Driving in France is a dream...

We loved our driving holiday in the Peugeot 208, starting in Milan and finishing at Paris CDG Airport.

The car was great - no issues. It was just the right size for the two of us.

Pick up from Milan Linate Airport was a piece of cake once we worked out where our transfer to the car was waiting for us (on the top floor of the airport - near arrivals). There were lots of petrol stations around the area, including on the way back into Milan - no need to panic about that.

Drop off at Paris CDG Airport was also easy with the address you gave - up until the last hundred metres or so when you are almost there. You come to a choice of taking a tunnel or going up and over. The GPS did not help here. Go up and over - don't go under. 

Some tips from our experience in driving around Italy in particular:

-  Do your navigational homework before you go and while you are travelling. The GPS does not always make the choice you want, so you need to take charge.

-  Many towns and cities limit traffic into the centres - called ZTLs (to keep pollution levels down, but in reality it is an easy way to raise revenue). They are not always clearly marked (a small red edged white circle on a wall which is parking-sign sized with a bunch of confusing information underneath – and very easy to miss) and the GPS is unable to identify these zones. Keep your car parking garage receipts and hotel records just in case you receive a fine in the mail … nothing has been received yet so let’s hope the sending of any fines doesn’t include posting to New Zealand!

Overall, all the people we interacted with were really helpful. We will definitely do this again (in France probably – we preferred their driving).

Joanna - 2019