So many questions as we get closer!

[Marto]

As we get closer I have more questions that keep popping into my head and wondered if anybody could give me some advice...
Where abouts are the tolls on the A26 and A1, how much are they, are they easy to use and is it best to use cash or card?
Where is best to fill up with petrol enroute and is it much more expensive on the main roads or worthwhile venturing off to find somewhere cheaper?
We are staying 3 nights with 4 days at the parks with half board plan. Will we need much Euro cash or do people load a prepaid card with their Euros?
TIA 😁😁

[Bondy007]

Unfortunately I can’t answer the travel questions but.. We didn’t take any cash, I’d set up a Monzo bank account with debit card a few weeks before travel. There are no charges for using the card and it uses the exchange rate at the time you use your card. We had half board plus plan, breakfast plus one other meal. We attached our debit card to the magic pass and used this in the parks midway through the day for coffee and snacks, averaged between £15 and £25 depending on what you buy. Hope that’s of help to you.

[kk20]

Toll is 21eu I think, we usually drive from zeebrugge though so a slightly different route. We always stop at a huge carrefour in lille, it has cheap diesel and places to eat. Like the UK, fuel stations on the toll road are really expensive.

As for money, we take a little cash for the food carts and clarity card for everything else.

[vickitoria10]

Toll is €22.70 I think, we came back last week. The first roll is on the A26 and you just take a ticket, then pay before you get to Charles de Gaulle. We went in to the cash lanes and used the machine, it wasn’t manned, just put notes in and coins (it does give change). It was easy, just make sure you get the right lane, don’t go in the one that’s just a ‘t’ I believe that’s just for prepaid tag. The cash lane has an image with notes on it. The French motorways are really good for driving on.
We filled up with fuel at the tesco just off junction 10 of the m20 on our way there. We filled up at the petrol station at the hotel sante fe on the way back, this one was quite pricey but don’t really know compared to others. We then filled up again once back in England.
There are loads of rest areas along the A1/A26 that all have toilets, no other facilities barring a couple of full services but these rest areas were handy for a leg stretch and toilet stop. We used very little cash, we had half board and bought an earl of sandwich for our other meal each day. We have a Virgin credit card that doesn’t have currency fees so we just used that as we would use a credit card in this country.

[cheekytink]

As Vicki has said above, the drive is pretty straightforward and we do it in about 2hours 40mins from Calais, but we don’t usually stop at all. We have used both cash or card to pay the toll without any problems but as mentioned don’t go to a lane that is just for “telepeage” (where most of the lorries go).
The payment toll is at Senlis, then after that you will drive under the runways of Charles de Gaulle airport which is great fun if there is a plane landing/taking off. Fairly quickly (about 4 miles) after that you need to take the right slip onto the A104 - it is clearly signposted by Mickey! But the slip road is a really tight right hand turn - don’t be surprised!
The road surface on the A104 is awful so watch out for the potholes (and the cars swerving to avoid them).
It takes about 35mins from joining the 104.
It’s not a stressful drive, there just isn’t much to see which is why we usually don’t stop :-)

[Marto]

Originally Posted by Bondy007

Unfortunately I can’t answer the travel questions but.. We didn’t take any cash, I’d set up a Monzo bank account with debit card a few weeks before travel. There are no charges for using the card and it uses the exchange rate at the time you use your card. We had half board plus plan, breakfast plus one other meal. We attached our debit card to the magic pass and used this in the parks midway through the day for coffee and snacks, averaged between £15 and £25 depending on what you buy. Hope that’s of help to you.

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Thanks Bondy, I'll look at that 😊

[Marto]

Originally Posted by kk20

Toll is 21eu I think, we usually drive from zeebrugge though so a slightly different route. We always stop at a huge carrefour in lille, it has cheap diesel and places to eat. Like the UK, fuel stations on the toll road are really expensive.

As for money, we take a little cash for the food carts and clarity card for everything else.

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Thanks KK, I thought they would be but lived in hope😂

[Marto]

Thanks Vickitoria and Cheekytink, that's brilliant and has put me at ease as I was starting to worry about the driving on the toll roads but it doesn't sound too difficult 😁

[princess allie]

It is easy to drive ther and we don’t usually stop, just like to get there. We tend to fill up at the Cite de Europe in Calais, the petrol is very reasonable there. Please stick to the speed limits, we got a ticket, our own fault obviously, but we were only a little bit over, not going crazy, but we have learnt our lesson.

[thefourDs]

We had cash for the tolls, it was very straight forward.

Petrol wise I don’t remember having to stop on the way however we filled up at the Auchan petrol station at Val d’europe before coming home.

The toll roads were nice and quiet both times we’ve been.

It’s such an easy journey, I wouldn’t consider traveling by plane or train, car all the way for us. Enjoy!