Country in Western Europe known for food, culture, and architecture, with a Mediterranean coast and Paris as its capital and largest city.
5
votes
2answers
110 views
Western Union collection from another post office in France?
A bit of an emergency, my prepaid Euro card has broken and the company Travelex has sent a money gram with the balance of the card to a Post office in Merebel ski resort which is in the valley next to ...
7
votes
1answer
176 views
What's the cheapest way to travel from Paris to Madrid by train?
I am planning to travel from Northern Germany to Madrid by train in March.
I found an offer for a night train to Paris for 43 Euro which is pretty cheap.
From Paris to Madrid, my local train ...
2
votes
2answers
100 views
Renting a holiday house in the Riviera with a small child
Where is the best place to do holiday rentals for a holiday house in the Riviera? Any particular webpage or operator would be appreciated.
We are considering somewhere between Antibes and Nice, but ...
7
votes
4answers
174 views
Is it possible to make last-minute reservations on the City Night Train?
I'd like to take the overnight train ("City Night Line") from Germany to France in a few days. The bahn.de site shows the existence of the train, and gives a price ("from 330 EUR") but says it is too ...
8
votes
3answers
152 views
In the Loire Valley, are there any “arty” caves that can be visited?
The Tuffeau stone that makes up the bulk of the Loire Valley has been used for building for millennia, and this has left behind a lot of caves. It has also left us lots of lovely buildings too - most ...
9
votes
2answers
388 views
How to travel between castles in the Loire valley?
I'm planning to visit Loire valley and spend a week there. I know that I can travel from Paris to Tours by TGV, but I don't know what is the best way to explore the valley and visit individual ...
6
votes
2answers
141 views
Getting on Eurostar at the wrong station
I have bought return tickets from London to Lille Europe on Eurostar. The trains on my outward and inbound journeys both stop at Calais Frethun.
Will Eurostar let me get on in Calais on the inbound? ...
6
votes
2answers
201 views
Can you use your mobile phone in the channel tunnel?
The Channel Tunnel (Le tunnel sous la Manche) is a ~50km tunnel (well, a series of 3 tunnels) running between England and France, used by both high-speed Eurostar trains and slower car trains / ...
7
votes
1answer
93 views
Traveling to France before date of the long sejour visa
I would like to travel to France before the starting date of my long sejour visa. I thought it will be no problem since I can travel to the Schengen only with my passport without asking any permission ...
6
votes
1answer
78 views
Taking camping food for Skiing in Val Thorens?
I am going on a ski trip with Wasteland Ski in January to Val Thorens and the three valleys also.
After looking at some of the restaurants in Val Thorens being quite expensive and the fact that I ...
5
votes
1answer
109 views
Driving License required for travelling to France from UK
What driving license is required for driving in France from UK? Is it paper, card or both? The gov.uk site says:
You can use your Great Britain (GB) or Northern Ireland driving
licence in all ...
7
votes
2answers
81 views
Euro Rail Pass in non-native country
Can I get a Euro Rail Pass in France considering that I haven't applied for it in my native country i.e. India?
7
votes
4answers
98 views
Last minute reservation of hostels in France
I've arranged a inter rail, with couch surfing as solution to sleep in the night.
Lets say I have an inconvenient, and I need to reserve a hostel on the same day for the night: is it easy to find a ...
4
votes
1answer
334 views
Can I visit Schengen countries on a long term French Visa?
I have requested for a french long term student visa from India.Its a France visa and not a Schengen visa. My question is that can we still go to other Schengen countries on this visa? If not then ...
8
votes
1answer
3k views
How to get from Nice to Monaco by public transport?
What's the simplest and cheapest way to get from central Nice, France to Monaco by public transportation?
28
votes
3answers
1k views
Saving leftovers from restaurants in Paris
Doggy bags for saving leftovers in restaurants are extremely common in the USA, especially as portions sizes are usually too large to consume in one meal.
But I have read in various forums that it ...
10
votes
1answer
739 views
Paris on a Tuesday - are the Louvre and the Pompidou Centre the only “big” attractions that are closed?
One that's caught me out before is that the Louvre is closed on Tuesdays. It looks like the Centre Pompidou is also closed Tuesdays (French - Tuesday=Mardi).
However, the Paris Modern Art Museum ...
12
votes
3answers
371 views
How do you avoid the hefty toll fee on the French highways?
Some of the toll fee's on the French highways are hefty. I know that you can avoid them by taking the route national, where some are almost like highways. I don't mind traveling a little bit longer to ...
6
votes
2answers
315 views
Accepted student with long sejour visa (OFII) to France, but arriving as tourist
I have been accepted as student for the 2013 January intake. Since the “lettre de attestation” says the program will start by the 4th of January I suppose my visa will be valid just before the program ...
7
votes
2answers
247 views
Paying French parking ticket from abroad
I got a parking ticket for apparently parking my rental car in the wrong place in front of my hotel. But as I had to leave quickly to get my flight back home, I was unable to pay it in France.
I ...
6
votes
5answers
2k views
Can I buy a prepaid mobile data plan while on route in France?
I will be driving through France soon and would like to have a local prepaid sim with data capabilities. I found a very interesting sollution in the French Connection, but I need a French delivery ...
5
votes
1answer
2k views
How do Eurolines compare to IDBus for the London ↔ Paris route?
As well as the usual options of Fly, Train (Eurostar), or drive/train + ferry + drive/train, there are now two coach operators running quite a few services between London and Paris. Eurolines have ...
5
votes
1answer
250 views
Visiting Formula 1 Monaco GP on a tight budget
Racing is in my blood. I love Formula 1 and I have already watched live races in Germany and Belgium. But I'm dreaming of the Monte Carlo GP.
The problem is - MONEY. So what's gonna be the cheapest ...
4
votes
2answers
151 views
Most convenient train to arrive in France from Amsterdam?
I need to travel from Amsterdam to France by train.
I'm not visiting Paris, but many cities all around the country.
What's the most convenient train to arrive in France ?
I've heard there is a train ...
7
votes
2answers
267 views
Does the Carte 12-25 still exist in France?
Back in the day, I used a "Carte 12-25" discount card to obtain discounts on rail travel in France. I see that the 12-25 card has a website, complete with a spot to order, but the main page seems to ...
8
votes
4answers
345 views
Daytrip castles outside Paris
We will spend a couple of days in Paris early fall and would like to spend at least one day visiting a castle or small town with old city centre. What options are there?
We have already done ...
4
votes
3answers
153 views
Clarification on early-disembarkation on with a Schengen visa in alternate country
I'm a Nigerian with a 3 month Schengen visa to Athens, Greece double entry. My flight is Air France route Lagos-France-Greece. Can I be stamped in at France at a port of entry before my connecting ...
23
votes
7answers
2k views
If I travel to Paris, can I get by with just English?
If I plan on visiting Paris, but not really the rest of France, is it still important for me to learn at least enough French to get by? Are people in Paris going to be willing to speak English if they ...
4
votes
1answer
69 views
Is Colmar's railway station next to the city center?
I'm thinking about taking a train to Colmar to do some sightseeing there. But is the railway station next to the city center, respectively the old town or is it far away?
10
votes
2answers
90 views
Route planner with heights (for bikes)
I use Google Maps to plan my bike routes inside Paris. However, it is missing height graphs of the routes (which is essential for biking). I would like such a site that would be capable of this. I may ...
14
votes
3answers
428 views
Why do there seem to be no long distance buses in France?
User iHaveacomputer's answer to a question about smoking and EU trains and buses mentions that
in Germany the state-owned railway has a monopoly on long-distance travel.
On my first trip to ...
6
votes
1answer
108 views
Getting from Lille to Paris by public transport, after 10pm
I've been looking at train times from Lille to Paris, and was rather surprised to discover that the last train back is very early. On Monday-Saturday it leaves Lille at 21:51, and gets into Paris at ...
3
votes
2answers
110 views
Using your passport / confirmation email as your ticket on a train from Barcelona to Lyon?
So currently traveling at the moment and last night i booked a train from Barcelona to Lyon. I used the tgv-europe.com and the last time I ordered a ticket from there it was easy, it just sent me a ...
5
votes
1answer
213 views
Which scenic road to take to the south of France?
We want to drive to the south of France, by avoiding Paris. Since we will be traveling with small children we want to take it very easy, and take some days to get there. I am familiar with the ...
5
votes
1answer
2k views
What is the difference between “Gazole” and “Diesel” in France
I am driving a car with a Diesel engine. I always thought that "Gazole" and "Diesel" were synonymous to each other, only to drive in a gas station which mentioned both terms, as in "Gazole" and ...
5
votes
2answers
283 views
Which trains in France are included in an InterRail card?
I have two questions related to an InterRail in France, I'm planning to have in August.
I'm planning to get an InterRail pass for France only, or for France and Benelux as well.
Not sure if there ...
10
votes
4answers
3k views
Paris Gare du Nord to Gare Montparnasse, by public transport but without lots of walking?
In a couple of weeks time, I'm off to the Loire by Eurostar + TGV, which means a cross Paris change. The Eurostar uses Gare du Nord, while the TGVs down to the Loire are at Gare Montparnasse.
One ...
12
votes
2answers
780 views
Finding a notary in France / Italy
I sometimes need to have documents notarized while travelling abroad. How can I find a notary in a foreign country? The U.S. embassies and consulates will notarize things for me, but this is ...
8
votes
3answers
301 views
Is it too far to go to Eastern Europe on a 5-6 week holiday if I land in Paris?
So we're landing in Europe in September and planning to stay for about 5-6 weeks.
We plan to land in Paris as it seems to have the cheapest flights from Australia but also we have to go to France ...
10
votes
3answers
161 views
How are road charges collected in France?
This summer we'll go to France by car for the first time. I noticed that some motorways on our route require road charge to be paid (in case it matters - we're going from Freiburg to Perpignan).
How ...
5
votes
4answers
148 views
Is there another way to book train tickets from outside France/Netherlands?
In the last two days I've tried to buy a train ticket from Rocamadour (France) to Amsterdam on the scnf-voyages.com website.
It doesn't work. The website gives the following error message:
Suite à ...
6
votes
1answer
92 views
About canceled trains in France
I've booked several train tickets for an inter rail in France.
I haven't bought any insurance in case of cancellation.
If a train is canceled or delayed by many hours, is there something I can do, or ...
6
votes
2answers
471 views
Collecting French (SNCF) “Ticket On Departure” tickets from outside of France?
For an upcoming trip, I've booked some TGV tickets through Rail Europe. They wanted a surprising amount of money for postage, so I opted instead for the free option of "Ticket On Departure", that is, ...
7
votes
1answer
216 views
I need some explanation about payment modalities on sncf-voyages.com website
I need some explanation about payment modalities on the sncf-voyages.com website.
These are the options:
Since I don't live in France, I can't use option 2.
It is not clear the difference between ...
5
votes
2answers
119 views
10 days in France - a trip from Amsterdam: is it worth buying an InterRail card?
I'm planing a 10 days InterRail trip in France, and I've summed up all point-to-point trains costs = 200 euro.
In addition there are the international trains to go and come from Amsterdam (my ...
4
votes
1answer
120 views
Visiting Rocamadour, France by train
Is Rocamadour rail station near the city centre? Can I go to visit Rocamadour by train, or do I need a car for it?
1
vote
1answer
113 views
Trains connections between Cannes and Montpellier
The train connection between Cannes and Montpellier seems to be A bit tricky.
There are trips with 2 or more trains changes. And then Ive found an intercitea for 30 euros only, every day at 16. Is it ...
3
votes
1answer
45 views
Using Eurorail to buy a flexible ticket in France?
I am currently travelling around France and having a good time.
I have a Eurail pass for eight journeys in France. I have used one of those journey from Paris to Rennes.
I was wondering is it ...
1
vote
1answer
86 views
What are these double prices on voyages-sncf.com?
I'm checking the train connections between Amsterdam and Strasbourg on Vojages-snfc.com and for each travel they offer 2 options. See the screenshot, there is a price in red and green but I don't ...
15
votes
4answers
320 views
Are there ways to keep long-distance land transport costs down in France when not planning in advance?
Ten years ago I travelled around Europe for the first time and in some countries I was very frustrated by high cost of trains and lack of alternatives to them.
I remember being in Cannes with a ...
