SloJan2

Hi all,
I think we might be insane but we are considering driving from the Algarve in Portugal to Riga, Latvia. This isnīt a pleasure trip. It is one of necessity. We are moving and the moving company just told us that our stuff would take one month to arrive. We need our car during in that time so voilá, we just might drive it!

Anyway, I have mapped it with maporama but would prefer to not drive in Poland or Lithuania due to the roads. I am wondering about ferry systems from Northern Germany to Latvia. Any knowledge out there?

If you would like to give advice on the drive, as well, please feel free.

We are a family of 4 traveling with 2 dogs.

Yikes!

Thanks in advance.

iris1745

Hi SloJan2; We have driven on the roads in both Poland and Lithuania and had no problem. The sign posting was good. In Latvia we had used a bus, so I am not sure about their roads. You should have no trouble in the other two countries. Iris

SloJan2

Thanks, Iris. I did check out the ferry and there is one from Rostock Germany to Ventpils, Latvia but it is 28 hours. It is faster to drive it!

Michelin was much better with routing than maporama and put us through the North of Poland. Apparently, it is a 2 lane road but decent. Still, one poster on the Thorne Tree doesnīt recommend it to the faint of heart or for those with nervous passengers due to the truck passing. WE fall in the latter category. Maybe if I took a Xanax for that route?? heh. Still, we will either do that or drive to Ljbuljana, and fly from there, having the car driven up the next week.

lobo_mau

Good bye Slow Jane. It was a pleasure to share my country with you.

SloJan2

Hey, Lobo Mau. We still have our house here and will be returning frequently! I am going to need a place in the sun during those dismal Baltic winters. So, maybe, it is just...até breve!

WillTravel

What do I know about this? Nothing - or as close to it as possible. But I will still weigh in that I'd much rather be 28 hours on a ferry than driving roads that aren't for the "faint of heart".

Apart from that, 28 hours of enforced rest in the midst of a major move sounds pretty good.

SloJan2

Willtravel, I agree. We have decided to drive to Ljubljana, Slovenia, visit friends and leave our car. We will fly from there. DH will come down the following week and pick up our car, fill it with stuff we still have in LJ (we used to live there) and drive back with a friend.

At least this is the plan today.

SloJan2

Ok, everyone, it was hell. We drove 15 hours from Lagoa to Perpignan, France. The only bad traffic was from Barcelona to Perpignan, with lots and lots of French returning from points South. They all had a big bundle (not a box!) plunked down on top of whatever type of vehicle they were driving. We stopped at the Tropic Hotel in Perpignan which is a definite miss. Next day, 11 hour drive to Slovenia. Due to a multitude of personal reasons, we then left our car in LJ and took a taxi to Vienna. 300€ for an 8 person van from Sixt Rental (good deal!). We wanted to fly out of Slovenia, but couldnīt because none of the planes could handle the dogs in the cargo. They basically are all too small. So, Vienna was the next best option as we could get a direct flight. Another night in a lousy hotel, Eurohotel by the Vienna Airport and we arrived, dogs and all.

But, never again!