riding to n italy 1st week in july
 

any tips on routes etc,we're heading for mont blanc tunnel,any stuff people think we should know????

The roads are fabulous. Went ten years ago on a cbr1000. The auto stradas leading from milan down to Genoa then along the coast and then over towards florence and up thru bolonga are or were built for sports bikes.
The people are so friendly. And we were so suprised how few brits we encountered.
One tip is to learn how to ask for a room with bath. As the locals don't tend to speak english. In cities you will get by ok.
The food is to die for.
The people are so laid back.
It will be bloody hot. We wore leathers regardless. OK when on the move.


Enjoy
Doogalman

[Edited on 7-5-2005 by doogalman]

We did the trip to Monza WSB and world ducati week last year, it still makes me smile:D

If you travel any part of the journey on swiss motorways you will need a VIGNETTE which you must have stuck to the bike (a tax). Try and buy it this end as the queue at the border can be a bast**d (contact the swiss tourist board)

We fitted my sat nav to the 748 and it was fantastic, if you have one and want to know how U2U me. it made life so easy.


Lots of water, as previously mentioned the heat can be difficult and the day you don't wear your suit................................

Originals of all documents V5 insurance etc, photo copy them and leave the copies with a friend who would be able to fax them to you in an emegency.

Tell your travel insurance that you are travelling by motorbike, it does make a difference and you are probably not covered on a normal policy.

AA 5 star or similar

And the best luggage you have, we took the ventura system which was excellent.

The journey people and scenery are awesome, the attitude to bikes is great, have fun. Mike

Make sure you are on race pipes as you can listen to the music the bike makes in the tunnels , ( there are hundreds). We try to travel as light as pos, take old clothes etc that you can bin along the way.
We never went near switzerland. We just b-lined it thru france so we could spend more time in italy.

Doogalman

thanks for the tips chaps,think we're def gonna head straight for italy,prob try n get to bologna for the obvious,haha,my mate on a fazer thousand is carrying the tent and some luggage,might get away with just a tank bag,yahoo....

Last year I stayed North in France and then dropped down through Switzerland to Milan, headed for Bologna and turned South for Florence. We got soaked in Switzerland and the police take a VERY dim view of fast bikes and loud pipes.

On the way back we crossed Italy from Florence to Pisa and then crossed the French border staying out of Switzerland all together. This was much better as the roads were much emptier and you stayed South for longer (better weather).

I hate the tunnels, the air stinks and you can't see a blind thing through a black visor. Much better to take a little longer and go over the pass - no lorries, few cars and the scenery is magic.

The A26 / A5 / A6 / A43 basically takes you to Turin. If you get off the peage before the Italian border the route over the top is spectacular and is a closed loop so there is noone on it until you region the other side. The French route takes you through Burgundy so the views are pretty cool and Macon is a good ride from Calais. It has great restaurants, cheap hotels and the best wine in the world all served up in a picturesque little town.:bouncy:

Have fun but don't forget the AA 5 star!

Actually, they are not overly bothered about loud pipes ... this is "Harley" country. What they are not happy with is speeding ... in any shape or form ... and esp through villages /towns

If you got pulled you would have been "giving it some" where you shouldn't have been .....

I move out to Switzerland with work for 15 months in June.....I shall naturally be leaving the 748 behind! Might hire a Harley or something for a while then.... :o

Ade.

I did a trip to Italy last year in April, midnight ferry then bashed the autoroutes and made the Alps by about 3 o'clock. As we were making good time thought it would befun to go up and try to find an open pass - first road we tried turned into a ski slope! Time ran out so went through the Frejus tunnel. An amazing trip followed including the Guzzi and Ducati factory/museums and a great deal of red wine in the evenings.

Just one word of warning... three months after the trip an envelope arrived containing a speeding fine, apaprently from a mobile camera on the way up to the Mont Blanc tunnel. I couldn't believe they'd bothered to track me down, particularly as I'd sold the bike soon after the trip. Although bearing in mind the speeds we'd maintained on the entire trip I kind of thought it was fair enough.

Use autoroute to about Reims, then head cross country on N roads, head towards Chaumont, then Dole then hit N5 at Poligny heading for Geneva, thats probably my favourite road anywhere, 60 miles of ace riding ending with a stunning view over lake geneva, hack through Geneva to avoid viginette, out south and then pick up French autoroute to Cham, turn west down to Martigny then go over Grand St Bernard so you avoid the MB tunnel. down from Aosta and then onto autostrada heading for Garda, up side of Garda then towards Reveito I think, then to Asiago plateau, nack down towards Vicenza left to go to Dainese factory shop. turn around do the same thing in reverse, top trip.