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Things to consider;-

1. Length of holiday - driving down will be 2 nights each way - so if holiday is less than 2+ weeks - fly
2. Where to fly to - Bergamo, Malpensa, Linate or Turin for Bellagio on Como
3. Car hire costs [including extras]
4. Number of passengers [seriously affects flight costs, less so driving]
5. Use of ferries near Carlisle - as already mentiond, cost includes an overnight berth and driving distance from port to Bellagio [Assuming its the one on Lake Como] isn't much difference as that from Calais
6. You can 'blast down' to Bellagio non-stop, but you'd need at least 2 drivers and a long holiday to recover - better to plan on a couple of nights [say 1 on the boat and one at Colmar]
7. Type of accommodation - we use Novotel/Mecure/Ibis which costs about £100 a night [for a couple] plus evening meal, but you can do it in Formula1 'hotels' for a lot less [Look at the Accor website]
8. Route - Down through Belguim, Luxemburg, Fance and Switzerand isprobably favourite - cheap petrol in Luxemburg and Switzerland

If you can 'fill out' those points, we can probably give advice on how to get there and where to stay

Try a travel agency

You could add another cistern/tank to the system to give you a bigger 'buffer' whan the pressure drops - this could be the cheapest option. In UK prices range from about £400, but I know my ½ûÂþÌìÌà neighbour uses an industrial one he got from a farm

Train Travel If you plan things properly, you can spend many of your nights travelling on sleeper trains.  This has the advantage of giving you more days to 'sightsee' and the costs are offset by the savings in hotels/car hire/petrol/tolls etc etc I once [using a Cooks European Timetable' (see  for an example)] planned a 4 week Eupean Tour for an Aussise friend than only required staying in hotels if you wanted more than 1 day in any city - which obviously you will ned to do

My recommended route [minimal toll charges] to Italy is as follows;-  [Toll free as far as Switzerland]

1. Calais/Dunkirk to Lillle and on into Belgium  [Unless you are not doing a 'short crossing' to France]
2. Through Belguim to Luxembourg - passing by Mons and Namur
3. Fill up with fuel at services in Luxembourg [cheapest on this route]
4. Down through France past Metz and Nancy to Colmar [or Mulhouse, but I think the road to Colmar is slightly easier]
5. Into Germany and take the autobahn toward Basle
6. Turn off before Basle and take the dual carriage way past Lorrach and into Switzerland [my 'Basle ByePass']
7. Then on Swiss motorway [Vignette needed] past Lucerne and on to the Gotthard Tunnel
8. Through the Tunnel [or over the pass, which I recommend] and on into Italy
9. Then autostrada to Rome/Viterbo

This route is dual carriageway/motorway all the way except for Nancy to Colmar or MulhouseAccommodation is expensive in Switzerland - we tend to avoid 'overnights' there Enjoy..........

" fill up in Lux?"I always do - but mine's a petrol engined car. 

Well ............................."From what I can see the mileage is about the same, and therefore the same diesel cost, its only the extra time going via Belgium/Lux time that becomes the issue. "Drive time is very similar - distance are about the same and the route through Belgium/Luxembourg is all mortorway, so speeds are similar to french motorwaysYou may even save on fuelprices - see  to sort out which country is best to fill up in.

Well - did the 'motorway avoiding route'to try it out.  It consist of getting on 'Road 9' once you enter Switzerland from France near Pontarlier.It was an easyish drive, and the only minor difficulties were in negotiating Lausanne [just follow signs for Montreux etc]  Timewise it adds between 1 and 2 hours to the jouney.  Distance wise there is not much in it.We returned via the motorway - I prefer the quicker route, but if they did hike up the cost of the Vignette, I'd go non-motorway again

"How did your last trip go? If I recall correctly you were planning a trip for earlier this year? Just got back from first trip down to Italy with our dog.  Will write about it soon [I hope]

I've stayed at Hostellerie Groff Aux Deux Clefs in Beisheim - worth looking at.  Out of Colmar, but easy to get to the Autobahn to Basel [Use the 'Basel Bypass' via Lorach to avoid Basel]