Factory collection travel

[ScottishSpyder]

I am collecting my car from the factory in March[] and plan to spend 5 days driving in Europe. Does anyone have suggestions of scenic routes or Hotel recommendations ( with safe parking ) preferable towards France and Epernay in particular.

 

[Mark_Bennett]

You'll love the Factory Collection experience!

I quite like this series of books ---> http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/0844290114/ref=rm_item
It has interesting "alternate" routes to the boring old autoroute.

What sort of thing do you like to do? Car museums- (Mulhouse), Old racetracks - (Reims), or touring vinyards or champagne houses (Piper, Moet etc)?

 

[ScottishSpyder]

Thanks I'll get hold of a copy. I hope to pootle about and like all of the things listed. I had forgotten about the old track at Reims. Are there still some pit buildings on the normal road? I also thought I would have a look at the Nurburgring probably on the way to Zeebrugge if thats the correct direction.

 

[Mark_Bennett]

The buildings at Reims are currently still there.
There is a group who have started restoring some - but the local council might still knock it all down...

For in-depth Nurburgring info check Ben Lovejoy's excellent site at www.nurburgring.org
Note that the track is only open for "tourist" laps at certain times and days. (The schedule for next year should be available by the time you go).

The book I linked is a few years old, but the "off autoroute" roads will not have changed much. It may not be the most appropriate one if you are heading for Zeebrugge though...
There is a series of these books "on the road around", and another series called "Best-Loved Driving Tours" (if you search on that on Amazon it will bring a huge list up).

 

[Richard Pottle]

When I went on a factory tour a few weeks ago we stayed in Tubingen which is about an hour south of Stuttgart - the hotel we stayed in was called Hotel Krone and was superb - parking is good although not undercover. HTH []

 

[dereksharpuk]

Hi Lawrence,

I have twice collected Porsches from Zuffenhausen & wrote an article about it in PP(Spring 99). To get the best out of the day you should not aim to stray too far from Stuggart as you possibly will not finish until 3 - 4 pm. I normally travel to Heidelburg on the first night (Holiday Inn Crowne Plaza as it has an underground carpark). The journey takes only an hour. Heidelburg is a great University town with great night life and scenic views.