The Daily Telegraph - Saturday - Travel
BEST OF BRITISH
your motoring skills on twisting Wrynose Pass – you know you’ve reached even tougher Hardknott Pass when you see those signs – and then tackle the network of hairpin bends. Stop frequently to catch your breath – and soak up the views. Eventually you reach the final, daunting descent, a test of driver, machine and brakes. When you reach the end, turn round and do it all again, the other way. Just for fun.
MORE AT golakes.co.uk Spontaneity should be an ingredient in every great self-drive holiday, but a little planning pays dividends – even if a road trip is carried out at the last minute, perhaps when the weather takes a turn for the better. For most of us, that means heading somewhere in Britain. The following tips should help:
On UK road trips, limit your distances to between 30 and 70 miles (50110km) per day, linking two or three cosy hotels or country pubs. Book ahead and make your first overnight stop your road trip launch point.
Find your perfect pit stops here: telegraph. co.uk/travel/ destinations/ europe/unitedkingdom/ england/hotels
Use tourism websites such as visitbritain.com to pinpoint five or six attractions in your target area, then plot a winding route linking them.
Cover as many miles as possible on faster motorways before turning off to slow down and enjoy your chosen national park, coastal road or stately home. Make an early start each day to maximise mileage and avoid stress.
3 NORTH COAST DRIVE, N IRELAND
SUMMARY Starting at Belfast, 130 miles of craggy coast with the Giant’s Causeway.
HOW TO DO IT Heading north from Belfast, the M2/A2 kisses the coast and the Causeway Coast Route, past Carrickfergus Castle and Glenarm, where the landscape becomes increasingly wild. After isolated Garron Point turn left, climbing steeply into remote Glenariff Forest Park. Drive on past mighty Tievebulliagh mountain, through the pretty towns of Cushendall and Cushendun, following signs to isolated Torr Head. Ballycastle harbour is followed by romantic, ruined Dunluce Castle… a mere curtain-raiser for mind-blowing Giant’s Causeway.
MORE AT ireland.com
4 COTE D’OPALE, FRANCE
SUMMARY A great, short, European “starter” road trip; easy to get to, packed with colour and interest.
HOW TO DO IT The beautiful Côte d’Opale is frequently overlooked by British tourists who arrive in Calais only to rush inland. Nestling between Calais and Boulogne, it boasts 26 miles of breathtakingly craggy, verdant, coastline. Its quiet, restrained identity has long been prized by the French, who love its informal seafood restaurants hidden in fishing villages, its miles of sandy beaches and its intriguing coves. Find it by following the D940 south from Calais. Discover pretty beaches – and overnight stops – along the way at Audresselles and Ambleteuse and the surfing mecca of Wissant, before dropping into Boulogne, home to 1,000 shops, 200 restaurants and traditional markets.
MORE AT tourisme-boulognesurmer. com; cote-dopale.com
5 BRITTANY, FRANCE
SUMMARY Historic half-timbered buildings, white-sand beaches and craggy coastline on a 500-mile route over four or five nights.
HOW TO DO IT Take the overnight ferry from Portsmouth to St Malo, then drive south for a late breakfast at Dinan. Wind south towards your night-time stop at the seaside resort of Billiers, pausing to inspect medieval Josselin. Next, investigate picturesque Auray, followed by quiet, atmospheric Carnac. Risk getting lost as you hug the coastline to your next overnight stop, at Douarnenez, by following a confusing maze of twisting local roads.
Head back to St Malo via ancient Locronan along the prettily winding D7 north, enjoying some of the most jaw-droppingly beautiful roads in Brittany, through the Parc Naturel Régional d’Armorique, descending to the elegant town of Morlaix. Investigate the dramatic Pink Granite Coast before returning to comely St Malo.
MORE AT brittany-ferries.co.uk
6 GROSSGLOCKNER HOCHALPENSTRASSE, AUSTRIA
SUMMARY This cloud-piercing route is only 30 miles long but it’s one of Europe’s best, with views over 37 mountains.
HOW TO DO IT The “High Alpine Road”, as it is known, winds through the Hohe Tauern National Park. Start at Bruck in the Salzburg valley, continuing through the Ferleiten toll entrance (cars €36/£31, motorcycles €26). You are soon greeted by stunning, endless views as the road climbs ever upwards to 8,215ft – with 36 challenging hairpin bends. Passengers (at least) can gaze out on a frequently changing vista of lakes, glaciers, pine-clad hills, dramatic, rocky cliff faces and lush meadows. Pause for a visit to the Alpine Nature Show museum, highlighting the area’s natural ecosystems, and the “Building of the Road” exhibition next to the Fuscher Lacke, recording the challenges faced by the labourers who, in 1935, built the “most beautiful road in the world”. The journey ends when you reach Carinthia. Open early May to early November only, due to weather conditions.
MORE AT grossglockner.at/gg/en/ pricesandopeninghours