Avalon Grand France (Creativity & Scenery) Review

[webfoot]

As I had promised several members, I have now completed my review of the Avalon Grand France trip we took in April. Please note that I listed each city we visited and what tours were included along with those we took. I did not go into depth on any of them, so if you have any specific questions, please let me know.

 

http://www.cruisecritic.com/memberreviews/memberreview.cfm?EntryID=67799.

[cbb]

Webfoot,

Looks like I get to be the first to thank you for a wonderful and informative review of your trip. We are signed up to do this Sept '11 and are really looking forward to it, especially the Normandy Beaches. Sounds like you had a wonderful time. Was surprised that the food was found to be wanting sometimes; we took the Mag. Europe in Sept '08 and thought that the food was wonderful, especially when they served us food "from the area" we were sailing through. Perhaps the corporate people will read your comments and review and things will change. Thanks again...planning another trip?

[webfoot]

Don't get me wrong, the food wasn't bad ... just not as good as it could have been ... mainly due to the heavy use of salt in the kitchen. Both my husband and I need to have low-sodium diets. Last year we were on the maiden voyage of the Affinity and the food was excellent. That cruise consisted of the best of all of the employees ...

 

I was glad that they offered chicken and salmon each evening as an alternative to the 3 or 4 main courses. Our CD worked with the chef to go to markets several days and bring back local food, such as white asparagus. Yummy. And, of course, local wines were very good.

 

I would hope to travel again on a river cruise but probably not next year.

[cbb]

Trust me...I totally understand the salt thing. We were with relatives last month and my brother-in-law asked me what I was doing. I was simply doing what I always do with my napkin....attempting to wipe off the salt on french fries....and I do the same thing with chips!! Never cook with it and have lost all taste for it! The next morning I have huge bags under my eyes until i can "drink them away!"

[webfoot]

I hope that our 'complaints' were taken seriously. When you get on the ship, you can meet with the dining room manager and explain that you need food that is low-sodium. and they will help you with your food selections. Sometimes it is as simple as serving a sauce on the side.

[Jswen]

Oh my goodness....what a great review, how can we wait till the end of August for our Grand France Trip?

Thanks so much.

I do have several questions: Did you take the "cruise air" option?

Which airline did you fly with?

We are on Air France out of LAX direct to Paris. The reviews on AF are very mixed so we are hoping for the best.

Again, Thanks for taking the time.

J

[webfoot]

We planned to go to France about 10 days prior to the cruise and then stay a few extra days in Nice, so we booked our own air with KLM ... which is part of Air France. This was the first airline that allowed us to order low-sodium meals, which is a plus for us. KLM treated us well ... I would not hesitate to fly them again. With KILM we could not get a direct flight so we flew from Dulles to Amsterdam to Paris and then our return was Nice to Amsterdam to Dulles.

 

We took cruise air last year with British Airways and also were treated well. We fly out of IAD (Dulles) and the BA flight took us to London and then Amsterdam and on the way home to London and then back to Dulles.

[BigGuy25]

Webfoot ... we sailed on the Scenery just two years ago (October 08) during her inaugural season. You mentioned that you thought she was "older." Is she already showing signs of wear-and-tear?

[webfoot]

No ... not at all .. we were told that they had changed the carpets, etc., to make the ship a little more modern ... whatever that means ... it was still a wonderful ship ... both of them were...

[nomadguy]

Thanks webfoot; this helps to get a better idea on the itinerary and what might be seen. I'm somewhat considering the "Paris to Normandy's Beaches" itinerary and have some questions that might help me decide if I can make this trip -

 

how did you get from the airport to your hotel and what did you think of it?

where did you pick up the ship on the Seine?

what hotel did Avalon use?

did the ship go through any locks?

is the cruise itself "scenic"?

would you consider any cabins on the "P" royal deck less desirable as far as location is concerned?

how long is the trip back to Paris from Normandy's beaches?

Did you travel back to Paris by bus or train? (I assume it's a very early day on the last day to get back to the airport for a departure.)

What was it like navigating Charles DeGauille Airport on arrival? and on departure? (I've heard that the signage is awful and the folks aren't very helpful so I'm a little leery about going on my own - would consider booking either a private or a shared shuttle with airport-connection.com for drop off directly at the hotel.)

 

Any observations on the exertion needed to keep up this itinerary - is there a balance of busing/walking or is it all walking? Is the walking all uphill, relatively flat or a mix?

 

I'd probably skip Versailles/Louvre b'c of the walking involved and go to Moulin Rouge that evening instead. In Conflans, I'd probably opt for the village where Van Gogh spent time. In Roeun not sure which excursion I'd select since I've been to charming Honfleur before. Would want to attempt to see the American Landing Beaches. (Can you comment on the walking involved for that tour?) Are there any excursions you would avoid (or specifically sign up for) if you had walking limitations?

 

Appreciate any insight you can provide.

[webfoot]

I will try to answer your questions one at a time:

 

how did you get from the airport to your hotel and what did you think of it?

We arrived about 10 days early and did some sightseeing on our own. We didn't use the Le Meridien Montparnasse except for the meeting place. Last year we did stay there and it was very nice. Last year when we left from Paris, we took the Air France shuttle which was across the street from the hotel. It was reasonable. I do not know if they pick up at the airport or not but going to our hotel in Paris from the airport we took a taxi for about 45 Euros for the two of us.

 

where did you pick up the ship on the Seine?

There is another thread on this subject "Avalon Grand France" which can give you a better idea than I can ... all I remember is that it was between two bridges and near the Statue of Liberty. You could see the Eifel Tower from there.

 

what hotel did Avalon use?

Le Meridien Montparnasse

 

did the ship go through any locks?

No ...

 

is the cruise itself "scenic"?

Yes, we found it was quite scenic. We enjoyed looking at the little villages

 

would you consider any cabins on the "P" royal deck less desirable as far as location is concerned?

Our cabin was near the back of the P level and it was fine ... no extra noise even considering that the back lounge was just 3 cabins away.

 

how long is the trip back to Paris from Normandy's beaches?

The Normandy tours are done on a Sunday and the tour is over on Tuesday morning, which is when the tour arrives back in Paris

 

 

Did you travel back to Paris by bus or train? (I assume it's a very early day on the last day to get back to the airport for a departure.)

Travel back was still on the ship.

 

What was it like navigating Charles DeGauille Airport on arrival? and on departure? (I've heard that the signage is awful and the folks aren't very helpful so I'm a little leery about going on my own - would consider booking either a private or a shared shuttle with airport-connection.com for drop off directly at the hotel.)

We had no problems at all at CDG. Everyone was very helpful. We had always heard that the people there weren't friendly but we didn't find it that way.

 

Any observations on the exertion needed to keep up this itinerary - is there a balance of busing/walking or is it all walking? Is the walking all uphill, relatively flat or a mix?

Walking is done for most of the included tours and the area does have some uphill and downhill walking but it wasn't too bad. Several of the included tours went by bus and once we got there the walking was fairly flat but we did have some stairs to go up.

 

I'd probably skip Versailles/Louvre b'c of the walking involved and go to Moulin Rouge that evening instead. In Conflans, I'd probably opt for the village where Van Gogh spent time. In Roeun not sure which excursion I'd select since I've been to charming Honfleur before. Would want to attempt to see the American Landing Beaches. (Can you comment on the walking involved for that tour?) Are there any excursions you would avoid (or specifically sign up for) if you had walking limitations?

I will check my notes and get back to you on this one.

[webfoot]

I'd probably skip Versailles/Louvre b'c of the walking involved and go to Moulin Rouge that evening instead. In Conflans, I'd probably opt for the village where Van Gogh spent time. In Roeun not sure which excursion I'd select since I've been to charming Honfleur before. Would want to attempt to see the American Landing Beaches. (Can you comment on the walking involved for that tour?) Are there any excursions you would avoid (or specifically sign up for) if you had walking limitations?

We took the trip to the Norman Road Abbeys and really liked it. There was walking but we stopped many times for our tour guide to translate what the Monk told her.

 

As for the American Landing Beaches, I do believe that there was a lot of walking. My husband took that trip and unfortunately tripped getting off the bus and hurt himself so he wasn't able to go to some of the stops. We had been to one of the stops earlier in the month and walking wasn't too bad. I believe that when they went to Pointe du Hoc that there was a lot of walking to get to the monument.

 

Several people on our trip did have limited mobility and they often just went along on the tour and stopped when they had to. Also you can work with the cruise director to determine which trips will be best. It is hard for me with no mobility issues to address your question. My husband had limited mobility prior to his fall and after that we purchased him a cane and it made his walking easier.

 

Runden, another of the posters on cruise critic may have some other opinions.

[nomadguy]

thank you Pat! This helps. For some reason I was thinking the next trip started at Normandy and we had to be bussed back to Paris. I'm grateful that's not the case as it'll be much more relaxing just to be on the ship as we sail back to Paris. Will be able to see places a second time!

[nafziger]

Webfoot, thank you for the great review. We have booked the Grand France with Provence extention for Sept. 2011. Your review was a big help.

Dave

[webfoot]

Hi Dave, I hope you have as wonderful a time as we did ... we hated to get off the ship.

[Emma Chisit]

Hi. Enjoyed your review very much.

Someone on these CC boards (maybe you?) said they preferred the Normandy part of the Grand France trip on 'Creativity' to the Provence part on 'Scenery'? We considered doing the Normandy tour but ruled it out because we've been to Normandy before. Now I'm wondering if sailing on the Seine itself is the interesting bit, ports of call aside..

After all, we enjoyed sailing on the Rhone, even though we'd been to some of the places before.

[webfoot]

Hi Emma ... it is hard to say which I liked best. I wanted to see Monet's gardens and was so glad that I had that chance. I also loved the trip to the Benedictine Abbey. The city of Rouen was lovely. My husband liked his trip to the battlefields ...

 

The southern area had it's charm also ... loved our stops ... food was great ... so, I guess overall I like the entire trip!!!

[Emma Chisit]

.... so, I guess overall I like the entire trip!!!

Sounds like it! Thanks for the information, we had been to the Normandy beaches, Giverny and Rouen, so decided just to do the Rhone cruise to the south. There's always next time! We really think that river cruising is great, whether the places are new to you or not....

[nafziger]

Hi Dave, I hope you have as wonderful a time as we did ... we hated to get off the ship.

 

How tough is Avalon with luggage requirements ....and do they have size limits. We have done 6 blue water cruises and will do on more this fall with Princess. Like most women my wife is a big packer.

Thanks

Dave

[webfoot]

We each had a 30" suitecase. I had a large carry-on bag while my husband has a small wheeled suitcase and his CPAP machine. We had no problems with the amount of luggage we had ... some folks brought two suitcaes that would have been checked baggage.

 

The suitcases fit nicely under the bed and there is plenty of closet and drawer space.

[Emma Chisit]

How tough is Avalon with luggage requirements ....and do they have size limits.

 

I'd just add to what Webfoot said... my suggestion if you are travelling at any stage by bus - with your luggage. We had to go by bus from Paris to Chalon at the start, and from Arles to Nice at the end. The Paris-Chalon trip was 3-4 hours.

There isn't much room inside the bus for a large carry-on, it won't fit on the shelf above your head, and not enough room under seat in front either. You can't rely on there being vacant seats to stack carryon bags on board the bus, our buses were pretty full. So big pieces of hand luggage will need to go in the luggage hold of the bus, for your comfort. Just make sure you have your fragile items & valuables accessible in your hand luggage, so you can get them out of your carryon easily, and not risk them being damaged under the bus with the large bags.

[Nippy Sweetie]

I would completely agree with the previous post and would add that our bus was very full and the distance betwen each seat was very close- wouldnt be allowed on an airline. I`m 5ft 8 ins & DH 6ft. We were very uncomfortable. Absolutely no chance of anything but the tiniest handbag. Maybe they`ve changed the bus company. I certainly hope so!!

[franski]

Actually, there are locks on the Seine...

 

I was surprised the when we went through the 1st one, as I was not expecting it. Loved them - fascinating to travel through.