Club Arnage

Do not forget that the Monday after the Classic is Bastille day so all shops and garages will be closed. Motorways will work as normal but on the nationales or other roads you'll have a problem getting petrol or finding a bar/restaurant open. Many supermarkets will now accept foreign cards but not all a the 24/24 pumps. You have been warned!

Successfully used a UK card in a fuel station (not supermarket) in Le Mans. But been caught out by this kind of thing before, so it's a good warning.

I arrived in France at 00:30 on "Bastille night" one year, and headed for my St Omer hotel, expecting to find fireworks and street parties. Nothing. Bit disappointed, but maybe I'd missed it all...

my last bike trip in april showed all the machines now accept our cards.... chip and pin stuff. they will still make you sign it after pinning though

Some confusion here. How do they get you to sign at an unmanned pump when the garage is closed for a bank holiday? All garages now accept any credit card when they are manned - it is when they are closed and only the credit card pump is working that sometimes you find they only accept french cards. That was the point of this gentle warning.

Being a bank holiday, will that make the traffic heavier or lighter?

Fewer lorries, more cars (as a broad rule of thumb anyway)