 Poster: A snowHead
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Hello! Just looking for some advice. We are hoping to get back to our apartment in Praz Sur Arly from East Scotland this summer. Not convinced our EasyJet flights for 27th July will go ahead as showing as ‘sold out’.
We were thinking of driving and getting the ferry from Newcastle to Ijmuiden, then driving to Praz with an overnight stop enroute. We have a 3 yr old but he travels well enough and can manage 6hrs or so in a car. Also have family to visit in Holland and Germany.
Is there a better way of doing this? Any recommendations for routes and stop overs? Hoping of course for FCO and UK quarantine advice to change by then - if not then this is all moot 
Thanks a million.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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@Rookiescot, Have a look at Mappy.com or one of the other navigation packages. It should be drivable in about 10 hours via Luxenbourg
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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@Rookiescot, we frequently use the Newcastle-IJmuiden ferry for trips to Chamonix area, Switzerland, and Austria.
The DFDS Newcastle ferry is great. I’d always default to either this option, or the P&O sailings from Hull; I like the shorter drive from Edinburgh (compared to Dover), and we prefer a fun night on a ferry instead of a motorway hotel. Factoring in accommodation, French motorway tolls, fuel etc, I don’t think there’s too much in it (but we’ve never gone in the height of the summer season which may affect price comparisons).
For Chamonix area from IJmuiden or Rotterdam, we’d usually head through Germany following the route TomTom suggests. Going through Switzerland means you avoid French autoroute tolls (but does mean you pay c£35 for an annual Swiss motorway vignette instead). I’d be inclined to do the same if heading for Praz sur Arly. But I guess decision may depend where your family in Germany are.
Our thoughts on the choice between DFDS ferry Newcastle-IJmuiden v P&O Hull-Rotterdam/ Zeebrugge: we prefer the onboard experience on the DFDS boats; there’s more outside deck to wander around, the food used to be better but not too sure nowadays. Newcastle is a shorter drive from home than Hull, but on the other hand P&O leave later in the evening in both directions which can be helpful. DFDS can be a little more expensive.
DFDS have suspended operations on this route until 30 June earliest, which might affect your decision too...
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@Rookiescot, good to hear you are planning for travel re-opening. If I recall the dates right, you only took possession in the winter so can have hardly had time to explore the ski area before the lockdown.
(We at least got 2 separate weeks in our St Gervais apartment, before losing the third. And we would have been back again if things had been normal).
We are also planning to drive once the opportunity re-opens. For us the obvious thing is to use the Hull ferry, we were thinking of the Zeebrugge one but we haven't actually compared the routes.
I saw a news report quoting Grant Shapps today suggesting that he is expecting "travel corridors" (no quarantine agreement with low case-number countries) to be decided and announced at the end of the month. So to be optimistic, a trip in the second half of July looks on.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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related but unrelated - a map of the roads the dutch use for their holidays:
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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But I guess decision may depend where your family in Germany are.
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that, pretty much. and whether an overnight stop would be there or somewhere else?
From Frankfurt (I live 20mins from there), I generally prefer the Newcastle ferry when going to Scotland. Much less driving, but more expensive. That day I drove Hull-Torridon was proper tiring. Normally I'd only do Newcastle-Aviemore.
Also not sure which borders are and aren't open yet. gave up checking. maybe I'll check again soon, cos I'd quite like to get away seeing as I didn't get my Frankfurt-Fort William the other day 
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Thank you all - great information.
@ JB - we managed a grand total of a week ski holiday in our new apartment before lockdown. 
We are both NHS workers - haven’t had a break since Feb so would be nice to get away. Even nicer seeing Covid numbers fall and hospital beds clear.
Family are in Kassel - will look at mappy and plan a route avoiding the Dutch exodus.
Fingers crossed for travel corridors.
Thanks again!
Last edited by Then you can post your own questions or snow reports... on Tue 16-06-20 15:32; edited 1 time in total
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@extremerob, I can see Stanton at his taxi rank in Zurich.
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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@Rookiescot, at least you had a bit of an explore but I can see you will be itching to get back.
We never made our day trip to Praz, was going to happen next visit instead. That trip had to be cancelled, though it's timing meant we couldn't get reimbursements on everything (after France locked down, but before the UK, and with transport still functioning to return holidaymakers home). Next year!
I don't know what you do in the NHS, but I am sure you will welcome a break. We saw someone we know the other day and he looked totally run down (not a Covid carer directly, but an oncologist with plenty of immunocompromised patients and needing to cover for affected colleagues). My wife saw his wife subsequently and asked after his health: she said he was actually on (pre-booked) holiday leave which of necessity was at home, it took him the first week just to feel human again.
The area is stunning in the summer too, you will probably find as we did - whether skiing or walking - that there was a real exhilaration in having Mont Blanc as the background for everything we did.
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