Thanks Chris…… the reported mpg is merely the on dash “average” reading…… it wasn’t properly calculated from receipts and odometer readings…… but it displayed in & around 36.7 or so every time I looked- which was often. I’m assuming the steady readings reflect the fact that we generally cruised about 65-70 mph, and didn’t go over 80mph over the 5 week trip…… a product of being fully loaded and carrying the Revo-rack. My fears were mid-placed- the suction pads & vacuums did their job…. didn’t let go. But then we kept well within the recommended load and kept the speed reasonable. I agree with your comments re the accommodation prices off the beaten track. Silly example but 2 Coke Zero in Lagos approx 4.5 euro……… whilst on the road from Portimão to Monchique, still on the Algarve but off the coastal strip, approx 2.5 euro. Nuts.
How wonderful. I booked my ferry yesterday, Galicia is our destination. The North coast of Spain is stunning and so different to the more familiar Med coast. We stayed in Santillana del Mar on honeymoon years ago in a gold Rolls! Next May’s trip will be in our MX-5 BBR.
Thanks for your recollections.
This taken in Santillana- and I agree it’s a lovely place to visit. We stayed in Hotel Colonial de Santillana, very close to the centre and with good private car park next door.
Seems that the majority of tourists along the Cantabrian coast are either Spanish or French….certainly English is not widely spoken…until Santiago de Compostella, presumably due to the huge number of tourists from all over the world…… especially UK & Ireland. Enjoy your visit.
What a great adventure …when you start to travel like this you never want to stop .
Ahh, thanks for that piccy. My mum was from Bilbao, so have been going to that area for all my life. As I mentioned I took new wife to meet my family in Bilbao & then we drove along the coast. I did a classic rally in my BBR some 10 years ago, first around the Picos and then Rioja & on to the Pyrenees. That was the best rally I ever did. This time I want to go to Alonso museum and then Santiago following the coast and return via Leon and the mountains. I’m sure an MX-5 will be perfect for that journey.
BBR above the clouds on Picos Rally and Rolls at Le Mans on honeymoon.
Fuel consumption in the Rolls???
Sure it was good fun though.
As somebody else said - very inspirational!
We did a river cruise on the Douro a few years ago and have meant to return to the Porto area to explore some more but it never occured to us to do it by road until your article. We have a NC 3.75 Venture.
How expensive was the ferry crossing? Did you go “steerage” or book a cabin?
We travelled by Brittany Ferries…… originally booked Cork-Santander for departure in 2020.
Subsequently the route was changed by the ferry Co. and became Rosslare-Bilbao. Suited us better as Cork is much further from Belfast.
The trip was postponed in 2020 & 2021, for obvious reasons, and we finally departed 24/08/22. Brittany advertise this as a “no frills service”, which I assume reflects the fact that the “Connemara “ is a freight carrier, which also carries cars…… it’s reasonably comfortable…but it’s not a cruise ship…… and this is made plain at the time of booking. Interestingly…… the ferry is being replaced at the end of October, by the “Galicia”……and I believe the intention is to boost the experience and attract greater numbers of cars/tourists, as opposed to freight.
We paid 412 euro outgoing and 364 euro coming back.
Also, nice NB at the back on RHS
That was really cheap, as you say probably because of the freight angle.
Now most journeys are two nights and include a cabin, meal and breakfast I believe.
Hard to say how much we paid from Plymouth as it was rolled over 5 times due to COVID. I would guess at around £1K but the ships and food are excellent.
I confess…. on the trip home especially, food was the last thing on my mind…….felt really ill.
Outward …. it was fine in comparison.
Not the fault of the ferry company-I’m just not great on boats.
We did have the option of two nights on the boat, as opposed to one, depending on time of departure. Thankfully we booked a hotel literally 300m from the ferry terminal, and thus were able to take the one night option, departing Rosslare @10.15am, check in 2hours before.
The other option would be a 3hour drive to Rosslare leaving home at 04.30 or so…. didn’t fancy that.
Thanks so much for sharing, sounds like it was brilliant! I’d love to do this sort of trip and have been looking at sailings from Plymouth and Portsmouth.
Currently thinking about the Chunnel in 2024…… means Holyhead to Folkestone but gets around the 27 hour ferry trip. Having said that, the new boat ( Galicia) may be better than the old one ( Connemara)…… cruise ship = better stabilised???
Currently in Kinloss, Moray…… Belfast - Cairnryan yesterday…quite a windy day, but no prob - better than the Bay of Biscay…. despite the fact the Irish Sea can be rough! Much bigger boat……Stena V11 (I think) more luxurious than the Connemara, but then 2.5 hours had to be better than 27!!
Good luck with the planning.
Great account of your road trip . My daughter lives in Santiago de Compostela so it’s a possible option to combine another road trip with a visit .
We did the Laon Historique which was in 2022 and then visited the WWI battlefields in Picardie for a few days before heading back across the channel to the Cotswolds, Lake District and Scotland on route to Cairnryan and the old NC LE did the job without any problems .
