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Father-son journey through the alps - trip advice!
Hi everyone,
I'm renting a 718 Boxster and planning an upcoming grand tour of the alps for me and my father. I'm starting to get worried that I'm cramming too many routes in for the time intended, so I'm looking for some good, sound advice from you guys.
(Note: I used Google Maps, but it was quite hard to trick it to route it properly through some of the passes - so I did it in a few parts and merged the .kml files. If someone has a suggestion for a better way to plan the route please let me know)
Background
It's been a life-long dream of his (and in extension, mine) to drive the famous passes of the Swiss/Austrian/Italian alps, and really experience them in a Porsche. I finally decided that for his 80th birthday I am planning a father-son week of driving, bonding, and sharing some lasting memories. Back in 2000 when I was 9 y/o - me, him, and mom went on a month-long road-trip from Sweden to Croatia in a 1983 Volvo 240, and it was one of the most beautiful childhood memories I've had, and even though it took forever and was in the middle of the July-August heat with no A/C, I still cherish it to this day.
A little bit about the old guy:
He's a true car enthusiast - although he's never really been that into working on cars, but rather loves driving them, experiencing them, feeling them in a most pure sense. He's owned countless models throughout his life, and speaks of them in an utmost nostalgic and caring way. Although he owned a Porsche in the 70's for a short stint when he lived in Iceland, he never really had the chance to take on a longer trip. He has though driven a lot through Europe - countless times through Germany to south of Europe (mainly countryside and Autobahn) from the Nordics - as recently as 2 years ago when him and mom drove from Sweden - Italy - Croatia and back.
I'm not really worried about his stamina in regards to driving or as passenger and we will of course divide the trip and take turns driving.
About the planned trip:
We're flying to Munich and renting a 718 Boxster Style Edition 2.0L with all the bells and whistles (PDK, PASM, PSE etc) from Porsche Drive in Munich. Pick-up 10/6 11.00 and delivery same time 17/6.
Based on my research in countless forums, articles, as well as the book "Porsche Drive - 15 Passes in 4 days" (link below), I've made a rough map of the route that I'm envisioning. It's been quite difficult to pin down the exact itinerary but I feel like a got a pretty decent idea of what he will enjoy.
Hope to get some good feedback from some of you that have made similar trips, have experience with the car regarding driving/packing/general tips, or just want to express an opinion on any part of the trip.
Rough itinerary
(note: the maps links will be a bit chopped up, so for the entire map see kmz-view link below)
I love your idea and it's a heartfelt plan, wishing you nothing but ease and luck throughout. One thing I'd like to share, but of course each person and year experience will vary: a decade back now I did a German pickup of a car order at the tail end of May, with plan to traverse through Switzerland and Austria covering multiple renowned alpine passes. Unfortunately, even at that time of year the weather was non-cooperative and most of the routes on my 'list' remained closed.
This year I believe that region has seen a 'bad' winter, and closed passes could be in play; just be sure you've got some contingencies in mind and don't let a closed road dampen the trip.
My two cents -
1) Stop off in Bregenz, Austria and take a ride to the top of the Pfaenderbahn. (pfaenderbahn.at) Absolutely amazing views at the top.
2) Be very careful about your speed in Austria. They don't play around there.
3) Lake Garda is gorgeous
The only moving violation I've received in my life was in Switzerland. And this was RIGHT AFTER my German police officer friend warned me to be really careful down there. A dumb construction zone came with little warning and I was in the 80kph zone before I had any chance to decelerate gradually. Camera zapped me and got a nice, fat ticket in the mail. So apparently in "der Schweiz," when you hit a construction zone on the Autobahn, the authorities expect you to slam on your brakes suddenly. Seems like an incredibly stupid way to cause crashes and/or increase revenue!
So take it slow in the land of watches and chocolate!
I think it's a great idea and have no doubt that you'll have a memorable time.
Two bits of advice:
1. There's a Rennlist European Delivery forum (contained in the General Discussion section). That forum is filled with travel routes and experiences in and around the Alps and its passes. I suggest that you look (and post) there if you haven't done so already. Lots of experienced travelers in that forum, many who've done EuroD multiple times. There will be no shortage of opinions.
2. Sometimes less is more. Part of the beauty of traveling through that part of the world is experiencing the small towns and sites without a strict timeline or agenda. Your itinerary seems quite ambitious.
This is an amazing sounding trip for so many reasons. And thank you for posting your maps and other information as I gather them for my own use some day soon.
As for the Google Maps tips I recently picked up while planning a 4k mile cross-country (USA) trip with it, you can "hack" the URL to add an unlimited number of waypoints. The standard is 10, but if you copy the URL and paste it into Word or Notepad, you can edit it.
For example, I combined your two maps into one that way:
After doing a trip in Europe last year you're missing a few of the best drives in Switzerland, the Grimsel, Furka and Sustern Passes. If you're in Munich, go to the BMW Museum. The Porsche and Mercedes Museums are worth a trip as well. Be mindful of speeds in Switzerland if you go, some fines are based on salary. German Autobahns are great especially the derestricted areas but be wary of lane discipline, you can't overtake in any lane and you should move back into the 'travelling' lane once you've overtaken. If you are 'pressing on' then you can sit it the fast lane but be warned the Germans will drive at crazy speeds. We were cruising at 155 mph and got overtaken by a C63 AMG!
Your Alps trip will exceed expectations as mine did last. Furka Pass if possible. Convertible top is the way to go. Like driving around in an IMAX theater. Good luck!
My 2 cents:
- Try to fit the Furka, Grimsel and Susten passes in this trip, they're absolutely beautiful!
- Skip going to the south of Lake Garda, it is way to touristic over there and the roads are not that great. Instead I would go to Riva del Garda, which is way more laidback and way easier to reach
Also a tip from my side, in June the weather can be unpredictable so don't focus on one route, check the forecast regularly and go where the weather is nice since you have an open top.
Overall, it looks a good plan and it doesnt seem too much driving per day. At this time of year you need to be a bit flexible on which passes are open due to weather, you can check them here:-
You dont seem to have chosen too many of the big name passes which could be closed, the Grossglockner could be closed at that time but very unlikely. The weather here is great now and not much snow forecast so I think it will open at the end of April but you never know. If that is closed you can spend a bit more time in the Dolomites and then take the scenic route through Austria. Instead of the Grossglockner, or as a small detour if it is open, you could head to the Porsche museum in Gmund and visit the place the first few 365's were produced.
Another example of being flexible would be on day two, if there are issues on the Bernina pass you can take the Fuorn pass instead. Its a great pass an always open. If the Fluela pass is closed, detour to St Moritz via the Julier pass. Make sure to stop at the Manx Cafe thats on your route for fuel, a coffee and some nice car related gifts.
Instead of the BMW museum, which is full of undesirable types who drive BMW M cars these days, visit Motorworld Munich instead. Its free, has lots of amazing cars too see and nice coffee and food. Last time I visited I saw a Mclaren F1, three AMG ones and six Bugatti's including a Bollide. Hard to beat.
You cant really go wrong with your route as an initial plan.
Love driving in Europe and you generally can't go wrong with any roads in Alps, but those mountain passes are usually very slow back and forth that can get boring very fast. I know 3 stooges called Stelvio pass the best road in the world, but I do disagree. So keep that in mind. I would put less Germany and more Switzeralnd into the trip. I do think that Switzerland and Italy are the most best drives in Europe for a Boxster
I would go south from Munich and cross Austria near Innsbruck/Zillertal valley (and Neuschwanstein Castle will be close to your route) and
than loop more through Switzerland, than Interlaken area will be on your way, and there you can take a train to the top of the world! Or so they think.
All the passes will be open in June, but you still might be able to ski on some restorts!
Father-son journey through the alps - trip advice!
