Well not quite, but I got a bit of Birthday money last week so at the very last minute I booked four nights in Calella (about 30 miles north of Barcelona). Stayed in a 3 star hotel on a half board basis and it cost me just £230.00.
As you have guessed from the title this journey was done on a coach. On the way going we got the banger, a 'clapped out' 12 plate VanHool double decker and on the way back I got one of their slightly newer coaches, well 7 weeks old but it looked older inside. These coaches are in used 24 hours a day pretty much. In fact the coach company only use the coaches for three years on the Costa Brava run before replacing them with brand new coaches again.
Took about 27 hours going and 25 hours on the way back (to and from Manchester) but that includes the ferry and other stops. I got back at 1pm this afternoon having left at midday yesterday (Spanish time). Was a long journey but with a seat pitch of over 800mm and seats that recline to 35 degrees it wasn't too bad. Took us 6 hours today to get back from Dover which I thought was impressive considering it stopped of at Corby, Birmingham, Staffordshire before Manchester. Was a relaxing way to travel but I was a bit anxious about the chemical toilet getting blocked, as I usually need a number one every couple of hours, and the stops were around every 5.
The journey on the way there wasn't so good as the traffic on the M6 was stop start (this was last Monday 2nd) so it meant we missed the ferry and had to wait for the next one. It didn't seem to affect the arrival time in Spain though. This was there other worse part of the journey, we got to Lloret De Mar 9:00am but it didn't reach Calella until 10:45 despite them only being about 12 miles apart. This was because it kept stopping at hotels to drop people off on the way.
On the way back the bus I got was a shuttle, which then went to another resort, where we then got on the coach according to destination in the UK. This worked out a lot quicker.
It was the same attended on the coach from start to finish and they seem to spend upto 48 hours on the coach (there is a sleeping area for crew). Two drivers start from England and take it turns but there is a change of drivers in the south of France as both drivers will have exceeded their 10 hours each by then.
I am now very shattered as it is hard to get any proper sleep on a coach, but having been on night trains before I expected that.
Noticed the roads in France all had a sort of booth you had to drive through, were all these toll roads?
One final point is you really have to have an interest in vehicles, roads and cars etc to make the journey more interesting. I did take my HD25s (headphones) and downloaded a lot of music documentaries to help pass the time which helped a lot.
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Edit I am shattered and can barely think properly, the title was supposed to be a bit ironic. It was actually more of a "I can't afford to fly or I am too scared of flying" mans holiday!
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>> Edit I am shattered and can barely think properly
So fly next time!! :-) This was a 6 night four night break. Try flying.
Last edited by: rtj70 on Sun 8 Sep 13 at 22:55
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For some of our recent trips (flying) we've got resort pickups. Independent travel but a package essentially. Krakow on the other hand was a city break and the train from the airport to Krakow a bargain.
Rattle has decided to make enjoyment of life is harder than needs be.
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Just out of interest (and no, I don't intend trying it...) how much is a bus to Barcelona?
Last edited by: PeterS on Sun 8 Sep 13 at 23:07
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I know you're not a fan of flying, but it takes me less time, door to door, to get from home to downtown Sydney... Just saying... :-)
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>> I know you're not a fan of flying, but it takes me less time, door
>> to door, to get from home to downtown Sydney... Just saying... :-)
>>
Door to door? Less than 25 hours? I doubt it.
I would be interested to see your timetable.
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Taxi from chez zero to LHR,
30 minutes,
LHR to Sydney on Quantas Qf2
22 hours 40 minutes.
Taxi from Sydney to Circular Quay (Sydney Harbour)
30 minutes.
Total journey time 23 hours 40 minutes.
(ok ok I missed out the checking in time at LHR and Sydney customs/immigration)
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>> Taxi from chez zero to LHR,
>>
>> 30 minutes,
>>
>> LHR to Sydney on Quantas Qf2
>>
>> 22 hours 40 minutes.
>>
>> Taxi from Sydney to Circular Quay (Sydney Harbour)
>>
>> 30 minutes.
>>
>> Total journey time 23 hours 40 minutes.
>>
>> (ok ok I missed out the checking in time at LHR and Sydney customs/immigration)
>>
All of which takes it to over 25 hours. Plus your name is not PeterS.
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>> All of which takes it to over 25 hours. Plus your name is not PeterS.
Typically unfriendly and argumentative Witherspoons clientele.
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>>
>> All of which takes it to over 25 hours. Plus your name is not PeterS.
>>
If I was feeling pedantic, I could point out that I was clearly referring to an outbound journey to Sydney.... Rattle's outbound journey was 27 hours, it was his inbound journey that was 25, and I was careful not to comment on that ;-)
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>>
>> Door to door? Less than 25 hours? I doubt it.
>>
>> I would be interested to see your timetable.
>>
I was using poetic licence to average the 25 and the 27 hours ;-)
It's been a year or so since I last did that journey, but the BA 15 is scheduled to take just under 23 hours. In my (fairly limited, but half a dozen or so flights) experience it lands around 20 minutes early. Fom the plane arriving at the gate to the check-in desk at the intercontinental Sydney is an hour - it's early morning and traffic is light. That takes you to around 23 and a half hours from the scheduled departure time.
2 and a half hours is ample to time to get to the airport from 'our' bit of W Sussex (the flight leaves in the evening and traffic is light), clear security and have a drink in the lounge - make sure you check in online though! Doing it in an hour and a half would be tight, admittedly :-)
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>> I was using poetic licence to average the 25 and the 27 hours ;-)
>>
Well, can we settle on an draw?
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Sounds like hell to me. Being incarcerated in a coach for that time surely constitutes a breach of human rights, contravenes the Geneva convention or constitutes a cruel and unusual punishment. I hope you receive compensation.
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Take your car with one or three friends Sheikha. Stop en route a couple of times each way. Take longer, spend a bit more money, have a far more interesting and instructive time.
I certainly hope you enjoyed Barcelona. But you ought to spread your wings now you've got them.
Forgive me for banging on about this. I have your best interests at heart.
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Boy got back last weekend from his solo holiday to Krakow, Prague & Berlin. Out Gatwick-Prague on Easyjet, back Ryanair Berlin-Stansted, about £70 each way. Trains in between.
He used hostels which he found very good - usually hooking up with others who wanted to visit the places he did, whereas had he gone with his usual crowd he would have done less of what he was specifically interested in.
Pickup from STN reminded me why I dislike air travel, though i have always liked the flying bit. Wheels hit the ground at 22.50, it was 00.05 by the time we left the pick up area in the mid stay car park despite him having only cabin baggage. Then the M25 was shut and it took 2 hours to get home to Tring via the north circular. But how much worse than that a coach journey would have been.
With a car, you have the potential to make the travelling as interesting as the arriving- but you have to like driving, which I'm not sure Rattle does.
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Who sat next to you?
24 hours next to babe? Or 24 hours next to a greasy, sweaty, fat dobber?
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So you travelled all through France and back, listening to music and all you noticed was the toll booths? Did no-one suggest looking through the window? Even if you are stuck with autoroutes there are lots of things to see!
If I do a long journey when I am not driving I always take a book but never get around to reading it. Instead I get a crick in the neck because I stare out of the window all the time.
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I saw lots of things but don't forget it was dark through at least half of the journey, so all you can see out of the window is well nothing.
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Thankfully had an empty seat both ways. I have done the Berlin journey before by train, well he flew there and got the train back spending a night in Amsterdam and Paris on the way back.
It is hard to explain but because of the huge amount of leg room it isn't as bad as it sounds, certainly a lot of people on the coach do it every year or more. The people on it were mostly younger families or OAPs and not a lot inbetween.
I think next time I will do it by train again, is more hassle as but it is more exciting and fun. The reason why I like Spain is although no longer stupidly cheap it is still a lot cheaper than the UK, where as France is quite a lot more expensive than the UK.
I didn't go to Barcelona which am kicking myself for, but I stayed there in May. I just wanted to relax and do nothing more when I got there. I did go to Lloret to see if it had changed much since I went in 2004, and walked down to a lot of the other resorts.
Last edited by: RattleandSmoke on Mon 9 Sep 13 at 10:03
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"Take your car with one or three friends Sheikha..."
Just a suggestion for next time: car to Plymouth or Portsmouth, Brittany Ferries to Santander or Bilbao. Walk on/walk off, or park up on arrival if you don't want to drive in Spain. It'd take as long as the bus, but the Pont Aven ferry is like a very comfortable floating hotel.
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>>I saw lots of things but don't forget it was dark through at least half of the journey, so all you can see out of the window is well nothing.<<
Oops, why didn't I think of that?
Gromit's suggestion is good. We were on the Pont Aven from Cork to Roscoff earlier this year - it's the best ferry I've ever been on.
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We ended up getting Irish Ferries Oscar Wilde instead of Brittany Ferries Pont Aven this summer. There's simply no comparison between them.
Two suggestions for a long sailing on the Pont Aven: 1) book early to get an outside cabin and 2) get on board early to book at table at the La Flora restaurant (on the Cork-Roscoff route, at least, cars can board as they arrive, rather than having to queue in the port).
The restaurant is at the stern of the ship, so try to get a table at the very back for a panoramic sea view. They serve breakfast as well as a very good dinner, but you can only book on board, and they do get busy.
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I would love to do the ferry route, but it just works out a lot more expensive and always on a very tight budget. I had four nights in a 3 star hotel in 30c weather for £230.00. I could have probably done similar if I flew with the budget airlines, but I don't like flying and I don't mind long journeys.
I think next time I would go by train again but a slightly different route, maybe spending the night in Lyon or similar or if I stayed the night in London it would be possible to do the entire journey in one day.
On this trip I just went to a resort, so I don't feel like I got much culture, but I did have a break and after a good night sleep feel energised.
I would to do the coach again as it is so cheap but as a main holiday I simply need to see a lot of places hence I love the train routes. Maybe if I do something similar next year I will travel into France and Italy but it all comes down to money.
Last edited by: RattleandSmoke on Mon 9 Sep 13 at 13:22
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My thinking is that if you pick the right ferry or (sleeper) train, the journey becomes a pleasant part of the holiday and - because you can actually sleep on it - can offset the cost of a night's hotel (or a day lost to making up sleep).
If you're thinking trains, Lyon doesn't make sense as a stopover heading to Spain - wrong side of the country. Take the TGV via Bordeaux, or see if there's a Talgo through service into Spain.
If you go for Italy instead, avoid the overnight train from Paris; it used to be operated by FS, not SNCF, and the sight of it clanking through the Paris suburbs was miserable...
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Blimey, for a moment there, I thought I had clicked onto facebook.
Oh I'm still on CAP. Phew!
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>> I don't like flying and I don't mind long journeys.
Good for you. Its a decision and it your decision.
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Have you thought about overcoming your dislike/fear of flying? There are numerous options available from online self-help to professional counselling and other resources. BA even do a 1 day course which ends with a short flight to put everything into practice. A friend of mine who used to suffer from severe panic attacks on planes did it when she realised that her next career progression was likely to involve frequent flying, and she reckons it's one of the best things she ever did.
Of course it's your decision, but it seems a shame to have most of the world's destinations automatically out of bounds through something that is not only very common, but can often be easily dealt with.
I'm not saying you should do this, just asking the question if you've thought about it. As above, it is your decision.
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Look, this isn't a cheap-holiday-flights forum but a motoring one. Has everyone but me given up on trying to turn the Sheikh into a car driver? Shame on you.
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I think just making decisions is the habit he needs to practice. Making the "approved" decisions can come later.
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You think he's like Mr. Barrowclough in some way?
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>> I think just making decisions is the habit he needs to practice. Making the "approved"
>> decisions can come later.
He's single as well. Probably the only time in a man's life he can actually make decisions that don't get reversed / overruled / scoffed at.
Needs to make the most of it.... :-)
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>> >> I think just making decisions is the habit he needs to practice. Making the
>> "approved"
>> >> decisions can come later.
>>
>> He's single as well. Probably the only time in a man's life he can actually
>> make decisions that don't get reversed / overruled / scoffed at.
>>
>> Needs to make the most of it.... :-)
He needs a wild woman.
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I am too old for wild women! But I would get on a plane with a woman if she was sympathetic enough!
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Told Rattie a long time ago he needs a Latin, never a dull moment, passionate warm reliable good natured with the shortest fuse known to man and completely bonkers, but totally trustworthy and devoted to the man in their life...and you don't need to drive cos they drive like the devil himself so best stick your head in a good book and ignore the blaring hooters.
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>>He needs a wild woman.
I was with a "wild" woman in my early 20s.
"Wild Women" are an essential part of growing up. Where "growing up" pretty much just means "trying new stuff and screw the consequences".
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>>I would get on a plane with a woman if she was sympathetic enough!
Of all the things a woman could be that would get me to do stuff, "sympathetic" is fairly low on the priority list.
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Did she like being called 'The Consequences'?!!
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>> He's single as well. Probably the only time in a man's life he can actually make >>decisions that don't get reversed / overruled / scoffed at.
Thanks for the warning!
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>> >> He's single as well. Probably the only time in a man's life he can
>> actually make >>decisions that don't get reversed / overruled / scoffed at.
>> Thanks for the warning!
Don't take too much notice, that sour grape stuff is the end result of choosing poorly in the first place, been there, T shirt (about the only thing left, even sanity vanished), mistake not repeated.
:-))
Last edited by: gordonbennet on Tue 10 Sep 13 at 20:45
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>> Don't take too much notice, that sour grape stuff is the end result of choosing
>> poorly in the first place, been there, T shirt (about the only thing left, even
>> sanity vanished), mistake not repeated.
>>
>> :-))
>>
My father's advice to me about women was that they are all mad, but some are more mad than others !
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>> Look, this isn't a cheap-holiday-flights forum but a motoring one. Has everyone but me given
>> up on trying to turn the Sheikh into a car driver? Shame on you.
>>
Sad to say, but I think we probably have...sorry... If it helps Rattle, I have driven to Barcelona, via Paris, Dijon and Andorra from memory. I was in my late twenties I think, and did something like 5,000 miles in 2 or 3 weeks. No issues to report - give it a go sometime, you might enjoy it!
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Out of interest Peter what were your Wheels??
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>> Out of interest Peter what were your Wheels??
>>
That journey was done in a company Audi A4 TDI, so not exactly exciting... Really a roadtrip needs a large capacity petrol engine, and preferably a removable roof! Pretty much every car I've owned/been the keeper of in the UK has been at least as far as the Pyrenees though - even my 'A' reg Fiat Uno went to Biarritz in 1991. That had a sunroof as well :-)
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>>>even my 'A' reg Fiat Uno went to Biarritz in 1991<<<
1973 ish my ageing 1965? Triumph Herald took us (inc SWMBO designate) to Istanbul,across teh Bosphorous and back in less than 3 weeks.
From a failing memory the only car related incidents of note were:
a. she (SWMBO designate) was booked for speeding in Yugoslavia somewhere,
b. 2 simultaneous punctures on broken glass. (At least it validated my decision to carry two spares for long distance travelling:)
Rattle needs to start living.
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>> 1973 ish my ageing 1965? Triumph Herald took us (inc SWMBO designate) to Istanbul,across teh
>> Bosphorous and back in less than 3 weeks.
That sounds fascinating, pmh, given the date. You must have crossed some hostile Communist territory. Would you care to share the route and any anecdotes and experiences you had along the way? How easy was it to do, in terms of visas, permits etc?
I know a bloke who drove a Toyota Celica to Hungary and back in the late 70s, he says he was literally mobbed by crowds on his arrival there, they'd never seen such an exotic vehicle. He came back with a Magyar wife, who is still here with him!
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Just got back yesterday on the Pont Aven from Roscof. Lovely ship, top restaurant, and the kids enjoy the pool. Very quiet yesterday - I would guess at less than 50% full.
Had quite a troubled entry into service followed by a freak wave a few years back
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I've had many a troubled entry, believe me.
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They say KY Jelly helps ;-)
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From a busmans holiday to Jelly whas it a poofters holiday? Sorry..;)
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Let's draw a veil over that Dutchie!
It's to Rattle's credit that he hasn't given most of us a red face.
A bit rude, when somebody regales you with their holiday adventures, to say "You don't wanna do that...you should fly/drive/ferry etc."
To the extent that I have done it myself, not much I hope, I apologise sincerely. Each to their own.
I have my own foibles and I don't need telling that I should do what other folks do.
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>> I have my own foibles and I don't need telling that I should do what other folks do.
Amen to that, most emphatically. But I (and others I am sure) certainly don't intend to nag or persecute the Sheikh, just to tease him a bit and encourage him in a politely exasperated way. He takes it well, indicating that he doesn't mind too much. That's the way it looks until he says otherwise.
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Always pleased to see a Rattle post. A different perspective on life. Look forward to the next saga.
Top bloke Rattle!
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My in-laws went to Croatia on a bus this summer. MIL doesn't like flying. FIL said it was a hooking long way, well, I'm fairly sure that's what he said anyway.
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Very similar distance to where I went really, maybe about 200 miles further.
All it is all about the comfort of the coach though rather than the distance, the 6.30 hour journey back from Dover to Manchester seemed like a small ride out as the coach was so comfortable.
I have decided I will probably do the same thing next year but for longer, as even ten days all inclusive is coming back at around £400 as I am starting a new college course in a few weeks which I will have to pay for, it will be a great way of getting abroad on the cheap, but this time also use it as a base to travel into southern France etc.
My point about flying is I will fly if I had to, if I was rich and could afford to go to New York or Australia for example I would fly, but to Spain I would rather put up with a long coach journey which doesn't bother me in the slightest than fly.
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I don't know what the coach from Manchester costs to where you went. But factor in our time and it is more expensive. Two weeks today I fly to Crete from Manchester. About a four hour flight. The journey from Dover to Manchester was more than 50% on top of that time. No thanks :-) I'd have to use two more days leave (or more) to do what you did. And I only get 7 weeks plus bank holidays at the moment :-)
Last edited by: rtj70 on Tue 10 Sep 13 at 19:56
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That would be a consideration, but in my case it didn't really make any difference, it just meant I had to work on Sunday which I don't normally do. At the moment my time sadly isn't worth a lot but if I only had limited holidays a year, I wouldn't want to waste any of them on a coach I agree with you on that.
Plus it is always nice to get away from home, even if it is on a coach! It is still a break from computers and all the rest of it.
I am not sure what my coach cost as it was a package deal, but the hotel on the booking sites is £40 a night half board, which is £160.00, the total cost of the booking was £250 with all extras were optional (more legroom etc, city centre pickup) so that means the cost of the travel was £90 return but obviously the holiday company would get the hotel cheaper than I could get it for.
This was the company I used.
www.ferriscoachholidays.co.uk/aspx/coachSearch.aspx
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You're crazy for taking the bus.
www.youtube.com/watch?v=-r5NkEkaXHQ
Actually, I don't really mean it. I hate flying too. I don't blame you in the slightest.
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That is the point, to me flying is enough to spoil the holiday, that is to say I will never fly again it depends on where I am going and who with.
I don't like driving as people know on here, I do have an interest in cars and I do gradually go further and further but there is no way I could ever drive to Spain when the furthest I have driven is Derbyshire!.
Also the coach was far cheaper than driving when going solo, if I had four people in the car it may be different as costs could have been split. But there is no way I could have driven 2500 miles and get a ferry for £100 or so.
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>> But there is no way I could have driven 2500 miles and get a ferry for
>> £100 or so.
It wouldn't be very pleasant in a Panda anyway Rattle.
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It is a surprisingly comfortable car, I have done 350 miles in it in one day going to a funeral with four people in the car, I wasn't driving but it was comfortable as a passenger. The main issue I would imagine is is the complete lack of power, it would get pretty tiresome.
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>> The main issue I would imagine is is the complete lack of power
That's the beauty of small engined cars, the challenge of driving them to the limit.
I can honestly say the best was a 750cc Panda, so light and chuckable (within the limits of its handling - which weren't much).
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>> That's the beauty of small engined cars, the challenge of driving them to the limit.
>>
>> I can honestly say the best was a 750cc Panda, so light and chuckable (within
>> the limits of its handling - which weren't much).
I have had the best fun in low powered cars, but only the small ones. Fiat 850 Special, Mini, Mk1 Polo 895cc, Fiesta 950cc., Mk1 Golf 1100cc.
I really like the Panda. The only niggle when I have used Boy's has been the lack of aircon when it's hot, but that's because I've gone soft and once I remember to open the windows it's OK!
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Lack of aircon doesn't bother to me too much, but would be nice. It is only the base spec model which didn't have it on the newer models too. Mine of course is the base spec Active. Two airbags, electric windows, PAS, ABS, CD player, Central Locking and that is my lot, but for £6000 for a brand new car, I am not moaning about that.
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Having just changed our 1.2 Panda for a 1.3 Jazz auto (nominal cc in both cases) I am astonished by how quick the Jazz (by comparison) is, for only a modest increase in engine size. The Jazz has to be much, much heavier than the Panda, too.
Fuel economy, so far - mostly on longish trips admittedly - is better in the Jazz.
Supermarket car parking spaces have suddenly become much reduced in size.
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We fly with EasyJet tomorrow and over the weeks/months I get emails about our trip etc. But just got something that might be of use for Rattle:
fearlessflyer.easyjet.com/?utm_source=EasyJet_Newsletter_230913_EN_Fearless_flying&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=
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>> We fly with EasyJet tomorrow and over the weeks/months I get emails about our trip
>> etc. But just got something that might be of use for Rattle:
>>
>> fearlessflyer.easyjet.com/?utm_source=EasyJet_Newsletter_230913_EN_Fearless_flying&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=
>>
Not with EZ any more so you're safe from one of my landings if you go on their course... think most airlines do them now, BA and Virgin definitely.
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Just got back from a 2300 mile busmans holiday - RattleandSmoke
