View Full Version : my first trip to france- what do i need to know
as per the title
what do i need to know?
do i need a GB sticker? is it worth getting some maps?
I know it sounds silly but its all new to me!
im only going for a long day, but look to start a few more during the year
thanks all:)
Tim in Belgium
14-03-08, 02:29 PM
as per the title
what do i need to know?
do i need a GB sticker? is it worth getting some maps?
I know it sounds silly but its all new to me!
im only going for a long day, but look to start a few more during the year
thanks all:)
Main things:
1. Insurance, check you are covered
i) for your bike
ii) for your self (motorbike specific holiday insurance to cover medical fees)
2. You may want to consider continental breakdown cover.
3. Get one of those E111 replacement card things (can't remember the name).
4. Take copies of Insurance, Driving licence and registration with you (I was asked for all of these when stopped for speeding in Austria on the bike and France in the car). I always take the originals.
5. GB sticker - never bothered myself, but when stopped in Austria for speeding they said I should get one at the next available garage, so better safe than sorry.
6. Cash card/credit card so you can get some money out and pay for things.
7. Your passport :)
8. Maps are a good ides, I rip out pages from the continental michelin road atlas for autoroutes/main roads and then buy a local michelin map for the area I'm in for more details.
9. Accomodatiion - I tend to just turn up place and try and find somewhere, part of the adventure.
Have a look in the Eurotour section, there are some good tips and threads in there.
Hope that was some help.
dizzyblonde
14-03-08, 02:51 PM
my mate in France says the GB sticker stands for gullible barsteward. But I still put one on anyway, and everything Tim says.
Oh and make sure, depending how far in your going, to make sure you've got coinage euro's not just paper ones, as if your on a bike its a pain in the ar$e playing with paper at Peages.
Plan your route down to a T, so your not fddling with a map, I put all my Dizzyblonde directions in my tankbag, so i could read where i was at, and for the first time ever in France I got me, my bloke and our mate all the way down to my mates town, Les Nouillers.........and thats a flippin long way to go without getting lost
Remember you're not in England and that just because they do things differently doesn't mean to say that they aren't done as well as we do things here;)
ASM-Forever
14-03-08, 03:25 PM
Noone has mentioned driving on the right side of the road............ :)
Be aware of public holidays, we do tend to have an excessive amount of them in France and everything tends to shut down. Same goes for Sundays....we're a catholic country after all!
If you do need help/directions pretend you're anything other than English. N.B. if they are old, German is not a preferable choice. :p
With regards to speeds, try to behave in villages/towns. The feds take speeding in these sorts of places really seriously and they will march you to a cash point or take your bike!
the_lone_wolf
14-03-08, 04:00 PM
Be aware of public holidays, we do tend to have an excessive amount of them in France and everything tends to shut down.
rubbish, you all spend most of the year on strike;)
"zut allor, eet eez sunny, we should strike"
"d'accord, see you at zee beach"
"don't forget your beret..."
or at least that's how i imagine the conversations go, peiced it together mostly from old episodes of "allo allo"
;)
They drive on the right and you go round roundabouts the otehr way. Oh, and the place is full of French people.
ASM-Forever
14-03-08, 04:59 PM
rubbish, you all spend most of the year on strike;)
"zut allor, eet eez sunny, we should strike"
"d'accord, see you at zee beach"
"don't forget your beret..."
or at least that's how i imagine the conversations go, peiced it together mostly from old episodes of "allo allo"
;)
Thats the lefties, i see myself more on the right.
I do have a rather extensive selection of berets though. ;)
the_lone_wolf
14-03-08, 05:27 PM
I do have a rather extensive selection of bries though. ;)
corrected for you;)
Have a GB sticker or "Euro" number plate. I know a lot of folk say they don't bother (why not??) but it's just something else to make them suspicious if you do get stopped. As said in an earlier post, some countries are strict, I know people who've had on the spot fines in Austria for not having one. France is a bit easier going, but don't wind them up.
You can get a steep on-the-spot fine for failing to stop at a stop sign, they take it seriously. On a bike, put a foot down.
As said, stick to speed limits in towns, the limit starts/ends at the town sign (50kph=30mph unless shown otherwise).
If there is a speed camera sign, there is a camera! Usually a big grey box at waist height, easy enough to see. They are getting more common but nowhere near as bad as here.
Be especially careful leaving petrol stations until you are really used to driving on the right, it's easy to get it wrong. Also turning right the first few times seems odd.
Be aware of "priorite a droite" where cars coming from the right have priority. It's not that common now, but just be aware that they might pull out.
Generally speaking they are very easy going and more relaxed about things than here, take it easy and enjoy the scenery.
If you happen to go to Le Havre and head out of town to the Pont du Normandie (fabulous bridge), it's free for bikes (toll for cars), get over to the right hand lane and filter through.
Brittany ferries are good. Clean, efficient. I try to use the fastcraft where possible, to Caen or Cherbourg usually.
Take some sort of puncture kit, they may be a compromise but if you're really stuck it's better to have something rather than nothing.
You don't need to mask off the headlight (not a requirement for bikes).
as per the title
what do i need to know?
do i need a GB sticker? is it worth getting some maps?
I know it sounds silly but its all new to me!
im only going for a long day, but look to start a few more during the year
thanks all:)
passport
credit card
drive ont'other side
maps
chilled out disposition.
and enjoy!!!
rick0361
14-03-08, 07:06 PM
Speedferries.com do some good deals and they have just started taking bikes again. Got my car and 4 passengers accross and back last september for ?70.
Also plenty of reasonably priced hotels/motels about pretty much everywhere in France. Campanile/ Premiere Classe are two that belong to the Envergure group - book online and break up your journey. http://www.envergure.fr
The easy living and lunchtime drinks are good but don;t drink and drive this is really a hot topic at the moment.
Police come in three flavours in France
Police Municipale - tend to be for towns and cities
Gendaremerie Nationale - National police force with special responsibility for roads and motorways - they also do the speed traps and vehicle checks and they have very fast cars and motorbikes,
CRS - Riot police part of the ministry of defence really and tasked with civil order strangely enough they provide most of the life guards around the coast as well,
Most of all enjoy it there are lots of fantastic roads and countryside to see and drive down. I lived there for 12 months a long time ago and I have never forgotten the lifestyle. It is why we usually go back 2 or 3 times a year
:p
thanks for the advice all.
I got my deal through britnany ferries. its cost us 35 quid return for me and the missus and the bike! good eh!
I have taken on board everything you have all said and am now putting the important things into place!
Cheers
-Ralph-
15-03-08, 07:49 PM
Read http://english.controleradar.org/ before you go. Most of the cameras are forward facing so you'll be fine, but police speed traps are common.
You don't leave the 40 or 50KPH speed limit through villages until you reach a sign that has the village name with a line through it.
In the car you should have a spare bulb kit, not sure about the bike.
If stopped by the police, helmet off before you speak and let them see your face and eyeball you straight away, be very pleasant and ameniable. It gains trust. You do not speak any French and you understand nothing! Keep documentation in order and handy, hand it over as soon as asked with no argument! Don't carry cash in an obvious place so you can show them an almost empty wallet (15-30 Euros) when they ask you to pay a fine. If they want to take you to a cash point make out that thats no problem, but your not sure if your card will work in a French cash machine. Every Frenchman has a limit to how much work he will have to do before he gives up. If it's too much hassle and they like you because you've been friendly tourist just trying to have a holiday, they'll let you go.
Read about and understand "priorite a droite". A French driver will not slow down if he has priority, even if he thinks your not stopping, he'll watch you heading towards him and carry blindly on shouting and swearing at you as if that is going to prevent that accident. He won't touch the brakes, after all an accident would be your fault, then he'll complain like hell when actually happens despite him having done nothing to avoid it. My wife is French and it's taken me years to get her to understand that drivers in the UK assume that it is safe to maneouver, even if they don't have priority, on the basis that the other driver has seen them and will change speed or direction to avoid a collision.
chazzyb
15-03-08, 08:38 PM
Yeah; language - they speak french, allegedly. If they pretend not to undertand you, just shout LOUDER!
the white rabbit
15-03-08, 08:53 PM
Fill up on a saturday afternoon, on sunday some filling stations are card only (unmanned) and dont take UK cards, only french ones. And its not easy to find an alternative in the sticks. At least last time I was there. Sounds bizarre but believe me, I have nearly run out of petrol in a number of foreign countries :lol:
On, you are only going for a day. Well if its sunday keep the tank topped up as and when you see signs of life or are in towns.
-Ralph-
15-03-08, 09:32 PM
Fill up on a saturday afternoon, on sunday some filling stations are card only (unmanned) and dont take UK cards, only french ones. And its not easy to find an alternative in the sticks. At least last time I was there. Sounds bizarre but believe me, I have nearly run out of petrol in a number of foreign countries :lol:
Very true - Thats a good tip!
dizzyblonde
15-03-08, 10:25 PM
http://www.paris-expat.com/guide/12-06clarke.htm
read this book, talk to the snail. I've got the series of these books, my best mate over there does now, they have me rolling in laughter.
This one is particularly funny, more so when you get back to Angleterre and re-read it
STRAMASHER
16-03-08, 02:34 AM
Yeah, forget the GB sticker thing. If you get stopped by the any Euro cop , look at their skanky BMW Boxer in awe and you may turn out to be their new best friend. Give them all your colour photocopies of your license etc. and get gawping at those mean machines. Young dumb and full of ...:roll: Its not at all like the shte you need to go through with cops over here.
Seriously, all you need to know is you are going to have a ****in good time as its a different world for a biker over there(anywhere). Your problem will be after you come back and want to kill some cnut a mile out of Portsmouth/Dover cos the driving here is so ****in bad.:rolleyes:
Have a good one, and post yer pics!
Bonswar:)
They drive on the right and you go round roundabouts the otehr way. Oh, and the place is full of French people.
oh my god..........never thought about that one...
been to paris once, the locals cant/dont/wont speek english....
ended up pointing to things i wanted to buy..:smt104
-Ralph-
16-03-08, 08:01 AM
oh my god..........never thought about that one...
been to paris once, the locals cant/dont/wont speek english....
ended up pointing to things i wanted to buy..:smt104
Yep, especially in gay Parii! Why should they though. I've never seen someone walk into a British shop and blurt out what they want in French. They're not going to get any more than a very blank expression if they do. :rolleyes:
the white rabbit
16-03-08, 08:50 AM
But if you think about what you actually say in a shop here, there's little to learn.
For example, if one goes into a baker's for a cake, you tend to say 'Hello, one of those, please. Thank you.'
Conversational french will teach you 'Good morning, sir or madam. What a fine selection of sweet and savoury delicacies. Now which one will satisfy my apetite for a sugary snack. Ah, yes, the cream centred merangue. Thank you for serving me. What a lovely day, I am now going to proceed to the 5th Arrondisement.'
Hence stick with 'Want that one!', 'please' and 'thank you' and just hold out a hand of change for them to take from. Dirk Kinvig will be travelling the world by this method. :lol:
when we go we are traveling to cherbourg on the ferry. Any recommendations of nice villages, towns etc around here to visit?
thanks
-Ralph-
16-03-08, 09:28 AM
Post in the Euro Tour section as well to ask about stuff near Cherbourg.
Make your way as fast as possible through their godforsaken country until you reach Germany, Belgium, Switzerland, Spain or Italy.
joe mangle
16-03-08, 11:49 AM
you will love it!!
the sunday petrol thing is worth bearing in mind, euro plates are fine (we are european after all!) We found the people fantastic, bikers and non bikers alike. Just make an effort to try and speak french and people respond well. Make sure your map is bang up to date! ( we experienced changed junction numbers a couple of times).
have a good time guys!
when we go we are traveling to cherbourg on the ferry. Any recommendations of nice villages, towns etc around here to visit?
thanks
Bayeux. They've got some kind of knitted thing on a wall there. Tells the story of an evil french king that shot an english king in the eye. It's a bit like an aulde style TV series.
My first night on my RTA I'll be staying in a Chateau just down the road from there. Talk about roughing it.
How much was the ferry? £58 from Poole?
timwilky
16-03-08, 03:37 PM
Nasty experience at first French roundabout. Approached it correctly from the RHS. kept telling myself ride on the right. The roundabout was empty so what does the wally do. yup turned left.
Seriously though, learn a bit of french. Even if they can speak English, why should they for a dumb brit too ignorant to learn the basics
Bayeux. They've got some kind of knitted thing on a wall there. Tells the story of an evil french king that shot an english king in the eye. It's a bit like an aulde style TV series.
My first night on my RTA I'll be staying in a Chateau just down the road from there. Talk about roughing it.
How much was the ferry? £58 from Poole?
nope it was 35 quid for me the missus and the bike on the fast cat 2.5 hours. the portsmouth evening news run an offer now and again! BARGAIN
nope it was 35 quid for me the missus and the bike on the fast cat 2.5 hours. the portsmouth evening news run an offer now and again! BARGAIN
Got a link?
rick0361
19-03-08, 07:33 PM
when we go we are traveling to cherbourg on the ferry. Any recommendations of nice villages, towns etc around here to visit?
thanks
St Mere Eglise where the paras landed on D Day is nice - very Band of Brothers they even have a model of the guy who got stuck hanging from the church steeple when they landed, is not far away.
Coutances is nice as well.
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