Pave the courtyard entrance, which paving stone selection?

Hello everyone,

we want to redesign our approximately 210 sqm courtyard driveway, which is currently tarred.

We now want to implement paving because we no longer want tar.
However, we are not yet sure about the choice of stones.
In any case, we do not want natural stones but concrete stones. The color tone should be gray, anthracite, or accordingly nuanced. The stones should be as straight-edged as possible (no or minimal chamfer), with as small joints as possible.

Now the questions to the group:
Which stone size is best suited for such a large courtyard driveway?
Do you use only one size or mix the sizes?
Which laying pattern is recommended?
Do you have manufacturer or stone recommendations? (near me are Godelmann and Huberstein)

Attached are photos of the driveway as it looks today.

Which stone format is best suited for such a large driveway?
Do you use only one format or mix the formats?
Which laying pattern is recommended?

Anything you like and are willing to pay for — not just for the stones but also for the installer.

I would never take concrete stones. They look good the first year (and even that is not guaranteed due to salt efflorescence during storage), then the lime comes out and you get stains and lichens, like you see, only then everywhere and more.

Off topic my opinion on your driveway: it is long and looks intact. It is long and costs a lot of money if it should be renewed.
I don't see the reason. I would rather create some relief by removing the strip of paving and replacing it with a green strip, for example grasses or small bushes, but also ground cover would already help a lot.
Also at the front by the gate you could plant a flowerbed. You lack trees and shrubs, but by no means a different driveway surface.

If you can't do all of this yourself, it will get really expensive for the area. Depending on the paving, 25-35k. Just breaking up and disposing of the asphalt will probably swallow 10k if that's enough. I see no reason to spend that much money. The stones in the middle are not particularly pretty but there are much worse things.

Above all, take a look at an ordinary large paved area after a while; it will not look better than it does now. If you really want to change something drastically, you have to do more than just pave, but creatively design the area. However, that also costs more money.

I would rather redesign it than completely pave it. Scraping weeds out of the pavement over a long period is no fun. The wall in front is nice, add accents with plants and it looks completely different.