Escorted trips

A good question, Brammers, but one that's hard to answer. 

It depends on your confidence and courage. I guess that nine out of ten first timers go off on their own and manage well enough, but those few who really do feel they want help and support speak very well of the escorted courses which are held very close to the ferry ports.

Anything further away means you have to make your own way to the start point - which might be a few hundred miles away - you don't get the support and companionship till you are there, so you need that confidence to make the journey. 

Good luck either way. 

 

We hosted a First Timers Abroad tour a few years ago, as Eurotraveller mentions, near to the port of Calais.  Almost everyone who was on it, enjoyed having the option of supoort without organised 'tours'.   However, one couple were absolutely 'shredded' when they arrived because they'd had about twenty miles to drive on unfamiliar roads.  By the end of the week they drove themselves into Little, parked, found a restaurant, and booked to go on an organised tour later in the season.

Personally, when we took our caravan for the first time, we just booked a ferry, bought a campsite guide, and just 'went for it'.  We toured for three weeks, taking in several areas, and have been back every year since.

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 ,, Ohh !!  And France is a BIG country !! You won't have to go far to enjoy the hospitality and culture .Enjoy !!.

A couple of things I forgot when I posted here earlier...you can't take dogs on any of the Club's escorted tours, and that puts a lot of people off.

And secondly, for most of the tours the Club's advertised prices do not include the ferry,  tunnel or insurance - and in the end the total cost of the holiday can easily be double what it would cost to go it alone. That puts many people off too. 

 

No dogs - well that stops me from even thinking of a tour - thank you Eurotraveller - useful info. 

we are thinking about going to Europe for the first time in our MH and wondered if the escort trips are worth a try. If so where?

Brammers

I can well understand why as a newcomer to touring in Europe that you might be considering an escourted tour. We started the same way by going to France for the first time in 1987 and I would imagine that I am now considered a very experienced Continental traveller? You do however have to think about what you want to achieve. If its to learn the ropes with like minded people then a short taster trip to northern France might be the best. If its the company you want then one of the longer trips might suit. Its not only the two Clubs that run such trips either.

David 

 

Firstly I have to say that I have not been on  an organised  tour so others will no doubt correct me (courteously of course) if I make wrong assumptions. On the other hand the list of European countries that I have not visited is shrinking fast.

If you want to go on an organised trip because you are inexperienced and perhaps worried about going abroad then I think you will get the benefit of having some or perhaps all of the  logistics and planning done for you. You may also feel more secure being in  a group and this may provide company and the opportunity to meet new like minded friends. Some trips travel in a convoy but not all so the in transit comfort may not actually happen. So you need to look at and analyse what any particular trip offers and includes e.g. does it include breakdown/rescue/medical insurance ferry/tunnel costs etc. etc.

Against this I think organised trips are a pretty expensive way to travel although I acknowledge that there is a value in the trips/admissions and meal content and that the organisers and their agents and suppliers all want to make a profit.  Additionally I am not aware of the mix between Caravanners and M/H on such trips. They tend to go to a limited number of sites for each trip e.g. The Dresden offering for the Club is 8 days in the same site. I don't understand how a M/Homer on such  a trip would deal with self-organised outings  away from the site as the logistics seem to be geared to having a towcar. No doubt some car sharing would occur but personally I would not want to rely on that. 

As I have said before a M/H pattern of travel is normally

 A--B--C--D--E-A  but a caravan tends to be A-B-C-B-D-B-E-B-A.

There is lots of information on the web (including the clubs own resources) and a excellent book Go Motorhoming from Vicarious Books which will help you plan a European trip on your own and understand what Europe is like. ACSI off season site deductions and the use of Aires/Stelplatz/Sosta or their equivalent allows you to get up close to places that an organised trip can't do and for me that is essence of what M/H should be about (a bit of an adventure not something which is organised to nth degree). If you have any experience at all in driving on the "wrong" side of the road you will find driving in Europe relatively easy because traffic tends to be lighter (there are exceptions) and driving standards mainly good. Oh and if you are going early in the year say April-June inclusive you can nearly always get by in Europe without booking sites ahead.

Your first foreign trip has the potential to be a great adventure so use the remaining winter months to learn and plan. 

Best of luck whatever you decide.

Not been on one but met a CC organized one in Northern France for first timers.Travel was not in convoy BUT very detailed maps were given and everyone a) enjoyed themselves and b) said that they would never have done it on their own but thanks to this trip they would now feel a lot more confident.

We went on a First Time Abroad tour with CC in 2014, having bought our first caravan the previous year. Whilst we had lots of European holiday experience, we just felt it would be nice to have the back-up of the Club when it came to ferries, continental sites and general caravanning stuff. Have to say the trip was first-class. Superbly planned and beautifully executed by the two hosting couples. it was not "regimented" but there was structure for those that wanted it. Two really interesting coach trips were included and two group meals organised also. We had loads of fun, enjoyed meeting others with shared misgivings and in the end shared achievements. I'd highly recommend it.