In this post we will talk about driving from the UK to Spain. We decided to make our relocation journey by car for a few reasons. First we needed to take clothes and other necessary items to last us a month in our temporary accommodation until we could move to our apartment and until our transport from the UK arrived. Second, we wanted to have some means of transport in Spain until we bought our Spanish car. We didn’t want to keep the British car as the traffic in Spain is right-handed. The other reason is that the process of registering a British car in Spain is costly and might take up to 2 months. I will write about it in a separate post as buying a car was quite an interesting experience.
Driving on the right-hand side will be the most important thing for you to remember if you consider driving from the UK to Spain. As soon as you leave the ferry (or train if you take Eurochannel), you need to remember to drive on the right. The speed limits in Europe are 120km/h on the motorways and 90km/h on main roads, unless signed otherwise. You can only overtake on the left. When entering the roundabout, you should give way to traffic already on the roundabout (which approaches from your left).
European documents and car adjustments
There are certain documents and safety items that you must have with you in the car when making this journey. Documents should include: valid driving licence, valid passport, V5C vehicle log book and certificate of motor insurance. You should check if your British insurance already covers you for driving in Europe. Some insurance also has European breakdown cover included. When it comes to the car itself, the car must be set up for driving on the right hand side and needs to carry some safety items as well, which include:
- Headlight beam reflectors – to prevent dazzling oncoming drivers.
- A UK sticker – must be clearly displayed on the rear of the car.
- Two warning triangles.
- Reflective jackets for all vehicle occupants.
- Spare bulbs and spare tire or the official puncture repair kit.
Many of these items can be bought as a European Driving Kit available on many websites.
Driving through France
We booked a ferry crossing from Dover to Calais on the 24th of July at 7.50am. We had a long drive ahead as we booked a stay in a motel in the South of France in a beautiful town called Beziers. This would only leave us around 6 hours of driving for the following day. I must admit the plan for the first day was slightly over ambitious as we were very tired from the last days of packing and cleaning. Unfortunately we also picked a route which included the ring road around Paris which added at least an hour and a lot of sitting in traffic. There was also significant rain so the drive was challenging. However, the further South of France we got, the more picturesque the landscape became, so at least we could enjoy that. We were stunned by the quaint looking villages located in the heart of valleys, between mountains, with the rivers crossing through them. We arrived in Beziers at 11.30pm so after the check in we went straight to bed and the next day we left after breakfast. However, we had discussed that it would be a great idea to organise a holiday to visit Beziers, Narbonne and Carcassonne one day with our girls for their historic heritage and stunning views. I think this is one of the advantages of doing the journey by car, as you come across places you haven’t heard of before and it is an inspiration for future travels.
Tolls
France has a lot of tolls on their motorways. You can normally pay by contactless card or by cash. We thought that the motorways were quite expensive but they save you a lot of time so we justified the cost. Luckily when we crossed the Spanish border we didn’t pay any more tolls there. The AP-7 (Mediterranean Highway), which takes you down the Spanish coast to Valencia is now completely toll-free. This is because the Spanish government liberalized major stretches of the AP-7 between the French border (La Jonquera), Tarragona, and Valencia.
We arrived at our destination around 4pm on Friday. Driving through Spain was more relaxing as we knew that the hard part of the journey had already been done. Finally we could start feeling excited about the beginning of our new chapter. Parts of the AP-7 lead literally by the coast so you can enjoy the views of the sea.
Flying or driving?
Is it better to fly or to drive? As with all the questions like that the answer is: it depends. Flying is quicker but you are restricted on the amount of luggage you can take and while relocating you can have a lot of items left that didn’t get packed with the main transport. I think that flying is better especially if you have younger children. However driving from the UK to Spain gives you flexibility – the only place you have to be on time is the ferry but I think even if you missed that you can easily get a different one, which wouldn’t be so easy with flight tickets. We found that our journey gave us time to reflect and also to discuss what is coming which can be a great way of connecting with your partner. The journey helps with building up anticipation of things to come, and the closer you get to your destination, you can feel the excitement rising through your body. Driving is also great with discovering new places and getting new ideas for sightseeing. If you decide to drive rather than to fly you should remember about adjusting your car for the right-hand side traffic, you should bring all the required documents and remember not to force it and take regular breaks to stay safe.