@ Dave: yeah, also other people read these posts.... thought it could be interesting to give some more info than asked for ;-)

France: I love it, and think you shouldn't drive 1 meter onto the Peage unless in a super hurry. And the Alps: I don't know BC, but I love the small scale agriculture you can witness from various small campsites... just people with a few cows; amazing that that still exists in modern Europe! That 'cosyness' is pretty special for the Alps I think, and gets better in the south.
If you don't mind driving hairpins on smooth gravel, google a bit on 'Tende' and 'Col de Tende'... you'll get what I mean ;-)

Good points!
Yes, nowhere in the Alps is especially remote, and you touch on one aspect of that region which is distinctly different from the Rockies. So, yes, I wouldn't write off the Alps as a region for someone visiting from Canada, assuming that he and his wife haven't been there previously.

Neither of us knows what Gopdebeek (doesn't that name sound Dutch!) wants to actually achieve with his journey - cultural, scenery, riding routes (most likely from the OP) etc.

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Dave

some random musings...We did a quick spin in Morocco for only 5 days in 2010. The Ceuta border took hours and from the time you get there everyone wants to "help" but always in a friendly yet persistent way. There are rules for official helpers so if you want to say yes to anyone make sure they have a badge. It took me a couple days to get used to it, we got followed a lot (on foot and vehicle)and taken on a few rides...If you arent nicely firm, before you know it you will be paying some guy to visit an orphanage & buying the kids milk and cookies...

The scenery is varied and beautiful, the roads on the eastern side get a bit worse as you go south. We were on a VFR and just took it slow to mind the potholes. There is some new highway in the west. Fes is definitely an intense cultural experience but similar and less busy/touristy is Mekhnes which was lovely. The old cities basically have walled mazes in them which you cannot drive in. we arranged by phone to stay in a nice riad and they send someone to arrange secure parking & help carry your gear. Not cheap tho but we made up for this with a little wild camping

We went in June and generally the weather was pleasant, especially in the mountains. We got down to Errachidia where it was pretty hot during the day but dry - so not unbearable. Not much in between there & Fes but cool landscape. (there are a couple sizable towns to stay/gas up & finding gas was not an issue) erfoud is one of the spots where you can visit the dunes & the camels but sadly we didnt make it, I sprained my ankle badly. Will have to go back!

Have fun and dont forget to buy a rug. Bargain hard and have tea after the deal is concluded

Hello,

from Frankfurt you can go to Freiburg(Dreisamtal),Luzern,Montreux,Geneve,Grenob le,Gap,Orange,Arles,
Barcelona,Zaragoza,Cuenca,Albacete,Jaen,Granada,Ro nda,Gaucin,Algeciras,Chefchaouen,Fez,Erfoud,Agadir
Essaouira,Asilah,Tanger,Tarifa,Vejer de Frontera,Cadiz,Sevilla,Evora,Lissboa,Porto,Burgos, San Sebastian!,LaRochelle ,Paris and than to England.

That`s a nice trip

Mike

That certainly looks like a nice trip to me. Lots of beautiful places. Why does San Sebastian has an exclamation mark? Is it that beautiful?

I'm going to make a trip to the South of Spain from The Netherlands. I thought I maybe could make a very short trip into Morocco, just get to the other side in the morning, do a nice trip during the day just to get a little impression and go back in the evening, Tarifa to Tanger is 35 minutes so in theory it should be possible. I understand it's not that easy, going in July, I've heard about 6 or 7 hours to get across, Tarifa - Tanger MED being the best option. And many stories of drug selling annoying people in the northern parts where the tourists come in. If I had more time to visit Morocco to go deeper south maybe it would be OK but now I think I pass.

Hi! I'm from San Sebastian and I can assure you ot is really beautiful. If you come, you will really enjoy it!