<img src="https://secure.leadforensics.com/64913.png" style="display:none;">
Holiday tips and advice to get ready for your trip

07 July 2014 12:32:00 BST | children Holiday tips and advice to get ready for your trip

Summer is here and this year you have decided to travel with your car. Below are some useful holiday tips and advice to get you ready for your trip.

Young people having vacation enjoying fun driving car-1

Summer is finally here, and more and more of us will be choosing to enjoy trips away by car as an easy and convenient way to get around. Travelling by car gives you freedom and flexibility to move at your own pace, whether in your own car or in a hire car. If you’re going to be driving abroad this summer, you will need to make sure you’re prepared in advance. Below are some useful holiday tips and advice to get you ready for your trip as well as some things to consider when driving in a foreign country.

 

Driving in Europe

It is generally easy to read European road signs, warnings and symbols will be familiar, however, the speed limits will differ. For example, speeds will be given in kilometres. Not miles, so you will need to get to grips with these figures before you travel. On European motorways, the speed limit can vary between 100 and 130 km/h. The maximum limit of 130 km/h in France, is also applied in many other countries such as Luxembourg, Slovakia, Czech Republic, Poland, Romania, Lithuania, Austria, Bulgaria, Greece and Italy.

Spain, Portugal and the Netherlands have speed limits of 120 km/h, whilst Sweden has a limit of 110 km/h, and Cyprus has the lowest speed limit of 100 km/h.

Germany is the exception. Whilst the speed limit is generally 130 km/h across 40% of its motorways, there is no limit on the other 60%. And although many portions of the motorways have no limits, Road Safety advises drivers not to drive at speeds faster than 130 km/h whilst on these roads. Whilst the feeling you get from driving on these roads can be powerful, it’s important to remember that in 2013, there were 1.7 million accidents on the road caused by speed.

When driving on country roads, European countries have a maximum speed which varies between 90 km/h and 100 km/h; except in Sweden where the speed limit is 70 km/h. In the city centre, the speed limit is the same everywhere and drivers must stick to a 50 km/h limit.

Check the vehicle

Before you leave, it’s important to make sure that you prepare your car and that you have everything in order. Try to do this at least a week before you leave to give you enough time to get any repairs sorted or to purchase any additional equipment (roof racks for example).

Firstly, you have to check the oil levels (the tank must be full to at least half). Be sure to clean your car, especially the headlights and the windows to allow better visibility. A quick trip to the garage can tell you if your car is in a good condition for driving abroad.

Secondly, make sure that you check that your lights are in order and that your tyres have the correct pressure readings. There are many garages and petrol stations.

Prepare your holiday itinerary!

Once your car is in order, it’s a good idea to plan your journey carefully. It would be a shame to miss out on parts of your holiday or become stressed because you didn’t prepare in advance. GPS is fantastic for this and is the ultimate way to reach your destination, no more maps and complicated routes to get by. Set your destination before you begin your journey and let the GPS do the rest.

Make sure that you pack a travel guide in order to take in some of the sights along your journey. Remember that it’s important to take a break every two hours to stop you getting tired.

Advice for the driver!

To ensure that your body and mind are in the best state for driving, make sure that you don’t overdo it on food the day before and get at least 8 hours sleep. Make sure that you take comfortable clothes, wear appropriate shoes for driving and keep a supply of water within easy reach.

 

Advice for travelling with children

Whilst a journey can feel long to an adult, it can feel even longer to children! To help keep them entertained, allowing you to focus easily on the road, think ahead of how you can keep them occupied. In car entertainment systems or portable games consoles are great for easy ways to entertain but you can always get creative with your own games – 20 questions, number plate spotting and I spy can actually pass a lot of time. Hopefully they will soon wear out and fall asleep!

We hope that you have a fantastic time on your holiday, with proper planning and common sense, there’s no reason why you can’t have an enjoyable and fun summer holiday by car.

 

Daily walk-around checklist - FREE download

Camille Riesbeck

Written By: Camille Riesbeck

Camille is a Community Manager at Transpoco France, experienced in web management, SEO, data analysis and community management