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In 1965 ten years before we joined the EU my Mum Dad and my now husband of 47 years Tony were touring Europe. We met a German couple in an hotel in Sportorno Italy that was full of Italian families other than us and the Germans. A very tenuous friendship was struck up with the German couple bearing in mind the era. This developed to a real friendship. We visited San Remo together and on to Monaco where my Dad a soldier in WWll had a wobble and wanted to push Ado yes Ado who was a bomber pilot over the cliff at the church where Prince Rainier and Grace Kelly were married. We toured the South of France and Southern Italy together and the unlikely friendship developed. On a beautiful day at the beach Ado who was quite large got into breathing difficulties swimming out to the sun bathing raft. Dad sat and watched from the beach. We all looked at him. All the horrors of the past were swept aside and Dad dived into the water swam to Ado and dragged the much heavier man onto the raft. They stayed there for a long while talking. A very long friendship was forged to their deaths. After the episode on the beach we visited many more places together during the three week holiday. On the return from one visit to Nice all of us in Ado s Opal car we were flagged down on our return by the Italian motorbike police. He had crossed a white line on a hill on the coastal road. We were all arrested and escorted to the nearest town. We were taken to a dingy police station Dad and Ado were placed in a cell. We Ado s wife Helen Mum Jean me and Tony sat outside the cell. Ado must pay 5000 lira He said No. We were there for five hours and Ado would not move. Dad had a tattoo on his left arm a cross with Mam written across it. The Italian chief of police was very taken with it and the fact we were travelling with a German couple confused him. He didn't t understand it wasn't a tattoo from a WWll camp. Ado and Dad played on this. He, Ado promised to pay the fine when leaving Italy. Pre Common Market. They let us go with hand shakes and back slapping and a promise that Ado would pay on the way home to Germany. We left the Police Station and travelled back along the Mediterranean road to Sportorno and carried on with our road trip of Europe with the unlikely alliance of a British Tommy and a German Bomber pilot. We had many many European Road trips before and since then but the Road Trip of 1965 was one of the funniest happiest and eventful Road Trips and Ado never did pay the 5000 lira at the border.

My most memorable, best/worst road trip was when we were in Argentina. We wanted to go round the "Siete Lagos" [seven lakes] route from San Carlos de Bariloche in the Patagonian Andes.
My son was driving and by chance, we went clockwise - it was against the sun. you will see why it was a good thing!
The road was appalling,very narrow,sometimes non-existent o on the sides of precipitous mountains, unable to see round corners should a bus or lorry come along - believe me, the road was barely wide enough for a small car, being driven on the right too!
It was fabulous, but i spent a great deal of the journey in tears, peering through my fingers, glued to my seat in terror, with my son driving extremely well, but distressed by my fear, reassuring me constantly, "Don't worry Mum. It will be alright!" IT was...
We then met again in South Island, New Zealand, and were sent on the Crown Road from Wanaka to Queenstown. Much the same thing, we even met a school bus on the way and had to reverse to let it past. My cousin was almost speechless with admiration, not realising the the B&B owners in Wanaka had sent those "idiot Brits" on the route...
I don't do any mountain roads like that now if i can possibly avoid them.

Not the best, but certainly the most memorable, was a trip to Wales with my boyfriend. We planned to sleep in the back of my old estate car (money was tight!), but we broke down and ended up on the back of a tow truck on day one :-D

My best road trip was driving along the Cornwall coast with my husband in an old VW bus. We would stop along the way and buy fresh food from the farms we passed then stopped at a campsite for the night to cook. Loved stopping by the coast and visiting the Beach as well.

When my son and his girlfriend emigrated to Canada ( she's Canadian) and had their first baby, after I'd saved up the fare , it took a year!, I went out to visit. They Live in Alberta, so I flew into Edmonton and they drove to collect me. We drove up through the Rockies and I was , of course , completely gobsmacked! I'm from Scotland and we have mountains but I couldn't get over the sheer size of these. It took us 2 days to get home, taking the tourist route, Imust have looked like a wee kid, staring at everything! Including, of course, my lovely new Grandson. Everything was just so different from home, We saw moose, bears, wolves ( from a long distance! )We even saw the Northern Lights. I couldn't take enough pics , to bore folk with when I got home, as you do! Not forgetting the video camera. I've been back since but nothing will ever compare to that first time. PS the journey back was much less interesting, I got a prop plane from the very small local aiport to Edmonton! What a come down. What memories

For my 40th birthday I hired a car and drove around New England staying in small hotels off the tourist trail. Absolutely loved it.

In Portugal - we drove for 2 hours each way to see the beautiful cliffs in the Algarve, music blasting, snacks galore and the windows rolled down (the weather was beautiful). The roads were quiet and we sailed through our journey! The landscape on the way was also beautiful.

drive from las vegas to south rim grand canyon - loved it - american rock on the radio, lots of stops in cute towns and 10 of my closest family in a minibus! Fun times and a fab reward at the end of it with the most spectacular sight i have ever seen!

My best road trip was South Dakota/Colorado/Wyoming in USA. Even though it took quite a long time to get anywhere, surrounding areas were breath taking especially in Autumn. We visited Black Hills, Mount Rushmore, Yellowstone Park, Grand Teton, Royal Gorge. Denver and spotted the Devils Tower on the way to Yellowstone Park. We saw a lot of wild animals and people were friendly. It was my best ever USA trip.

my childhood trips to Devon - post car seat rules- we'd set off at 5 - my sister asleep across the back seat and me asleep in the hatchback of the escort estate surrounded by luggage and groceries

When we lived in America, I ( taking my two kids with me)went on a search for Patrick Swayze's ranch ( Rancho Bizzaro) as I had a crush on him at the time. This involved driving from Phoenix in Arizona to LA where I met up with the secretary of his fan club who then came with us to show me where his ranch was. We could peep in the back entrance, which was on a housing estate, but he wasn't there. We later stayed in a very seedy area on the way back in a motel with bullet holes in the door!!! I was lucky enough to meet him several times though during my stay and have some good photos of the occasions. He was always polite and caring towards his fans. Sadly missed.

Our first convertible. What a babe magnet, except he was with me - his wife.

All MGB's flash each other - how cool.

The day was lovely and warm(ish) so off came the hood, took ages as it was a manual exercise. I donned my scarf Audrey Hepburn style. Oh the glamour of it all. An MGB flashed us I was so excited I whipped off and waved my lovely chiffon scarf, the wind caught it and whoosh it was gone.

Open topped cars are Windy and cold and I looked like Worzell Gummage (granny's will remember him). So up went the hood after much moaning. A sports car is just something you have to do when your young. Never again.

I think the best road trip I have ever had the fortune to take was with my father, when I was about 12. We had just left Lagos (Nigeria) after my mother had died, and as my new boarding school would not accept me for 2 months, we took off round Europe. This was in 1972-ish and my father asked me where I would like to go en route to Istanbul, where his next contract lay. Given the map, it became my job to work out a route that took us via Sweden, where we had very dear friends. We stayed in Stockholm for about a week, recharging our batteries, then off we set for Istanbul...
In Germany we were arrested as we had eaten in the hotel restaurant, thinking that they would merely add the cost to the bill; they demanded immediate payment in Deutsche Marks,, about the only currency we didn't have, having crossed the border after all the banks shut! We offered Sterling, Franks, Guiders, Dollars; no good, off to the copshop went my father. Luckily the sargeant there was able to change some money and he was released. We continued through Switzerland, which was breathtakingly beautiful, Yugoslavia (as it then was) and wound up in Bulgaria. At the time, this was NOT a place to hang about, so we were speeding along the awful roads as best we could, when a Volkswagen Beetle overtook us...we were in a Porsche!!Of course, it was the police, demanding a fine for speeding and we didn't have any local currency - seems to be becoming a theme here - bu the cop just opened his wallet, which was about three inches thick with every currency you could imagine! We paid the fine in something or another and continued to Turkey, where in Edirne we stayed at a real Kervansary (a place for camel trains and other travelers to stop and about 700 years old. It was magnificent. Then on to Istanbul, my favourite place of all time. Back in the early 70's it was a ramshackle place with old American cars serving as communal taxis, but totally breathtaking. A journey I shall never forget, not least because I was trusted at age 12 to tell my father which road to take and where to stop at night. I also had to act as translator!

My memorable road trip happened 44 years ago as an enthusiastic 20 year old on my way to 1st attempt driving test in Ruislip. I had taken all of my driving lessons there and by now was familiar with the road system there. However my route to the test centre was new to me and coupled with nervous anticipation, following road directions and listening to last minute hints and tips from my driving instructor next to me , my brain went into processing overdrive. My instructor was by now looking down at his clipboard whilst I was following the route. Suddenly I heard a shout from him, “What the bloody hell are you doing?” I froze as I realised I had taken the wrong side of a Men at Work filter lane and was making my way doggedly and I have to say carefully amongst the bemused workers. He grabbed the wheel and steered us out through a gap in the cones onto the right carriageway. The incident seemed to dispel all my nervousness as I went on to pass my test an hour later. So grateful to my Instructor.... There was no stopping me now!! - I week later I'd bought my 1st car with my savings of £200 - an ancient Beetle.....

It was many years ago but I remember a wonderful drive from France to the Swiss Alps, stopping at Lucerne. Unbelievable scenery, forever painted on my mind

Three generations. Two cars. Driving in convoy from Calais to Caen. Plan was to visit the Cite d'Europe to collect copious quantities of wine for our family hols.

But the car park barrier was 2 metres high... and with cases on top... our car was much taller than that.

Ripped the car roof right off didn't it ?? Nobody hurt... and we have never, ever laughed so much in our lives.

We always love our road trips to Centre Parcs, we always stop at an English Heritage location to stretch our legs and enjoy some food! We saw the sunset at stonehenge once, it was so spectacular!

It was the summer of 1990..myself, daughter (17) and son (13).We were heading for Puy St Vincent in the French Alps. Friends had kindly offered us the use of their apartment for a few weeks. We'd stayed there the previous summer, loved the place, made good friends and were raring to go. Then, on the early morning ferry from Dover to Calais, the captain announced that French farmers and lorry drivers had blocked the exit from the port...Can't recall what they were striking about this time He then informed us how to escape via the industrial estate, but warned that we wouldn't get very far if driving in France. So, quick consultation of the map and off we set..into Belgium, through Germany and on into Switzerland....eventually creeping back into France, where we made our way via some very minor roads, some barely more than farm tracks..arriving eventually at our destination, which was eerily quiet. The next morning we headed down to the boulangerie for our breakfast croissants and were greeted with looks of amazement from Monsieur and Madame, who demanded to know how we had got there. After listening to our account, punctuated by many "Ooh la las" from Madame, Monsieur exclaimed, "Un veritable autour de France!" ...and presented us with our croissants on the house

My best road trip was driving my 1958 registered A35 around the Snowdonia National Park in the 1970's. The car really struggled to get up the steeper hills but we had great fun. Happy days.

It was 1973 and we were waiting for our long awaited delivery of a new Land Rover. As soon as it arrived we were off with our 6 year-old son to visit Scotland for the first time ever. We headed up the west side visiting the most beautiful places and continued further on north. At Loch Carron we had the chance to meet up with some very dear friends, who had moved from Devon and whom we hadn't seen for some years and the stunning location they lived in. Continuing on back down the eastern side we ended up one dark, miserably rainy night in Dundee and could not find anywhere for the night except a dreary guesthouse where the curtain pole fell down when we tried to draw the curtains, the bed literally collapsed under us and a resident snorted like a pig the next morning at breakfast! All in all a lovely road trip introduction to a wonderful land but stays in the mind for the Dundee experience alone!

In 2012 we drove with two old friends from Boston to Orlamdo down the east coast of America. It took two weeks and we had a ball with so much laughter and fun each day. We saw sights to remember and visited some wonderful places, it's a trip which gave us all such memories.

Hi all,

I am not a driver but the ultimate hell on earth road-trip brings back memories of our family fly drive holiday to the US of A.. The girls were about 14 and 16 then and my older daughter had been feeling car sick, so she had swapped into the front passenger seat. This wasn't an issue until we drove through Death Valley. My husband and older daughter seemed quite contented sitting in the front whilst me and our younger girl were in agony dehydrating in the back. I had to shroud us in white towels as we were so uncomfortable and even through the window good some terrible soreness from sunburn.

So by the end of the day we were all fairly frazzled and I had a little heated debate with my husband.. Is final comment was, "well we were fine in the front with the air conditioning on through Death Valley". I won't tell you how I responded!!

Val

We had an unforgettable road trip taking our three children aged 2, 4 and 5 to Spain on a double decker bus. Started off well when our 2 year old got locked in the bus toilet at the departure point and the door had to be taken off to rescue him (and for some reason couldn't go back on, so we were popular). We had two minor crashes on the way out, and arrived hideously behind schedule. So we were all congratulating ourselves on having a much better journey home, when we broke down on the motorway back in England. We were in the middle of a heatwave (remember them?), the air con had failed and we were all hot, bothered and grouchy after about an hour of it. Then our 2 year old was spectacularly sick all over his dad, who passed him straight over to me so he could clean up. On the way across the aisle, dear son summoned up another supply of vomit to project straight over me. We (and every other passenger) had to endure another hour in those conditions combined with the heady smell of vomit throughout the bus. I'm surprised we weren't lynched.

A couple come to mind, both in USA, our plane couldn't land in San Francisco because of fog. they took us all the way to LA then offered a 6 hour overnight bus ride to SF! As we had been travelling for hours from UK and were exhausted, I refused and asked for a hotel room which we got. They told us to get to the airport for 6am the next morning with no guarantee of a flight so we decided to hire a car and drive. It was a great road trip up the Pacific coast highway, the airline wouldn't pay the car hire bill but it was well worth the money.

The other was in Florida, before Sat Nav, and I had carefully printed out driving instructions for my husband to do the navigating ( he hates driving in USA) I like driving there. He did reasonably well for a while then got so mixed up and we ended up shouting at each other and he flung the maps into the back seat! We did get there eventually , how I don't know!

My daughter had just graduated high school, 18 years old. We took a 5,000 mile trip from Vancouver Island all the way down the west coast of the USA to the Mexican border, mostly on the awesomely scenic Pacific Coast Highway. I remember the frustration of trying to build a campfire in the damp BC forests, and getting so good at putting up our tent we could do it in a minute or less. The thrill of driving on the right on a California freeway with seven lanes n each direction! Roller Coaster rides where she strictly instructed me NOT to scream, and then proceeded to yell herself hoarse! Riding every Disneyland ride including "it's a small world" at least three times. Feeding dolphins at Sea World, riding the trollies in San Francisco. We fought like crazy, but it was the best best holiday I have ever had!