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In these post-Brexit times, are there any restrictions/queues for UK cars criss-crossing borders between EU countries, unlike the unhindered pre-Brexit times? I'm shortly doing a driving holiday which will involve France as my point of entry to the EU (where I would expect a degree of queueing/interrogation/etc... now that we're non-EU), and I'd then like to visit Belgium, Luxembourg and possibly Germany - can I expect similar border hold-up's at each subsequent exit/entry?
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French passport control are at Dover, if you are going by boat. Leaving Dunkirk or Calais, you might see some "douaniers" standing at the side of the exit roads.
Internally in the EU no checks, but have ALL your documentation to hand and register for the clean air zones where you will be passing. Lille a critair certificate, Brussels even if going round the ring road. and germany get the ULEZ pass too. Book/apply for all the above in advance..
At the end of may we did Dover calais bruges, Beernem, zero problems.
Last week Dover dunkirk lille-mons dinant- Aachen return via Brussels ring bruges and back home.
Animal health check at Dover. again zero problems.
Edited by _ORB_ on 25/08/2022 at 12:38
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Drove into Switzerland from France this week so my daughter could get a stamp in her passport. Checkpoints were unmanned, so couldn't even ask for one!
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In these post-Brexit times, are there any restrictions/queues for UK cars criss-crossing borders between EU countries, unlike the unhindered pre-Brexit times? I'm shortly doing a driving holiday which will involve France as my point of entry to the EU (where I would expect a degree of queueing/interrogation/etc... now that we're non-EU), and I'd then like to visit Belgium, Luxembourg and possibly Germany - can I expect similar border hold-up's at each subsequent exit/entry?
If you want, I have suggesttions for decent hotels, Beernem, near Bruges, and some nice restaurants, Gendron?celles, south of Dinant, walking, kayaking and Raeren just south of aachen but in belgium (get the bus into Aachen from outside the hotel) save Aachen parking charges, unless you do the park and ride..
Edited by _ORB_ on 25/08/2022 at 12:43
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Once into France you enter the Schengen area and can
move between EU states with no further checks. You may not even be aware you have crossed borders.
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Which is just as well if you visit Baarle!
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Thanks everyone for the rapid answers, it's much appreciated. So what I've learned is that once I'm through French passport control (and customs?) in Dover, then I'm all set to drive anywhere in the Schengen zone, which will certainly cover me for criss-crossing between France/Belgium/Luxembourg/Germany without any further checks.
Thanks too for all the other information; I have a yellow Class 2 Crit'Air sticker for France (obtained just prior to our planned trip in May which was postponed due to family illness). Currently, the major cities in our itinerary are Ghent and Metz, passing through Luxembourg city en route and with a potential diversion into Germany. I've registered my car for entry into the Ghent LEZ, but haven't done anything yet about Luxembourg City, though my understanding is this doesn't have a LEZ.
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Unless you are going to ghent, (and use the park and ride), the route calais dunkirk lille mons and east (if no need to go into brussels) is a lot quieter than dunkirk ostend brussels and via brussels ring and east.
Edited by _ORB_ on 25/08/2022 at 16:39
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Most Schengen borders are little different to the border between England and Scotland or between NI and the Republic. Certainly crossing from France into Germany round Vogelgrun or to Spain at Cebere/Port Bou was like that. Just a sign noting speed limits. Same on the Autoroute France>Belgium.
Crossing from Spain back to France at La Junquera/Le Perthus there was some official activity but seemed to be customs checking lorries rather than people.
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Certainly, many of the border post have been re-purposed, as freight parks and some have other businesses implanted into them. As bromptonaut says nothing to stop anyone going anywhere now..
The only activity i have had was to check if anyone hiding in the boot coming back to the UK, and that rarely.
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The only activity i have had was to check if anyone hiding in the boot coming back to the UK, and that rarely.
The only thing hiding in my boot will be several cases of "grape juice". I guess I should bone up on what we can bring back. Would 8 cases between the two of us be acceptable to UK Customs?
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The limit is 2 cases and a bottle per person so you would be over the limit and have to pay duty on all 8 cases.
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The limit is 2 cases and a bottle per person so you would be over the limit and have to pay duty on all 8 cases.
Ah, I was thinking 6 bottles to a case, as packaged/sold by my vineyard of choice. So the allowance being 18 litres pp (so 36 litres between us), that's 51.42 bottles, so 8 vineyard cases plus three more bottles. Unless my arithmetic has let me down.
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The limit is 2 cases and a bottle per person so you would be over the limit and have to pay duty on all 8 cases.
Ah, I was thinking 6 bottles to a case, as packaged/sold by my vineyard of choice. So the allowance being 18 litres pp (so 36 litres between us), that's 51.42 bottles, so 8 vineyard cases plus three more bottles. Unless my arithmetic has let me down.
Plus 4 litres of spirits 4 for £40 on dfds.
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For me a case is always 12 bottles and a half case 6. I was assuming that a bottle was 0.7 l but it seems the standard now is 0.75l, so the 18 l limit is 24 bottles.
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For me a case is always 12 bottles and a half case 6. I was assuming that a bottle was 0.7 l but it seems the standard now is 0.75l, so the 18 l limit is 24 bottles.
Well, I've learned something new again. Without looking at labels too closely, I'd always assumed 70cl was the standard wine bottle size, though now I come to think of it, I've always known that a magnum is 1.5l so working backwards that suggests a single bottle couldn't be 70cl. Doh! In my wafer-thin defence, I've always noticed spirit bottles here in the UK (and Europe) are 70cl although (yet another fact I didn't know) in the US and most of the rest of the world, the standard spirit bottle is 75cl.
Anyway, the sum of all this is that my wife and I can bring back 48 bottles @ 75cl = 36 litres between us, without getting incarcerated by UK customs.
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Being locked up is not the danger - the penalty would be the duty on all 48 bottles of "duty free".
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Being locked up is not the danger - the penalty would be the duty on all 48 bottles of "duty free".
Maybe being locked up with the wine would be a preferable option ;-)
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The only activity i have had was to check if anyone hiding in the boot coming back to the UK, and that rarely.
That's usually maritime security though I guess border force have an interest too.
Last time we crossed from Portsmouth and the UK people checked before boarding. French security checked as at Calais.
Both insisted on getting in the caravan and checking the washroom. The French looked under the bed, the English opened the food cupboard and asked if we'd packed it ourselves.
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Unless you are going to ghent, (and use the park and ride), the route calais dunkirk lille mons and east (if no need to go into brussels) is a lot quieter than dunkirk ostend brussels and via brussels ring and east.
Yes - we have 2 nights in Ghent, at the quaint-looking "1898 The Post". Hotel parking pre-reserved too.
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We usually stay at Ten Lande in Beernem nowadays, eat at
Zotte Mutse or the Boat house, both very good. Or on the way into Bruges, D'Hoeve.
Down below Dinant if not too far off your route, Auberge de la lesse. 600 gram chateaubriand currently 40 euros with lots of belgian fries and salad. plenty of parking and if you stay 3 nights off season only pay for 2,
Edited by _ORB_ on 25/08/2022 at 17:40
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We usually stay at Ten Lande in Beernem nowadays, eat at
Zotte Mutse or the Boat house, both very good. Or on the way into Bruges, D'Hoeve.
Down below Dinant if not too far off your route, Auberge de la lesse. 600 gram chateaubriand currently 40 euros with lots of belgian fries and salad. plenty of parking and if you stay 3 nights off season only pay for 2,
Thanks _ORB_, this could well be our next exploration.
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Should not be any issue as long you have in the car. Driving Licence, Insurance Certificate valid for EU countries. Most are but worth checking. Registration Document V5C or if a hire car a form V103.
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Enjoy your trip. We love Ghent but make sure you have an up-to-date sat-nav!
Ours kept trying to take us through the newly pedestrianised routes and we did inadvertently drive through a prohibited road.
Fortunately we never heard from the city authorities with a penalty charge notice.
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