My 5720 Miles road trip from Ireland to Portugal in my 04 STi!

Skipper555

Sunday Drivers
Hi everyone,

I thought I'd share photos from my trip from Ireland to Portugal (Ferry from Ireland to France) driving through France, Andorra, Spain, Portugal, Spain again, Portugal then on the way back, Spain, France and ferry back to Ireland). In total I drove 5720 miles and will never forget or regret this trip, it was quite amazing and recommend every car fanatic try doing something similar or better!

Before taking this trip (with my wife and a baby), I ensured my car was fully serviced and it worked out, except for brakes (discs and pads all around), which needed to be replaced after a previous roadtrip (4 laps at the Nurburgring and a half track day). The car was simply amazing, no issues at all and so far no speeding tickets! :D

Let's not fool ourselves, financially taking a STi on this type of road trip makes no sense (some could call it a Petrol station tour around Europe :D). However, I had a unique opportunity to take a long vacation this summer and being a car fanatic, I just couldn't miss it.

During this trip, I noticed the attention a STi still brings, most people especially young people seem to like it and some older ones recall WRC quite well. I believe that the RHD car in continental Europe also surprises a few people, though it's somewhat common to see cars from the UK and Ireland around Europe.

Here are some photos, hope you enjoy!























Cheers!
 
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Class pictures there man fair play. Great to hear car got on well on such a long trip ????
 
thats class. Nice to see a car being properly used and forgetting about what it might cost in a boring diesel!
 
Amazing stuff man! would you mind breaking down how much the whole thing costed you? Mainly the ferry, as thats the biggest part for me to bite through.

I always wanted to do this, and drive to mainland with my own car, enjoy the Pyrenees and Alps with my own car:)
 
Amazing stuff man! would you mind breaking down how much the whole thing costed you? Mainly the ferry, as thats the biggest part for me to bite through.

I always wanted to do this, and drive to mainland with my own car, enjoy the Pyrenees and Alps with my own car:)

Cheers.

The whole thing cost quite a bit because I didn't take a direct route and visited a lot of places such as Bordeaux x2, Barcelona, Soldeu (Andorra), Porto, Algarve, smaller cities in Portugal, Caceres (Spain), etc. Ferry at this time of the year can be a bit expensive: 4 berth cabin with Stena lines from Rosslare to Cherbourg was €713.00 (2 adults and a baby).

Hotels and food can be easily controlled, it all depends on your "demands" (5 stars hotel only vs being OK with 3 stars hotels). I tried to avoid major touristic cities (Paris, Lisbon, Madrid, etc) as hotel prices in summer time is a bit ridiculous, a night in Barcelona was €126.51 vs a night in Rennes was only €45 vs Bordeaux €56,70. I only spent on hotels on the way there and way back, no hotel expenses in Portugal so that helped a lot.

I believe I maintain my car quite well and before this trip I did spend some money to ensure everything was in order (full service was completed), so I'd add some maintaince costs to your total.

Last year I went at the end of October and returned on the first week of november for €312.00 (2 people only) with a cabin on Irish Ferries, which I prefer over Stena. Better places to eat and overall better place to be during the 17 hours journey.

Fuel is definitely something to consider, in a STi you must be quite gentle to get 300 miles with a tank and that was definitely not what I always achieved, at times it would be as low as 220 miles. You do the math based on a 5720 miles trip and I don't even want to know the result in € :icon_lol:

Feel free to message me direct if you want more specifics.

Cheers!
 
Fair play to you and family that's really something nice trip[emoji106]


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Amazing trip. Really cool pictures. A car that's very much enjoyed. Fair play to you!
 
Class trip , [emoji106][emoji106][emoji106]

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Fair play. What better than a road trip in a great car and visiting nice destinations
 
Fairplay man, trip of a lifetime
How long did it take u?

Cheers and absolutely an unforgettable trip! This trip took 52 days (Mid July to last weekend), but it wasn't vacation and driving every single day. I wish I had 52 days of vacation!
 
This is the best thread I've read about cars in ages. Just brilliant. I'm always drivin sh*ty rentals in the alps or pyrennese wishing I had my own car with me

+ I'd guess a blob sti is a rare enough in them parts and appreciated more when seen

Thanks again for posting the pics
 
That is a long vacation well worth it i see, great to see people conquer a trip like that in a STI subaru with no sweat, fair play man! :thumbsup:
 
Nice trip, I do the same trip every year in christmas, 2 years ago in a Corsa OPC and last year in the SUV. I hope you enjoyed the good weather
 
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