Driving to Italy

A personal view

Du Pasino Hotel at St Armand Les Eaux near Lille, in the Casino complex just outside the town. Cheaper deals at weekends. Choice of several restaurants.

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After crossing to Calais take the A16 towards Dunkirk, or cross to Dunkirk.. Then take the A25 towards Lille (in France but toll-free), then head for Tournai and Mons (Bergen) on A27, becoming A8 in Belgium. Then A16 & A7 to Mons, Charleroi and Namur.

Namur is a lovely old mediaeval city. You can take the old road parallel to the autoroute down the Meuse to Dinant. Only found an Ibis hotel there, but with views across the river.

Here you turn south onto the A4 towards Arlon and Luxembourg.

Hotel des Vignes at Remich, on the German border. Just carry on the A13 for a few kms after the A13 turnoff towards Mondorf & Remich.. Rooms with views across the Moselle. Good food.

www.hotel-vignes.lu

+352 23 699 149

NB Buy fuel in Montdorf – cheaper in Lux.

Once you are in Luxembourg you can carry on the A13 towards Saarbrucken and carry on through the toll-free German autobahn system to the E35 down past Freiburg to Basel, and through Switzerland, past Lucerne towards Como and Milan………

Otherwise, turn south onto the A3 (becoming A31 in France – still toll-free) towards Thionville and Metz.

Hotel Dancourt in Charmes. http://www.hotel-dancourt.com

+33 329 388080

Cheap, comfortable hotel in town centre. Good unpretentious food.

Also Relay de Vincey on main road, but seems a bit soulless.

Carry on past Metz towards Nancy after which the autoroute runs out but it is dual carriageway – A57.

As you carry on the dual carriageway runs out and you should head for Besancon.

Arbois. A lovely old wine town. Jean-Paul Jeunet +33 384 660567

http://www.jeanpauljeunet.com

Excellent restaurant. A bit pricey, but worth it for the experience. Also a hotel, but you can stay somewhere cheaper to afford the menu!

From Besancon you can head across the Jura on the N83 towards Bourg en Bresse, perhaps stopping at Arbois. (or take the A36 autoroute to Dole, then the A391)

Nantua. Lovely old town on a lake. Hotel L’Embarcadere beside the lake. Excellent food.

http://hotelembarcadere.com/ +33 474 752288

Join the A40 to go round Bourg en Bresse.

You can continue up towards Geneva and Chamonix on A40, through Nantua. Carry on through the Mont Blanc Tunnel and down the Italian autostrade past Aosta on the A5 towards Santhia and Alessandria……….

Chateau des Comtes de Challes at Challes les Eaux. Good position, rooms ok, but excellent food, beautifully presented.

http://www.chateau-comtes-challes.federal-hotel.com/page_en_1.html

Hotel Beaurivage. On Lac le Bourget. Good food.

+33 479 250038

www.beaurivage-bourget-du-lac.com

Otherwise carry on through the Bugey (an area rather like Lunigiana, I think) towards Lac du Bourget (D1075 then D1504). At Le Bourget along the lake there are several hotels.

Head up past Chambery towards Modane and the Frejus Tunnel on the A43.

Once in Italy, drop down on the A32 round Torino and on past Asti on the A21 towards Alessandria.

Turn off towards Genova on the A26. Go right through Genova and continue down the coast on the A12 (direction Livorno)