InvictaMoto's Family Travels

And so the plan keeps changing. The trip is 169 days away (as I write) but I have been refining the plan to cover for all eventualities. In fact by the time we actually go, we might well be on Plan K (sic). The longest days in the saddle will be the run from Kent to Poole to catch the boat to Santander (and the one in the other direction!) plus the Santander to Avila ride. From Avila, everything will be "local" almost. Once night there and then move on to Toledo. In Avila I have a normal hotel booked, but might look about for one with parking. The current option, has street parking. Once we decided to have the extra day leave from work, and I booked the boat back to UK, it freed up two more Spanish days and nights. I had already planned two nights to "do" Madrid. I then added a second night in Toledo although in doing so made a cock up. I cancelled the two nights in Madrid on booking.com - the benefit of free cancellation - and then booked a second night in Toled...

And now there is a Plan B. I had originally intended to come back by ferry from Spain on the LD Lines ferry to Poole.  As the boat arrives about 7pm, by the time the unload and then load the passengers heading back home it is about 1030pm, meaning it arrives back in UK about 1130pm on Monday. With Claire's workmate off that week I didn't book it. A bit of discussion and the holiday was okayed and so I have booked it, cancelling the two hotels in France. That leaves two extra nights in Spain. I cancelled the Madrid hotel and added another night in Toledo, then booked Madrid again for two nights.  One more to book. Now I am looking at where that will be. Segovia for the famous aqueduct or Burgos. Plenty of time! 

Not another plan but an additional bit of the plan that has started to come into play.  Once we leave Madrid it will be Friday morning and we have four days of the holiday left including the bank holiday. The distance to Calais is something in the region of 1500kms so with a proviso that we have a day at home before we go back to work... Three days to ride back. So two nights in France, one across the border near Dax and another around Tours. In all it will be about 300 miles a day. Seems a lot but we have done France before and well, the idea is to visit places in Spain. Had the LD Lines ferry been a better fit for the return I would have done that although I might still investigate French motorail for a return trip from Biarritz.

Had a few minutes at lunch time to have a look a rough idea of where to go to take in a few of the tourist spots. And here it is.  The ferry will dock in Santander around 7pm, so even with the long (sunny?) days it is still a stretch to get far, so I have booked a hotel in the city around a mile from the port. Hardly time for Dora to warm up. That gives us the evening to have a look around and get something to eat. Day 1 - Saturday at sea. Day 2 - At sea arrive Santander.  Overnight hotel. Day 3 - set off for Avila. The walled city is about 230 miles away, and in the months before we go, I'll look for things en route to stop and look at. Day 4 - a short run to Toledo. One of the old Moorish capitals. I stayed here years ago at the Parador, but it is across the gorge from the city and a long trek around. Here I have booked a hotel in the middle. Day 5/6 - Madrid. Two nights here in the centre where we can get to the Prado etc. Day 7 - set off for home.  It's a fair trek so...

The return. Since we were in Spain last year I have been looking at another trip, and a trip on the bike.  So it comes together for this year. We won't be able to get down to the south in a week, but we will be able to visit the cities in the north where there are many things to see.   Spain in August should have decent weather, even in the north! At the moment I have stuck out a leg and booked us on the LD Lines ferry from Poole to Santander. No return as yet.   Including the BH at the end of the holiday we have a total of  10 days. The first two will be taken up with the ride to Poole and the ferry crossing. It's 26 hours. LD Lines was quite a bit cheaper than Brittany Ferries and no doubt we'll find out why!  The cost includes a cabin and I booked an outside one. So we'll be able to watch the sea go by.  So in reality we have 5 days to look at things before we have think about riding back. The reason I didn't book a return trip with LD was that their fer...

So, Day 2. From the hotel, bellies full of breakfast we set off for: Australian Memorial, Villers-Bretonneux - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Villers%E2%80%93Bretonneux_Australian_National_Memorial Corbie. Military Extension Cemetery - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corbie Red Baron - http://somme98th.blogspot.co.uk/2014/01/plan-b-red-baron.html Péronne - http://en.historial.org/ Souvenir Francaise Rancourt - http://www.visit-somme.com/somme_tourisme/decouvrez/grande_guerre/chapelle_du_souvenir_francais