Plymouth-Santander?

[maxstu]

Ahhaa!! Avast ye lilly livered, landlubbers scurvy talk! Choppy wa'ers I 'ear ye say? Belay that bilge gossip of a choppy briny. Tis only the Bay of Biscay we t'navigate this wednesday. Why tis as smooth as Roger the cabin boy's 'and's, it be. Ahhaa and shiver my timber's!!!
Don't ye go tellin' me missus elsewise ye 'ear. I let it slip, ye see, that the Bay, why tis no more 'an a boatin' lake for young pike an' their prettee lasses. And nay 'er a worry 'er head a'more. Fore if I 'ear another scurvy word said, a cat o'nine thee shall feel upon ye back, an' spliced to t'mainsail for duration of passage, ye see. AHHAAAAA

Keep it down, lads. I told Maxine it'll be a smooth crossing. Beside, if you think this is choppy...try The North Sea in mid winter. You'll probably never leave terra firma again.

[AngeloEvs]

2am, Bay of Biscay, every one pukin, boat pitching up-down-rolling left right for hours then hit by a massive wave, lights out and alarms sounding, lilly livered? too bloody right! Last year caught ferry from Venice to Patras (Greece), drove van onto campervan open deck, free electric hook up, use van for accomodation, swimming pools on deck, absolute luxury, cheap as chips, hot sunny weather down the Agean, like a mill pond, about 400 pounds return - now that is cruising! Can't wait to do it again.[/img]

[maxstu]

2am, Bay of Biscay, every one pukin, boat pitching up-down-rolling left right for hours then thit by a massive wave, lights out and alarms sounding, lilly livered?

That's cos your from Norfolk where everything is flat & level

Still nothing compared to The North Sea. Too friggin scared to puke. But if you do start you only stop when you feel a round piece of gristle in you mouth. It's called your ar*ehole.

Greece sounds cool though

[AngeloEvs]

I like flat and level, great mpg here in Norfolk Have a good hols!

[maxstu]

Thanks..will do

[jaylo264]

Angeloevs , did you take the van from uk to venice ? sounds a good idee to me , we live north of inverness so take the ferry to zeebrugge , should only be a one-nighter down to venice - maybe ?? jaylo

[AngeloEvs]

We went Dover-Calais, then 3 days to Venice (Total ftrom Midlands approx. 1000 miles). We spent 2 weeks in Greece then caught the ferry to Crete and spent two weeks there. I recently checked and found that the 'Camping on Board' facility is now only available from Ancona which is just a little way down the coast from Venice. We returned via Ancona and it made little difference to the mileage overall. Both Anek and Minoan offer camping on board with free electric hook-up and you can get quotes on-line from

http://www.aferry.co.uk/ferry-to-greece-ferries-uk.htm

The Ferry is absolute luxury and a fabulous experience. Not sure how to upload a picture into a post so I have put one in my Garage Gallery and you can see the camping deck there. Just click on the 1987 Autohomes Kameo link on the left of this thread.

[jaylo264]

Many thanks , excellent and food for thought !

[1989T25]

we are going to France this year, Dover to Dunkerque with Norfolkline and is costing £64 bargain

[smokeyjon]

We took Britanny Feries Plymouth-Santander last year (late Sept). It was lovely and flat until we fell off the continental shelf into the 'bay!! I worked out that the route to Portugal via to northern France would've been about £150-200 cheaper (round trip) when heading to Portugal (even based on a syncro TD's 28mpg!!), but I'm glad my girlfriend convinced me, as the 2000 miles round trip to Lisbon via Galicia was plenty of driving. I guess it depends how much time you have and whether you want to see France or just bomb through

I think we'd just missed the good weather, but there was plenty of big, heavy surf on the north coast of Spain/Portugal if you're up to that kind of thing! There was loads of scope for free camping in Galicia as well (some beautifal spots too).

I like the idea of Italy/Greece now though...

[DevonAid]

Just to add our experience, as we've just got back from 4 weeks in Spain, using the Portsmouth to Bilbao ferry to get there.
£700 return for 2 adults and the VW initially seems expensive, but I thought the ferry was fab. It's a really relaxed way to travel, a big ship with loads to do. I'm aware the Bay of Biscay can be very choppy at times, but we were fortunate and the crossing both ways was very smooth. The advantage of that route is you get to spot whales and dolphins - assited by the onboard wildlife officer - which we did in both directions, a real bonus. There's plenty to do on board for all tastes, and you've got your own cabin too.
Prices on board are in pounds, but meal value was fairly reasonable I thought (£8 for a 'proper' meal and dessert. Can also do 'posh' at Langans, a bit more pricey). Plenty of public spaces to eat your own food if you want.
I think the Portsmouth ferry is a little slower than the Plymouth one, but then Portsmouth is nearer to home for us so there is little in it.
After covering 2250 miles in Spain in a four weeks, I wouldn't fancy driving through France and back again as well. Can offset some of the fuel cost driving through France as well. The ferry is part of the holiday too.
Tips for the ferry to help anyone thinking about it:
1: Book early as pos for lower prices
2: Get P&O to send you a list of what's going on once on board (they didn't with us so the whole thing was a suprise)
3: Ship was quite quiet on the way out early may, busy on way back (yesterday - half term with some people staying on board for the Portsmouth-Bilbao-Portsmouth 3 day 'mini-cruise') so think about out of season if you can do it.
I would definately consider using the Bilbao ferry again.