Travelling down to Puerto Pollensa

[graham]

This year we decided to drive to PP rather than fly. An awfully big adventure which started in Portsmouth, via Bilbao, San Sebastian and Barcelona to Alcudia then PP.

It's not strictly on topic, but you might be interested in a blog my lovely wife wrote about our evening in San Sebastian. It was quite a night. And if you're ever in the area, it's well worth trying.

The San Sebastian Crawl | Old Dog. New Tricks

 

[debz1]

This year we decided to drive to PP rather than fly. An awfully big adventure which started in Portsmouth, via Bilbao, San Sebastian and Barcelona to Alcudia then PP.

It's not strictly on topic, but you might be interested in a blog my lovely wife wrote about our evening in San Sebastian. It was quite a night. And if you're ever in the area, it's well worth trying.

The San Sebastian Crawl | Old Dog. New Tricks

Graham I really enjoyed reading your wife's blog about driving to Mallorca as we have done the same the past two years, although taken a slightly different route. We have loved setting off on our road trip and staying in and visiting new places. The first year we got the Eurotunnel and did the drive through France ( long drive) but last year caught the Portsmouth to Santander crossing. We visited San Sebastián on a pit stop for lunch and we absolutely loved it. We had a similar night to yours in lovely Castro Urdiales (which is between Santander and San Sebastián) although ours was a 'do it yourself tapas route'. The night we stayed Athletico Bilabao were playing Barca in the Spanish cup final and all the bars had laid on the most fantastic tapas. I think we were the only English people in the majority of the bars but we were made very welcome and the atmosphere was fantastic.

Just out of interest why did you choose the Portsmouth/ Bilbao crosssing instead of the Portsmouth/ Santander as we intend to drive again next year and would be interested to compare notes

 

[graham]

Hi Debz,

Main reason was that we wanted to go to the Guggenheim on the way back. Also the ferry to Bilbao is a bit quicker and more comfortable.

G

 

[debz1]

Graham
I thought the Portsmouth/Santander was a shorter crossing but could be wrong

Aren't the Brittany ferries much of a muchness apart from their flagship Pont Aven which we were lucky enough to sail back on last year?

Made the decision today not to book our flights for next June so will be driving again next year

 

[Gommar Goffer]

Can I ask what the cost of driving is in total i.e. ferry fares, petrol, tolls etc

 

[debz1]

GG it's approximately £400 pp return for both ferries .....Portsmouth/Santander (including a cabin as it's a 24 hour crossing) and Barcelona/ Palma ( 7 hours). The Brittany ferries are very comfortable, modern and clean. The food on board is good but if you're lucky enough to sail on the Pont Aven the restaurant is exceptional. There are also marine preservation volunteers who do talks and then take you out on the deck for dolphin and whale spotting. We have seen both! The time goes really quickly and I love every minute, but would hasten to add all our crossings have been very calm so I may feel differently if we got a bumpy crossing through the Bay of Biscay

The tolls are around £200 return. No idea about petrol but the drive is about 1200 miles...a real road trip

It's not cheap but we make it another holiday as we have at least two overnight stops in different places each year, and we factor in not having to hire a car for the month when we get to PP.

 

[debz1]

I forgot to add ( and this is for the ladies on the forum) there is no luggage limit so you can take whatever you like. For people who have their own place in PP it's also a great opportunity to bring out new towels, duvets, Dyson, floor steamer, smoothie maker, coffee machine etc. For those that know me I am not going to include Apple Mac computer!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[graham]

There's also the fairly major saving on car hire once you get here. We come out for 4 weeks every September so the saving is pretty major. There's also the great feeling that, when you leave PP it's just the start of another part of the holiday. And Debz is absolutely right: the Brittany Ferries trip is a mini cruise in itself.

By the way, for those who enjoyed my wife's blog about San Sebastian, here's her latest which features Mare Nostrum in Sa Pobla.

A Serious Case of PTS… | Old Dog. New Tricks

 

[debz1]

There's also the fairly major saving on car hire once you get here. We come out for 4 weeks every September so the saving is pretty major. There's also the great feeling that, when you leave PP it's just the start of another part of the holiday. And Debz is absolutely right: the Brittany Ferries trip is a mini cruise in itself.

By the way, for those who enjoyed my wife's blog about San Sebastian, here's her latest which features Mare Nostrum in Sa Pobla.

A Serious Case of PTS… | Old Dog. New Tricks

I've said exactly the same thing to my hubby about when you leave PP you're about to start another little holiday. I love an airport on an outward journey but hate the drive to Palma when we're leaving. That and the saving of hiring a car swung the vote again for next year

 

[graham]

Jane's latest post about our recent trip.:

Taking the long way round… | Old Dog. New Tricks

Not wholly and solely about PP, but for those who are interested, it makes a great case for taking the ferry rather than the plane.

 

[whaleywanderer]

Thank you so much for including your wife's blog of your adventure. Having made the same journey ourselves several years ago it was like reliving the experience, albeit we weren't as confident as you and stayed with our loaded car at all times! Our journey was one way though and the start of a completely new life, which we certainly have had no regrets, still living the dream.

 

[debz1]

What a fab read Graham. Your wife really does tell a great story!
We also stayed in Tuleda but the day we arrived it was 42 degrees, and most of the restaurants were closed as it was a public holiday.

One thing that confused me about your post. I've never had to board the Barcelona ferry by foot. We've always got our tickets then driven down to the Port... as you say very confusing when it's dark and there are no signs telling you where to go. We then all park in a fenced compound until it's time to drive onto the ferry. I always find that part of the journey really scary! Do you mean your wife had to walk all the way from the ticket office in the dark? It's a long way

Update...hubby has just informed me we stayed in Tudela not Tuleda...Easy mistake to make!
We are definitely planning to do it all again next year driving a different route to discover new places.

Are you?

 

[Sparky]

Like Debz said i was also confused about your wife having to board on foot, it was nearly 7 years ago since we drove from Plymouth to PP but we both stayed in the car until we boarded, have they changed the system?, if so i think this is a very bad idea for passenger safety and security .

 

[whaleywanderer]

I was also asked to board with the foot passengers, it was only when I told them of my disability that they allowed me to stay in the car.

 

[debz1]

I'm wondering if Graham exchanged his ticket from a different place to us. We stopped at the building just by the big roundabout.. before you get anywhere near the dockside. We then drove at least a mile, if not more, down a road adjacent to the dockside until were reached a kiosk where we directed into the correct compound. The world and his wife, family, and dogs were all in there

 

[Sparky]

I'm wondering if Graham exchanged his ticket from a different place to us. We stopped at the building just by the big roundabout.. before you get anywhere near the dockside. We then drove at least a mile, if not more, down a road adjacent to the dockside until were reached a kiosk where we directed into the correct compound. The world and his wife, family, and dogs were all in there

I wonder if maybe it is the policy of a particular company, we used Acciona/Transmediterranea .

 

[debz1]

We go Balearia

 

[graham]

We were Balearia too. They were insistent that only the driver could board with the car, both at Barcelona and on the way back from Alcudia. All a bit disconcerting at the time but no big issue.