The Tallis Blog – Travelling Europe in Eurostyle

After 16 months of not traveling in Europe, we finally set off for the Dethleffs Eurostyle inaugural trip to Spain. This was particularly exciting as it was the first trip abroad with a continental motorhome. Our previous van was a British motorhome, so how would the Eurostyle compare? We were not disappointed!

After a busy drive to Folkestone, we boarded the Eurotunnel train and arrived 35 minutes later in Calais. If you have not been on the train, it’s far simpler than a ferry however it is expensive in comparison. The advantages for us were: – faster travel time, you stay in the comfort of your van (gas must stay off) plus our two dogs can relax in the van throughout the journey. Taking pets involves visiting a vet prior, to gain an animal health certificate, this can be costly in our case £369!

 We tend not to pre book our stops, so once off the tunnel we headed for St Valery on Somme. The Eurostyle is fully equipped for off grid living, we parked up with the gas on to run the fridge/cooker and the batteries to power the lights and to charge phones etc.

Saturday was red hot, so we headed for another free stop offering electric and water, in the town of Nonancourt, just south of Rouen.

A slow meander down towards the Med, saw us take in the delights of Orleans on the banks of the Loire River. We then visited friends, near Limoges for an overnight stop. Then off we went traveling south via Toulouse famous for Airbus.

Final stop in France is in the Pyrenees, about 8 miles from the Spanish border, with temperatures soaring in the mid 30’s. The town of Le Boulou was our host tonight with incredible views of the mountains, with a river flowing at the back of the van was breath taking! Another advantage of a motorhome, you’re living with nature just outside the door.

Crossing the border into Spain was no different to pre covid or when we were members of the EU. We drove through the border, no issues, though the French police and Guardia Civil were doing spot checks.

Camping Salata is a 4 Star site, offering good standard of pitches, swimming pool, wellness clinic and a bar restaurant. Rather than booking through UK clubs, we opt to use the ACSI card which after subscribing gives you great discounts depending on the season. We saved on average 6 euros per night, unlimited electricity, plus a free dog. The town of Roses is a short walk from the site via the promenade that gives a beautiful view of the bay with its golden beaches and an abundance of bars and cafes.

After 4 nights in Roses we moved on to catch up with friends in Cambrils, just south of Barcelona this is an easy route as the tolls are now free. We opted for a beach side pitch and spent two days relaxing to the calming sound of the sea.

Time to head north but with 10 days to get to Calais, it was a slow drive towards the Somport tunnel that would see us enter France in the central Pyrenees.

Then we found our jewel in the crown of free Aires in a village called Balaguer just north of Lleida. This offered hardstanding, 16amp electricity and a municipal pool right next door, the cost of the pitch – absolutely free!

After a couple of days here we headed into France, stopping at various sites on the way to Calais. A return to Nonancourt to visit the vets for a worming tablet and a pet passport stamp for re-entry into the U.K, the cost here was 68 euros.

The van performed impeccably averaging 29mpg and about 6kg of gas for cooking etc. We loved the habitation door being on the offside, as this meant we are aligned with other continental vans on Aires. The build quality is in my opinion is far superior and dealt with the various temperatures as high as 44 degrees with no issues. The Lowdhams Eurostyle oozes German quality with the added touches of British luxury such as full shower, oven and subtle lighting.

All in all, a great holiday.

Written by Jeff Tallis.