After months of talking about it, planning it, and occasionally questioning whether it was sensible at all, we finally headed south from Derby in my beloved Porsche 911 for a 10 day road trip through France.
i’ll make absolutely no excuses for the amount of photographs of “GRR”, my pet name for the 911 over the coming travel diary. I’ve wanted one since i was knee high to a grasshopper, i’ve dreamt about doing a road trip in a Porsche 911; and i still have to pinch myself (when not staring at it in the garage) that i actually own one.
On 9th May 2024, we left Derby and headed south, bound for the French Riviera, driving our 2005 Porsche 911 Carrera all the way to Saint-Raphaël. Ten days later, on 19th May, we rolled back onto the drive having covered 2,450 miles, averaged 29.1 mpg, and spent what felt like an unreasonable amount of money on fuel — France, we’re looking at you.
This wasn’t a “tick-box” road trip. There was no rush to collect destinations or squeeze in everything possible. Instead, this was about the drive itself, the roads, the places in between, and giving ourselves permission to slow down when it felt right.
The Rough Plan (That Mostly Held Together)
The outward journey broke the miles into something a little more civilised, with an overnight stop at one of our favourite boutique B&Bs, Le Belvédère des Remparts in Langres, followed by another night in Aix-en-Provence before pushing on to the coast.
Once settled in Saint-Raphaël, the days became a mix of driving and drifting. Classic French country roads, strong coffee, long lunches, and that particular Riviera pace where nobody seems especially bothered about the time.
Highlights included:
-
Driving the Route Napoléon, a road that feels purpose-built for a car like the 911
-
A full day run up to the Gorges du Verdon, which somehow exceeded expectations
-
Taking in vintage motorsport at the Classic Monaco Grand Prix
-
Time spent doing very little in Nice, Fresjus and Saint-Raphaël, which turned out to be just as important
And then, on the way home, a night in Beaune for the best Beef Bourguignon in France to break the return journey. Oh! We also bumped into an iconic 1980s pop star at a French service station. One of those moments you couldn’t plan if you tried.
What This Series Covers
This collection of posts documents the trip as it unfolded, day by day where it makes sense, and by experience where that tells the story better.
Across the series I’ll be covering:
-
The drive from the UK to the South of France
-
Life on the Riviera
-
Mountain roads and long-distance driving
-
Monaco Classic Grand Prix
-
Provence, Verdon and the roads in between
-
The return journey north
As with most posts on Blogging The Road, this isn’t intended to be a guidebook. It’s a record of how the trip felt, what worked, what didn’t, and the moments that stuck with us long after the engine cooled but if you find it useful or interesting then you’ll get a big thumbs up from me.
If you’ve enjoyed following this trip, you can also find more photos, snippets and in-between moments from the journey over on the Blogging The Road social media pages. They’re a place for the parts that don’t always make it into a full post — the small details, passing thoughts and occasional detours that sit alongside the longer stories here.
Feel free to drop by, follow along, or join the conversation if you’ve travelled similar roads yourself. Road trips have a habit of meaning different things to different people, and it’s always good to hear other perspectives.
Florida Theme Parks & Beyond: Our Orlando & Florida Holiday
Derby to France by Eurotunnel, Circuit de Gueux & Langres