Driving on the Peripherique

[5Foot5]

Hi

We have been going to France for the last 20 years and, in general, have found driving there to be absolutely fine. Even the motorways seem easier than ours.

However, we have never before had to tackle the Peripherique around Paris. This year thought I don't think we can avoid it. At least not without adding a great deal on to the journey and, seeing as we have a long way to go, we are not keen to do that.

DH keeps saying he is sure it will be fine, he has driven on the M25, can't be any worse - blah, blah blah. Nevertheless I must confess to being slightly apprehensive about that part of the journey.

Does anyone have any tips / advice about this?

Just keep you eyes closed adn put your foot down. I have very distinct memories of my dad doing this as a teen (me). He was cacking it

I think the advice is to be in the lane you need for the exit two exits before you leave. If you see what I mean.

We used to call it the " Terrif-eek ". Watch out for your gate No. And remember that sometimes the inside lane becomes the feed off without any notice. One year I think we went round it a few times as we were aiming for Boulogne and kept finding the Bois de Bologne < young and stupid and no map >

LOL said. When I was 17 I navigated a family car journey across France to Italy (my dad was driving). The Peripherique was the worst bit by far - we found the signs confusing and missed our exit, but couldn't work out how to get off and round again

OP, no helpful advice, sorry!

The outside lane of the péripherique is only for coming on and off, so all the rest of the time you need to be at least one lane in.

Know which exit you need by looking at the name of the 'porte' you need eg. porte de maillot, porte d'orleans, etc

You can then count down to the exit you need, bearing in mind that you don't get all that much warning, but that at each exit you also get a sign post telling you which exit is next iyswim.

The speed limit is 80km/h and most people will drive at that, if you're not stuck in a hideous traffic jam, which you probably will be, and there will also be some mad drivers who you should just try and ignore.

Ditto at missing exits. You will row and bicker with each other. A lot

You might find that a wide detour ends up being quicker . We spent hours on it earlier this month - lots of roadworks going on & some exits closed - & both times it was after 8pm when you might have expected it to quiet down.

However as far as dealing with Paris drivers is concerned, doddle (apart from motorbikes zooming between fast & middle lanes with their hazard lights going as if that makes it safer )

Def worth getting satnav just for the BP though, if you haven't got it already - gives you lots of notice of your exit & tells you which lane you want.

Hi 5foot5

Where are you heading from/to?

We too have a lot of practice driving in France and have created a number of strategies for avoiding the Peripherique.

Our experience is that it is more like a giant urban roundabout than the M25 with shades of Blade Runner thrown in for good measure if you are driving at night. The driving isnt the problem, the problem is that it can get completely blocked up which can add hours to your journey with little opportunity to get off for a natural break.

I was once in a car with someone who started to drive on to the Periferique by mistake, and realising his mistake reversed, yes reversed on to the the main rd, near Congress.

I am still alive.

That is all I know about the Periferique.

just a thought, if you are travelling around the petriphique (as we call in in our family) during the night, that is the time that some Portes close for maintenance. Worth checking before your journey that your exit has no roadworks - there must be a website somewhere that details closures.

I navigate with a map around Paris and we didn't get lost or go worng - it can be done

curious though as to where you are oging that you can't miss paris?

we went to disney on the way home from soemwhere

We did it last year for the first time and I worried about it for weeks in advance. It was absolutely fine. We just used the sat nav and it navigated it perfectly.

as others have said: SATNAV - it will save your sanity and you marriage.

We were scared of it but it was fine.

Ditto Satnav (we too went to the wrong Bologne at time!).

The first year we had satnav we couldn't believe the difference - "keep to the left" being repeated at every junction was VERY reassuring.

Loving the alternate names here

The longest 4 miles of my life...(and I wasn't the driver!!)

It does have helpful illuminated signs overhead now, which give time in mins to the next couple of Portes.

I just love it that it's called BP on all the signs - made me think of my rising blood pressure as we sat in a jam desperate to get to the hotel & eat after driving 10 hours

Thank you everyone for your replies - I can't say that my mind has been set at rest exactly but there is some very useful advice here.

We are taking the shuttle and then driving down to the Dordogne (Sarlat area). Last time we went to the Dordogne we took a ferry to Ouistram and we were headed more towards Bergerac so it was quite a different route.

It will be a Saturday morning when we make the journey as we are going to drive down South on Friday, cross on the shuttle on Friday afternoon then drive down to just North of Paris and spend the night. Hence we will be fresh to tackle the first thing on Saturday.

We don't have SatNav - well DHs phone does it but I think it only works in the UK. I will be the navigator.....

I think I will direct DH to this thread and see if he wants a re-plan!

Thanks again

I would do this and have done similar in reverse coming home

will not copy and paste

Rouen, le mans, tours and then east towards Vierzon, but turn south just before

979km 9 hours and 30 m

opposed to 830 and 7 hours and 47 min

things is it will also be less hassle around Paris, less money as there are less tolls to pay

I would drive 5 hours to samur on the friday and then stay over - it is beautiful

then the following day after a walk around the town head on south for the final 4 hours of the journey

ivykaty44 I wish I had started this thread a little while ago!

We have already booked an overnight stay at Compiegne so I think the route you suggest will not work for us unfortunately. Don't want to cancel the hotel booking now because we secured a really good deal by booking it with a no-alteration clause.

Five hours in France on the Friday would be a bit too much actually since we won't get across until late afternoon as we have to travel down to the south coast from the North West of England first.

Thanks anyway.

Thats ok - I would pick rouen or aberville - the later being a suprisngly lovely little town which many miss - we stayed at the municipal campsite there and the market and town where fab.

You will be fine though - if I can do it with a map in a campervan and know that I can't go wrong with wieghts etc (Brussells we actually went through a tunnel nd we were over wiehgt!)

You will be fine..

Have a fab time and next time you go ask here first!

From Compiegne, with a good road atlas, you could avoid Paris fairly easily without going too far out of your way.

Zigzag south past Meaux (you'd need atlas for that, it's on D roads), take the A4 W towards Paris (you don't get anywhere near Paris itself, honest!), then take the N104, S then W - it bends - towards Evry.

From Evry you can either go S on the A6 then W on the on the A19, or stay on the N104 going W & then go S on the N20 - 1st way easier but longer - either way you end up around Orleans, & I think you're OK from there!

Failing that, buy a Garmin 1240 with EU mapping - ours is not the same model but it is a Garmin & works v well (except for new roads where she thinks you're driving in a field )

Good luck & have a fab time

We have done th Periphique a few times. It has always been fine, but then I am the best navigator

All the tips above are great, and if you are navigating, make sure the DC are gagged and bound in the back - you can't afford to turn away from the map or the road signs at all!

Ponders Thanks I will look at that route tonight.

After showing this thread to DH he agreed it might be worth as bit of a re-plan. Our first atempt at giving Paris a wide berth involved going East as far as Reims then down but it would add a ridiculous amount of time to the journey.

Currently we have a Plan A and a Plan B.

Plan A is to use the motorways to go round Paris without quite getting to the Peripherique. I think we would get on to the A3 round about Charles de Gaulle airport then keep making motorway changes as appropriate (A86 and A6 I think but I don't have the map in front of me right now so I could have got those wrong) In theory this should work but if we don't spot a junction in time then we invoke Plan B

Plan B is just to bite the bullet and do the dreaded road!

We have just bought an up-to-date Micheling Roaf Atlas and it has the Peripherique with all the junctions on it so provided I mug up on our exit names in advance hopefully we will cope.

However, I will check out your alternative suggestion when I get home.

I agree with satnav - my children were reduced to tears and I was savagely googling division of assets after separation and that was just the Caen peripherique (utter baby road).

Once we'd taken every slip road available and botched the exit numbers to the extent that DH suggested we just aim for the sea, we got it sussed and were sneeringly insouciant for the rest of the week, but the first time was hell.

I hope your marriage and paintwork survive