Follow our 18 day journey across 3 countries: Italy, France and Spain (4 including Monaco). Also along for the ride were my parents which made this an extra fun time. If you’ve ever thought about taking a road trip around southern Europe, here’s the ultimate guide to get you started.
Tip #1: Each day below contains links to our posts which cover each location in much more detail.
Tip #2: We had two cars and communicated by walkie talkies. This saved on purchasing 3 different SIM cards for each country we visited.
Tip #3: Read more about car leasing. If you decide to go longer than 17 days it will probably save you money compared to a regular car rental. Let’s go!
Note: tolls & fuel have been converted from EUR to AUD.
Day 1 - Italy
Pickup car in Rome drive to Praiano
Accommodation: Hotel Margherita, Praiano (check prices in area...)
Tolls: $22.90
Fuel: $73
Our car collection from Citroen was smooth and easy. We really enjoyed our trip to Praiano except when we got to Positano. You can read all about that trip here.
We found a wonderful place to stay, high up on the hill and settled in for a few days. To finish up we enjoyed a dinner overlooking the ocean at a cliff-side restaurant that sported a small kid’s playground.
Day 2 - Italy
Praiano
Accommodation: Hotel Margherita, Praiano (check prices in area...)
The car stayed in the garage and we took the bus to Positano today. Wow, what a hairy adventure. Check all the details here. Got our laundry done next door for €15, and spent the afternoon swimming in the hotel pool.
Day 3 - Italy
Praiano
Accommodation: Tramonto D’Oro, Praiano (check prices in area...)
We were going to drive to Amalfi, but ended up going by bus. Our plans to visit Capri were spoiled by bad sea weather. Enjoyed a lovely dinner and watched the sun go down from the top floor ofHotel Margherita.
Day 4 - Italy
Praiano to Pompeii to Matera
Accommodation: Hotel Sassi, Matera (check prices in area...)
Tolls: $2.80
Back on the road, we left Praiano and headed to Pompeii which was a bit of a let down for us. Afterwards we headed to Matera, which was an absolute surprise – stunning. We booked into a cave hotel, didn’t have anything on our Turkish ones, but was comfortable and large.
Day 5 - Italy
Matera to Termoli
Accommodation: Hotel Mistral, Termoli (check prices in area...)
Tolls: $17
Fuel: $86
Josh did a sunrise photography tour around Matera before we ate some breakfast and headed down the coast to Alberobello. This little town was mysterious and a must-see in Italy.
After Alberobello we visited the Molfetta Outlet before heading to Termoli.
We arrived late and simply bought ham and bread for sandwiches that night. It was nice to have plain food after rich Italian most nights and it was good to stay in and get a proper sleep.
Day 6 - Italy
Termoli to Perugia
Accommodation: Albergo Nyers, Perugia (check prices in area...)
Tolls: $21
Fuel: $121
The breakfast at our hotel was delicious. We didn’t stick around in Termoli, opting to head straight to Perugia. We were meant to meet my mum and dad for lunch, but couldn’t find them so headed straight to Perugia.
Perugia was just as surprising as Matera, a beautiful part of Italy that needs to be visited. We enjoyed a walk around the city and dinner in town.
Day 7 - Italy
Perugia to Florence
Accommodation: Villa San Michele, Fiesole Firenze (check prices in area...)
Our GPS directed us down some dangerously narrow roads to the wrong location, but we eventually made it to our hotel.
After we had checked in at the amazing Villa San Michele we took a taxi to Florence and had a walk around town vising the Duomo, Ponte Vecchio and riding the carousel.
As the sun went down we opted to return to Villa San Michele for one of the best meals of our life.
Following breakfast we went for a swim in the pool. The kids went to kids club while Josh and I enjoyed a leisurely lunch by the pool, did some writing and booked some flights.
The kids came back for a nap and play. We had organized a babysitter to watch the kids and headed back to Florence via the hotel shuttle for a double date with my parents.
After my Dad attempted a 1kg steak we headed to a gelati store taking another walk around the city.
Day 9 - France
Florence to Pisa to Nice, France
Accommodation: Little Palace, Nice (check prices in area...)
Tolls: $48
After our delicious breakfast, it was a sad farewell to Villa San Michele. Josh could not leave Italy without seeing the Leaning Tower of Pisa so we headed off early that morning for a quick stop at Pisa.
I found a great parking spot, Josh took a few happy snaps and we were back in our car on the way to Monte Carlo, Monaco.
This was another quick stop checking out the super impressive cars and gold star hotels before continuing onto Nice, France. Phew! 3 countries in one day.
In Nice we had a walk along the French Rivera, stopped for a terrible dinner with arrogant waiters and checked into our tiny out-of-the-way hotel.
Day 10 - France
Nice to Arles
Accommodation: Airbnb Apartment, Arles (check prices in area...)
Tolls: $30.20
Fuel: $91
Crepes for breakfast were better than dinner. And we checked out of Nice and headed to Cannes. Took some photos by the beach and then drove to Aix.
We had a great walk around Aix, stopped for a delicious burger lunch and drove onto Arles.
Our apartment was ready for us and was ultra-cute in a very French-loft-kind-of-way. Cooked our meal in our apartment and had a night in.
We met my parents and took a walk to the old city, visited the amphitheater, rode on the carousel and made it back home for an afternoon nap.
Lunch in the old city was not good and our Chinese takeaway was a bit average that evening.
Day 12 - France
Arles to Creissels
Accommodation: Hericlea Hotel Sport, Millau (check prices in area...)
Tolls: $7.80
Today we drove to Saint-Guithem-le-Desert. An adorable medieval style town, easy to walk around and enjoy. Decided to have dessert for lunch and had delicious crème brulee and profiteroles. I have to admit, the French know how to do desert.
Back on the road we made it to Millau and checked into our log cabin, while my parents chose a castle. We took a walk around Millau, ate dinner and came home.
Day 13 - France
Creissels to Toulouse
Accommodation: Airbnb Apartment, Toulouse (check prices in area...)
Tolls: $2
Fuel: $105
Today we decided on an impromptu visit to the French countryside and the Aven Armand Caves. The drive was beautiful and the caves fascinating.
We headed to Toulouse after the caves, checked into our apartment and bought some kebabs for dinner, while the kids slept through.
We took a walk around Toulouse today, found a playground and rode a carousel again. Had an afternoon nap before heading for dinner at the Hippopotamus, which was pretty good.
Day 15 - Spain
Toulouse to Pamplona, Spain
Accommodation: Hotel Avenida, Pamplona (check prices in area...)
Tolls: $39.30
Impound: $140
Early start this morning… didn’t happen. Walked out of our apartment towards our car and there was a market there. No car. The French police stole our car.
Finally after several hours we got on the road for a mad run to get to Pamplona, Spain.
Made a stop at a highway road stop for lunch and kept going making it to our hotel late afternoon.
We decided to take a walk around town and stumbled, by chance, upon a family “running of the bulls”. It was absolutely delightful and one of my favourite spontaneous moments of our road trip.
Josh tried boar stew for dinner before we headed back home.
Day 16 - Spain
Pamplona to Barcelona
Accommodation: Mercer Hotel, Barcelona (check prices in area...)
Tolls: $61
Zaragoza was on our stops today and we had a fun lunch at Tommy Mel’s Diner before continuing our trip to Barcelona.
We all decided Barcelona was not made for cars and we hit up Citroen to return our car. It happened to be the same depot as my parent’s Renault so we hitched a taxi back to our hotel.
The taxi was clueless and dropped us some distance, but when we finally walked with all our stuff to the Mercer Hotel we were in awe.
The kids had left overs from lunch and I found a Chinese restaurant across the street for Josh and I to enjoy while the kids were fast asleep.
Today we explored Barcelona. We walked the main drag to the bus stop to get to Guell Park.
Once we finished there I headed back to the hotel with some tapas to let the kids nap, while Josh went on to the famous Cathedral.
Later that evening we walked to the harbor and stopped for some Spanish food. Dinner at El Ray De La Gamba was a disappointment.
Day 18 - Ireland
Barcelona flight to Ireland
Accommodation: Ballsbridge Hotel, Dublin (check prices in area...)
My parents came to our hotel to say goodbye today. It was emotional. We grabbed a taxi to the airport and took our first Ryanair flight to Dublin, Ireland. Made our home at the Ballsbridge for the next 6 nights. I got to go to a Guinness Storehouse party while Josh stayed home with the kids.
And there you have it. Our 18-day journey through Italy, Monaco, France and Spain. Italy by far was my favourite, followed by Spain and with the experiences we had in France I have to say I am not a fan. Jaded as it was by the missing car incident, rude restaurant staff and disappointing food choices. But maybe it was just my English blood. In all seriousness, seeing southern Europe by road is a great way to go. There are so many little towns that exude their unique flavor and I wish we could see them all. Maybe next time.
Road Trip Tally
Total Days: 18
Total Tolls: AUD$252
Total Fuel: AUD$476
Total Distance: 3,507 km (2,179.15 miles)
Hello, my name is Jack Sparrow. I'm a 50 year old self-employed Pirate from the Caribbean. 
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