starvin marvin Posted May 27, 2014 Share Posted May 27, 2014 Just starting to plan our next long trip, going to use the tunnel and on down to either Bari or Brindisi for a ferry to Igoumenitsa. Thinking around 6/7 weeks, maybe more. Anyone done this trip recently? Info would be appreciated. Many thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rubberrat Posted May 28, 2014 Share Posted May 28, 2014 Hi, just back from a two month trip with a month in Greece. I typed a lengthy reply to you but as the site is running so slowly it lost it before it would upload so I'll leave it a day or so and re-do it. Is there anything specific you'd like to know about? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest JudgeMental Posted May 28, 2014 Share Posted May 28, 2014 Mark you would be better writing it as a word doc, then copy and paste. Have not been for many years but as summer bleeds into autumn the weather closes in and everything shuts up more or less...Spain it is not! better Spring I should think, but like I said its been awhile....... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rubberrat Posted May 28, 2014 Share Posted May 28, 2014 Hi Eddie, yes, I thought about copying a word doc....but only after the site had dumped it! I'll put some info up for our hungry friend Mr Marvin tomorrow. The site is really sluggish though, needs a server reboot I think as everything else is OK. Mainland Greece, which for most travelers will be the Peloponnese, is alive and kicking all year round ...unlike the islands. Even the Christmas period is good enough as the towns and villages are 'real' Greece with locals living there and relatives visiting at the weekends so most tavernas and ancient sites are open, or at least enough to keep,it interesting. The islands, particularly the known tourist and package hotspots, are a different kettle of calamari...most island dwellers and business owners pack up and move back to Athens after September and the resorts close down.... visit somewhere like the main 'strip' in Zakinthos town in winter and you'll be on your own! OK, click send and...........................ok I'll go and make a cup of tea Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
starvin marvin Posted May 28, 2014 Author Share Posted May 28, 2014 rubberrat - 2014-05-28 9:15 PM Hi Eddie, yes, I thought about copying a word doc....but only after the site had dumped it! I'll put some info up for our hungry friend Mr Marvin tomorrow. The site is really sluggish though, needs a server reboot I think as everything else is OK. Mainland Greece, which for most travelers will be the Peloponnese, is alive and kicking all year round ...unlike the islands. Even the Christmas period is good enough as the towns and villages are 'real' Greece with locals living there and relatives visiting at the weekends so most tavernas and ancient sites are open, or at least enough to keep,it interesting. The islands, particularly the known tourist and package hotspots, are a different kettle of calamari...most island dwellers and business owners pack up and move back to Athens after September and the resorts close down.... visit somewhere like the main 'strip' in Zakinthos town in winter and you'll be on your own! OK, click send and...........................ok I'll go and make a cup of tea Thanks for trying, hope you can upload some info. I've got my thoughts on the route to Italy, been a few times, but open to suggestions, as I never like to do the "same as" each time. I'd like to visit both Verona and Venice, but want to drive down to the Puglia region taking about 10 days to get to Greece, then spend say 4/5 weeks wandering around the Peloponnese, before hopefully getting a ferry back to, say Ancona, then a quick revisit to Florence which we both love & whip round into France avoiding the Alps, we hate snow. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest JudgeMental Posted May 29, 2014 Share Posted May 29, 2014 Brian Kirby did a good in depth report on his tour on another thread, I would look in on the search function. and then there is Magbaz travels as well http://tinyurl.com/nubsrm5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
starvin marvin Posted May 29, 2014 Author Share Posted May 29, 2014 JudgeMental - 2014-05-29 10:26 AM Brian Kirby did a good in depth report on his tour on another thread, I would look in on the search function. and then there is Magbaz travels as well http://tinyurl.com/nubsrm5 Thanks for the reply, I have looked at Magbaz's site in the past and find it a bit rambling. I'll give it another go, and I'll look for BK's thread. Cheers. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rubberrat Posted May 29, 2014 Share Posted May 29, 2014 I know few people read or enjoy lengthy replies on forums, so hope you accept that this is written to help out 'Starvin Marvin' and may be useful to others who come across this text via google searches. We did this trip in our Chevrolet truck/Demountable camper outfit which coped brillaintly and was perfect for the trip. We usually avoid tolls but decided to bite the bullet and pay up (frequently) on our run south. A total of €60.90 including Brenner pass and a Vignette required in Austria. Our route south was Calais Mons Metz then Saarbrucken, where we overnighted in the excellent services for just €2 for two showers (compared to £20 to stay in Maidstone services with nothing) Next stop a couple of nights at Bodensee, there are a number of sites here. Then Strasbourg to Garmische, which is always worth a stop over at Campingplatz Zuspitze – hardstanding only as its primarily a ski site. Innesbruck down to Lake Garda. We normally avoid large sites but used an MMM recommendation for Bella Italia which was perfect if a little pricey at €30 per night but we fancied a break and stayed three nights. On to Venice for the ANEK ferry to Patras – stops at Igoumenitsa first. We booked through ‘Patras Ferries’ www.onferry.gr or telephone +30 266101300 English speaking and very helpful. We used a booking agent as there were so many discrepancies on the various ferry company websites as to whether or not camping on board was available. ANEK would normally not be our choice, as was backed up yet again on this trip – the ferries are ancient and in poor order and employ the surliest staff known to man. Everything seems to be too much trouble for them. However, the time and crossing we needed meant we had to put up with them, but I recommend that you try every other operator first. Once in Greece the Peloponnese is your oyster. You could also consider hopping off on Corfu, spending a day or two exploring then take the local ferry across to the mainland at Igoumenitsa starting at Ioannina and taking in Parga. Can I suggest at this point that you buy a copy of Edward Enfields book ‘Greece on my Wheels’ – a nicely written travelogue about his cycling trip around the Peloponnese, its is a great reference and we have used it many times. Autumn is lovely and the time of year we usually head down to Greece. Our favourite places are: Messinia - Koroni, Pylos and Methoni. Koroni has a campsite 5 minutes walk from the town and everything is open all year. We absolutely love Koroni. The Mani - Kardomilli Laconia - Poros, Ermioni and the islands of Hydra and Spetsos. Again, all vibrant all year round. If you want to get into a much ‘deeper’ Greek experience where English isn’t spoken and all the roadsigns are only in Greek, then venture onto Evvia. One interesting site to stay on not far from Patras is Melissa beach - www.campingmelissa.gr - you should be able to get a beachside spot in autumn and it’s hand for the ferry port at Killini for day trips (or longer) to Kefelonia and Zakinthos On our return trip from Patras to venice, we decided to spend a few days in the city, and following another MMM site recommendation, traveled around the mainland to get to Punto Sabbioni (north Lido) and stayed on the excellent site 'Al Bateo' This worked on various levels, firstly it's a nice quiet site unlike most of those on the landward side of Venice that attract lots of noisy youngsters. Beautifully kept, but best of all, it's just 10 minutes walk to the Vaporetto terminal at Punto Sabbioni where a €20 day ticket gives you unlimited travel to every island and point of interest throughout Venice We returned via the Italian and French rivieras and took a winding route back through France. 4200 miles, about €1000 in fuel and €120 in tolls. We've not costed the campsite fees yet. Feel free to ask more Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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