We covered 3,200+ miles in 7 days, and went through France, Germany, Switzerland, Austria, Luxembourg, Belgium and Italy. The weather was fantastic, reaching 37 degrees in Garda, and averaged 28 everywhere else. The roads in Austria are something else, 100+ miles of twists...pure heaven for a sports bike, you can really hammer it.. The Gothard and Stelvio passes are something else, very, very tight in some places, but the scenery is breathtaking. Switzerland is fantastic, great roads and the food in lucerne is something else...best i ever had. Verona is gorgeous, as was the hotel and the coffee. Sermioni is lovely too, and Strasbourg is beautiful in the main town...very old and pretty. Again, the food was fantastic as was the wine and beer. I can recommend the trip to anyone, it wasn't too expensive for a week at all, the main expense was petrol. A formula one hotel costs a tenner a person. Basic, but great to just get your head down. We averaged 420 miles a day, apart from when we went to Stelvio, that was a grueller at 630 miles. We hit the Autobahn in germany, and i maxed out the blade... well the speedo wouldn't go anymore, but the bike was still pulling...what a rush....it was safe too. It's pretty weird though, doing 100mph in the inside lane taking it easy when an old corsa blasts past you.... We got fined a few times, but that added in the fun really...weird but true. Lake Garda is beautiful, and we hired a boat for an hour, and blasted around the lake, and went for a swim... it was roasting. I need a new front tyre now though, which is a bummer. We arrived in Folkestone, and the next morning it pissed down all the 300 miles home, and was freezing. The waterproofs i had on did fuck all. Good old blighty eh? Morocco next year i think. Formula 1, Strasbourg Lake Garda: Hotel: Stelvio: Strasbourg:
That looks like a fantastic trip .Glad it was successful top photos must have been a bummer coming back to the rain .
Si .When you have got your breath back maybe go into detail a little for us ie Best roads/ Best food cleanest place /Most expensive fuel/ best cops / locals on bikes /What you would change if you did it again. ect.
awesome pics you cant beat a euro trip, you put in some proper miles each day that in its self is hard we normally average 300 miles when we go, 2013 we are planning that same trip. The last 3 yrs we have got soaked in the UK either going to the ferry or home. Also the last 3yrs i have parked the bike up for several weeks cause the UK roads are such a let down after riding in europe.
Yea unfortunately, the rain was torrential on the motorway. 300 miles of driving rain at 80 mph... Pain in the arse. Waterproofs didathe job around 100 miles ( cheers Jamie) but it started running down my neck and we all got soaked through. Best roads for me (twisties wise) where austria..100 miles at least through the mountains. A few coppers though hiding. Everywhere we went was immaculately clean, especially Switzerland. The town centres, Verona, Strasbourg, Lucerne and Baden where stunning. The gothard pass was superb, no broken roads..the surface was grippy. Stelvio was similar, but had a few cracks and broken bits, especially on the hairpins, and bits of pebbles, you had to be careful. Average fill up in Germany, Belgium, austria and switzerland was 18 euros...cheaper than here,but we didn't fill up on the motorways, only a roads. We ate decent food in decent restaurants and again food was around 60 euros for 3 inc starter and mains. Lucerne was slightly dearer at 70 euro for 3,...but proper fine dining. Locals on bikes in all countries where very friendly, legs and arms out as you pass... The scooter boys in the cities are nuts... Weaving in and out all the time and don't give a stuff. Autobahn is crazy, and can easily max out the bikes...very safe as the roads are superb with miles of straights and long corners. Didn't really see many cops, there where some scattered on the decent roads, but few and far between. Lots in the centres though, and left us alone when we parked the bikes anywhere, only getting a finding Sermioni when we parked the bikes up by the river on a pedestrian bit. The toll roads are a nightmare in Italy, really confusing... We just rode through the barriers as we kept fiddling with our cash cards and having loads of traffic backed up behind..so thought sod it... And just went for it. Did this around 4 times, but got a fine at the end. Swiss road tax was 40 euro inc the toll, this lasts a year apparently. I thought it would be 9 euro, but not so. Sat Nav is a must, especially for fuel stations, as if the light comes on, it directs you to the nearest one, also handy for restaraunts and shops etc... We mainly stuck to a roads, and used the tolls for fast travelling, the mountain twisties in Italy are something else, same as Austria...Austria is slightly better, surface wise. Coffee is cheaper out of the towns, 3 euro for 3 cappuccinos and waters, in comparison to 3 euro for 1 in the towns. You can eat very cheaply, if you stick to fast food... Average is 4 euro for a meal plus drink, but we didn't scrimp as the hotel in Verona and Strasbourg was cheap. The biggest single expense was petrol...and the holiday inn in Folkestone. In fact, that cost more than the hotel in Strasbourg and Verona put together. Rip off. We didn't have a single complaint, even getting fines was a laugh! The blade was faultless, the only bit that ached was my arse.... Concentration was the tiring bit when opening it up and travelling long distances. We travelled light, and sent a suitcase to the hotel from the uk, it arrived waiting for us, which saved space and weight...definitely a top idea. We took enough to last us 3 days of clothes changing and essentials like tools, puncture kits, gaffer tape etc... We set a few speed cameras off in Germany and France, but these where forward facing so should be ok. Lastly, we never got asked for our passports once at any borders, we just rode straight on, only returning to the Chunnel in Calais we had to stop and answer some questions and show documents, and used it for hiring some speedboats in Garda. We broke up the boring journeys on the toll roads, by entertaining kids in cars...my mate and I where flying past the cars doing supermen legs out and arms forward...that was a laugh. The only thing I would change, is have 2 more nights to break it up for a stay over, as the 600 odd mile day was knackering mentally. Craig's gear shift came apart, and i got alerted by Tol using the scala g4s we where using,they really are brilliant bits of kit, and invaluable for touring. We fixed it within 2 minutes. That was the only hiccup.
Oh, one last thing. When we were planning out the roads for the day, and punched in waypoints on the sat Nav... The time taken according to the sat Nav has to be disregarded. Trips that said would take say 5 hrs, turned into 10 with fuel stops and fluid breaks and food. The 600+ mile day we did was 13+ hrs... Definitely put this into consideration. And when filling up, if there's 3 of you etc... Use the same pump for the bikes at the same time and take turns at each station who's paying...it's easier, saves faffing about with cards and individual money and works out the same money wise. Also, a kitty for coffees and lunch is a good idea. The whole trip, for everything cost around £1300, and we didn't scrimp...you can knock off £300 at least if you eat cheaply.. I need a new front tyre now though, as it's buggered. On the oil usage front, the blade has used 200 ml in over 3,000 miles, and my 2011 bike has over 12k on it now... Need to keep the mileage down.
