Driving from Greece!

[Graveworm_Hunter]

Hi,
Thanks for all the help! We'll be setting off on Monday afternoon to arrive sometime on Wednesday. It's our first time and we're looking forward to it (and the drive!)
We've be told today that the Bulgarian and Serbian police love Ouzo...so, coming up from Greece the best thing for us to do is to have a few extra bottles in the car and we'll be sorted!!!
Of course, when (if) we return, I'll post an update on exactly how the drive went. We've now decided to set off Monday (cause we can't wait!) and we're overnighting in Sofia too. We're camping, so if any of you see a little blue Jimny with our website www.go2halkidiki.net on the side, feel free to say hello. You never know, we might have some Ouzo left!!!!
Cheers,
Nic!

 

[Lady_Wolf]

Hope you still read this:

my colleague gave me (or you) another tip for Serbia

Cigarettes and chocolate!

 

[Graveworm_Hunter]

Cigarettes, Chocolate, Ouzo....bloody hell do they want them gift wrapped!!!

 

[Hairless]

we drive nearly every year from germany to greece via austria, slovenia, kroatia, serbia and macedonia (in 23 hours ).

in germany and austria you dont have to be really careful, but in kroatia, serbia and macedonia you shouldn't let your car stay alone at a gas station.
we never had problems behaving that way.
you also should check your car before driving to macedonia and serbia, if you have a break down you should be able to repair simple things by yourself.

 

[Graveworm_Hunter]

The drive from Greece and back!

Well, we made it there and made it back with no real problems at all...I'm pleased to say!
For anyone else looking at driving from Greece or through the countries we went through, here's how we found it.
Bulgaria - Really nice during the day but a nightmare at night! We had to drive back though here at night and in a huge storm. The roads at night are death traps, especially in the rain as you cannot see any white lines or road marking. To make matters worse, the Bulgarian truck drivers are complete assholes. I've never seen such dangerous driving. It gets worse as the roads get worse south of Sofia towards the Greek border (I actually had to change into 4x4 in Sofia as the roads were that bad). Our tip: If possible, stay overnight in Serbia and drive though Bulgaria in the daylight!
Serbia - This was the country I wasn't sure about as we'd heard a lot of negative things about driving here. But, as it happened it was one of the nicest countries to drive though. The roads are all good (and mostly wide). Try and avoid Belgrade at peak times as you can be stuck in traffic, we saw quite a few small accidents there. The scenery changes as you head north from Belgrade with very long, straight and flat roads all the way up to the border with Hungary. We saw quite a few police, but had no problems. If you stick to the speed limits you'll be fine.
Hungary - We were only in Hungary for a few hours but it was here that we saw the most serious accidents, due to speed! The roads are ok here but watch for tracks/ruts made by trucks in the slow lane, they can take you by surprise!
Slovakia - Another really nice country to drive though, we weren't there very long at all but found the roads very good, and well signposted. We did however have a blowout in one of the tunnels in Bratislava, but luckily motorway patrol van with mechanics stopped and helped us, we gave them some beer for their trouble!
Czech Republic - One of the nicest countries scenery wise, but the worst for road conditions. The motorways are in a terrible condition and very bumpy and noisy and are full of tracks/ruts made by trucks. The roads around Prague are equally as bad. We were glad to get of that country!
Germany - As we expected, nice roads and fast drivers. The only problem we had here was leaving Wacken though Hamburg, it delayed us by about 6 hours, but I guess this was to be expected.
Over all, a nice but long and tiring drive especially on the return trip after the delays in Hamburg. I was driving around 20 hours both days back!
Well worth it though, as we've seen some really nice places on the way.
Another tip, always try to stop at the OMV petrol stations that have the Viva shops/restaurants! Excellent food and very good value for money!
Hope this helps anyone who wants to make the trip in the future!

 

[Lady_Wolf]

Nice to read that you werent murdered, robbed and raped