road trip THE GREATEST
By amie henderson
In October, as we do most Octobers, my family and I journeyed back to the UK in the car. There’s a two-week school holiday this month, which comes just weeks before our winter magazine deadline. With very little going on locally to keep my small people (aged six and three) entertained, and no childcare to help us work, we plot the 14-hour route to Wiltshire, where the Source grandparents reside. We packed the car with all kinds of boredomreducing tricks. And a Lot of snacks. I recorded the journey on our Instagram stories and the response was enormous (thanks to everyone for keeping me entertained!). So many of you have great memories along the route; spotting the giant cock on the roadside in Bourg en Bresse. Gliding through the Champagne region. The change in landscape as you near the coast, which looks startlingly like England. We asked you to send us your ‘driving to the mountains’ tips to share with others considering doing the same thing. As it turns out, there’s a lot of you doing just that! The 879km journey from Calais to Morzine takes 8.5hours, before you factor in fuel, coffee, toilet and rest stops. The route is a perfectly pleasant, quiet motorway until you get to within 45km of Morzine and the ascent begins. Along the way you’ll spot several aires or picnic / toilet stops on the side of the motorway, which come in handy when you’re hurtling along, successfully running down the sat nav and your three-yearold starts screaming for a pee pee now! Larger service stations with cafes and EV charging points are also frequent.
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the greatest road trip
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In more recent times, we’ve used Le Shuttle to cross the channel. The tunnel will always be more expensive than the ferry, but the journey takes just 45 minutes, compared to 1 hour 45 by sea. The Le Shuttle terminal also delivers you further down the motorway on the French side, saving up to an hour on your journey. When we factor in loading time on the ferry versus the train, the total time saving is probably around two hours, which is not to be sniffed at. Of course the ferry does give you the chance to have a good break, stretch your legs and do a bit of duty free shopping on board. Many people (including us) opt to stay overnight en-route and there are a few logical stop off points. Reims, in the heart of the Champagne region, is approximately one third of your way between Calais and Morzine. There’s a handy Novotel just off the motorway; it’s inexpensive, clean and has a restaurant. If you’re keen to push on a bit further, Troyes is another option. There’s a wider selection of accommodation options here, including the charming Chateau de Montabert, which is just off the motorway, or the budget Ibis where rooms are just €51 per night. Further still is Dijon, which sits just 316km
from Morzine. There you’ll find a perfectly pleasant Best Western for a super simple stay and family rooms cost just €120 per night. If you’re travelling with small people, the advantages of taking a break and staying overnight are obvious. It’s all part of the adventure and you wake up refreshed, ready to drive on in the morning. We also find that our boys have the capacity for approximately four solid hours in the car before someone starts screaming because they dropped a green Haribo crocodile and they need a run around. Of course, staying over adds to the cost of the trip and if you’re able to share the driving, or drive through the night, you may find it easier to charge on. Driving to Morzine also means you can bring more kit with you. Gone are those infuriating EasyJet baggage restrictions, there’ll be no more fearful glances at the scales during check-in (“eeeeek, it’s all the baby stuff!” I used to plead) and, depending on the size of your car, you can literally bring as much kit as you need. A note of caution here, however. Post-Brexit, it’s now forbidden to bring meat or dairy into
