October 10th, 2010
A Family Driving Holiday in France
A Family Driving Holiday in France
When going on your first driving holiday through France, travelling at your own pace, stopping in quaint villages and historic towns to experience the local French food and staying in family run guest houses or hotels can just add more excitement to the whole holiday experience.
When touring by car obviously means that you will need places to stay and there are so many different options to choose from, but this can be a great way of getting into the heart of the country and experiencing the true traditional France whilst on your driving holiday.
The roads are very well maintained, especially on the toll roads that have fantastic lay-bys and the service areas are also of excellent quality, which makes the experience when travelling through a lot easier. And even when entering the local villages, the roads are still very good quality, far better than some other countries we have been in, yet just remember that you will be driving on the right hand side of the road!
But when you are driving through France there are a few things you need to be aware of.
Did you know that the legal age to drive in France is 18 years of age and even if you have a full licence from another country and you are under that age, then you are still not allowed to drive in France? And every passenger must wear a seatbelt and it is illegal for a child under the age of 10 to be in the front seat.
You must always stop at a zebra crossing, which is enforced by law and when going through a town you will find a lot of them, but you should be very careful when you are the pedestrian, as the French do not seem to obey this rule as much as they should!
Watch your speed! If you are stopped for speeding you can be fined on the spot and the fines have to be paid in cash there and then, which can be quite expensive. If you cannot pay or you are travelling more than 25km/h above the speed limit, then your car can be impounded and you could end up with a very hefty fine or even lose your licence, so be careful, especially when on the toll roads, as you do not want your driving holiday to come to an abrupt end!
The motorways are 130km per hour, but this is reduced in bad weather down to 110km per hour and on duel carriageways and main roads the same rules apply where the speed limit is reduced in bad weather. A duel carriageway is 110km per hour and main