantastic holiday in some of the most spectacular scenery in France. Roll on June 2013, when we plan to head for the Gorge du Verdon.

Here are a few photos;

 

Great pic's looks like you had better weather than we have had here

We are off in a couple of weeks, taking in Germany, Austia, Italy, Monacco and France

 

Stunning and very jealous! I have recently been to Spain on holiday (Costa Blanca) and actually saw another Crossfire Spainish registered!! I bet the XF was in it's elements cruising around in France?

 

Totally jealous - that being said we are toying with the idea of a similar excursion 2nd week sept

 

Beautiful pics and write up about your vacation in France

I will be heading to Europe in a few weeks to visit our past exchange students and their families.
Our travels will include Angelholm, Sweden ~ Copenhagen Denmark then on to Konigslutter, Germany ~ Berlin, Germany ~ Munich, Germany and eventually ending in Hamburg, Germany.

Unfortunately my Crossfire will remain in the garage here in the USA.

 

It certainly was, whatever the situation. Being a manual, the torque of the motor ensured that I didn't have to stir the gear lever around all day when touring the area and the superior surfacing of the French Autoroutes made the journey to and from our accommodation a real joy.

Finally, having the roof down in such stunning scenery and fantastic weather really made our time in France very special.

We are returning to the Gorges du Verdon in Provence next year and are already looking forward to it!!

 

so the obvious question for me is what's to do en-route? I know I want to see sir Norm's bridge and the Gorge du Tarn etc but just curious if there's anything PARTICULARLY special to see

 

To be fair, the journey there, if you use the Autoroutes as we do, can be much the same as any motorway journey in this country, but with much less traffic. I wanted to avoid Paris so headed for Rouen from disembarkation at Eurotunnel, Calais. Once there we headed for Chartres, stopping for breakfast and to go over the magnificent cathedral which is currently going through a very comprehensive restoration. We picked up the Autoroutes again near Orleans and stopped at Montlucon for an overnight in the Etap hotel there, which for a budget hotel was remarkably good.

We set off on the second morning after refuelling in Montlucon, paying between 1.46 and 1.51 Euro per litre (£1.15 - £1.20) for 95 RON unleaded at most supermarkets during the trip. The A75 south of Clermont Ferrand becomes more and more scenic, passing through some exceptional scenery and at the moment is free of tolls until you reach the Millau Viaduc. Crossing this stunning bridge currently costs just 6.70 Euro in a car.

Once there, there is so much to see and do that two weeks is hardly enough time. There are the four Gorges, Tarn, Jonte, Dourbie and Trevezel, various caves, Mont Aigoual, the famous Viaduc and visitor centre, medieval villages, dramatic landscapes like the Cirque du Navacelles and Roquefort (the home of the famous cheese) is just a short drive away and some unbelievable roads to drive on.

This was our second holiday in the area and could easily go back again next year to see some of the parts we didn't get time to and revisit some of the areas we love. It is a very special area and well worth the effort to get to in my honest (and humble) opinion.

 

Great pics!!!! Thanks for sharing

 

The ideal way to do such a trip, as we do every year, keep off the motorways we will be doing approx 3500 miles through 5 countries and wont use an inch of motorway That way you see the 'real' country you are in. We have all hotels pre booked and make up the route between them as we go along.

 

“It is good to have an end to journey toward; but it is the journey that matters, in the end”

Ursula K. LeGuin

 

to both you and 11Feb - many thanks for this info, looking for 2nd week of Sept in all likelyhood so a little while still left to plan

 

No problem, Waylander - have a great time!