We are looking to use this in summer and have no experience of it. It leaves from the calais area and terminates at the pyrenees. Anyone used it and can offer some insight please? There will be 6 or 8 of us going with the bikes. Thanks Phil
Looking online it looks as if the service was discontinued a couple of years ago from calais? Looking like a service may still be available from Paris though?
I looked into this myself once but its very expensive. If you're looking for an easy way to spain its worth looking at the ferries from portsmouth/southampton to bilbao/santander. A bit cheaper &gets you to around the same place. Then ride through the pyrennees &back to the uk!
Thanks Mobiz, we have used the ferry before. I think it was around £350 on the ferry, the train is more expensive?
+1 for the Santander ferry, 26 hours to have a lot of beer, sleep and sober up. Then the N260 back to France and the Pyreneese.
The train was going to work out at over £500 i think.Plus,the impression i got was that the motor rail is designed more for cars &so was a bit more risky due to the inexperienced staff compared to the ferry guys who are very experienced a strapping down bikes. Also, as Drinky said on the ferry u get a cabin,bed &a bar!
A cabin that I have been very green in lol! My mates going to have a weigh up and see what he can find, £500 is too steep. Did you cross in a rowing boat Drinky? It was 17 hours for me! Looks like you travel from Paris seperate from your bike and pick it up the other end. That means leaving your keys with someone to move it off the train and park it then. Sounding not too good............ Maybe a rethink.
I have done both,the train was awfull,loads of waiting around before departure,the air con was not working on a really hot summers day,you get off the train at some ungodly time in the morning,get fed the worst breakfast I have ever had,and believe me I have travelled to the poorest countries in the world.No fun at all.The ferry is comfortable and civilised,you can spend all day on deck,lovely if good weather,look for dolphins and whales in the bay of biscay.The only problem I had on the boat was I blew all my cash because we got pissed,stayed pissed and also blew our money in the casino.But we had a ball.Your choice at the end if the day,whatever method I wish you Bon Voyage.
We did this on the way from Paris to the South Coast of France a few years back and it was really good. The guys were excellent at strapping down the bikes, far better than the ferry, you ride your bike on, sit on it, they strap it perfectly with special anchor points, and then you get off and go on the other train. Had a berth, slept, woke up in Nice. We took some real exotica machinery too and they were extremely careful. It wasn't cheap, but it was cheaper than spending the fuel and all that to ride down and although it would have been good to ride both ways (we rode back the wiggly way!), we didn't have the time, so we used one night to cover the whole of France. I hate the ferry. Have put my bike on it a few times, strapping down is a joke (one fat strap over the seat only?!) and it's not that pleasant being stuck in a club 18/30 booze cruise and polyester party for 24 hours! But each to their own....!
Tiz true that it can be a booze cruise,and its full of hen party's too.....not many hen party's on the train though.
Firstly, the train from Calais stopped a few years ago, the only option now is Paris. Secondly, you don't ride on the train with your bike, it's a freight service only, so you'll have to find your own way to the destination. Thirdly though, it needn't be all that expensive. I looked into it last year, and a one-way trip from Paris to Biarritz was just over 100euros - you'd spend more in fuel riding down there. And a return flight from Paris by Easyjet was just £35. So if you do it off-season it can be a pretty cheap way to miss all the crap roads in France. You can only book up to 3 months in advance though.
I am off to Portugal with an organised trip. They do it by ferry to cherbourg then ride, 200 miles, to St. Nazaire then ferry to Gijon in Northern Spain. The guy running it does this all the time and says this is the cheapest and best way. I rode from Dieppe to Andora last year and it cost a fortune in tolls and fuel. Regards Steve
I like the look of that, just checked it out on google maps. I rode from Calais to Barcelona a few years ago and it cost a bomb.
Some replies give the impression that the Hol doesn't start until you get to your final destination. It should start the moment you lock the door to your house but having said that I don't feel mine has started until I am in the queue for the Ferry. The ride through the continent whichever country shouldn't be a chore
