Lucerne, St. Tropez, Monaco, Milan

Trip Report and photos by Bobbie Banda

In June 2008, we loaded up the mini van and headed off on a road trip with two of our kids, a 19 and a 5-year old. We started in Gangelt and headed for the Cote d’Azur! We spent the night near Spangdahlem Air Base, so we could gas up and hit the commissary. Our goal was to break up the drive so that we all had fun and maintained our sanity. All in all, we drove about 1800 miles, but we split it up so that we didn’t drive more than 4 to 5 hours a day, so it wasn’t bad at all. We went via Southern Germany so we were able to gas up before we left the country and again as soon as we got back, so we only had to purchase 2 to 2.5 tanks of gas on the economy. We were able to bring all of our non perishables with us, such as tuna, pasta, juices, long-shelf life milk, cereal, etc. The units in St Tropez come fairly well equipped, but you’ll want to bring toilet paper, paper towels, coffee etc. The rental company lends you all your cleaning supplies on check out day, so you don’t need those.

Luzerne Switzerland

When you enter Switzerland, stop and get a road stamp. They’re 40 euro and good for one year.

We stayed here. http://www.hiexpress.com/luzern

We drove to Mt Pilatus and took the world’s steepest cog wheel train up the mountain. There are various options you can include, such as a tram ride and a boat trip, but we didn’t have time for all of those. The train ride is absolutely beautiful and the views spectacular from the top. Even in mid-June, there was snow on top, so bring a jacket!

http://www.pilatus.ch/

The town itself has many beautiful buildings. Definitely have some fondue while you’re here!

The Lion of Lucerne, designed by A. B. Thorvaldsen, was erected in 1821 in memory of the Swiss Guards (basically conscripts who fought in various European armies) who were killed in Paris in 1792. It is beautiful and touching.

Once you leave Luzerne, you will go through many many tunnels. Expect delays and make sure you have plenty of cold water. We froze water bottles and juice boxes and had them in the cooler. During a particularly long stau in a tunnel, we actually encountered a man who got out of his car and appeared to be in real distress, either heat stroke or heart attack! We were glad we had some ice water to offer him. The drive along the coast is one of the most beautiful in the world.

St Tropez

We stayed here: http://www.bj-rivieraholidays.com/pays/uk/index.htm These are self-contained little mobile homes within a resort area. They have a kitchen. Ours had 3 bedrooms and 2 bathrooms. The two smaller bedrooms each had 2 twin beds in them. Ours also had air conditioning, although not all units do. I highly recommend the air conditioning! There are a couple of small grocery stores on the resort, which is situated right on the beach. You can get fresh bread there along with pretty much anything you might need. The prices weren’t too bad for a resort. They have a little amusement park at night with rides for the younger sect. There is a larger amusement park nearby as well as a water park. The resort is actually in Port Grimaud, a stone’s throw across the bay from St Tropez. There are a few restaurants and bars on the resort, a laundry mat (5 euro to wash one load!), and live music at night for free. Each unit has a patio area and a clothesline. You can rent a BBQ grill as well. There were people there from all over Europe. We even ran into a few from Geilenkirchen! We found a large supermarket a few minutes drive away called Geant Casino (http://www.geant.fr/). It is like a Super Walmart and we found some great stuff there for much less then at the market where all the tourists go.

The beach on the resort is wonderful! We alternated beach days and touristy days. We ate most of our meals in our little home, but did enjoy one of the best fish meals we’ve ever had in nearby Port Grimaud (walking distance from the resort!). Plenty of awesome gelato to be had as well!

We took a boat tour across the bay into St Tropez. On the ride, we passed “millionaire row” to look at the mansions. The one with the boat house right on the water is Dodi Fayad’s, where he and Princess Di stayed.

It’s fun to check out all the amazing yachts lined up. Note the chairs at the cafe right across from the yachts are all facing out so we commoners can people-watch the rich.

We also took a day trip to the Gorge de Verdun, called the “Grand Canyon of Europe”. The drive itself is full of extreme twists & turns, enough so that one of our children got car sick. Definitely bring Dramamine! There are some pretty villages and a huge bridge along the way. If you’re really brave, you can even bungee jump from it. We did not.

Our departure day finally came. We cleaned up our facility and packed the van and off we went to Monaco!

Monaco

We spent an afternoon in Monaco, the 2d smallest country in the world! It is less than 1 square mile. We took one of those small trains around it. There is a lot you can do, such as a world class aquarium and several museums. The palace is situated on a high promontory in the old town of Monaco-Ville. You can tour it if the Prince is not in. At noon there is a changing of the guards.

Monaco-Ville has lovely little streets.

You can go in the casinos, but only the truly high rollers can play at the tables.

We also visited the chapel where Princess Grace married Prince Rainier, and where she is interred.

http://www.visitmonaco.com

After a few hours, we were ready to get back on the road.

Milan

After Monaco, we drove to Milan to spend the night. Driving in Milan can be challenging and stressful. Thank God for GPS. Get used to much honking and yelling!
We stayed here: http://www.holidayinn.com/milangaribaldi

We went to dinner at a place called Nubucco’s. The food was expensive but really good. They serve you champagne as soon as you are seated. Our hotel receptionist said it was a kid friendly restaurant, but they didn’t have a kid menu. However, they did prepare some spaghetti for our 5 year old. There’s a really nice pedestrian area to wander around.

The next day, we visited the Duomo di Milano (cathedral). For a small fee, you can walk up to the top, for slightly more you can ride an elevator. The walk wasn’t bad – not nearly as steep as the Koln cathedral! If you plan to visit, ensure you wear something that covers you shoulders and knees or you will be turned away.

Next to the Duomo is the Galleria Vittorio Emanuele. Beautiful! Expensive shops inside.
The Piazza Duomo-Piazza della Scala. The street people are extremely aggressive here. One tied a little string bracelet around our child’s wrist while we were saying “No” then expected money. Another cleaned our windshield at a stop light over our protests, then scoffed at the 1 euro coin we offered up! You really have to be forceful! There are, of course, lots of pigeons to feed, so bring some bread crumbs!

After Milan, we drove to Rastatt/Baden-Baden and stayed here. We had a small child with so really couldn’t do the whole spa thing; however, we wandered around Rastatt. There is some very lovely architecture, including Schloss Rastatt (http://www.wgm-rastatt.de/dasmuseum.html) a laid back atmosphere and some nice shops. We were there on a Saturday, so enjoyed their market as well.

We stayed here. http://www.holidayinn.com/rastattger

http://www.rastatt.de/servlet/PB/menu/-1/index.html

This was a great vacation for our family!

Switzerland and Italy Trip

Information below courtesy of the American Spouses of Brunssum Travel Information Guide – used with permission

Place:

Strasbourg, France 1 night; Lake Lugano, Switzerland for 1 week; Verona, Italy 3 nights.

Time:

Early July, weather was wonderful; mostly sunny, temperatures normally in mid-80s. One day of heavy rain in Lugano.

Directions:

Stayed one night in Strasbourg, France on way down. Estimate about 8 hour drive otherwise. From Basel (borders of France, Germany and Switzerland), take A2 all the way to Lugano. Consider taking the Gotthard Pass over the mountain south of Luzern instead of the 17 km tunnel along the way for a more scenic drive. It was a 10 ½ hour drive back home from Verona, Italy, heading north on A22 to Garmish.

Accommodations:

Strasbourg:

Quality Inn and Suites: http://www.quality-strasbourg.com/cadre/residenceus.html We had a very nice room with a double bed and a sleeper sofa for the kids.

Lugano:

Apartment house “Aldesago Monte Bré Haus I+II (Utoring)”. The apartment buildings are situated high up in the heights of the bay of Lugano, on Monte bre. Incredible views of Lake Lugano. There is an outdoor heated swimming pool and cog train right by the apartment to take you down the slope and into town if you choose not to walk or drive. Apartment was older, however, very spacious and clean. Two private bedrooms, living-room dining area, full bath, two balconies, and fully equipped kitchen to include stove/oven, microwave, dishwasher and large refrigerator/freezer.

Verona:

EuroMotel, Croce Bianca Via Bresciana, 2. Every thing was nice about this hotel except the beds and pillows were not too comfortable, but tolerable if you bring some pillows from home! Otherwise we had a room with double bed and bunk beds for the kids and a wonderful breakfast included each morning. Hotel is convenient to reach, not far from the Verona-Nord exit.

Things to do:

Lake Lugano, Switzerland:

Boat trips around the lake are available; however quite expensive. We ended up taking the boat across the lake to just Melide, where the Swiss Minatur (like the Maudrodam but of Switzerland) is located. Paddle boats are cheap, 8 franc for 30 minutes. There are swimming areas along the lake. Along the lake between Paradiso and Lugano, there was a trampoline/bungee setup the kids really enjoyed. At the bottom of the slope from our apartment along the lake was also a very nice park/children’s playground. Higher up the slope from our apartment were hiking trails to Monte Bre.

Take a day outing to Bellinzona and Locarno (north of Lugano 30 kms). Bellizona is a quaint village where there are three castle/fortresses of interest. We bought some local wine and pasta in a wine store in the center of town. There is a church worth visiting in the center of town as well. Not much to look at on the outside, but beautiful black and white marble décor on the inside. The castle on the very top is small and has an art museum and restaurant. We did not check out either and could have probably skipped the drive up the slope to see it. The castle down in the village was very nice, you could walk on top the long wall on one side and then back under the tunnel below the wall and go up the fortress’s tower for free. Locarno is the major city along Lake Maggiore.

On our rainy day we took an enjoyable drive south to Como, Italy and drove along the east side of lake Como. We toured Villa Carolotta near Tremezzo; worth the visit.

Take the cog train to Mount Generoso. The first cog train leaves from the train station in Capalago (exit autobahn at Mendrisio, south of Lugano), at 10:15 am and is best to go early. The train does not run in bad weather. We hiked to the bear caves and were given a private tour of the caves where students from the University of Milan were excavating the remains of bears that lived in the caves between 35,000 and 50,000 years ago. There are numerous hiking trails, make sure to walk up to the peak of Monte Generoso. From this point you can see all three lakes – Lake Maggiore, Lake Lugano and Lake Como against the snow-peaked mountains. If you hike with little children, best to put them in a backpack, trails are not stroller friendly and paths are often alongside some steep drop offs.

Another day trip we took was to Luzern, Switzerland. This is an absolutely gorgeous area and town.  This is backtracking our route, would recommend finding a place to stay for a night or two on the way to Lugano if possible.  We tried this but hotels were very expensive.  On the way we took the Furka pass (between Lugano and Luzern).  We put our car on the train through the tunnel and then continued onto to the Grimmsel pass.  Both the Furka and Grimmsel passes are well worth the experience.  Incredible road construction!  But bring some warm clothes along; every time we have been there it has been cold and rainy at the top! At Luzern we only had time to check out the Rodelbahn, the toboggan sled ride, but it was closed due to rain earlier in the day. But we had a nice ride up a small gondola and hike to the Rodelbahn taking the Hergiswil NW exit off of the autobahn.  The gondola was operated from the top; you had to pick up a phone inside to let them know you wanted a ride. The Rodelbahn looked more for kids ages 6 and up, and looked more luring on the website but I think it would have been worth the try!

 Italy:

After checking into our hotel in Verona, drove to Venice the first day, stopping in Vicenza along the way to purchase gas coupons at the military post.  There are signs to Camp Ederle posted from the autobahn (second exit into Vicenza).  Make sure to bring a copy of leave orders, we were able to buy 200 liters worth.  Unused coupons can be sent back for a refund; make sure to get the address to send back any unused coupons. Need to bring orders to the MP station and then go to the PX to buy the coupons. 

Second day drove to Pisa, Lucca (nice town with wall built around the city) and Florence. Florence was very hectic and difficult to find parking but worth the visit.  Don’t try without a city map! 

Last day we spent a relaxing morning and afternoon in downtown Verona.  Lovely town, live shows are shown almost nightly (except the day we were there) at the coliseum in the center of town; arena di Verona. Verona is famous for being the scene of Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet.  Check out http://www.arena.it/ to make reservations for the arena before you leave home.

Restaurant tips/recommendations:

Did not eat out that much, as all the restaurants in Switzerland are expensive and we had our kitchen in our apartment. In Verona; however, we did eat one night in the Elephante Hotel, right up the road from our hotel. This was a very good gourmet-style Italian restaurant. Go early or make reservations ahead of time. Good spaghetti for the kids.

Websites you used or found helpful in planning this trip:

http://www.travelnow.com/index.jsp – booked hotel in Strasbourg

http://nl.myswitzerland.com/du/welcome.cfm – for things to do in Switzerland

http://www.interhome.ch – booked our apartment in Lugano

http://www.ticino-tourism.ch/control – for things to do in the Lugano area

http://www.pilatus.ch/ – things to do in Luzern

http://www.rodelbahn.ch/pages/startframe.htm – toboggan sled ride in Luzern

http://www.traveleurope.it/ – booked hotel in Verona

http://www.arena.it/ – Arena di Verona