Make sure you know the speed limits in France, you can be fined or have your vehicle confiscated for breaking the rules. What is the speed limit in France: The normal speed limit on French motorways is 130 km/hr (just over 80 mph) – or 110 km/hr in rain – 50 km per hour in [...]
Foreigners driving in France – whether its their own car or a hire car from France need to know the rules of what documentation and items to carry in the car that are mandatory. Not having the correct documentation or items in the car can mean you are subject to fines if stopped by the [...]
This famous feature of French driving protocol is still causing confusion today even though it isn’t as common as it was. Basically when you are driving in France, look out for a sign with a black cross in a white triangle with a red outline – traffic from the right entering into your road doesn’t [...]
As in most countries, fuel prices in motorway service areas tend to be more expensive than in your average supermarket or normal fuel garage. Many supermarkets have fuel pumps on site, manned at certain times during the day – these times will differ from supermarket to supermarket and area to area, often closing for [...]
French motorways (autoroutes) are defined by numbers preceded by the letter A (for Autoroute). There are a few free motorways in France, and some long-distance dual carriageways are up to motorway standard. It is actually possible to drive right through France avoiding all tolls – though this is not always the best nor the [...]
If you think you won’t come across speed cameras in France – think again! There are well over two thousand stationary speed cameras on France’s roads and motorways – not a lot by some country’s standards but new cameras are being set up all the time. Your map book may be out of date and [...]
If you’re driving in France or going to be driving in France make sure you know what to do in the event of a car accident or breakdown. Breakdown cover for driving in France: Breakdown cover for your vehicle if you take it from the country of origin to France is highly recommended. It should [...]
Driving in France is often an entertaining event for us. Driving in my part of France is generally a pleasure after London, there’s hardly ever a traffic jam and we can drive for miles without even seeing another vehicle. However, there is one very strange aspect of driving in France that still astounds me – as soon as a Frenchman sees [...]
Drink Driving laws in France – know them and don’t break them to avoid fines or worse. France is the number one tourist destination in the world – millions visit every year to take a break in its beautiful cities or in the countryside. Many visitors will go by car or hire a car on [...]
In an emergency, these are the telephone numbers to use in France – be prepared to indicate exactly where you are located, and the circumstances of the incident. 112 – The Emergency SOS help number in Europe This is the standard European emergency number, you can call this number from anywhere in the European Union [...]
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Well, it is with a heavy heart that I must tell you that the sheep across the road has gone to the great pasture in the sky. When I bought my house nine years ago it came with a sheep! The lady who owned the house before me had let the man across the road [...]
The allure of the good life in France and the charms of the beautiful town of Beziers ensnared British expat Mark Binmore who runs the highly successful Maison de l’Orb, a beautiful B&B. Mark told us that he lived in London since the early 1990s, worked as a pub landlord for several breweries, is the [...]
Expats in France Donna and Dave Faulkner fell in love with Deux-Sevres in the Poitou-Charentes region when they visited friends who lived there. When Dave was unexpectedly offered a job – they said goodbye to Britain and jumped head first into life in France in their new home which needed a bit of renovation as [...]
British expat Sue Aitken lives in south west France and runs Blackhen Education – a business that she set up after planning to move to Spain to be a teacher. She and her partner travelled through France on their way to jobs and a life in Spain but they fell in love with [...]
How two Brits met and changed their lives with a move to France… Chris was a veteran of 30 years in the Metropolitan police, running his own outdoor activity business specializing in mountain biking, walking and climbing, father to three grown-up children and mentor to many more. Charlotte was a classic single “Social Butterfly”, [...]
I was recently asked to write about expats in France, people who leave their homes in all areas of the world to go to France to live. I thought back over the years about the many expats I’ve met, interviewed (I am a journalist not just a crazy person going round firing questions at [...]
It’s good to know some things stay the same When my mother bought her holiday house in northern France 35 years ago, I had no idea how large a part this lovely country was going to play in my life. I was eleven at the time, and simply enjoyed the trips across the Channel [...]
As you might know by now, I cannot resist a French flea market and the one I went to on Sunday on my French countryside jaunt was particularly small and not great but on the last stall in the road there was a cage with a cockerel. The sign said “Cockerel Nagasaki €5.00”. The [...]
