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Driving to the Alps costs this much...

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 tomshooter 11 Dec 2017
Hi all,

I wrote an article a couple of years ago about how much it costs to drive the Alps and you can check it out here:

http://tomshooter.co.uk/blog/drive-to-france-a-trip-to-the-alps-costs/

If you have any questions, please get in touch!

Tom
 snoop6060 11 Dec 2017
In reply to tomshooter:

Useful, cheers.
Do you live in Dover? That doesn't include fuel this side. Can't remember exactly but my costs were higher than that for sure. I needed AA breakdown cover which was 70 I think.
 jezb1 11 Dec 2017
In reply to tomshooter:

You missed the most useful one, leave enough time to avoid toll roads.

Not in the Alps but We’ve just driven to Chulilla via Siurana and not paid a single toll.
 Brass Nipples 11 Dec 2017
In reply to tomshooter:

You have not included the price for fuel at the time. Nor a link to the French Goverment site that lists all the fuel places and their prices.
 DaveHK 11 Dec 2017
In reply to jezb1:

> You missed the most useful one, leave enough time to avoid toll roads.

Life's too short for that nonsense.
1
 Slarti B 11 Dec 2017
In reply to tomshooter:
Tom, Return tolls to Chamonix are (at current exchange rates) just over £142. I pay these to go on motorway because I think it saves quite a lot of time and less risk of accident. Not everyone will agree but for your blog post to be useful I think you should mention that option and the costs.
Post edited at 18:55
Lusk 11 Dec 2017
In reply to DaveHK:

> Life's too short for that nonsense.

First time I drove South, we avoided the tolls, took us about three days.
Stopping all the time for food and drinks etc. Probably cost more, but was worth doing.
Motorways ever since though.
 jezb1 11 Dec 2017
In reply to DaveHK:
Really? You’re lucky, saved €160 tolls to Spain, that’s a days work for me, well worth it!

Left La Harve 2100 and got to Siurana late the next evening after a good overnight sleep too. Most of the roads are pretty good
Post edited at 21:40
 Mark Eddy 11 Dec 2017
In reply to jezb1:

€160! We go from Eurotunnel to Costa Blanca (Denia area) for nearer €90 and that's mostly using the French toll roads. West side of France is cheaper than central / east. Once in Spain the A-23 is free and very good. Worth a look if you're planning another visit
 Castleman 11 Dec 2017
In reply to tomshooter:

A link to www.viamichelin.com would also be useful

That way you can compare tolls, times etc very easily
 pec 11 Dec 2017
In reply to tomshooter:
Regarding the avoiding tolls business, if you drive down via Belgium, Luxembourg, France and Switzerland you can avoid the tolls altogether, though you are supposed to buy a Vignette to use the Swiss motorways at about £30.
If you're going to the Swiss Alps or certain parts of the Italian Alps this makes sense anyway and even if you're going to Chamonix you can go over the Col de la Forclaz from Martigny and it only takes about 3 hours longer.
This also has the benefit of allowing you to fill up in Luxembourg which has some of the cheapest fuel in western Europe, currently about 25 cents per litre cheaper than France for both petrol and diesel.

Another tip is that you can use Tesco clubcard points to purchase Channel Tunnel tickets for free!
Post edited at 23:23
 bandit12 07 Jan 2018
In reply to tomshooter:

Also need to consider size of vehicle if using toll roads, cars and vans up to 2m high (VW T5 etc) are same price but anything with a high top goes in next class up which costs 50% more in France.
Bogwalloper 07 Jan 2018
In reply to Mark Eddy:

> €160! We go from Eurotunnel to Costa Blanca (Denia area) for nearer €90 and that's mostly using the French toll roads. West side of France is cheaper than central / east. Once in Spain the A-23 is free and very good. Worth a look if you're planning another visit

I do this journey a couple of times a year - can you break the cost down? Is your car solar powered?

W
 Mark Eddy 07 Jan 2018
In reply to Bogwalloper:

No, the 90 Euros is for tolls, so not including fuel. Can't remember how much the fuel comes to, but about 45mpg so mounts up.
 Dax H 07 Jan 2018
In reply to pec:

Luxembourg may be cheaper but any time I have been through there the backlog of traffic waiting to fill up has put me right off.
 jon 07 Jan 2018
In reply to jezb1:
Just for your info, Jez, ViaMichelin suggests 3 routes Calais > Siurana:

1. 13h58 1460km 103€ toll
2. 15h09 1365km 62€ toll
3. 14h19 1534km 130€ toll

Looks like you've climbed Chulilla out...
Post edited at 21:35
Bogwalloper 07 Jan 2018
In reply to Mark Eddy:

Ahh bummer! Was looking to save a few Euros there. We do northern France to Alicante and rarely get change from 400€ one way although our car can sup a bit

W
OP tomshooter 09 Jan 2018
In reply to pec:

I go via Switzerland on the way to Italy certainly. I drove it three times last year, so the savings of just getting one vignette definitely saved money! Plus, I think the Mont Blanc tunnel is extortionate.
 MG 09 Jan 2018
In reply to tomshooter:

Getting one of these

https://www.saneftolling.co.uk/subscription/

stops you being that annoying Englishman who at each toll has to get out, run round the car, pay, run back round the car, get in, and start again!!
OP tomshooter 10 Jan 2018
In reply to MG:

Top tip!
 Rich K 10 Jan 2018
In reply to MG:

The APPR telepeage token (www.appr.fr) is cheaper. Only EUR 1.70 each month you use it and no annual fee. The website is only in French but easy enough to order one with only a modest knowledge of French and you can get it delivered to the UK and charge it to a UK credit card.
 pec 10 Jan 2018
In reply to Dax H:

> Luxembourg may be cheaper but any time I have been through there the backlog of traffic waiting to fill up has put me right off. >

I've done it lots of times and although the fuel stations can be busy with bargain fuel hunters from all corners of Europe I don't think I've ever had to queue more than 5 mins.
My other tip is that there's no point coming off the motorway in Luxembourg to try and find fuel even cheaper as its the same price everywhere by law.


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