The Camping Forum

[jasoharp]

Hello all....I wonder if some of you with UK road experience could help me with deciding on which is the best route...

We are driving to Cresselly in Wales on Sunday from our home in Bury St Edmunds in Suffolk. I am taking our small Erde Trailer and so am restricted to 60 mph etc. The problem is, is that tomtom, Google, RAC route maps are suggesting conflicting routes accross the country (either M11,M25,M4 towards Wales or the alternative is to drive towards Birmingham A14,M6,M42,M5 & M50 into Wales)....so your feedback & experience would be most appreciated!

I just want the easy & quickest route...i think?

jasoharp

[Admin]

Hello all....I wonder if some of you with UK road experience could help me with deciding on which is the best route...

We are driving to Cresselly in Wales on Sunday from our home in Bury St Edmunds in Suffolk. I am taking our small Erde Trailer and so am restricted to 60 mph etc. The problem is, is that tomtom, Google, RAC route maps are suggesting conflicting routes accross the country (either M11,M25,M4 towards Wales or the alternative is to drive towards Birmingham A14,M6,M42,M5 & M50 into Wales)....so your feedback & experience would be most appreciated!

I just want the easy & quickest route...i think?

jasoharp

What time are planning on leaving?

Personally looking at both on google maps my thoughts are a14 towards Birmingham, although m6 is not a good route to take you'd be getting off early before the real problem area. The a14 is a good road pretty much all duel carriageway if I recall.

Worth noting the point the a14 crosses the m1 and picks up the m6 can be a problem but usually only peak times weekdays however it would not be a huge diversion to leave the a14 at the a5199 and take back roud via guilsborough to the a428 join the m1 at junction 18 and then next junction is m6.

Remember when towing if worried about a town or section of road you can review it online with google street view.. Very useful tool that one


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[jasoharp]

Hi Andy...thanks for your input.

I plan on leaving at stupid o'clock (4-5 am!!) in order to get there before lunch and accounting for stops etc.

The A14 & M6 roads are quite familiar to me and are usually fairly swift and problem free untill you get to Birmingham.....
....I agree also that the Google Streetview is such an excellent tool to view new places to visit etc before setting out!
Cheers.

jasoharp

[Admin]

Hi Andy...thanks for your input.

I plan on leaving at stupid o'clock (4-5 am!!) in order to get there before lunch and accounting for stops etc.

The A14 & M6 roads are quite familiar to me and are usually fairly swift and problem free untill you get to Birmingham.....
....I agree also that the Google Streetview is such an excellent tool to view new places to visit etc before setting out!
Cheers.

jasoharp

No problem, but Sunday early am Birmingham in fact before the toll section so not the busy part you'll pass through without an issue I would have thought


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[CrazyCamper]

Hi there,

Just been studying both routes and the route via M6 / M42 / M5 etc being 4 miles shorter seems to make more sense to me (living in the West Mids and quite used to the M6). By my reckoning you would be up in our area in a couple of hours which would have very light traffic on a Sunday morning. You would probably wonder what all the fuss was about when finding the Motorways so quiet, and once heading down the M5 you'll only find the occasional road works area with 50mph limit to be of any remote concern. The route from Brum to South Wales used to be a regular weekend commute for me years ago, via the same roads as Google throws up. Nowadays when repeating that journey I tend to go via the scenic route across country via Brecon to Camarthen but that's because I'm more familiar with the roads now. (Would knock your route down to 294 miles).

http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?f=d&source=s_d&saddr=Bury+St+Edmunds&daddr=52.33877,-1.78478+to:52.36678,-2.3216+to:52.23191,-2.73185+to:51.9407,-3.35865+to:Cresselly,+Kilgetty,+Dyfed+SA68,+UK&geocode=FZZAHQMdjcUKAClblud9W0zYRzESTboFru_7lw%3BFVKgHgMdNMTk_ymd00BY8cdwSDEAipbMI4sNEw%3BFbwNHwMdQJPc_ym7A_k3GotwSDERf9RBvGIQEw%3BFeb-HAMdtlDW_ymxFdgXJUdwSDHxlzrMI4sNEw%3BFVyNGAMdRsDM_yl9AFPehDJuSDFgB5jCI4sNEw%3BFUUcFQMdsIu2_yn7ycjpVzJpSDGrCsFUr7kJkQ&hl=en&mra=dvme&mrsp=2&sz=8&via=1,2,3,4&sll=51.849353,-2.735596&sspn=1.557495,5.625&ie=UTF8&ll=52.288323,-2.427979&spn=3.084592,11.25&z=7

Oh and I am looking at this as a fellow trailer tower who likes to trundle along getting away from the rat-race and speeders

[megren0608]

Hi, im from Ipswich, my route would be A14, M6, M42, M5, M50 A40, A449 down to Newport and then pick up the M4. After coming off the M50, its a nice scenic drive to Newport. Plus by going this way, you will miss the Severn Bridge toll, which is expensive. £17.20 for a small lorry, not sure what a car and trailer is??

[in-a-tent]

It's 5.40 for a car if gavin and stacey is anything to go by

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[pitkin2020]

It's 5.40 for a car if gavin and stacey is anything to go by

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Close, 5.70 for a car no extra charge for a trailer/caravan.

[Admin]

It's 5.40 for a car if gavin and stacey is anything to go by

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For some reasong that really made me laugh..

[CrazyCamper]

Only slightly off-topic - but I've always found it amusing that with either bridge "A toll is taken as the traveller crosses from England to Wales, the return journey is not tolled" quoted from the bridge's website..... why I wonder?

I'm English, but lived in Wales for 6 years and love the place... and always gave the above a thought despite not using the crossings much in my travels as I routed as I described in my previous post...

[MrsPitStop]

Only slightly off-topic - but I've always found it amusing that with either bridge "A toll is taken as the traveller crosses from England to Wales, the return journey is not tolled" quoted from the bridge's website..... why I wonder?

I'm English, but lived in Wales for 6 years and love the place... and always gave the above a thought despite not using the crossings much in my travels as I routed as I described in my previous post...

Its because they dont want to let the English in

[jasoharp]

well...thank you to all so far, a very valued response!

It looks like i should be boing via my roots (Brum) but Google is suggesting the journey is shorter but will take longer....i wonder which route Gavin & Stacey took?!?!?

jasoharp

[Curlyminx]

We go to Wales from Southampton quite often, the only time we go via Birmingham is if we are going to North Wales, the traffic around Birmingham can be really bad anywhere near rush hour.

The M4 route is usually quite quick, we've seldom had problems. If you go this way you will hit the slower roads in Wales quicker, but they are a much prettier place to spend time in than the motorways around Brum

Good luck with your trip.

[Curlyminx]

well...thank you to all so far, a very valued response!

It looks like i should be boing via my roots (Brum) but Google is suggesting the journey is shorter but will take longer....i wonder which route Gavin & Stacey took?!?!?

jasoharp

They did the M4 route - is it sad that I can recognise the motorways they filmed on? Don't answer that! ;-P

[Leedalton]

Hi,

A14, M6, M42, M5, M50, A49, M4 is the quickest route. The A49 down passed Monmouth is nice too.
I have a couple of clients down that way, and have always gone that way. 6 Hours should see it nicely.
Thats the way the trucks tend to go as well, which is normally a good indication of the quickest route.

Enjoy!

Lee