Day trip to Belgium

[bruce5755]

I was thinking of nipping over to Belgium for a day trip for some cheap bacci etc, never having taken a car abroad what do I need, ie:- warning triangle, headlamp converters, spare fuel, etc.  I haven't got a clue, also which is your preffered method, tunnel or ferry and why?  Also what are the tobacco limits for customs here in the U.K.?  Many Thanks.

[SteveD]

Where will you be starting out from and what route will you be taking?

[vehelpfulguy]

To find out what you need for the car abroad, maybe look on the AA or RAC web site.

Make sure your insurance covers your car for abroad.

It used to be the case that a day return on the tunnel started at midnight. So buy a day return and get the first train after midnight. That way you get a full day there.

There is a HUGE shopping centre at the exit to the tunnel, called Cite Europe. See here

http://www.cite-europe.com/prod/index.jsp?pays=2

       

[Artemis]

When I go I take a day return on Eurotunnel. Head for Belgium on motorway and come off at the first turn off inside Belgium and head for Adinkerke. Head into the centre and opposite the station is Stationsplein. You can get all your baccy here plus good food and drink. 200 mtrs up the road is a local supermarket which have a wide selection of cheap branded booze. The time from Eurotunnel to Adinkerke is about 30 mins.

I have 12 month Euroinsurance plus spare light bulbs, triangular reflector, first aid kit and the usual break down gear.

[Buenchico]

As for your tobacco allowance, I've copied this from an answer I posted to a similar question some time ago:

"There is no official limit on the quantity of cigarettes you can bring in from other EU countries (except from most of the former Soviet-block EU members) as long as the cigarettes are for your personal use. (This can include cigarettes you purchase as gifts but not cigarettes which are to be sold or exchanged for other items or services).

Customs officers used to work to strict guidelines which meant that they automatically assumed that cigarettes were for commercial use if certain quantities were exceeded (and the traveller could not justify importing such a large quantity). This resulted in many travellers, arriving via seaports, having not only their cigarettes seized but their vehicles as well. The courts have now ruled such draconian measures unlawful. There are still official guidelines, however, which, after all, are exactly what people like yourself require if you're trying to stay on the right side of the law.

The official gudeline figure for the importation of cigarettes is 3200 (i.e. 16 packs of 200).

All the details are here:
http://customs.hmrc.gov.uk/channelsPortalWebApp/channels PortalWebApp.portal?_nfpb=true&_pageLabel=pageTravel _InfoGuides&propertyType=document&id=HMCE_PROD_0 10221

Hoping this helps (but give it up anyway, it's bad for your health!),"

A subsequent answer that was given to the earlier question also pointed out that Customs can get very suspicious if a traveller claims that all the cigarettes are for 'personal use' when they've bought several different brands!

You can download a Word document, from the AA, which has full details of the compulsory equipment required for your trip:
15:45 Thu 06th Oct 2005

[Buenchico]

Oops!

AB stole the AA link! :
http://www.theaa.com/staticdocs/pdf/allaboutcars/oversea s/aa_compulsory_equipment.doc

Chris

[greggo123]

plenty of cash