This is just how I went about it and is for personal future reference and anyone who wants to use it

as a guide or whatever.
First thing is to make sure your car is ok, if its going to be able to cope with 1000+ mile journey and
a race track in between.
A guy I met over there had an M3 and his intercooler just came off, spewed water, coolant, oil
everywhere and the biker behind him came off and wrecked his bike. Apparently the biker was
cheerful and all ok, no one was hurt but the M3 guys wallet was a lot lighter afterwards. 500 odd
for recovery and clean up, and THEN repair bills. You also pay for the closure of the track!
I had a full service and brake service a bit before going but should also have done an oil change!
Sorry Josh! Check all levels and tyres etc.
Make sure that youre all legal for European driving. Youll need:

Hi vis vest
Warning Triangle
Eurolite stickers (headlamp converters) so you dont blind everyone. You can get pulled over
and fined if caught without. Same with the sticker
GB sticker
Spare bulb kit
2x Breathalyser pack
First aid Kit
Fire extinguisher
All your car papers Car ownership (V5C), certificate of insurance
Passport + Drivers licence + any other ID if you have it.

I bought a kit on ebay

My car already had a first aid kit, fire extinguisher, and bulb kit so I didnt need to buy them.
Heres the AAs advice
And equipment list
Id also recommend:

Cigarette lighter air compressor for your tyres

Spare washer fluid concentrate + water
Jump leads
Windscreen cleaner brush
Food + snacks + 2ltrs of water per day
In car charger
Battery charger (phone)
Spare dumb phone and charger (I got a Samsung GT E1200 from tesco for 9.99) so you can
buy a German SIM and Pay as you go to send texts or Emergency calls without paying too
much extra.
European Sat Nav OR download maps onto your phone for offline use.

Dashcam I bought a cheap G1W for 20, not 1080p as advertised but did ok. Id
recommend buying a decent one from RAC or something. RAC ones tend to have GPS tech
built in so records your speed while driving.
European adapter plugs! They do sell them on the boat but are like 5.99 for ONE. All the
legal equipment is sold on the boat but is at a higher price.
Learn some German phrases like is the track open? and other essentials

CHECK OPENING TIMES

The next important step is to check the Nurburging website for opening times. Some days are only
open in the evening so check that! I think Sundays are touristfahren when its open all day (08:3019:30) Keep in mind that people do crash and they do close the track for recovery and clean up.
When I went the track was closed about 7-8 times. Air ambulance showed up once and it takes a
while to open up again. So go early and be prepared to wait in the overflow carpark.

GET TRACK DAY INSURANCE

You might not need it but if you do crash, it will be VERY EXPENSIVE.
If you crash into the Armco barriers you will have to pay for the repairs. An approximation from
when I was there, someone told me it was 100 a METRE. If you crash you will pay for EVERYTHING
if youre not track day insured. Your normal car insurance wont pay a thing. Even though the
Nurburgring is a one way toll road and not technically a race track, your insurance will not cover it
unless theres a specific clause which states it covers the Nurburgring circuit and surrounding area.
If you crash you will have to pay for:
Recovery ADAC truck will scrape you and your belongings off the track, onto the truck and
to the yard or nearest garage. You will be charged the standard 250 recovery cost.
Clean up crew
Closure of the track (1,350 per hour)
Armco damage
Damage to others
You can get track day insurance from www.insuremytrackday.com and they cover Armco damage up
to 2000 as standard (upgradable to 4000), for peace of mind.

Book hotel
The hotel I stayed at was in Wimbach, called Meggis. Really nice hotel, super cheap 80 for two
nights (prices differ for how many days and when during the week etc) Open until 22:00. When I
arrived at 19:00 ish no one was there, it was closed and the car park was empty! There was an
envelope with my name on, on the window sill and the keys to the hotel and room inside! The
owner was rarely there but did ring if I wanted breakfast. Very relaxed lady owner, didnt speak a lot
of English but knew someone who did and rang them up. Free wifi in the hotel so I used my
translation app to ask for basics. The hotel was great, TV in room, en suite bathroom, cupboards,
bedside tables, lamps and free bottle of water, pretty basic. There was a number to ring if you
needed anything but you could honestly just do it yourself as no one was ever there. The hotel
kitchen was well equipped so you could do your own cooking if you wanted. Meggi was there in the
mornings and when I had to leave and pay. I had no cash on me so she let me go to the nearest ATM
(in Adenau 2km away) without quibble. Very trusting ! I would definitely go back to Meggis, only 10

minute drive from the Nurburgring and my room (Number 1) looked out onto the car park where I
was parked. Hotel is located in a small village with no shops really. Eat out in Adenau if you stay at
Meggis. The closest sign of life is Adenau where theres an ATM, petrol station, loads of restaurants,
bars, free parking and even a supermarket. Adenau is north of Wimbach.

TRAVELLING
However long Google maps says itll take you to get to Dover add an hour or two. This is to
compensate for traffic, fuel / toilet stops and border control. I do recommend having a few days to
complete this journey.
In Total:
1 day to travel get a good nights sleep at the hotel when you arrive
1/2/However many days at the Ring
1 day to travel back home.
It was very monotonous and tiring doing the travel days in one go, even with breaks every couple of
hours. So keep that in mind and maybe stop at a campsite in Germany or get a big rest at Dover.

Book Ferry
I booked the 09:10 ferry from Dover to Calais with DFDS. Arrived at Dover at 08:00 but there was so
much traffic at border control I was still queuing up at 09:30 so missed the boat. With DFDS you can
go on the boat scheduled before or the one after youve booked, they also give you a choice of
Calais or Dunkirk (Dunkirk is closer to Germany, I recommend Dunkirk). So if you do miss it by 5
minutes dont worry, you can go on the one after it free of charge. I missed mine on the way there
and got on the earlier one on the way back!
When I was booking I looked for the cheapest and relatively early slot, 09:10 was cheap and early
enough. Book the cheapest one and bear in mind you can just board the slot before or after ;)
Have your passport and booking confirmation ready at all times. There are about 3 checkpoints
where you have to show your passport and info.
Border control is slow and they can pick and choose any car to come to the side for inspection. Dont
have anything illegal in your car and youll be fine. I also advise going up to the window on your right
(so you dont have to get out of the car, walk all the way around to show your passport and look like
a lemon).
Inspection is straight forward, papers please, where are you going, where have you come from, how
long have you owned the car, how many people, open the boot. Job done.
Departure time: 10:00 (UTC)
Duration: 1h40
Arrival time: 12:40 local time (GMT+1)
Once youre parked up in the boat get a comfortable seat ASAP. Preferably one of the sofas or
lounge chairs you can fall asleep on, otherwise its a long uncomfortable journey. Found out the
hard way. Get some rest on the boat. Long trip ahead.

Before you get off the boat.

When they say you can go down to your car, get your Eurolites ready and the GB sticker. Make sure
you follow the correct instructions to fit them, here is the main instruction leaflet. I had some
trouble so I went to this website and emailed (help@travelspot.co.uk) the make, model and year of
my car, with images. They emailed me back that same day with a diagram of my headlights and
which position to stick the Eurolites on. Very helpful customer service.
GB sticker needs to be clearly visible on the back of the car.
Get your route planned out on the sat nav / phone etc and go.

THE ROUTE
The route I took was really straight forward and 90% 3 lane motorways.

Its a LONG and boring drive but if you get enough rest and stop along the way, it should be easy.
The only thing to look out for really is Belgium plate drivers! I know not ALL drivers from Belgium are
bad, but god dam every single car that cut me up, swerved across 3 lanes of traffic and lane
hoggedhad Belgium plates. One woman even tried to undertake me as I was overtaking a lorry!
German drivers however (from my experience) were sehr gut. Organised and knew when to pull out
of the outside lane to let drivers past. On the roads I took I didnt see any speed cameras but there
WERE police bikes. Pulled the guy in front of me over. Go the speed limit and youll be fine. Follow
the flow of traffic and you should be fine. Watch out for number plates with B (Belgium) on them as
they will just pull out in front of you, not indicate and not care. Also watch out for lorries overtaking
into the fast lane as they are quite decisive. A lot of the roads I used had 3 lanes so it was a painless
experience (minus the B number plates). I will add that on the way back towards Calais, in Brussels
near Ghent, there were huge tailbacks and at crawling speeds, it was due to road works (July 2016)
and might have been rush hour but I spent about an hour going nowhere. Bear this in mind for the
ferry, I know I was worried! On the way TO Germany I had no issues.
There are Texaco and Shell garages on the way, free wifi and you have to pay 0.50-0.70 to use the
toilet. Its free if you can fit through the kids door (if youre a kid obviously). Some petrol pumps are
pre pay so watch out for that, just put your card in, type your PIN and then fill up. Along the way
theyre relatively well spread out, you shouldnt run out of fuel and theres always another one
sooner or later. I went with a 3.2 V6 and fuel was readily available.

I stayed at a hotel in Wimbach so this route was better suited for me. Depending on where your
hotel is, the route may differ. You may choose to stay on the E40 towards Liege and onto the E42 but
the way I went was quicker (according to google maps) despite being 10km further.

From Calais/Dunkirk take the E40/A16 towards Ostend / Bruges / Ghent.

Stay on the E40 towards Brussels
Stay on the E40 via the E19 towards Leuven

Go towards Leuven on the E314

Stay on the E314 towards Aachen
Go onto the 4 towards Aachen
Exit onto the 61 towards Kerpen Rheinbach and Koblenz
Go past Rheinbach and exit onto the 565 / 257 towards Kalenborn (I think there may be Nurburgring
signs from here)
Stay on the 257 and follow the signs to the ring / where youre staying.

Check in, get a good nights sleep and get ready for the next morning!
You can skip Section A paragraph entirely and go straight towards the actual track (Section B).
Section A. You can probably just follow all the sporty cars and get there eventually but if not, the
Nurburgring is well signposted so you wont have any trouble. I followed the signs to A parking and
found a gravel car park just next to a passenger bridge opposite the INFO CENTRE. The Info Centre is
just where the gift shops are, a few restaurants and where you can buy lap tickets if you want. I
didnt know you could just turn up to the track, buy tickets and go.

Section B. Follow the Nordshleife signs until you get to a small and very busy roundabout. Take the
first exit, on your right will be a gravel car park with a small ticket office, head that way, park where
you can (probably the overflow car park further down) and get some laps. You buy a credit card type
thing and pay 29 per lap, 105 for 4 or a lot more for a lot more.
Once you have your card, make sure the track is open and you can head towards the gates. Leave
the car park, head back to the roundabout and its the second exit towards the main, but very small,
car park. Marshalls will guide you, swipe your card and go.
If theres a guy in the road with a small sign blocking the second exit of the roundabout, the track is
shut. You usually hear a buzzer or tone on the loudspeakers when the track opens and closes. They
usually shut if someones had an accident. It can take a while for it to re-open but as soon as you see
the Ring Taxis (BMW M3 / M5, Porsche GT3 RS, Audi R8) line up at the start, youll know its about
to open. They go first and then the public can go.
I would let all the enthusiasts go first and run to their cars so they can get a quick lap in. Take your
time and learn the track. I never bothered with timing it because it will distract you from knowing
the entry and exit speeds for each corner. Learn the track, then worry about lap times later. Just
remember its better to have a slow lap time than no lap time because youve given it the beans on a
corner which you or your car couldnt handle. A guy I met over there said to me No matter what
youre driving, you WILL be overtaken by a local in a Lupo. Its their home and they know it better
than you, so just learn the track and enjoy it, dont bin it.
You WILL be overtaken. A LOT. Keep an eye on your rear view mirror and then keep right with your
indicator on to show youre letting them overtake. Stay right and let them overtake. Very simple.
Overtaking can ONLY be done on the left. Keep as right as possible but stay on the track ! Slow down
if you have to, and then check your mirrors to see if its clear and carry on your racing line.

If its your first time, as soon as you see someone coming up behind you, keep right and indicate
right. Theyre probably faster than you. I was overtaken by everyone on my first lap but enjoyed
every second knowing I was driving round the Nurburgring. Its not a race track, its a one way toll
road remember ;)
There is a Devils Diner on site but I never went in, brought my own food instead.
You can also book a Ring Taxi experience but its not cheap. I was told 270 for three people in the
M5, works out at 90 each !
You can also rent little Suzuki Swifts but I didnt catch the price of those.
I did see that you could rent supercars at like 900 for 16 laps. The excess though is very high, for an
Alfa Romeo 4C youre looking at an excess of 50,000. Fifty Thousand. So very much a case of you
break it you buy it. 150K if you want to rent a McLaren. There is also an excess on other cars, so if
you crash into someone youre responsible, the excess is about 10,000.
Drive at a normal pace on your first lap and get to know it, its a lot bumpier, a lot more demanding
and different than you expect. The gradients are incredible, some corners are sharper than you think
and others are quicker. The main obstacle is juggling between how do I go round this corner safely
and is there anyone trying to overtake. Your priority should be seeing if anyones going to crash
into you from behind. If in doubt, keep right, indicate right and slow down.

This was just briefly my experience and how it went for me, I might have forgotten some things, if
this is any use to you then great. If not, go to http://www.nurburgring.org.uk/ for a much broader
and detailed guide. This is the website I went to, to plan my trip.
Drive safe.

Ed Guintrand