Someone reassure me that this will be ok!

[drivemissdaisy]

I have to drive from Nottingham to the Lake District (Keswick) next weekend as something has unexpectedly come up that means I now have to drive instead of the original driver. I passed me test a year ago however I have only completed short journeys about town and I have only ever been up the motorway once 2 junctions. I am freaking out! Someone please reassure me that it won't be that bad. I will have a driver next to me he just can't drive my car. I have googled the directions, is the m1, M18, A1 and then A66 the best route to take?

Thanks for the advice, I will let you know how I get on 😬

Haven't read the full thread, OP but I drive to the lakes (near Keswick) every few weeks! You'll be absolutely fine. Like PP said, stay in the left lane on the A1 all the way to Scotch Corner. Take a break there, there's a costa, M&S food and Greggs. Then get on to the A66, just stay in the left lanes for roundabouts as you will likely go straight on at pretty much all of them. You'll only encounter them near Penrith. The A66 is a mix of single and dual carriageway but easy to navigate! In fact, driving to Keswick is one of the easiest Drives, it's pretty much straight on all the way!

Also use the Highways Agency twitter page, they update you on any problems en route

If you don't get a sat nav, you can download Drive or Waze onto your phone. Great Sat nav apps

I've done the same drive a few times OP and trust me when I say getting out of Nottingham is probably the worst bit!

Tibshelf services is very nice, although not too far away from you and Scotch Corner will be very nice once they've done it up!

Forgot to update this but I did it! It wasn't nearly as bad as I thought and i actually quite enjoyed it! Not so much on the way back as the sat nav took me a different route back down the m6 but I am now confident on the motorway, so glad I did it.

Oh good well done.

Good advice from our resident hgv driver. The a66 really isn't that bad unless it's snowing or foggy. Another good place to stop for a break is mainsgill farm on the 66. Remember once your on the a66 most of your driving is done and there is no no lane choice and very few roundabouts so sit back, relax a bit and enjoy the stunning scenery. You'll be fine

Sorry didn't read the update. Whoops.

All good advice here. My top tip;
If you aren’t sure which lane to be in on a big roundabout and aren’t confident about managing a quick lane change. Go into the lane furthest to the right. You can then drive around the roundabout getting a good look at where your exit is and which lane you need. When you are ready you can then exit safely and calmly.
If you need to drive around a couple of times it’s safe to do so.

Well done OP!