To be dreading this holiday to France?

[thinkingmakesitso]

In September I stupidly and quite rashly booked a holiday with Brittany holidays for me and my dc. They mentioned they'd always wanted to sleep on a ferry and before I knew it I'd booked it.

Now it's next week and I'm dreading it because:

1. I'm shattered after a very hectic year. I break up Wednesday (teacher), the house is a shit hole, and I'll have to get straight into packing mode and I just can't be arsed.
2. I live 6 hours from the port so have arranged to stay the night at my parents' on the way. I find them quite stressful and I haven't been to theirs for about 8 years as they keep their house like somewhere Kim and Aggie would be needed. God knows why I thought this would be a good place to stop off.

3.I drive up an down the M1 every day and enjoy driving, but I've never driven abroad before and am getting really nervous about getting onto the ferry and driving in France - having Googled it seems they have lots of complex regulations and I will need to but hi-vis jackets for us all etc etc. Luckily we are staying only about 40km from the port, but still...

1. We are staying in a chalet on a camp site, so I will have no respite from the constant thinking about food, and clearing up. Dc are 11 & 9, so can do their bit, but I just wish we were going AI somewhere. I think it's going to be expensive over there, so I won't want to rely on restaurants too much. I'll be constantly whittling about money while there...

The area looks stunning, and I'm sure it'll all be worth it, but I feel a sense of dread rather than excitement atm... ok, not really an AIBU, but AIBU to think I shouldn't have booked it, or can anyone persuade me otherwise?

You canbuy the high viz vests in the ferry shop or petrol station on the way.

Get a travel lodge instead of staying with parents , Frances roads are great to drive on very clear and driving on the other side is fine after a few hours and you only need one high vis jacket

I get you but actually the reality as people have said will be fine. You just haven't got the " holiday feeling" because you have all the responsibility. You will have a great time over there though.

I feel desperately sorry for French drivers coming to the UK. What the hell they think of our overcrowded, over the speed limit, poor lane mangement and potholed roads, I dread to think.If you like driving here over there will be an absolute doddle..

OP,
I used to do this as a single parent - and before the days of satnav with oldest (still of primary school age) with map balanced on her knee giving me directions. We eventually got brave enough to make two day journeys to our final destination.
As everyone has said, French campsites are awesome. The food will be fantastic - there'll be a takeaway at the campsite and get the kinds involved in some gentle meal planning. There will be times when you can just chill with a book and and an eye on the kids. There'll be crap entertainment and lots of other families (who were always very welcoming to me as a single parent). It will be fine.

Buy in a big supermarket. DO NOT BUY IN a MARKET. You will have to remortgage

Thanks everyone, I know it will be great really, it's just the thought of it. I wish I had a week or two to recover from school, but I booked these dates as they were the cheapest in the 6 weeks, so I need to remember that.

I will definitely keep food simple and eat out as much as I can- there were some horror stories on here last year about how expensive France has become, but I need to prioritise relaxation tbh.

My main worry is getting on the ferry. I'm a confident driver except for having to do manoeuvres with people watching, which is what I imagine will be happening.

Thanks for the positive words though, they've really helped.

I'm sure it will all work out absolutely fine, and I hope you have a wonderful time. It is normal to be a bit jittery and I understand that.

Have to say this is a very uplifting thread, all positivity and no negatives. I love it, and wish I could be in France right now!

We all feel like that, then when you hit the road, you rock !
Morning baguettes with butter and a fine local jam with chocolate milk or coffee will do the trick.
There is aldi and lidl with all the local stuff. Ready meals are plenty. For the house : When out of time I do fridge bin clothe, anything else can wait.

Ask the kids to do the menu with a budget. (they can)

Pizza
Mergues (couscous royal)
raviolis
Pasta (hot)
Giant pasta salad (cold)
gratin dauphinois
Pommes dauphines or french puree ready made
Liebig soup

You are spoiled for choice with deserts.
Keep a variety of cheese, baguettes and fruits in the fridge and yogourts.
One day at a time.

Relax, you deserve it.

we are of Thursday to the south of France - today is Sat OP - get packing NOW - (also working Mon/Tue) cleaning the house Tuesday night - setting off Weds and staying overnight in a Premier Inn (book one save on the stress of staying with parents)

Don't fret about driving in France - I did it for the first time last year - ex made me feel like I would never be able to drive abroad when we where married and I was scared ridged - I LOVED it - really easy and French toll roads are great

Honestly don;t sweat the cooking and cleaning - let them earn Euros doing cleaning and live on bread, cheese and salad

ENJOY!

OFF ffs!

Driving onto the ferry is easy. Just drive slow and there are no manoeuvres. They guide you down the lane and stop you just behind car in front.

At the end you just drive off. And don't worry about driving in France. I was really worried about it but after a few minutes it was absolutely fine.

If it's eurocamp type holiday there will be shops and restaurants on site. The kids will be entertained and you can sit at the bar with a vino

oh the ferry - you just drive on, park, reverse out, drive off - no scary stuff involved :)

I wish I were in your suitcase

There are Marshalls to guide you onto the ferry, they line you up beforehand so you just follow the car in front, or whoever is guiding you on. Shouldn’t need to do any manoeuvring

The ferry operators guide you into position.
Halfords do a "Driving on the Continent" pack that has everything you need, although may not have enough Hi Viz tabards for all. Could you borrow a couple from school, if you're a teacher?

Baguettes and cheese/pate for lunch. Easy.

Have fun!

Racmac is right. Please don't worry about driving onto the ferry. Straight on, no manoeuvres and you will be guided.

Cross-posted with everyone else re: ferry parking. It's no more difficult than stopping at traffic lights really.

Actually, it's even easier than stopping at traffic lights as the marshal will tell you exactly when to stop. Honestly, you will be fine. Enjoy!

Reading this thread makes me want to be going on a ferry adventure with the DC!

Have an amazing time OP. Pack some books and board games, buy some lovely wine, cheese and pate and have a ball.

Easiest holidays in the world, and really relaxing. I would book a travel lodge, instead on your parents' though.

Either picnics or cheap lunches out, BBQ and sale for dinner. Campsites usually have takeaways, for chicken, chips, pizza etc.

You won't need smart clothes, just swim stuff, shorts, t-shirts.

If you have time, the ferry usually has fab steak and chips The chocolate mousse will however keep you awake all night, be warned!

When you're there, the reality is all you'll do is relax, pop to the supermarket, and eat. It's nothing like cooking at home. If it's a campsite, they'll probably have evening entertainment, your dcs will only pop back when they need euros for pinball.

As for squash - the sirops are the same thing. Grenadine is the nicest - sirop if you want water, of you want fizz:

fr.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diabolo_(boisson)

I´m a teacher too and I understand the exhaustion and no energy for thinking about holiday packing etc. But, I often go away for the first week of the holiday as I find it really helps me move on from the end of term and get into holiday mood. It is a real effort to do the packing but so worth it when you get there.

I drove to a Spanish campsite last year just over the French Border. We also took the overnight ferry - myself and two DC. They found the ferry exciting and for me it was a trip down memory lane (although they are nothing like the ferry we used to get on in the 80's) France is fantastic and also I would say that the roads and much better than here. There are far fewer cars on the roads and although they go fast it is very orderly and the roads are very well maintained. I did not use any of the items needed for the car. Police were at tolls pulling vehicles over randomly but they seemed to be mostly commercial vehicles. I would not hesitate to do it again. Supermarkets in France sell great food and you can keep it cheap. One thing I found a problem was the delay/security at the ferry terminal. They looked in every car and sadly they were not looking for fags and booze like in the good old days. So be prepared to que. Driving on and off is fine I was worried too. One other mistake I made was using google to calculate how long it would take to go from point to point. It is calculated based on driving 130km per hour ie 80 miles per hour and I didn't want to drive that fast so it took me longer than I thought but I had lazily relied on google maps

The first time we drove in France many years ago we got the kids to help with the driving by reminding us to "prenez la droite!!" especially coming out of car parks and service stations. They loved it.

The ferry is easy. You just drive on and off. Even better: when you take the ferry you feel like you are already on holiday once on it. It's fun, it's relaxing.

Everything else that has been said too. I'm just back from a french campsite. We bought easy food from the campsite shop. Had a great time.

I've taken a lot of ferries with the car and no manoeuvres have ever been needed. You just drive on where the marshal says and park in the lane behind the car in front. It is really not a problem at all.