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I was brought up as a package holiday kind of girl. The trips we went on as a kid involved packing up suitcases and heading to the nearest airport, where we were bundled into a plane and occupied with books and games for the few hours in the air. This had its drawbacks (such as the hassle of the airport, or the hit and miss aspect on the rooms), but generally this was the type of holiday that I grew up enjoying. After all, we got sunshine and beautiful scenery, all for very cheap prices – and with airport transfers generally thrown into the bargain!

However, as I grew up I started to realise that there are plenty of other types of holidays out there. Take, for example, spending a week in an idyllic holiday cottage down in Cornwall, walking along the cliff-top paths and shopping in the little harbour villages. Or perhaps putting together your own custom holiday, including transport, multiple hotels and so amazing daytrips. When you start thinking about it like that, anything is possible.

Once I had started thinking like this I realised that I really needed to get off my arse and start partaking in some different holidays myself. Don’t get me wrong, I will still take my package holidays to places like Turkey and the Canary Islands, but I need to get out more and be braver with my holidays. In the spirit of following my own advice I decided to man up, and a friend and I prepared ourselves for a road trip through France.

I don’t know why exactly we chose France. I think both of us have experience with the country and the language, and we also know that the country has a beautiful combination of scenery, countryside and beaches that would make it a good place to drive around. My friend was driving, but I was put on her insurance too so that I could take over whenever she got fed up or too tired to drive. The car we chose to take was mine, the perfect car for a road trip by two young people, a used SEAT Ibiza that I have bought just a few months earlier. It was reliable and good looking, and the fuel economy was pretty good too, meaning we didn’t have to spend too much money on petrol.

The trip itself, when we had done all the organising, was brilliant. We went over by ferry, and then drive from the lush green territory of Brittany right down to the scorching heat of the Ardèche. We made time to mix in some city trips, as well as letting ourselves relax between drives in nice hotels, gites and campsites. It was idyllic, and was a holiday that offered us as much flexibility as we needed to do exactly what we wanted, whilst still very much being a holiday rather than a long car ride. I am definitely converted to the idea of a Used SEAT road trip, and plan to do it again!