Lutèce

Sometimes it appears from media reports that here in Europe we are threatened on all sides by terrorists. I can understand the concerns of those of you on the other side of the Atlantic, far away from the reality, that this is a scary place. But think for a moment what it means for those of us who live here. Did all the citizens of Paris batten down the hatches and stay at home after the Paris attack? Will the citizens of Brussels stop going to work, school, shopping etc? No of course not.

We just go about our daily lives as usual. As presumably do citizens of San Bernardino and other places in the US where there have been terrorist attacks .

I heartily agree with Campolady. This US type of tipping is not normal in Europe where hotel staff are paid a living wage. Your towels would have been changed anyway. Please, in future, tip according to local custom, which in this instance would have been not at all.

You're welcome:)

Sometimes it seems to us Europeans that the average US visitor thinks they might be coming to a scary place and seem to forget that millions of us live here happily and safely and the things that they worry and have concerns about aren't even on our radar!

And do you suppose that those of us who live here don't have designer bags????

As a previous poster said - it won't be the bag that makes you look like a tourist:)

Yes I know about headlamp stickers etc from when we used to live in the UK, but it seems a huge amount of hassle when picking up a French car would be so much easier

Iknow there's not a lot of Vieux Caen, but there is the chateau and the quartier Vaugeuex is worth a stroll. Piaf spnt part of her childhood there.

I would agree that it would probably be easier to eat on board and stay in Ouistreham, where we have overnighted many times before and after crossings.

I've also asked the OP on the French board if they could specify dates, times and sailings:)

Hello

There are replies to this post on the British Isles board. However it would help if you could tell us which sailing you are on and the dates. I think it unlikely you would be able to pick up a car rental on a Sunday evening in France as they are not usually open - even for drop-offs

Even if a rental firm were to allow taking the car out of the country, would it comply with French vehicle regulations? Having to adjust headlight direction, carrying the obligatory high-vis jacket etc??

OP has also asked on the French port of call board and says he's arriving on Sunday at 19.00. My advice would be, spend Sunday night in Caen and have a pleasant stroll round the old part ( perhaps visit the café where Piaf used to live) a relaxed dinner and pick up the hire car in the morning.:)

I've no personal experience, but surely if you Google 'Segway' and 'Pisa' or 'Livorno' you'll find something??

Tripadvisor is also useful

You could head inland to Rouen, it's about a 2 hour drive if you take the scenic route up the Seine Valley. Not sure how small you mean by small?

For any route planning use http://www.viamichelin.com and switch to English if it loads in French. It will give you routes between places, time to get there and the option to go by the fastest or scenic route. Hope this helps:)

PS if you study the map carefully, you can do your own HOHO bus trip at a fraction of the cost

Also, Rome has a very good bus system, so look at the route maps and even if you're a bit further out from the centre, it's easy and cheap to get there. I can't remember where I got the bus map from, but it must have been somewhere online (and not in Italian!):)

Bought it before we went to station.

If I were you, I would buy wine in London

& get sandwiches when you change trains in Paris.

You will not regret taking this trip.

 

Ron

FYI there is a café/ bar on all TGV trains - much easier than bringing your own supplies and all part of the experience:)

Sorry, just realised your dates were for 2017, not 2016:)

However, the rest of my post is still valid

Hello

If you wanted to go to the French Open, I'm afraid you have the wrong dates. It runs from May 16 to June 5.

Can't really help with hotels without some idea of what you would consider a reasonable price for a night in central Paris (in euros, not $US)

Also be aware when booking that if you give the hotel the date as you have written it, you will have a room for October 6 !! Outside the US dates are written dd/ mm/yyyy :)

Yes, most stores, shopping centers and supermarkets close on Sundays, that's the law, but restaurants ARE OPEN.

In France, Sunday lunch is a big deal and although some restaurants will be open on Sunday evening, many will close after lunch until the following Tuesday.

If it fits in with your plans, I would thoroughly recommend booking for Sunday lunch somewhere which will typically start just after midi (noon) and can finish several hours later. Quite often the restaurant will be filled with family parties - birthdays, first communions and it's a lovely, typically French experience.:)

If you look on

http://www.aufildesbrocantes.com

this lists all brocantes in France by date and/or region.

Hope this is of some help

........ a car rental agency that will not charge an arm and a leg for a one-way rental?

 

Thanks!

The reason it is so expensive is not just the one way hire, but you are also renting in one country, Monaco and returning it in another country, Italy. The same charges will apply if you pick up in Nice.

However, if you get the train - direct line Monte Carlo to Milan - and taxi to the airport of departure, you could then hire a car for your Italian stay and not have any one way/ different country charges. The best train booking website is Capitaine Train, it's in English and you print your own tickets before departure. You can't actually book that far ahead yet, but their website says there are 3 trains daily and it takes about 4 hours.

Hope this helps

Oh so well said. The tourists in London in the fall stand out not only by their cameras and maps but by their summer clothes,shorts and capris. Europe cities residents are a pretty conservative well- dressed bunch. We Americans could learn a lot from them.

Not to mention baseball caps!!!

But seriously, as a European visiting Washington DC or NYC at that time of year, it would never occur to me to wear sundresses, shorts or any similar clothing. Not because of the temperature/ season, but because these are major cities, not beach resorts.

There were plenty of taxi's to pick, but we did not meet any drivers who spoke English.

And how many taxi drivers in NYC would speak Catalan???:)

As someone else has said somewhere on this forum - "Just because you can, doesn't mean you should"!:)

Yes, I was wondering this too - it's no longer the place it was in its heyday. The glamour of yesteryear has long since gone. Unless I missed it, you didn't say WHEN you'll be there - Deauville in November I'd avoid like the plague!

Honfleur is much more attractive. And it's true about roads in rural Normandie, once off the autoroute you can just amble and you'll be driving on the same side of the road as you would at home.:)

Hello

I don't know where you looked, but on the official SNCF website the journey time is more than 3 hours in either direction and will necessitate changing trains in Rouen and Lisieux.

Driving will take 51 minutes and is 44kms and there is a toll of €5.90 in each direction on the Pont de Normandie. Use Viamichelin for driving instructions as they are very detailed and accurate.

Seems like a no brainer to me!:)

Chacun à son goût Persephone, but if you had legs like mine, you'd keep them covered up too!! :D I very rarely wear dresses or skirts.

I have never seen Europeans wearing white anything anywhere during any time of the year.

Did you not read my previous posts? I live here - I ought to know:)

Actually I think the OP was enquiring about Aix-en-Provence, not Eze, but certainly reserving for lunch is advisable:)