Duinrell

[johnstafford]

Well we have finally got roung to booking our first ever trip abroad.

We are off to Duinrell in Holland, got a good deal on the ferry £416 from newcastle to ijmuden but have to travel on either a sunday, monday or tuesday.

Any advice for a first time oversea traveller please!

Regards John

 

[rob_jax]

John,

I work in Rotterdam (and the UK) and Dutch people are great, so I'm sure you'll have a great time.

Advice:

1. IJmuiden to Wassenaar (Duinrell) will take about 1 hour - remember the maximum towing speed in Holland is 80 kph (50 mph) on the motorway - and this area between Amsterdam and Rotterdam is quite busy during the rush hours

2. Eating out (with children) - all Dutch restaurants and cafes are child freindly - most Dutch families eat out on a regular basis

There's no need to eat formal meals in restaurants or cafes - just order what you want - if you only want a starter and a desert then that's fine

Tip - the normal in Holland is 5%

3. If you can drag your kids away from the water-park - a day trip to Delft is worth it - it's only about 10 km from Duinrell - as is a visit to most Dutch cities.

If your children are quite young, they might like a day trip to "Efteling" (nearest town is Tilburg) - the park is built up around European fairy tales - and as such is probably not suited to cynical teenagers

4. It is illegal in Holland to simply loop the caravan breakaway cable over the tow-ball, you MUST attach the break way cable to a fixed point on the tow-bar itself - Dutch police have been checking cars and caravans at the ferry ports - and issuing fixed penalty Euro 30 fines.

5. Most Dutch people under the age of 40 speak really very good English - but if you do learn a few Dutch phrases then they really appreciate it (especially if you manage to mangle the pronunciation) - learn "Dank U" (Thank you) and "Austublieft" (Please) which is used to attract waiters, bar tenders, receptionists, etc., you'll hear these used all the time

6. Credit Cards - most shops will happily take UK credit cards - except for the railway stations and parking meters (and a few other places - like some supermarkets) who only take cash or the special Dutch chip-and-pin cards.

Although they have what you think is the standard chip-and-pin sign, these Dutch cards work differently - they are an electronic version of cash - a Dutch person will go to a cash-point and transfer some money onto that card - then if they loose the card (or if it is stolen) - then they only loose the few Euro on the card.

In any case, it's incompatible with every other chip and pin card in Europe - but if the sign says Visa then you're OK

7. I work for a company in Spaanse Polder (facing Rotterdam airport across the A13 motorway) - just South of Delft - if you need any local information - let me know

Robert

 

[Terry_5130180]

Hi John - I went to Duinrell last year, i have to say it was excellent, the kids loved it as there was loads to do on the theme park which is included in your price.

Pitches are a little on the small side and if like me you have a twin wheel tourer the inroads to the pitches are very tight in places, i had to unhitch my van and push it on to my pitch.

The bars on the site are really expensive, we found that a ten minute walk in to the town centre saved us a fortune, literally we drank all night in town for the price of one round on the site. There is a really freindly english bar in town.

All in all a great holiday, we even contenplated going back again this year but decided to try Brittany instead.

I am sure you will really enjoy your holiday, Make sure you visit Amsterdam, it's a sight to behold.

Terry

 

[johnstafford]

Thanks Guys,

Wow Rob some handy stuff there, i will probably take you up on some more advice nearer the time, I have to familiarise myself with all this negative polarity thing and all the other non-uk caravaning terms.

Regards John

 

[rob_jax]

Sconny,

It'll be a pleasure.

Regarding the reversed (negative) polarity, it arises because all European houses and caravans use "dual switched circuit breakers" that cut both the live and the neutral if the switch trips. So for AC mains power they don't care about live and neutral connections - and dual switching is the safest system but it costs more.

The UK standard is to switch only the live supply, leaving the neutral connected. In the UK (and if the UK electrician did a good job) then this is safe. But in Europe you have a 50% chance of hooking up and finding out that the live and neutral wires are crossed.

This in itself is not dangerous, nor does it affect safe operation of the appliance - it does become an issue if the appliance fails, trips the circuit breaker and you open up the appliance without unplugging - then you have a 50% chance that the appliance is still live internally. Obviously you should never do this.

Many UK people become paranoid about getting the polarity right, but there is no reason why you shouldn't do things right. You'll need:

1. Normal UK electric hook-up lead (it is an ISO standard and is used in most of Europe) with the IP44 blue plug and socket

2. A short length (1 metre) of the same lead, with the same IP44 blue plug and socket - but with the live and neutral wires crossed - this is the reversing lead (make this yourself)

3. A short Schuko CEE7/7 (universal French / Benelux / German) to IP44 connector (pre-made from a caravan shop) Should not be needed in Holland, quite likely in France - where they use the household Schuko sockets on the power posts.

4. A polarity tester.

Usage:

Connect up using either 1 or 1+3 as necessary

Test polarity, and if reversed, insert 2 into the cable - easy

Robert