If you are considering a driving trip to the Algarve, the first prerequisite is that you have a reliable vehicle, and accident and breakdown cover for France and Spain as well as Portugal. A mobile telephone is also necessary as there are areas of the route which have little in the way of communications.

The journey from the south coast of the UK to Faro in the Algarve typically takes 3 days/nights. The first day will generally get you somewhere near Bordeaux or the Spanish border, and the next 2 days take you across Spain and Portugal.

Arriving in France, one of the first things that you will probably notice is.......