Driving from UK to Cap d’Agde

Is it Possible to drive from the UK to Cap d’Agde?

Traveling to Cap d’Agde from the UK by car is more than possible and many people in fact make this trip each summer.

If you do it straight, you can do it in roughly 17 hours.

Many people choose though to stop halfway for a night stay.

Below is a look at some tips, advice, and feedback from people who have done the drive.

From the UK

Roger from Wales

I drove on my own from Calais last year-round Paris and stopped overnight in a Hotel in Bourges which was located just off the motorway.

I probably could have gone on to Clermont-Ferrand. I loved the drive, particularly the part after Clermont-Ferrand, and probably the best route, very scenic.

You must stop and marvel at the Millau Bridge. The last part of the journey was very slow.

Tom and Caroline

We also live in the south of England, take the same route, but go from Newhaven to Dieppe.

That way you miss Paris.

We agree Cleremont is a good place to stop. We are going again this year, but are flying – getting lazy.

John and Jane

We live in France not far from Bordeaux and we find the best route is to cross from Portsmouth to Caen and travel down through Le Mans A28, Bordeaux A10, Toulouse A62, Narbonne A61, and then the A9 along the Med coast to Adge and to Cap d’Adge.

The roads are less busy than on the central route in the summer as you get a lot of traffic using it now the bridge at Millau is open.

If you do take that central route, from Caen follow the A28 to Le Mans and at tours take the A85 for Verzon, join the A71 for Clermont-Ferrand and Beziers.

The crossing from Portsmouth to Caen is more expensive than Dover/Calais but you save on traveling time, fuel, and tolls and you avoid Paris, which is a nightmare!

The toll charges are approx 100 euros from Caen, a bit hefty so be prepared.

French Toll Roads

The French tolls have 5 bands.

• Band 1 is solo cars, small vans, 4×4’s these vehicles towing small trailers, trailer tents, and boats.
• Band 2 is Cars towing caravans, Motorhomes, Large Vans with an O/a height of 2 – 3 meters GVW not exceeding 3.5 tonnes. Train (towing) a height 2 – 3 meters GVW not exceeding 3.5 tonnes.
• Band 3 is Motorhomes exceeding 3 meters in height HGV and buses with 2 axles GVW more than 3.5 tonnes.
• Band 4 is HGV and busses with 3 or more axles height exceeding 3.5 meters GVW more than 3.5 tonnes. Train height exceeding 3 meters towing vehicle GVW more than 3.5 tonnes.
• Band 5 is a Motorcycle, Motorcycle & sidecar or tricycle

Hotels on route if you wish to stop overnight there is always a Formula One or Kyriad Hotel along the way both very basic but cheap.

Trip Report by Jackie and Mike

For route planning, we use mappy, using mappy you can calculate the route in miles and the cost of the tolls.

Click on the itinerary to enter your start point and destination – for Cap d’ Adge naturist village it is:

• Secteur Naturiste, 34300, Le Cap-d’Agde, Agde, Languedoc, France

Then select Add a step here enter a town in the general direction you wish to go (e.g. Clermont-Ferrand or Lyon).

Then select more options to display in miles then click on calculate costs and select your vehicle type, car if solo (ignore ticking the caravan if towing) For motor homes and towing select Van.

Living in the West Country we sail from Portsmouth to Le Havre with LD Lines much cheaper than Brittany Ferries.

This crossing saves us an extra 100 miles from home to Dover and another 170 miles from Calais to Le Havre.

Last year we went down via Clermont-Ferrand it was a drag going up over and down the Midi-Pyrénées but the Millau bridge was just spectacular.

This route was 580 miles, we have a motorhome and the tolls cost €70.

For a solo car, it would have been €46.

Traveling back we decided to take the advice of a Dutch couple we met on the campsite and go back via Lyon.

The route was almost flat but took longer and cost a great deal more in tolls.

The return route to Le Havre was 649 miles Tolls €116. For a solo car would have been €75.90.

Bearing in mind the extra fuel cost as well as the tolls the Millau Bridge was good value.