I?m planning to drive to Lake Maggiore (Italy) in the last week of June. I?ve driven to Northern Italy before a couple of times ? Lake Garda and Venice ?via the Mont Blanc tunnel (before the fire) and more recently to Venice via Austria, and the Brenner Pass into Italy. However the Innsbruck/Brennerpass route is too far east for L.Maggiore and I?m not keen to use the Mont Blanc tunnel due to the weekend delays. One of the apartment owners suggested a route using the Lotschberg Car transport tunnel. I?ve never heard of this tunnel but it does avoid Mont Blanc tunnel.
www.bls.ch/e/autoverlad/goppenstein.php
This is a drive on (similar to Eurotunnel but with open trucks) car transporter train that costs 16euros e/w and takes 15 minutes and runs from Kandersteg to Goppenstein where you drive off and complete your route into Italy via the Simplon Pass.
So ? has anyone used this? Or the Simplon Pass? I?m assuming the pass road will be fine in June.
Does anyone drive to Italy and have a favourite route?
At the moment I?m favouring going Calais?Lille-Mons-Namur-Luxembourg- Metz-Mulhouse (toll free so far), paying the 40 CHF Swiss m/way tax and continue via Basel-Bern-Thun-Kandersteg-Lotschberg Tunnel-Simplon Pass- and autostrada S33 to L.Maggiore. I?ll probably take a slow drive down taking 2 overnight stops but just one on the return..
I?d welcome any comment from anyone with recent experience or route suggestions.
Jacks
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14 months ago went to Lake Garda, went out via Basel-Chur-Stelvio Pass.
Came back via Milano - A9 past Lago Maggiore - and the Gothard Tunnel to Luzern and Basel. Did Lake Garda to Basel in an easy day. This was in Mid October, and the first snow of the season had blocked my route over one of the minor passes in Italy.
Buy your Swiss Motroway Carnet before you go, and get waved through at the Border.
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I go to Italy most years in the car. The way I go through France is to Reims on the peage, then I cut across to Nancy then down to Mulhouse, the only toll you pay is the Calais to Reims part.
As for Switzerland, if you like mountain passes you could head towards Luzern, then turn off towards Interlaken then head south before you get there, over the Grimsel pass, then along the Rhone valley to Brig, which is stunning, before crossing the Simplon pass.
The Grimselpass is quite good, full of bikes when I did it.
The Simplon pass is excellent, its quite a main road and will be fine in June
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I cut across to Nancy then down toMulhouse the only toll you pay is the Calais to Reims part.
the Grimsel pass
Thanks for that, do you take the N44 and then N4 from Reims going via Chalons and St Dizier?
I'll look at the Grimsel pass - presumably this route will be fine in June as well?
J
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Yes the N44 and N4 is right. You can cut a further corner and take the D994 to Bar Le Duc (the turn is just south of Reims) and pick the N4 at Ligny. That is a nice wide and quiet road, rather enjoyable.
The Grimselpass should be fine in June, there would be signs along the route up to it advising you if it wasnt...
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Thanks very much PR for the advice,
I think I will take the D944 and the Grimselpass and save myself the 30 odd pounds return fare on the train!
regards J
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Think I've been through in an ordinary train once.
If I were going that way myself now I'd use the car/train one way just for the experience!!
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I took my Cortina through the Lötschberg tunnel in 1968 (!). No problem whatsoever but travelling backwards at speed sitting in the car in the totally dark tunnel felt rather strange!
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I went through it southwards on a motorbike in 1987. Great experience, although you sit in a small passenger compartment not actually "in the open" on the bike! Great view when you come out on the Vallais side and ride down to the valley floor.
I've also been through it several time more recently as a normal passenger when travelling to Italy from Switzerland and back on the "Transalpino". This is the Italian tilting train that runs from Basel to Milan. You may remember us Brits invented this technology back in the seventies, but as is often the story in too many cases, we didn't have the guts to finance the job properly and sold the technology to our European cousins. We now buy these trains back from Europe, (but that's not motoring related)!!!
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