UK to Greece and back
 

Hi all,

I'm planning a trip from the UK to Greece and back to visit some friends later this year, and I'm hoping that you guys will be able to give me some advice on the route I am thinking of taking, and things I shouldn't miss along the way -- or should divert to get to! I've travelled alot in Asia and South America, but that was using public transport, this is the first time I'm going outside the country on two wheels.

My transport will be a 2002 Suzuki Bandit 600S, not perhaps the size of bike most of you are accustomed to (and I won't be able to stray off the paving!), but that's going to be part of the fun, and unless it breaks down between now and then isn't going to change!

Anyway, the planned route is from the UK through France and into Belgium, Luxembourg, Germany, Austria, Slovenia, Serbia and Montenegro, Macedonia and Greece. To return I'm thinking of getting the ferry across to Italy and then either heading around through France, or through Switzerland and France. Timescales are around 10-12 days each way, so I'm not thinking of clocking ridiculous quantities of miles each day. I'll probably be kicking off in mid-to-late September.

I know I'll need to sort out insurance (I need to talk to my insurer, as I've seen another post here from somebody with the same insurer and they refused to issue a green card), any of you know offhand if I'll need a Carnet for any of the countries?

All hints and tips more than welcome!

Thanks in advance,
Rob


[This message has been edited by rob_evans (edited 16 May 2005).]

Hi, I am the one who was refused. Many insurance company (i called 10-12 comp) do not do insurance for out of EU contries. Only Carole Nash do sort of insurance. I am gonna transfer my insurance to CN soon. And carnet.. you dont need carnet for any of these contries.

Good Luck

------------------
ride safely
ozhan u.
www.ozhanu.com

Hi Ozhan, thanks for the info. Yes, it was your post I was thinking of, but I didn't want to put names down until I'd had something definite from Bennetts myself. http://www.horizonsunlimited.com/ubb/smile.gif Good news about the Carnet!

Thanks again!

Rob

Hi Rob,
Please inform me when you get in touch with Bennets.

[edit]:Also additional information: They (Bennets) did not refuse my green card requirment. They told me that, they dont issue green card and the present insurance certificate is valid for all the EU countries, but not non-EU's. The lad who was on the phone read me the countries which cover the Bennetts insurance and there werent non-EU's. Also they told me that, they cannot do anything for that and advise me to contact with a local insurance company or another insurance company. At last I found Carole Nash. They give a bit high price than Bennetts (£35 expensive for my F650) but they cover all the EU, non-EU countries, also Turkey and Israel. But you have to pay additional 10 quid for Turkey and Macedonia.
I think this will give you enough info about insurance :) And no cernet is required for Europa as beddhist told me.
Also, I suggest you that if you go to Greece, have a bit more ride and visit Turkey as well. It worth.

Enjoy

------------------
ride safely
ozhan u.
www.ozhanu.com

[This message has been edited by ozhanu (edited 17 May 2005).]

hi rob,
we rode more or less that route last year, on a dr650 and a bmw r80gs, but you shoould be ok on the suzuki: belgium, germany, switserland, italy, greece, macedonia, albania, montenegro, serbia, bosnia, croatia and up again. you'll find some info on our route on the bulletin board, and we also posted some adresses, routes and comments on the lonely planet forum. but if you have any specific question, just let us know.

but keep this in mind: montenegrins are crazy drivers, be careful. and policemen all over the balkans will fine you if you cross a white line when taking over.

enjoy, it's a very nice route!!
g

I've found Bennetts to be useless. They won't sell an extension to their 45 days european cover and they won't cover Turkey. I offered to leave my bike in Greece (Rhodes) while I go to Turkey but they said that would invalidate the whole of the EU Cover. No reasons given!!

I'll try Carol Nash but its also worth mentioning that Norwich Union direct give 90 days Europe with Roadside assistance and you can add on non-EU countries for a surcharge per week that you intend to be in them. I think you can do this as you go along if you decide to stray out of Turkey into Bulgaria for a while. So I can add 2 weeks of Turkey to the standard policy. Seems quite good.

I think you'll need a carnet if you take Ozhanu's suggestions and go to Turkey. If you have to you can save about a day on the retur n trip by taking the boat from Patra to Ancona instead of from Igoumenitsa to Bari, but then you miss the road to Igoumenitsa which I've heard is very nice. I'm going that way in late August so I'll post when I get to Italy.

Hi Rob (and Hello also to Ozhanu - have you done your trip to Turkey yet?).

I travelled from UK to Cyprus in March/April and can advise you that you are entitled to green card if you request it (my insurers are Norwich Union and I got the card without any hassle).

What you need to be careful of is that you tell them exactly what countries you are visiting/transiting and the dates that you need cover for. I changed my route slightly by going through Serbia instead of Romania and had to purchase insurance at the border crossing (valid for one month and cost about £70).

You do not need a carnet for any of the countries you've mentioned but you will be asked for the vehicle's registration document, I took photocopies but never used them as the border police in Serbia, Hungary and Turkey preferred the original to process.

In Serbia I stayed at Hotel Nais which is well signed on the main highway from Belgrade to Nis. Its a big place but quite basic. I got the impression that the people in Serbia did not really want me there but thats probably down to a bit of paranoia! Just watch out for the packs of stray dogs along the highway and you'll be fine.

As Ozanhu has already said, if you get the chance you should get into Turkey - the people are fantastically welcoming and extra helpful, I can' recommend the place too highly.

Best of luck with the trip


Tony

Hi folks,

Thanks for all the advice so far.

Tony; the thing with the Green Card is that Bennetts simply don't issue them. They claim the insurance certificate is proof enough. Looks like NU or Carole Nash might be one customer better off when it comes to renewal time, but I'll see how things go when I hit the road later this year.

Unfortunately I am not going to get around to Turkey -- this time at least. I'm setting a relatively lazy pace, and I only have a month. I do have a meeting in Istanbul next Easter, so I might ride down to that. Hmm, wonder if I'll be able to claim milage back from work? Probably not. http://www.horizonsunlimited.com/ubb/smile.gif

I am nailing the route down a bit more, with a bit of help from Google Earth to try and find the roads that look like they could be interesting!

Ozhanu: Good luck on your trip, hope you have a fantastic time!

Of course, any "must-sees" still more than welcome!

Cheers,
Rob

Hi Folks,

Unfortunately I am still writing-up my thesis. I am still in the UK and did nor started my trip. However, I've changed my route and did all the reservation and bought the ferry tickets, visas, etc. My new route is actually my old route. I saved enough money for my old trip. So, I'll ride to Middle East. visit www.ozhanu.com/gezi for more info.

Good Luck!

------------------
ride safely
ozhan u.
www.ozhanu.com/gezi

Rob, I'm in Essex too and planning a very similar route but starting earlier and probably getting back to the UK about mid-Sept. I'll leave as soon as I get the V5 back from the DVLC as I am doing this at very short notice and bought an old Pan as my TDM has no luggage. If I buy and sell on ebay I figure it will only cost me me a few hundred for the trip. BUT I was looking at insurance too - Bennetts told me the same thing but told me everyone did the same. I only just did it over the phone and I think I can cancel pro-rata if I do so inside 14 days - Carole Nash was more expensive but sounds like it might be safer. I was thinking of getting to Greece via Hungary (no problem) and the former Yugoslavia (which Bennetts refuse to touch) and then coming back via ferry to Italy. I have about 5 weeks to kill and am planning on just drifting around with no firm plans. Happy to hear from anyone who may be out that way. I do feel old before my time on the Pan, but its just so convenient.....

Update on Insurance.

I just spoke to Carole Nash again. They cover Croatia but not Serbia/Yugoslavia. That, I think, makes it impossible to get overland to Greece unless you go the long way via Romania and Bulgaria..... Is there any answer to the Serbian insurance problem ?

Either you by a Green Card from any ADAC office in Germany on the way, or you buy the required insurance at the borders. If it's required at the border it should be available... They do want tourists, don't they?

Don't overestimate the issue: at every border crossing you find a small office which sell the insurance for few euros, but most of the time custom officials just don't care about insurance.

Anyway, my personal suggestion is to buy insurance even if they don't ask for it (of course only if your green card doesn't cover the country you are going to cross).

Thanks - makes sense. Funnily enough, when I went back to Carole Nash a few days later we tried a different approach - switching both my bikes to them actually reduced the total premium and meant RSA could quote - and they will do everywhere except Serbia, so I'm happy. I bought the Romania and Bulgaria guide books already and that looks like fun anyway. I ended up getting cover for Romania, Bulgaria, Moldova, Turkey, Croatia, etc without too much trouble - so it was well worth switching from Bennetts.

I just finished buying a couple of months worth of European insurance from Motorcycle Express (www.motorcycle-express.com), and I was quite pleasantly surprised to see that they are covering every country in Europe (and parts of Asia) with the sole exception of Iran and Iraq. In other words, for the first time in the last 4 years, they are now covering Bosnia and Hertzogovena, as well as Serbia and Montenegro, Macedonia, Bulgaria, and Romania. In past years, they have not covered Bosnia, Hertzogovena, and Serbia. They also cover every other country going as far east as the Iraq and Russian borders.

Although I don't plan to visit any of these really far east countries this year, it's quite remarkable to note that they are all finally covered. I bought from Motorycle Express because I needed coverage for Croatia.

The premiums charged by Motorcycle Express are significantly higher (about 4 times higher) than the premiums charged by Knopf... but, Knopf only covers the EC countries. So, I don't really see these two companies as competitors, they are selling quite different products for quite different purposes. Knopf is very economical and great if you don't plan to leave the EC. Motorcycle Express, on the other hand, has awesome geographic coverage, even Tunisia and Morocco are included.

I have bought insurance from both companies - from Motorcycle Express about 5 times over the past 4 years, and from Knopf once earlier this year. I think both have truly excellent customer service. I had a claim once on a Motorcycle Express policy, and it was handled very, very well - I wish that my Canadian insurance company did things as well for my car back home.

The person I deal with at Motorcycle Express is Gail Goodman. She is very highly experienced, and very competent. I have no hesitation to recommend this company to fellow forum members. It's not cheap, but you do get value for your money.

Michael

[This message has been edited by PanEuropean (edited 04 August 2005).]

The specialist comment makes sense, and I really hope I never need to claim, but as a point of reference - at 40 and with 2 yrs NCB due to ownership breaks, no adverse factors, I paid £330 for combined annual cover on a Pan European and a TDM, both fully comp and with my foreign trip on the Pan included (which cost £21 - all related to Romania, Bulgaria and Turkey as standard EU and the closer ones come free). That includes full European breakdown plus medical/legal, which seems reasonable to me. Amusingly, the excess when riding the Pan is £250 - 2.5x the TDM. Which makes no sense - The Pan is more likely to get dropped, and would be more expensive if I did..... they must put a lot of faith in those engine bars !

Insurance companies can be funny sometimes. Chances are that their experience is that they get fewer claims from ST1100's - hence the lower rate.

I traded in a VW Golf on a VW Phaeton last fall - my insurance cost actually went DOWN when I got the Phaeton, even though it is about 4 times the price of a Golf. I asked the insurance company why, and they told me that they experience very few claims from drivers of that type of vehicle (Phaeton) - but get tons of claims (theft, accidents, etc.) from Golf drivers. Maybe that's the case with your two motos - they are looking at fleet averages.

Michael