ALPS SUMMER TOUR

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THIS TOUR WILL BE REPEATED IN 2011 AND FULL DETAILS WILL BE AVAILABLE ON THIS SITE IN OCTOBER

Description

9-day tour starting with an 8.00am Saturday morning ferry from Dover to Dunkerque and travelling through France, Belgium, Luxembourg, Germany, Switzerland, Italy back in to France and ending in Monaco.En-route we drive through the spectacular Alps crossing all the famous passes and experiencing some of Europe's most stunning scenery and its best driving roads before arriving a week later on the Mediterranean coast at Menton from where we drive along the scenic coastline through Monaco to Villefranche-sur-Mer where our hotel for the final two nights is based.Our route takes us over 20 mountain passes with a combined height above sea level of over 37,000 metres or 123,500 feet, over four times the height of Mount Everest ! Included in the "cols" or passes we drive over is Europe's highest road, the Col de La Bonnette at 2,802 metres or 9,192 feet !

TO SEE OVER 300 PHOTOS FROM OUR 2009 and 2008 ALPS TOURS VISIT OUR PHOTO GALLERY,(click on link to "photo gallery"at the top of this page)

Itinerary

Our tour starts in Dunkerque following an 8.00am ferry crossing from Dover. In fact our route through France,Belgium, Luxembourg, Germany, Switzerland, Italy and Monaco follows, very loosely, the route of a Marathon rally. This does mean that while there are no competitive elements to the event, there are some long driving days to cover this distance in one week. The first few days include some motorway and main road sections to make covering the distance a little easier, but once into Switzerland we have three days on Lake Lucerne, Lake Sarner and in Montreux on Lac Leman,(Lake Geneva) where the daily mileage is considerably less.We then spend a night in Cogne,an Italian ski resort in the Paradiso National Park followed by two days in the French Alps including a night in one of Europe's highest hotels at the top of the Col de Lauteret at 2,058 metres.

The final day is a real 'sting in the tail' with nearly 200 miles of fabulous mountain scenery, with no less than five spectacular 'Cols' to traverse, including the highest road in Europe, the Col de la Bonnette at 2,802 metres,culminating in one of the most famous mountain passes in motor sport , the Col de Turini. It is then downhill all the way, literally, as the final run down to the Mediterranean coast at Menton is almost continually downhill for 15 miles after which we drive through Monaco to Villefranche sur Mer where our hotel for the last night of the tour is located.On Sunday, before the tour ends in the afternoon, we visit Monaco and drive around the grand prix circuit before visiting Eze village and the Eprussi Rothschild villa and gardens on Cap Ferrat.

Day 1 - Saturday, July 24th Dover-Dunkerque-Echternach, Luxembourg

8.00am ferry from Dover to Dunkerque which arrives 11.00am French time.In order to cross industrial Belgium and reach charming countryside in sleepy Luxembourg, upon leaving the ferry we take the motorway south via Lille, Mons, Charleroi and Namur. Just south of Namur we leave the motorway and head south-east crossing into countryside where we stop for a late lunch in Durbuy,a charming village.From here we drive to Clervaux and then south to our hotel for the night in  Echternach just 20 miles north of Luxembourg City, (see photo below).
Total mileage: 260miles (mainly motorway)

 

 

Day 2 - Sunday, Echternach-Riquewihr, Alsace, France

We cover the first 50 miles on the motorway to skirt around Luxembourg city to Metz.Then we leave the motorway and take a long fast road across country towards Sarrebourg.From here we climb our first mountain where we stop for lunch in a French mountain auberge just over the summit. After lunch we continue south west on through the Vosges Mountains into the Alsace region to our hotel in Riquewihr a charming wine village in Alsace and one of France's most beautiful villages, ( un des plus beaux villages).This evening we dine in a local restaurant.
Total mileage 190 (First 50 on m-way)

Day 3 - Monday, Riquewihr -Gersau, Lake Lucerne, Switzerland

We start with a visit to nearby Eiguesheim, another of France's most beautiful villages.We then continue south to Mulhouse and the stunning French Automobile Museum incorporating the world famous Schlumpf car collection, ( see photos below).For more information on the Schlumpf collection visit http://www.collection-schlumpf.com
The afternoon run takes us across the river Rhine into Germany where we enjoy lunch in a tradtional German mountain auberge after which we drive through some beautiful scenery in the Black Forest and via Badsackingen into Switzerland at Aarau.From here we drive south alongside two small Swiss lakes to Lake Lucerne where our charming hotel is actually on the north shore of the lake.
Total mileage 190 (First 50 on motorway)

 

 

Day 4-Tuesday, Gersau, Lake Lucerne-Wilen, Lake Sarner, Switzerland

We drive clockwise around the shoreline of Lake Lucerne and then drive over three mountain passes: the Furka Pass and Grimsel pass before climbing over the Bruinig Pass to Lake Sarner where our next hotel is based on the western shore at Wilen.

 

 

 

 

 

Day 5 - Wednesday, Wilen -Montreux, Lake Geneva, Switzerland

We drive south back across the Brunigpass to Interlaken which is our morning coffee stop.We then continue along the picturesque northern shore of Lake Thuner to Thun which gives the lake its name.From here we head south west to Gstaad our lunch stop.After lunch we tackle the first of our day'smountain passes, the Col du Pillon and Glacier 3000, (where you can take a cable car to the top of the mountain). There is then a steady descent to Les Diaberlets where we start our climb over the Col de la Croix before arriving on the shores of beautiful Lac Leman, (Lake Geneva), and our hotel on the lakeside in Montreux.
Total mileage: 110 miles.

 

Day 6 Thursday, Montreux-Cogne, Italy

 

The run south takes us via the fascinating motor museum and leading art exhibition venue in Martigny.We then continue south over the Grand St Bernard Pass where our lunch stop is on the summit overlooking a lake just over the Italian border, (see photo above).We then drive down the southern side of the Grand St Bernard Pass down to the town of Aosta where we climb through the Cogne Valley, a long narrow gorge to spend the night at a charming hotel, ( see photo below left),in the mountain skiing and walking resort of Cogne in the beautiful Grand Paradiso National Park.Here there is an opportunity to visit the pretty alpine gardens a couple of miles away.
Total mileage: 105 miles.

 

Day 7- Friday, Cogne-Col de Lauteret, France

Back on the road again and some of the most spectacular driving so far as we return down the valley before we cross into France via the Petit St Bernard Pass. We then pass Val d'Isere on our way into the old Alpine Rally territory, and along the "Routes des Grandes Alpes"over the Col de l'Iseran, the Col du Telegraphe and Col de Galibier to our hotel overlooking a glacier at the summit of the Col De Lauteret.
Total mileage: 180 miles.

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Villefranche Bay in Provence

 

 

Day 8 Saturday, Col be Lauteret-Villefranche sur Mer, France

The most exciting day's drive of the week and arguably the best day's driving in Europe as we traverse more of the Alpine Rally tests before we reach Monte Carlo Rally territory. From Briancon we take in the Col d'Izoard, the Col de Vars, and the highest road in Europe, the Col de Bonnette as we head to the Col du Turini famous as a regular stage of the Monte Carlo Rally.In between traversing mountain passes we drive through stunning gorges and valleys.From the summit of the Col du Turini, our afternoon coffee stop, we make the long descent to the Mediterranean and the promenade at Menton. We then drive along the coast through nearby Monaco to Villefranche just 10 miles to the west to our hotel for the final evening of the tour overlooking Villefranche harbour.
Total mileage: 195 miles .

Day 9- Sunday, Excursion to Monaco,Eze Village and St Jean,Cap Ferrat,( tour finishes in the afternoon)

The last day of the tour . In the morning we visit nearby Monaco with a chance to drive around the world famous circuit followed by a pedestrian tour of the Principality and an opportunity to enjoy a drink in Casino Square and watch some of the world's richest people go about their business.In the afternoon we visit nearby Eze village; a cluster of ancient buildings and flower-decked car-free streets perched on a cliffside 427m above sea-level with its Jardin Exotique offering views as far as Corsica.We then visit the Villa Kerylos at Beaulieu which resembles an ancient Greek villa with authentic techniques and precious materials used to create lavish mosaics, frescoes and inlaid furniture together with numerous Greek ornaments.

We then drive to nearby Cap Ferrat to visit the beautiful Ephrussi de Rothschild museum, arguably the most perfect "dream villa" on the Riviera, Villa Ile-de-France with its stucco walls coloured rose pink. The gardens are truly beautiful and overlook bays to the east and the west, one of the few properties on St Jean Cap Ferrat to do so,( see photos below). Late afternoon we say our goodbyes.
Total mileage: 30 miles.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

THE MOUNTAIN PASSES

Just a little extra information for those with a head for heights! In ascending order, literally. Remember, Ben Nevis, Snowdon and Scafell, the three highest mountains in Scotland, Wales and England respectively are just over 3,000ft or 935 metres high

DAY 2, SUNDAY

Col du Donon 1,009m

Col de Ste Marie 772m

DAY 3, MONDAY

Waldparkplaz Kreuzweg 1,079m

DAY 4, TUESDAY

Furka Pass 2,431m

Grimsel Pass 2,165m

Brunig Pass, (south to north)1,002m

DAY 5, WEDNESDAY

Brunig Pass, ( north to south) 1,002m

Col du Pillon 1,546m ( But there is a cable car to the top of the adjacent mountain, if you wish to go higher ).

Col de la Croix 1,752m

DAY 6, THURSDAY

Col de Grand St Bernard, 2,469m

DAY 7, FRIDAY

Col de Petit St Bernard 2,146 m

Col de L'Iseran 2,764m

Col des Fours 2,360m

Col de la Madelaine

Col du Telegraphe, 1,565m

Col du Galibier, 2,646 m

 

Col du Lauteret, 2,058m (we spend the night here)

 

 

DAY 8, SATURDAY

Col d'Izoard,2,360m

 

Col de Vars, 2,109 m

 

Col de la Bonnette, 2,802m the daddy of them all, claimed to be the highest road in Europe.

 

Col de Turini, 1,604 m

For those who don't like heights, just remember it is not "vertigo" to the bottom!

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