Cheapest travel?

[hollymattbenmilo]

ok.. so can i ask some basic driving questions please!!

how does the euro tunnel work? i literally have nooo idea.. what happens etc!

how do you show passports etc? do they have a basic search of car or anything?? i hope those questions dont seem to wierd! haha.

and how long from tunnel, i hear its about 3.5 hours?

 

[zinderella]

ok.. so can i ask some basic driving questions please!!

how does the euro tunnel work? i literally have nooo idea.. what happens etc!

how do you show passports etc? do they have a basic search of car or anything?? i hope those questions dont seem to wierd! haha.

and how long from tunnel, i hear its about 3.5 hours?

Yes its about 3 hours, you show passports at drive through checkpoints, all very easy. Nothing to worry about at all.

You drive to Eurotunnel in UK, await your boarding number, hang around in the 'services' area if early. When your number is called, get back in car, drive to tunnel, do a bit more waiting, drive onto the train, sit in car, on train, travelling under the sea to France. It's quick easy, fully signposted and people around directing you where to go. Honestly simple.

Never had car searched.

 

[TheTizardFamily:0)]

I know it isn't the most modern way to travel there but we go via ferry.....we find it so easy with a 1 and 3 year old (you can pack as much rubbish as needed).
Our boys loved the experience of going on the 'big boat' too it keeps them very happy.

It works out very cheap too....the ferry is around £50 with sea france and we spend around £80 on petrol x

 

[hollymattbenmilo]

I know it isn't the most modern way to travel there but we go via ferry.....we find it so easy with a 1 and 3 year old (you can pack as much rubbish as needed).
Our boys loved the experience of going on the 'big boat' too it keeps them very happy.

It works out very cheap too....the ferry is around £50 with sea france and we spend around £80 on petrol x

thank you both for your replies. ok that sounds pretty simple! yes i was unsure on either ferry or tunnel, but went for tunnel in the end..maybe next time il give the ferry a go.. as the boat would be a nice experience also!

 

[scampbunny]

thank you both for your replies. ok that sounds pretty simple! yes i was unsure on either ferry or tunnel, but went for tunnel in the end..maybe next time il give the ferry a go.. as the boat would be a nice experience also!

not necessarily in the winter, think of bad waves and sea sickness!! (been there, done it, not fun lol)

eurotunnel is easy holly - if i can do it, then u will have no probs!! all i had was my tomtom and 2 bickering children in the back!

one thing tho - find sumthin for boys to do 'in' the tunnel as u have to switch cars off, so no power (we usually feed ours lmao)

 

[hollymattbenmilo]

not necessarily in the winter, think of bad waves and sea sickness!! (been there, done it, not fun lol)

eurotunnel is easy holly - if i can do it, then u will have no probs!! all i had was my tomtom and 2 bickering children in the back!

one thing tho - find sumthin for boys to do 'in' the tunnel as u have to switch cars off, so no power (we usually feed ours lmao)

good tip!! haha...mmmmmm sing ~"just like we dreamed it" over and over? haha

 

[FiFi Rose]

We have driven from North East of Scotland twice. Yes it took a very long time but the road trip was actually really good fun. We stayed overnight in a travel inn next to the ferry port in Dover and caught the early morning ferry over. 3 hours and you're at Disney.

The kids loved the boat. I get really travel sick and literally couldn't stand up. (I was exactly the same on the VEA shuttle bus)

Passport check and customs were very easy. However on the way back we did see them pulling a car apart. They had the dash and door trims off I assume they must have good reason to suspect something before doing that. Not just too many Mickey Brioches in your bag

 

[hollymattbenmilo]

We have driven from North East of Scotland twice. Yes it took a very long time but the road trip was actually really good fun. We stayed overnight in a travel inn next to the ferry port in Dover and caught the early morning ferry over. 3 hours and you're at Disney.

The kids loved the boat. I get really travel sick and literally couldn't stand up. (I was exactly the same on the VEA shuttle bus)

Passport check and customs were very easy. However on the way back we did see them pulling a car apart. They had the dash and door trims off I assume they must have good reason to suspect something before doing that. Not just too many Mickey Brioches in your bag

 

[A Small World]

we have had the car searched at the tunnel - they pull so many in and do a basic search in the boot etc . they also wipe the door handles and bags in the boot with a special wipe which will show up any signs of explosives

Its all very quick

I really like the tunnel and find the journey goes very quickly - we usually read or snooze while in the tunnel or often get out of the car and just stand by it - a good way to stretch our legs

 

[poppyears]

Hi we are doing the tunnel again in a couple of weeks.

I love the tunnel over the ferry. Have travelled by ferry lots of times but I am seasick and so is DD so not a pleasant experience. 1 year took seasickness tablets but they did not work till I was of the ferry and then I was one minute dopey, next as high as a kite, as though I had had a couple of bottles of wine. Thank goodness DH was driving

I have set satnav up and Car DVD player ready.

Hope you have a great trip.

 

[hollymattbenmilo]

Hi we are doing the tunnel again in a couple of weeks.

I love the tunnel over the ferry. Have travelled by ferry lots of times but I am seasick and so is DD so not a pleasant experience. 1 year took seasickness tablets but they did not work till I was of the ferry and then I was one minute dopey, next as high as a kite, as though I had had a couple of bottles of wine. Thank goodness DH was driving

I have set satnav up and Car DVD player ready.

Hope you have a great trip.

yes i have been thinking about trying to find someone with a twin dvd player for the car! watching disney films on the way sounfs like a fab idea! haah

 

[poppyears]

yes i have been thinking about trying to find someone with a twin dvd player for the car! watching disney films on the way sounfs like a fab idea! haah

We got ours in the sale at Argos. Was about £70. Not cheap but well worth it. We travel to friends in sufforlk a lot. It keeps the girls quiet and they are 14 years old. FRiend has bought one for her boys and they are 5 and 7 and they use it loads.

It can also be pluged in at home so if anyone ill can use it in bed as we do not have tvs in bedrooms.
Also thought if it is wet could watch a film on holiday so hoping to get plenty of use out of it over the comming years.

 

[hollymattbenmilo]

We got ours in the sale at Argos. Was about £70. Not cheap but well worth it. We travel to friends in sufforlk a lot. It keeps the girls quiet and they are 14 years old. FRiend has bought one for her boys and they are 5 and 7 and they use it loads.

It can also be pluged in at home so if anyone ill can use it in bed as we do not have tvs in bedrooms.
Also thought if it is wet could watch a film on holiday so hoping to get plenty of use out of it over the comming years.

yes just seen that one... i may try and do a few boot sales.. get rid of some old toys and outgrown disney costumes! and get one!

 

[Brummig]

We've done the tunnel about 6 times now - love it *** I'm not keen on boats, and we use tesco vouchers. There's only been twice when we haven't been able to just go on the next available train if we get there early - once just after the fire and at the May bank holiday (but we were on the first train of the morning anyway). We give ourselves half an hour to go to the toilet, let ds have a run around etc (buy wine on the way back!). On the journey we let ds out of his car seat, eat, drink, and tidy up a bit. Last time we went in our campervan and dh went to sleep for an hour, while I played with ds, and got the back ready for going into the park as soon as we arrived.
We have DVD player for ds - we also us this in the hotel in the evening for a bit of wind down time.
As many have said before, it's a really easy journey, although be warned the park isn't signed til very close so don't panic that you've missed it! Benefit of the car is there's no limit on amount of stuff you can take so we always take - juice to dilute (can't get ribena type stuff there), couple of bottles of wine for us after ds has gone to sleep, some snack type bars and sweets/ crisps (not chocolate though as it will always melt even in winter), dvds.
We love it!

 

[hollymattbenmilo]

that sounds great! our tomtom doesnt have europe on it! and dotn fancy paying to add it on as it costs about £50!! you reckon we will be fine without it? use multi map or simular?
yes we are going davy crocket ranch, so our car will be filled to the brim with everything from bottled water to pasta! haha

i feel so less "stressed" knowing we wont have that airport wait etc.. esp last time at cdg- we were in a different area then normal.. and it was awful! no seats.. no toilets for 2 hours! nightmare! so glad we wont have to deal with any of that!

 

[joolz1910]

I'm seriously considering driving if another good offer comes out. We have the in-car dvd player too! What's Davy Crocketts like?

 

[hollymattbenmilo]

I'm seriously considering driving if another good offer comes out. We have the in-car dvd player too! What's Davy Crocketts like?

i second that! hehe.. there isnt alot about it really...
i will do a good report on it once i am back!!

 

[A Small World]

I'm seriously considering driving if another good offer comes out. We have the in-car dvd player too! What's Davy Crocketts like?

It was quite nice - the new cabins seem even nicer. There are lots of pics on the DCR thread (Hotel sticky). The pool is the best one on site and its nice to have a bit more space than just one room.

The cooking facilities arent brilliant but they are good enough to prepare basic meals

 

[joolz1910]

It was quite nice - the new cabins seem even nicer. There are lots of pics on the DCR thread (Hotel sticky). The pool is the best one on site and its nice to have a bit more space than just one room.

The cooking facilities arent brilliant but they are good enough to prepare basic meals

Thanks. DH has just pointed out that, as we go in January, I might not want to drive in those conditions. I hadn't thought of that. Might go back to pricing up Eurostar and 2 rooms at Santa Fe.

 

[Brummig]

Benefit of taking car in Jan is that you can take plenty of changes and wet weather/ cold weather gear with you, as it is not easy to dry things in the hotel. There are slower limits on the road in wet weather and warnings of slippy roads but we have never seen any problems - just allow a bit more time.