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Germany Euro 2024 - I did my homework and found a lot to learn about Driving a Motorhome in Europe. This is long winded post I know but I wanted to detail all of the pitfalls and considerations for groups making the trip by Motorhome as we are, so none of us get caught out, particularly by the authorities because apparently ignorance is not going to be tolerated as an excuse if we are caught breaking rules: I spoke to some lads in the pub on Friday when we were watching the game against the Dutch. They are doing the same thing but had no idea about any of the below. I hope this helps you all as well. For anyone who is taking a motorhome road-trip to Germany for Euro2024 (or for any other time for that matter as it is all about driving legally, safely and efficiently in Europe) but is particularly pertinent for the period of the Euros because of the number of groups that are planning such a trip and the trip the gents in my family, as a group, are all planning and have been since we qualified. So we are 5 Adults aged 23-70, and we hired a van in Belgium that will take us on our Euro tour. So we travel by car from Glasgow to Dartmouth via Peterborough to pick-up my Eldest lad then head down and stay overnight in Dartmouth just across the Thames and then head to Dover the following day. Nothing particularly unusual there. We get the Ferry to Dunkirk and this is where we needed to start considering what may be required.By the time we hit Belgium in the car where we pick the van we have transit 3 countries with differing rules and regulations before we really start. So what do we have to consider: The Journey: Depending on where the van is before you pick it up and travel to Germany, the trip may include journeys through England, France, Belgium, Luxembourg. Also Perhaps you are planning a wider tour while you are there and this could well include Holland, Czechia, Austria or others. Typical Max Weight of a motorhome My biggest concern and my biggest headache became the weight of the Motorhome we are touring with: What do I mean: The Standard UK driving license classification that allows us to drive ours cars and a potentially a motorhome in the UK and Europe is the: B1 license Element This allows the license holder to drive up to 3500Kg (3.5ton). If you have the C1 classification then you can drive up to 7500kg (7.5 ton) B1 Class license is standard for anyone who got their license on or after the 1st Jan 1997. Anyone before that date would have ‘C1’ on their license and is licensed to drive C1 class vehicles. It’s typically referred too as ‘Grandfather’ rights. We, as a group have two drivers of an age where C1 is a likely allowance, however, I personally missed the date by 6 days. Passing my test on the 7th Jan 1997 but the other driver is valid* The vehicles you have classification to drive can be seen on the back of the UK driving license. If you have B1 or C1 you will see the effective dates listed on the license. When I said valid*, the other driver may be able to drive any weight up to 7.5ton, however, most hire motorhomes, unless typically stated, are B1 class and registered for 3.5kg. They may be able to carry a greater weight and there may be a driver that is licensed to do so but if the motorhome is ‘Plated’ as 3.5ton (3500kg) then that’s what it can carry. These vans can be ‘Re-plated’ to allow greater weights as they are often manufactured for more ( e.g. say another 250kg) but they would require ‘Re-plated’ to be permissible by law for the respective extra weight. Either license also allows a trailer up to 750kg Maximum Authorised Mass (or MAM) but that is providing the overall weight of the load of the road-train doesn’t exceed 3.5ton or 7.5ton depending on the license classification. I left a link to the UK Rules in the description below: https://www.theukrules.co.uk/rules/driving/licences/categories-and-codes/ https://www.venture-caravans.com/blog/2023/09/25/motorhome-weights-explained-what-are-the-legal-limits/ If the van is classed as C1 and all the drivers are C1 then this section is of no consequence to you and if you like you should skip to the rest of the considerations later in the video that may prove helpful. If it is B1 (always best to check) then this bit is what you need to think about. Motorhome Weight Calculations So how do we know how much the motorhome is going to weigh? We need the weight of the van (or van and trailer, whichever is applicable) and its payload totalled together. OK so how much Payload do you actually have available: We know, as B1 class the total weight that we cannot exceed is 3,500kg. This is otherwise referred to . Motorhome Max Load / Maximum Technically Permissible Laden Mass (MTPLM) or gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR): We basically need to Subtract the documented weight of the Motorhome when it was manufactured (when it was issued) with all the weight of the standard manufacturer fixtures along with a few running allowances. This is otherwise known as the Mass in Running Order (MIRO). This would be the motorhome, plus a driver (typically 75kg) 20L of water (20kg), (which is the recommended amount of water for travelling as a full tank of water is likely to be 100kg or more). Full tank of fuel and oil, a gas bottle typically a single 15kg bottle but empty (Full is likely to be 25kg plus). Now include anything additional that has been added since it was first issued. Bike Rack, Towning bar, TV, Aircon as well as all the extras, people and luggage. For example our Van is documented as a MIRO of 2990kg from the brochure I found on it. (We aren’t adding a trailer) Since then the owner has added, a number of permanent fixtures, Bike Rack, TV, Satellite and Oven (as the Euro vans rarely come with Ovens). He has also upgraded the main leisure battery so that’s an extra 20kg. We are taking two gas bottles 13kg initially both full (see the end of this piece regards Channel crossing for Gas cylinders.) As one empty gas bottle is included in the MIRO I added the gas weight for both and the extra bottle at a total of another 40kg. Also being the driver I am also 10kg more than the calculated manufacturers standard driver weight of 75kgs so I added that. Working it all out best I could I figured we had a Mass In Running Order mass of 3103kg. That leaves us with 397kgs of Payload available (from the 3.5ton max). So on top of that we now have to add everything that comes with the hire of this van. Its necessities and accessories , plates, cutlery, utensils, pots, pans, glasses, I also think there is a few kitchen gadgets. I guesstimated about 25kg for all that. It also comes with an additional bbq and outdoor table and chairs for the five of us, so 25kg roughly. This is all stuff that comes with the van and has to be returned when we are done so certainly won’t be expendable and I will explain more about that shortly. Then we started to add the add our requirements: We had 4 more people to consider after the driver (already included in the MIRO), that has been roughed out to about 380Kg and of course 5 peoples luggage, which we calc’d to be about 100kg in total. That 500kgs additional just in people and belongings. Food and drink and we are not shy on the tipples in this group. Another 25kg (minimum). We also need the extras for the toilet and towels and incidentals that are likely to run with us so I added another 10kg for that. And we have our bedding for the trip which I estimated around 12kg all in. So we added that all up to a whopping: 577kg. So all in all so that adds up to 180Kg over the max running weight. Of 3.5ton. So we had a problem. Regardless of the safety aspects of running over which I am not at all keen on If we were to be stopped and weighed we could have some serious issues, what could we do: So I went looking at everything to determine the rules, the possible legal implications, fines, prosecutions, etc. and it was all quite interesting if not concerning. So in the rules many country’s including Germany have a basic tolerance. In Germany its 5% allegedly: It allows for some weight over the max to the tune of approx. 5% or 175kg. So did that mean I could run 175kg over my max at 3675kg and just risk it, potentially only needing to ditch 30kg of stuff from our 3705kg mass, to meet the mass plus tolerance limit. Or perhaps pay a small fine and be on our way. Well no, not exactly. If you are stopped and weighed, there is no guarantee that they will let you continue on your journey without losing all the extra weight. In Germany they may not issue a fine until you are over 5% of weight tolerance but it is highly unlikely you would be able to travel onwards until the weight was deemed legal rather than tolerable. So for us that would mean losing 180kg. Besides the people and luggage, most of the kit and weight on the van belongs to the owner, which we can't remove. We would only have about 60kg we could lose in incidental weight. We would literally need to lose a person or persons, incidentals and/or luggage at least to meet the requirements. Of course we thought about the potential of that and maybe just meet up with them further down the road but its not ideal plus we would have just lost all the damn food and drink and the chance of getting caught again further down the line is still an ongoing risk. In Germany, if you are over the 5% tolerance they will issue a very small fine of 10Euros, 10% and its 30Euros and so on. Its really minimal and the lowest in Europe but again it is likely that you’ll have to remove all that additional weight. It is worth noting that it has been highlighted (from a reliable source) that the Germans and likely the other transit nations across Europe will be on the lookout for over laden Motorhomes and Vans etc. Germany is adding extra weigh bridges apparently and setting up roadside skips for all that extra weight and I expect other countries in the transit zone from all the European qualifier countries enroute to Germany will do the same.With that in mind, you may also travelling through other countries. Where England and France won’t affect us personally having only the car and minimal weight for that stretch of the trip, Belgium's rules will affect us, and then we are onwards to Luxembourg, before hitting Germany, plus we had intended a small drive through Austria while we were down that way. Each of those countries have different tolerances and fines. Belgium is a only 2% tolerance and 330Euros fine for being over. The UK and Austria aren’t playing around though, if you are caught overweight there with their potential fines its Zero tolerance and 5000Euros. So if you are departing overweight from Scotland its a hell of a risk. See the link in the description below for all the main European tolerances and Fines: https://www.caravantalk.co.uk/community/uploads/monthly_2018_08/image.png.19a9bd4ca2af64d326654803058563fb.png So what have we decided, as a group, is that we will pick-up the motorhome in Belgium as planned but as we are all drivers and we have the car with us to that point anyway, so we are now taking the car on the trip as well. So our running weight is down about 180Kg in people from the van and we can carry some luggage and food, drinks etc In the car as well. Sure that will double the fuel for the trip and adds to the parking charges etc but we are legal and that’s the main factor. Basically being Legal means being insured. If you hired or borrowed or just taking your own motorhome, you know being illegal on the road potentially invalidates your insurance in the event of an incident. So if you had a bump that required the police for intervention you may be weighed and you are likely to have no insurance cover for you or the 3rd party. It becomes a very costly oversight. So a few extra quid in fuel and parking was a no brainer. Speaking of insurance. For our particular van hire, all parties in the group over 30 years old and have a valid B1 driving license for 5years or more and are therefore insured fully comprehensively cover for the motorhome provided by the hire company (which includes full roadside which was always a consideration). That makes 3 of us legal drivers on the van and those people were always going to be the trip drivers. Now we have an additional vehicle in the equation this poses a number of extra considerations, I since found out. Insurance So as we are all drivers and we all fully comprehensive cover insurance covered drivers of our own cars and we all have 3rd party cover on any other vehicle as part of those policies. So legally everyone can drive the additional car but 3rd Party is not the ideal cover. So I looked at alternatives and yes you can get ‘Temporary motor insurance’ that can ‘TopUp’ the UK Third Party cover on any vehicle to Fully Comp. This seemed like the obvious choice for the rest of the party particularly as I wanted everyone who would driving the car fully insured. Everything was going swimmingly and it was all costed out until I discovered that the policy and almost all others like it, (that would be a financially viable option), reduced that cover from Fully Comp in the UK to the bare legal requirements for travel outside the UK. To 3rd party only once again. So that was pointless. We have only managed to get around that because I am adding my boy temporarily to my own car Insurance policy so he has all the benefits in UK and Europe that I have. i.e Fully Comp plus the extras, breakdown, legal etc. It’s not ideal as the 3 Drivers we had for the Van is now shared with the car and the car only has two potential drivers insured. We can use the 3rd party insurance only option if an emergency required it. This particular configuration issue is very much specific to our group but you could face similar challenges of you are like me and prefer to make sure that everything is properly insured. On the subject of Insurance, we also have our travel insurance in place. Some have bank accounts that cover it etc but that proved more complicated as well. Many travel insurances won’t cover motorhome travel if the van did not begin its journey in the UK, Some do but not all. Its worth checking. My bank account policy with RBS didn’t by default and a few needed insurance cover separately as well, so we opted for a policy from Admiral that was cost effective for the 4 of us that needed it. Admiral Platinum Single Trip Insurance covers the trip in the UK for everything in the car. UK car based obviously, but also covers the contents of the car and motorhome for all 4 passengers when we pick-up the van in Belgium for the duration of the trip. Another box ticked in my book. Note: I don’t recommend or endorse Admiral or any other insurers. This may not be suitable for everyone and is only the policy that worked for me after a good length of time investigating the required specifics of our trip. If a Euro hired/based Motorhome is a factor in your trip you may wish to do your own investigations. SeatBelts I made a clear choice to hire a motorhome that could legally take 5 of us initially and that means it has all the required seatbelts and they are appropriate for the age of the vehicle as it differs in regulation depending on the age of the vehicle. Just because it states it s a six berth does not mean it can legally travel with 6 people necessarily. Ours does but it’s the exception in the model I chose rather than the rule. My advise would be to make sure you are legal in this area as well as it is likely if you are stopped for whatever reason this could be checked by the authorities at the same time as well. https://www.lifesure.co.uk/articles/motorhomes-seatbelts-law https://www.caravanguard.co.uk/news/motorhome-seat-belts-usage-new-laws-latest-regulation-comply-6905/ So you are all good with weight, your insurances and your overall safety for the journey are good and you are on your way. Hopefully for us all it’s a painless experience but there are other things you may need to consider. Vehicle Emission Zones As most or many folks will be aware, Glasgow, for example, now has it Low Emission Zone LEZ, London has its ULEZ or Ultra Low Emission Zone and to enter these zones requires you to have a car of a particular age and/or emissions rating. Well Europe is no different. France have had a scheme in place since 2008 for many cities and Germany has as well, and Germany have recently tightened those to the point going anywhere near the city itself could be out of bounds for older motorhomes, vans or cars. We had an intention to park up in the City’s for each of the Games where at all possible. Munich has an ULEZ equivalent in the City Centre, Cologne has a reduced version LEZ but Stuttgart has a ULEZ across its entire greater city area and is really a no go city at all for older vehicles. How do you know what is allowed and what’s not. Well its all to do with the Euro emissions standard, in many European countries you need their recognition of your vehicles emissions standard displayed on the vehicle somewhere. Some countries are not quite as strict as others. For us, my car is a Euro6 standard and has ULEZ allowance. This will prove useful for city parking. However, this may not be an factor for many at least for some of the journey. If you don’t have the need, like us, we will avoid London enroute to Dover anyway so that’s not an issue. In France they what’s called the Crit’Air clean stickers that determine your vehicles emissions rating but again If you are not intending on going into larger cities in France this may not be of any consequence.. https://www.environmentalbadge.com/eco-zones-france/ That doesn’t affect us as we head straight from Dunkirk to Belgium but we head to Antwerp and that is affected by the Belgium low emissions zone. Fortunately for us the pickup location is outwith their LEZ so I can bypass the registration required as a foreign driver in the LEZ which I will still need to do if I was going into the Zone even though I am a Euro 6 (highest level) rated. https://urbanaccessregulations.eu/countries-mainmenu-147/belgium/antwerp Once we have our van and we head off with the car following it I needed to be sure that our motorhome had the required ratings identified for Germany. We will avoid any Low Emissions Zones in the rest of Belgium and Luxembourg. But Germany, they use a Green Sticker based system called the German Emission Sticker which you need in advance of being in many city locations. This is something I knew we would probably need. https://urbanaccessregulations.eu/countries-mainmenu-147/germany-mainmenu-61 This sticker (strangely) has just a three tier ratings. Red, Amber Green, but as the scheme has grown the Green rating is now split into several different Euro Rating categories. 4 through 6. Albeit the sticker doesn’t display this. You can enter most of the cities with a Euro 4 rating vehicle but some cities such as Berlin, Stuttgart, Munich and others have what they now call a Deisel ban, which is a not quite what it sounds. Its Euro 5 standard again based on the age of the vehicle and if you use Ad-Blue with your Deisel fuel for example it’s not Deisel directly. We understand that our Diesel Motorhome is a Euro 5 standard but I am yet to have this confirmed formally. I checked the age of the vehicle and the CO2 levels of the engine from the manufacturers website against the levels that typically determine the rating so I am confident but the Euro registration document for the Van should specify this explicitly when I get a-hold of that on the day of hire. So even though you have (or get) a Green Sticker you still may not be allowed into the Euro 5 (and Euro 6 - pending) level zones if the car only qualifies as Euro4. And this is particularly relevant to the Scotland Supporters as this means Munich city and almost all of greater Stuttgart (which is ironic of course as Stuttgart is Germany‘s motor industry capital) is out of bounds unless you want to pay the relative fines and they are pretty hefty. I would check any other cities / towns you may be visiting enroute of your travels as well. If you need to get a Green Sticker for Germany then you will are probably best to apply for it in advance. Particularly if you are using a UK based/plated motorhome. You can buy it in some obscure places across Germany but it’s a tough one to pin down and those offices my struggle with a UK based registration certificate that is need to buy one. The registration certificate determines the tier (Green, Amber , Red) Sticker that you get but you’ll need to determine what actual Euro level the vehicle, you require the sticker for, actually is to make sure you can enter LEZ and ULEZ with it. You can check your UK vehicle Euro rating via this website: https://motorway.co.uk/ulez-checker I personally just ordered the Sticker, for my car of course, because both the car and the motorhome require one. I used an agency and they charge varying amounts for what would be (I understand a 6Euro Sticker) It was more expensive this way but I received the car sticker through the post in about 4 days. I used this agency and most foreign visitors will need to do similar unless they intend to try and buy when on location. I was advised not to try that and parking way outside to go in and get the sticker and come out again and the hassle that causes etc just wasn’t worth it. https://www.environmentalbadge.com/validity-of-environmental-badges/ P.S I do not personally recommend or endorse this site or service. It’s just the one I used and they proved efficient and only 14Euros but there are other such agency sites available (many at ridiculous prices) but I believe you can use the German authorities page for which ever city you prefer e.g Munich (when I looked that was also more expensive than the one I used) Note once you have the sticker and it is in place it is valid across all German LEZ and ULEX zones. For any other countries I would check the requirements of those. I checked Austria for us and for the short trek passing Innsbruck on the A12 we would require an Austrian Emission sticker for that stretch. We may just avoid that route as a result. Vignettes In the UK we pay our RoadTax in advance or monthly. Typically in Europe its different per country and it differs again for European drivers. In France you can pay the road tolls as you go without too much issue, contactless, card, coins, notes etc are generally all accepted at the respective booths. Like the UK, Belgium, Luxembourg and Germany don’t typically have road or motorway tolls or taxes for European Travellers and the travel is free throughout. So that’s a bonus. However, if you are planning a tour via Austria or the Czech Republic (Czechia) then you will need a Vignette. Its another sticker to clarify you have paid the road tolls. You can typically get this just before or after the borders at local services and the likes. Word to the wise do not pay at dedicated booths that say Vignette pay here or the likes, particularly in the Czech Republic where the booths may charge high costs and the ticket machine is right behind the booth or in the adjacent carpark or whatever. If you feel you are being fleeced you probably are and although it may be legitimate as a toll payment option it’s not the official toll location necessarily and the official one is just metres away. What else can I offer as some guidance. Wild Camping In Germany you aren’t allowed to Wild Camp. What I mean by that is Park up anywhere get the furniture out setup lunch or dinner, a tent or motorhome awning or whatever, and stay overnight like you were on a campsite. Its illegal. You can’t use any levelling blocks either. Anything that looks like you are camping. This also includes in the countryside, off-road or in a field or whatever. However, they do respect being able to park-up in areas dedicated for parking where there is no distinct signage stating that a certain motor vehicle type can’t park their. Its A no news is good news scenario. They treat it as you need a break from driving or on a short term visit. You just pull up , you can sit there overnight usually no more than 24hours unless there is specific signage to qualify otherwise. Most folks will use a Motorhome Stop (WohnMobilStellplatz) or Campsite (CampingPlatz) for anything longer and who require services, waste, water, electricity and washing facilities and the likes. The WohnMobilStellplatz are setup for Motorhomes and are generally cheaper per night for 24 or more hours typically albeit you pay to Park the van and per Adult in the van so it could add up. For 5 of us, It will be, say 10Euros to park up and 6Euros a person that 40 Euros for an overnight. But its still not a camping situation. It’s generally meant as an motorhome stop rather than just parking and has facilities and maybe allows for 48 or 72hours stay. Camping sites will be a good bit more expensive maybe 60-70Euros a night for similar amount of people but you can get all the gear out and make the most of the space you have. In almost all cases these locations are out-with the city centre boundaries so if you intend to use these for the duration then you may get away without the need for emissions stickers but you will be outside the city, (particularly in Stuttgart you could be a good way outside) and definitely using public transport. Check all the locations you intend to visit but Stuttgart in particular. Electricity and Gas So if you are using a UK based Motorhome or caravan or whatever this could be important. https://www.caravanclub.co.uk/overseas-holidays/useful-information/electricity-and-gas/#:~:text=Gas%20bottles%20that%20you%20hire,at%20www.campingaz.com https://www.practicalmotorhome.com/advice/spotlight-on-using-gas-in-europe Basically there are difference in Electrical and gas supplies. One major for us was not being able to take the full quantity of gas need for the entire trip and we needed to fill up (LPG) or swapout gas bottles. We would need at least two full bottles worth for the group and considering the weight elements discussed earlier this would have been an issue so we had to consider how we refilled. So I checked that out. This was one of many reasons we hired the van in Europe we have no European adaptor issues. Besides I prefer a car made in Europe for European Roads. UK cars are fine but I always found it easier when you drove on the right to have a Left hand drive. The weight in our respect is no longer an issue for us with the two full bottles as we are taking the car but it may be an issue for those that intend just to use the motorhome. Particularly if you are travelling from the UK as the boat or EuroTunnel who shouldn’t allow you to have more than 80% capacity in any one gas bottle. All, some or none of the above advise elements may be news to you but just remember there may be other factors in the equation that relates to you and your group and what your plans are on your trip. My advise is check it all. Don’t have any stone unturned as the more I dug the more I found. I have spent months on this now and researched so many elements of our trip. It matters to me as it’s my family I travel with, the plan is to make it the best road-trip it can be. No project comes off well without serious planning. Good Luck and Happy Travels to you all. Most importantly “Mon’ The Scotland

Me and the Mrs driving from Gourock to Stanstead to catch the 8.30 flight to Bratislava, got 2 spare seats in car down and back (heading back wed night 7.30ish from Stanstead) to split diesel and parking costs. £20 return . £10 each way. Leaving about 10 ish on the Monday night. Only conditions are you will have to listen to crappy music* and possibly a maximum of 2 archers episodes (keep the Mrs happy) *the music will be brilliant by the way. Drop me a line if interested. Can pick up on way if on route.

Planning a 10 day road trip in and out a Dubrovnik in June... Any suggestions? I'm looking at driving doon tae Montenegro Cheers