Hello, fellow travelers. I was able to score a super cheap flight to Madrid, and since I've explored the city before I decided to use Madrid as my jumping off point. I want to head towards Bilbao and San Sebastián.
A friend mentioned that Lourdes, France is a quick overnight trip from San Sebastián. Has anyone driven to Lourdes from San Sebastián?
Thanks in advance!
Rae
Rae, https://www.viamichelin.com/ says:
Time: 02h15 including 01h31 on motorways
Distance: 196 km including 165 km on motorways
Costs: €31.70 including Toll €14.95 Consumption €16.75
That figure is wih no stops. I would add 1 hour for stops and sightseeing.
Thank you!
My French is definitely stronger than my Spanish. I'm worried that in the smaller towns where I am bound to get lost (which adds another 1-2 hours to my drive) that there might be a language barrier.
Also, is the border crossing easy?
There is no border crossing to speak of - these are Schengen and EU countries making border crossing similar to crossing between states in the US. Just drive on through. Obviously have your passport handy just in case but under normal circumstances you won't be stopped at all, there will be no border guards or checks.
Thank you, Mira!
Rae, there are no border checks, just a sign beside the road. This is because both Spain and France are in both the Schengen Area and the EU.
You should of course carry your passport with you. With the current French State of Emergency the police could be doing random ID checks anywhere.
Note the route is "Distance: 196 km including 165 km on motorways", so you only have 31Km which is not on motorways where you could get lost. Make sure you know place names along your route, as signposting by placename is more common than by road number.
Also beware of the infamous French signs:
"Toutes Directions" = all directions, i.e. all through traffic this way.
"Autre Directions" = All other directions. This one requires you to look at the sign for the opposite direction, and decide if that is or is not on your route.
Photo: http://aws-cf.caradisiac.com/prod/mesimages/483674/DSCN1997.jpg
In this photo "D651" is the road number.
I’ve made the drive a couple times. Get onto the AP-8 (toll) and head towards Bayonne, France. Once in France the road turns into the A63. Just before Bayonne you’ll get onto the A64 and head towards Pau. At interchange 11 (near Limendous) get onto the D817. Then get onto the D940 that will take you into Lourdes. The roads are all interstates until you get onto the D817. Or, you could stay on the A64 until it meets with the N21, then follow it into Lourdes. It would be very difficult to get lost. Language won’t be much of a problem since Lourdes is a huge tourist destination. It is filled with tourists and tourist shops. The church and grotto are nice, but once I’ve seen them, it’s time to move on. For me, Lourdes is a few hours stop at most.
Rae, as has been made clear, crossing the border is no problem. I did it several time last month, and only once did I see a car get pulled over to secondary. The toll booths are a bigger hassle than the border.
And as mentioned, the signs to Lourdes are easy to follow.
The one thing I would mention, is that between the border and Bayone there is some serious roadwork. Depending on what day and what time you go through there can be some very heavy traffic. On one of my trips, there was an accident, and we were in a traffic jam a few kilometers long.
Thank you so much for the wonderful information. I've added them to my notes. I'm looking forward to some adventures and misadventures in Basque Country!
