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Route suggestions for driving from Florence to Colmar, France approximately October 22-25, 2019

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Hello, I am new to these forums so thanks in advance for your help and patience! Our family is planning an eight week road trip around France and Italy this coming fall. We need to be in Paris for October 31st but want to spend a few days around Colmar/Verdun before arriving in Paris. We will be in Florence around October 22-25th (final dates to be confirmed) and I am wondering about driving through Switzerland to get to Colmar? Are Swiss roads generally safe to drive that time of year, or will there be mountain passes covered in snow? Should we drive through the Piedmont region of Italy instead, and then up the east side of France to Colmar, or does that put us around Mont Blanc with potential for equally snowy road conditions? I am not sure what to expect for road conditions in late October in those regions. Is there a totally different route I haven't thought of that would be a better option for Florence to Colmar?

Also I would love any suggestions on where to break up the drive for a couple nights? For most of the trip we are basing ourselves for about a week in each place but for this leg I'd prefer just a short 1-2 night break to split the drive in half. I realize this is a long drive, but its the only leg our our trip that will include a long stretch, just to get us back to our starting point. Thanks for any suggestions!

Posted by
8889 posts

Are Swiss roads generally safe to drive that time of year, or will there be mountain passes covered in snow?

Yes to both questions. The Alpine passes are generally closed by snow from November to May. End of October the passes are likely to be very snowy, or blocked for a few hours.
But that doesn't stop you. The two main roads across the Alps in Switzerland (Autobahns A2 and A13) do not go over the passes, they go through long tunnels under the Alps (St Gotthard and St Bernadino tunnels respectively). They stay open all year.
See Autobahn map here: https://www.ezv.admin.ch/dam/ezv/de/dokumente/archiv/2011/07/karte_der_abgabepflichtigennationalstrassen.pdf

Place to stop en route: Luzern. Nice old town on lake.

Two practical points:
1) Swiss Autobahns have a toll. In order to use a Swiss Autobahn you need to buy a "Vignette" (cost CHF 40), which you stick to your windscreen to prove you have paid.
Italian Autostrada and French autoroutes have conventional distance based tolls.
2) Picking up a hire car in one country and returning it in a different one is very expensive. If you pick it up in France, drive to Italy and Switzerland and return it back in France it will be a lot cheaper.

Posted by
2 posts

Thank you for the information and suggestions! Lucerne sounds perfect and it helps alot to know there are tunnels. I really appreciate your advice!

Posted by
7292 posts

Lucerne is very good but it is over six hours from Florence, while Lucerne to Colmar is about two hours. You might, depending on your plans, prefer a place closer to the halfway point: in which case Lugano would be a good call too.

Posted by
33733 posts

You should know that the Gotthard Tunnel is a long one. A very long one, and there are other tunnels in the lead up to the Gotthard, and afterwards. There really isn't a good stopping place between Bellinzona and Flüelen (at the end of the Vierwaldstättersee / Lake Lucerne).

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