I once drove from LA to SF up the coastal highway - actually better in the other direction as then you are on the ocean side of the road.
Some hire car firms will let you drop off anywhere in the same State, not the case for specialist hires like MX5 of course.
Other great routes in the US include the Blue Ridge Parkway in Virginia.
The Americans are great at allowing access via roads to the wonderful scenery they have. You can even drive up to the top of mount Washington (in New Hampshire) at 6000 feet.
Visiting Pyrenees in summer is a very good option. I did so some years ago. Note that most of the places have their peak times during sky season. So, in summer there is usually a lot of rooms available and the hotels use to be welcoming and well priced. You will find good food, as usual in mountain aereas. If only, there will be a lot of tourists doing trekking in some National Parks, such as Aiguestortes, Ordesa and Selva de Irati.
Nevertheless, if travelling to Spain by ferry, North Coast and surroundigs is wonderful, with dozens of interesting passes and great scenery. Perhaps not so enormous as Pyrenees, and a bit more crowded during July and August, but there are so many beautiful spots, such as Collado de Asón, Desfiladero de los Beyos, Desfiladero de la Hermida (quite busy this one in summer, as it is the access to impressive cable car in Fuente De)… Just google this ones…
Spanish club Miatapasión makes a rally every year in Cantabria, central area of the North Coast.
Quote How would you rate Austrian passes generally for cars? Are all or most of them toll? I’m thinking about taking the GTR there next year.
Travelling in Austria as well as many other countries South East Europe requires a Vignette (tax) in order to use the main highways. This has nothing to do with any tolls imposed for particular roads. Grossglocker is a private road in any case but there are main roads that require the payment of a toll IN ADDITION to having a Vignette. One we use a lot is the great road from Salzberg to Villach. It was an expensive road to build so it costs extra to use it. From memory it was around 19 Euros but we did not go to the end. If you go onwards to Slovenia it is another toll for the tunnel PLUS the Slovenia vignette. We prefer to travel via Vrisic pass. Fantastic road and it avoids the toll and queues in the tunnel. In some countries all the filling stations within miles of the borders offer vignettes. Others have booths at the border.
Other counties we have travelled that require a toll are Switzerland, Hungary (checked by plate recognition cameras), Slovenia, Czech Republic, Slovakia, and Romania. Apart from Switzerland Vignettes can be bought for short periods, e.g. 10 days. Switzerland is a real pain as you have to buy an annual toll in advance that is always valid from Jan to December although the cost is the same whenever you buy it. The last three do not charge motorcycles. Although the short term vignettes are not expensive its worth checking routes before buying. We use Garmin satnav and it will offer alternative routes avoiding toll roads. As vignettes are cheap we normally buy one anyway but we know we never hit a highway travelling through south of Czech Republic so don’t bother and last year we just wanted to go from Vienna to Bratislava for lunch and the Garmin offered a route taking three minutes more and avoiding the need for a Slovakia Vignette.
One country that does not have a vignette system is Croatia BUT just about all of their main highways are toll roads and it can get pricey. Worth it though as its a great country to visit. Also worth remembering (for European insured cars) that some of the south east Europe countries are not EU so either Green card or local insurance is needed. We have found it very hard to get an insurer to offer a Green card for Bosnia so have had to buy, probably worthless, insurance at the border. One week for a motorcycle cost 10 Euros and for a car 30 Euros and only covers the local minimum which is third party personal injury. We also found one toll road near Banja Luka going north to Croatia. An absolutely deserted six lane highway and the toll was about 60 pence. I love Bosnia.
Thanks for that comprehensive bit of info. I still haven’t managed to track down any suggested day long driving routes for Austria that would take in several passes.
I have put together a short trip for September which takes in the Vosges, Black Forest and the Alpenstrasse. Perhaps I’ll leave it at that and do my main trip in June to Spain and return via. the Gorge du Verdon (France). Seems cheaper and a lot less hassle for routes that are probably as good as or better.
Black Forest can be interesting but we tend to avoid France other than for the ferry port. Our normal routing goes up to Belgium, along to Brussels and then south past Malmedy into Germany. It seems illogical but has little effect on distance, better roads and no toll roads. Germany can also be a faster route due to no speed limits on most of the autobahns. In the section entering Germany south of Malmedy there is little traffic and we frequently cruise on our BMW motorcycle at 130 - 140 mph which eats the miles (and the fuel unfortunately). Even on more crowded roads its good to be able to travel at a leisurely 90 - 95 without having to lookout for police.
This routing can bring us out around Gamisch which is a beautiful area or Salzburg which is one of our favourite towns. Either is great for continuing south to Italy or Slovenia, Croatia, etc. One great circuit we did this year starts in Salzburg and after a short autobahn run south goes over some great high level roads to Hallstatt. This is a UNESCO World Heritage site with amazing views over lake and mountains, particularly if you take the funicular up the mountain to the ancient salt mine. Also worth a visit. Return to Salzburg going east past some lakes. The route there via the autobahn is without doubt the best of the two. One tip is go early as Hallstatt is a tourist draw, the roads are narrow and there is limited parking. I cant work out how I can upload some pics but Googling Hallstatt finds plenty.
Incidentally. BMW Motorrad run an event on the first weekend in July in Garmisch. About 40,000 biles and lots of beer and music Using the route via Brussels and Malady we go most years and do it in two easy runs of around 380 miles stopping overnight near Ramstein on trip out and divert for a night in Frankfurt on way back. My son-in-law and some friends go by car and do it in one day. 2017 hotel already booked !!
Black Forest can be interesting but we tend to avoid France other than for the ferry port. Our normal routing goes up to Belgium, along to Brussels and then south past Malady into Germany. It seems illogical but has little effect on distance, better roads and no toll roads. Germany can also be a faster route due to no speed limits on most of the autobahns. In the section entering Germany south of Malmedy there is little traffic and we frequently cruise on our BMW motorcycle at 130 - 140 mph which eats the miles (and the fuel unfortunately). Even on more crowded roads its good to be able to travel at a leisurely 90 - 95 without having to lookout for police.
Better you than me 140mph on an autobahn. On a bike.
I still vividly remember once almost fifty years ago on the Autobahn heading towards Wurtszburg on my old Triumph at a comfortable 80+ (geared for 130) resting on my sleeping bag strapped to the tank and tucked in behind the fairing, when a pagoda-top Merc went past like I was standing still just as I pulled back in from overtaking an artic.
Before I had overtaken the truck the Merc was almost out of sight behind me, and before I had time to breathe again after he had passed he had disappeared out of sight in front. Awesome.
Quote- Better you than me 140mph on an autobahn. On a bike.
German driving standards help to make it possible and wife has been known to doze off on the pillion . This video was a few years back going down to Garmisch with son-in-law (London traffic police) on the pillion.
QUOTE - Having done some research on Austria and turning up not much more than some roads are beautifully surfaced on one side but rough on the other. Many are tolls but are these included in the vignette or are they extra
Please see my earlier post. Vignette and tolls are totally separate. The Vignette is required to use almost all Austrian major Highways. Normally the entrances of these roads will have a warning that a vignette is required to use them. Tolls are for particular roads which may or may not be highways or may be privately owned roads. One example of a toll I gave is part of the road linking Salzburg to Villach. From memory it would be pretty well impossible to reach the start of the toll section legally without having a valid vignette anyway.
There is no reason to get excited about vignettes. The Austrian one costs 8.80 Euros for a car for 10 days and are picked up at any filling station. We normally have to buy one while travelling south and another when we drive home but 17 Euros on our holiday cost hardly breaks the bank and is good value to travel in a great country. We paid more than that last week to park overnight in our hotel in Germany !! Fines for travelling on a highway without s vignette are quite high.
Austria offers a lot more than roads which are “beautifully surfaced on one side but rough on the other”. Salzburg and Vienna among others are wonderful towns to visit and the Alps has some great drives and wonderful views and a bit of `Googling’ finds some interesting passes. If going south to Slovenia avoiding autobahn and tunnel and using Wurzen Pass is a good route made great as it leads to Vrsic Pass which is one of the very best. Watch the tarmac straights but steep cobble stone hairpins. As my wife discovered, they are killers on a motorbike. Eating and drinking is great as well and does not have to cost the earth. Oh yes, Austria has the most up market highway service areas we have ever seen.
Thanks again for the informative reply. If I went to Austria it would only be for the roads so pretty towns and interesting cities are not at the top of my tree. You didn’t indicate how much private roads might cost.
I have spent a lot of time Googling routes in Austria. This is one of the few websites I found of use.
At the moment I’m trying to figure a return route from Berchtesgaden, Germany through Austria, northern Italy to the UK. I have worked out a general idea so far taking in the Grossglockner on my way to some suggested routes in northern Italy. The above website seems to follow major roads but another
suggests routes that are altogether different but are often difficult to piece together on a map. Even more frustrating is that they are usually given in short sections of 10 to 25 kms. However, comparing best routes from both sites in Italy in the same region on Google streetview, the Alpine roads site seems to have the better routes.
Would that countries like Belgium, Germany, Switzerland and Austria had streetview it would make planning a lot easier. I can’t imagine anything more frustrating than a road with cobbled hairpins.
Believe me. VRSIC with its cobbled hairpins is worth the trip. We first used it by motorcycle some years back. We were in Salzburg and my BMW GS needed a new front tyre. The dealer suggested the ONLY way to go south was Vrsic Pass and after travelling it we agree. The cobbles were no real problem but on a very steep hairpin my wife stalled her bike and dropped it. We have used the road since by car (BMW Z3} and it is a wonderful drive. We have been to Berchesgaden a few times. Worth a visit but we seem to attract rain and mist when we go. Once was when we were staying on a campsite in Salzburg which makes it a short day trip. Another was also a day trip but from Garmisch. That is pretty much an autobahn run along the edge of the Alps.
Travelling from UK we don’t look for anything special on the roads other than getting us south fast. From experience we have found it much better to go from Calais through Belgium, past Brussels and then south past Spa GP circuit and into Germany. Once in Germany it is a very fast run south on great roads with no tolls and few speed limits. The first autobahn in Germany has little traffic so is very fast. The only snag being to fill up after Brussels as there are no service areas for a long way. In the car its OK but on bikes we are running on fumes before we can get fuel. We then enter Austria either on the Munich - Salzburg road or Ulm - Garmisch. The second is a little odd as to get to Garmisch from Germany the best route is through a little of Austria going around Zugspitze, Germany’s highest peak. Going on south from Garmisch is a great road through Austria, into Italy and over Stelvio and then back via Bormio for a longish day trip.
I’ve roughed out a route going from the end of the Alpenstrasse heading roughly towards Italy. I know there is a bit of back tracking shown but does this do justice to some of the interesting passes and roads in Austria?
The Sunday Times Magazine Jan 22, has an article titled My Way Is The Highway about the California Route 1 driven in a MX-5. Not much of a write up about the MX-5 but it does say that it is the ideal companion for this route.
The lighthouse at sunrise is amazing! Well worth getting up early for, we then had a blast back to the hotel, breakfast, dropped the car off at the hire company and collapsed in a sun lounger to make up for the early start… perfect!
i also did the north coast 500 last year in my golf and my friend in his mr2 roadster, we had an absolute blast, I’d recommended doing the east coast first though as it was a bit of an anti climax after the west coast! Try and add in the isle of Skye, it was stunning with beautiful roads and great sight lines! I will try to write up our trip one day, my friend started writing it up on piston heads but lost interest… as is his usual way!
