I am glad you have asked this question and can offer comparative observations on Scenic Car Tours and European Driving Tours as we went with both companies last year on trips to Italy. In a nutshell EDT do everything they say they will do and more whereas Scenic Car Tours are dreadful. EDT plot interesting routes, choose good hotels and look after you every mile of the way. In contrast the Scenic Car Tours people offer some of the worst hotels we have ever experienced, provide uninteresting routes that were mostly on motorways and their administration is so rubbish that we encountered mistakes every single time we interacted with them. In Switzerland they even succeeded in booking us into a hotel in a town about 25 km away from the place we were originally scheduled to travel to. In Italy, the routing provided was so inaccurate we would have ended up at the southern end of Lake Garda and approx. 50 km away from our actual hotel location at the north end of the lake had we followed their plan. They were just incapable of getting anything right.
Spain- Pyrenees
- Thread starter garyw
- Start date
I should add to my post above, we did a trip across the Pyrenees from West to East in 2013. I planned it myself and the routing was Portsmouth to Santander ferry and then north up the coast to the western Pyrenees. We then zig zagged each day from Spain to France before ending up on the Med coast having stayed in a mix of Paradores and boutique hotels. We then headed northwards through France stopping overnight at Carcassonne and then avoiding motorways completely to Rocamadour and Tours before crossing the Channel from Caen to Portsmouth.
Hi Gary, Just returned from Spain ourselves. Stayed in the Casa San Martin Hotel (www.casadesanmartin.com) on Monte Solana about 10 Kms west of Ainsa. Great drive up from Denia to the Pyranees. Hotel is something really special (ex-monastry) and well worth considering (photos available). Its only drawback is that it is up a 5Km unmade road but our 997 managed just fine even if looking somewhat dusty at the end. Could be interested this September depending on date and cost.
garyw
Moderator
Well the weather continues to be rather hot!! Some amazing roads with hardly any traffic on them. I've only come across one road where the surface was not the best but then again we've been spoilt by the roads preceding it!! Locals seem friendly and the Paradors seem to offer brilliant value for money ( as well as free wifi ) Making notes along the way as I'd certainly consider returning to both the Santander event and Spain. The registers would be more than welcomed I'm sure. There's quite a few images and videos on FB about the event. Playing the game of 'chase the police car' over the mountains was more than entertaining.
garyw
Moderator
I thought I'd post some photos and comments to describe what a great event the Santander supercar trip was.- not that we took a lot at the event itself.. However I added a road trip onto the week following to hopefully enjoy some of the Spanish smooth open roads! It has to be said they did not disappoint.. We decided to drive down as I'd always wanted to return to spend some time in La Rochelle. We found a lovely characterful hotel with safe parking- apart from a tree overhead which meant finding a carwash the next day! Situated just minutes from the bars and restaurant's we had a lovely stop over via another rather famous town....
The weather was very kind to us- although not quite so kind to the air-con showing 37 degrees on the dash at times!! The Santander event was an event to draw in sports cars from all around Europe and upon arriving on the Thursday afternoon we were joined by a few other Brits (including an ex-board director (Hi Simon) in various TVRs and Ferraris.) with them having made their way via the Ferry. A lovely hotel in front of the beach and with safe underground parking. That evening we convoyed out to a wonderful hillside restaurant with welcome drinks and canapés along with a translator who joined us for dinner into the early hours- the Spanish do eat rather late!! The Friday was a meet and a convoy to the Rolls Royce museum on the outskirts of the City, escorted by the local police who stopped traffic in order for the convoy to seamlessly make its way out through the city. Whilst the weather apps were saying rain and thunder, we had stunning weather for the day
The museum was set in stunning grounds and were opened up especially for all to se and enjoy (usually open only on Sundays if you fancy going)
From there we convoyed back to a stunning harbourside restaurant where the 5 courses and drinks were included as part of our entry fee. From there it was back to our hotel to prepare ourselves and the cars for the mayors welcome at the Palacio de la Magdalena for a black tie dinner with Michelin star winning chefs... Those having done road trips will know space is a premium, so we were relieved that the dress code was more trousers, shirt and jacket than the full on black tie!! Stunning canapés of Turkey and caviar! all added to a new experience. Saturday and there was a much larger contingent of supercars, from the Fridays 50 or so to Saturdays over 150!! All displayed for the public to view and appreciate prior to the entire group convoying out of Santander into rolling hills on a 2 hour drive before returning into the city where a coach was awaiting to take you to the hotel for todays lunch! The weather was slightly dull to start with but later in the day the sun came out with some mixed showers, certainly not enough to stop the crowds of appreciating locals.. The convoy on Saturday was led by a police car (with sirens going)whilst out riders went ahead and closed off traffic islands, motorways! and then the motorway slip roads whist the convoy proceeded along, something that was amazing to be part of! Being asked to go quite near the front we did get to witness the crowds firstly running out to see the convoy and others running into their houses to get their cameras! Saturday afternoon was free time (siesta time) and we decided not to attend the dinner dance on the Saturday evening as the late nights were catching up- and could we face any more food!! So we took a gentle meander along the beach and into some of the café/bars along the front. Sunday the event had a central square for the cars to line up on, guarded by the police whilst the others were treated to a boat ride around the coast an dinner onboard.. due to timings I had decided to leave on the Sunday to start my roadtrip but would stay for that part next time as it looked to have been a nice place to park! The event was something really special to go to and at a very fair cost considering apart from Petrol we didn't have to open a wallet from Thursday afternoon until the Sunday! The food was divine and the welcome from both the City council and the locals was fabulous. Added to that some special places we visited and some great weather, it was a wonderful start to the week, knowing the following week there was more to come..!
Fred Hindle
New member
Gary, Stunning, Very, Very envious. Cheers,
unclewinks
New member
Look forward to this event next year Maybe not the bear factory[&o] Gold spoon sir with your coffee[
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garyw
Moderator
Following on from the great weekends activities in Santander we had a road trip planned to cover the Picos and travelling SE along/across the Pyrenees over the next few days. Ending on the Spanish coast where we were meeting some friends to spend some time relaxing on the open waves...Having the chance to enjoy the new roads built across Spain with smooth open views out across the countryside.
Sunday we departed and did a circular route around the Picos and headed to Fuente De where we were booked into the Parador. We chose to stop in quite a few Paradors as at this time of year they offered reasonable value for money considering the experience they offered, each one usually a building of distinction or having quite a special location. One of the issues we did find with Spain was a lack of attractions, we do like to head towards something/somewhere but apart from some Monasteries (that turned out to be closed anyway) there was little else to visit that took our eye. An exception was the first day, a stunning location at the base of the Pico mountains and has a cable car taking you to the top of the mountains where golden Eagles are regularly spotted – apart from the day we were there!! However spectacular views and a very nice café kept us more than happy. The road up to the Parador was almost like a private test track and I hung my head in shame as quite a few of the locals showed me the way to go up the road! You can see the road in the picture below.
The next day was bright and warm continuing the weather from the weekend, in fact only one day did we see rain but we were above the clouds on that day.
Heading SE we continued away from the Picos on roads that led you high onto Plateaus where the road continued without a pothole in sight (nor hardly any other cars! But the occasional remnant of a heard of cows!) before dropping down across hard rock valleys and some beautiful rock formations. The odd waterfall, but sadly we were spoilt on last years trip for waterfalls!
This night Parador was located on the Pilgrim trail and used to be a hospital treating the walkers, now a delightful hotel with wide open public spaces within the hotel.
What could have been seen as an issue with the venue was it was right in the heart of the town centre! And we couldn’t find out how to get to it as all the roads had barrier posts in the way, however after following the signs it led us to a narrow street (high street) that when you approached the barrier it lowers allowing you access to the Parador, passing the barrier we found ourselves down narrow lanes with people sat to either side enjoy coffee and beers! The sound of a rumbling motor soon created a gap through though and before long it opened up into a square which is where the Parador sat. A quick unloading of the car and it was parked in the venues carpark out of sight and out of mind for us to enjoy the town and many restaurants.
[/URL][/img] The next day and we reached the flat lands or the Rioja region of Spain. We found some great wine houses but again many were just closed! However the roads were clear and just led off into the distance with little traffic. We did encounter possibly only two roads that had missed the luxury touch but both led to breathtaking scenery or more faultless blacktop roads. Coming out of one of the villages I saw headlights and then blue lights, behind me, watching the officer collect his hat from the other side of the vehicle I gathered my paperwork, so receive from the officer- Hello is it alright if I take a photo? What can one say?
Another night and this time we went high, the Parador sat high on the mountain and offered a stunning sunset. That and a pool table ïŠ Many of the Paradors had light deals on in the menu offering two courses with win for just 18euro, which we felt was a fair deal, however a running complaint we do have is the prices of breakfasts in Europe, at 16euros per person for a cup of tea and cereal, we found there were more than enough cafes in the towns offering the same for just 3 euros and a local experience to go with it.
The mountains of the Pyrenees were getting closer and we ended up in some stunning gorges cut through the rock before heading high and over amazing switch backs on smooth grippy tarmac.
Jumping into France and back to Spain via the mountains gave some stunning views and took us above the clouds once again, this being one of the only days the weather was damp. In order to do a loop of some of the mountain passes we took a night in Andorra and stopped at a Ski Hotel which had some stunning views outside
But even more of them inside!, They had a collection of bikes in there too but I’d had enough of bikes on this day – more about that later.
Following the crossing of the border check going back into Spain the custom official asking me to rev the car we head south and towards the coast to catch up with friend, where we planned to relax on the open waves with them. Strange how arriving at the coast and you suddenly feel as if you are on holiday?
The following day was our run towards home, the Lemans race was taking place, so our route was to take us away from that vicinity of France and the potential of extra Le Fliks on the roads.. I had also wanted to visit the historic war site at Oradour-Sur-Glane to see the village. It’s worth reading up on what happened there to put it all into prospective but enough to say it was very moving and very quiet place, even with groups of French school children stood wide eyed in silence.
From here it was just a short journey to our last night away from home, our choice was Chateau Rancay which turned out to be an absolute gem of a stay. We were the only people staying that evening, so the service was excellent, from the Red carpet arrival and the luggage carried up to the suite- which of the three beds do you sleep in? A sitting room with a half bottle of red to enjoy and French music playing softly in the back ground.
Dinner with its courses of accompanied wine was taken in the private dining room, the table below was for just the two of us! The Owner and host spoke fluent English and it was a joy to hear about the exquisite décor and history of the Chateau. The offer to take coffee in the garden was stopped by a minor downpour but as mentioned earlier the small gold spoon for the coffee just showed the detail. The stay at there was an experience we won’t ever forget and we hope to return sooner than rather.
A great nights sleep before the last dash across Paris and to the tunnel where we got caught up in the start of the returning masses of Lemans- A Porsche win, most excellent. We travelled just over 3500 miles in the week and a bit with car returning 26mpg most days. Every day and every route had something stunning to view on it and all bar two of the roads were a delight. However as ever on these trips there is a but, mine was towards the end of the week on a road that must have been their version of the Cat & Fiddle, amazing drops to the right with winding forests to the left and the stench of old motorbikes in front! A great, an amazing road in fact and amongst a group of about 40 bikers it was one we were all very much enjoying until taking a sharp left into a village and seeing another 30 odd motorbikes held up by about 10 police officers!! I was firstly waved on only to be asked to join them a bit further down the queue for the awaiting English speaking officer. I was informed that I may have enjoyed the road a little too much and that it would cost me an additional 150euros to continue on my way. I duly obliged having little choice and even looking back through the video I had running I cannot find my indiscretion, however it was a great drive and the bikers used the stop to take a leak in the bushes before paying their money and shaking the officers hand..
Fred Hindle
New member
Road from Potes to Fuente De, did it about three times on the Silverving. Last time totally dry roads. Went in the cable car (scary!!). At the top we were looking down on the eagles circling around. Cheers,
Have been on two Scenic tours, Lake Garda and Ireland. Booked a third this September to Italy.
Good value and no problems with hotels, just remember you are paying a budget price.
example, stayed one night near Llandudno at National trust hotel, prior to tour,cheapest room B&B. £189.00, ( one of our party stayed in the £375 .00 room)
Ferry plus four nights HALF BOARD in good quality hotels in Ireland for £399.00 per person !!
I may well try EDT next year, but my experience with Scenic was OK and I know we will be meeting up with two other couples again this September in Italy because they were happy with Scenic last year.
This is just to reply to the previous post to balance out what may have been a poor tour on that occasion. I have no affiliation with Scenic in any way.
Good value and no problems with hotels, just remember you are paying a budget price.
example, stayed one night near Llandudno at National trust hotel, prior to tour,cheapest room B&B. £189.00, ( one of our party stayed in the £375 .00 room)
Ferry plus four nights HALF BOARD in good quality hotels in Ireland for £399.00 per person !!
I may well try EDT next year, but my experience with Scenic was OK and I know we will be meeting up with two other couples again this September in Italy because they were happy with Scenic last year.
This is just to reply to the previous post to balance out what may have been a poor tour on that occasion. I have no affiliation with Scenic in any way.
garyw
Moderator
That's a fair comment [tiger85 said:
], I've booked with EDT for the Monaco GP and Tuscany for next year.I'm pretty sure I could book it all directly cheaper myself but sometimes it's nice joining a group and letting someone else take the strain.
Like you I've made friend on tours and many through the trips organised on here with the club.. and hopefully many more to come..
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