Best way to purchase train tickets from Paris to Bordeaux??

We are a group of 9 people that are staying in Paris for 4 nights, and have rented a house in Castlenaud and plan to take the train to Bordeaux and drive to Castlenaud via St. Emillion. How do I buy the train tickets? Any help would be apprecitated!

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Easiest way is Rail Europe but more expensive than buying directly online on the SNCF website. Search for Morgan B%26#39;s thread if you want to buy through the SNCF.

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You can easily buy the tickets on the SNCF website :

www.voyages-sncf.com

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Tickets can be ordered up to 90 days in advance. On SNCF check for prem fares.

Or you can order them over the phone and have them mailed to you.

33-8-92-35-35-39

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Hi nevaway

Here is the MorganB thread that yymca6 mentioned

tripadvisor.com/…3511456

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Removed on: 3:16 am, August 23, 2009

Apartment on Rue Saint Gilles in 3e - good area?

Hello, I am thinking of renting an apartment on Rue Saint Gilles near rue de Tournelles. I am not familiar with the Marais...is this a good area to be in? I would like to be in very close proximity to shops, restaurants, cafes, etc., and just basically in a lively neighborhood. (Not a party atmosphere, just an area that%26#39;s inviting to stroll in.) Would this part of the Marais fit the bill?

In case this info is useful to know, I%26#39;m in my early 3os, travelling with my boyfriend, and intend to do a LOT of eating and even more shopping! We do want to eat in neighborhood bistros, as well as going to Mariage Freres, having macarons and chocolate chaud, and seeing some open-air markets. Any advice on whether this is a good base is appreciated.

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Hi s323, that is a great location in the Marais just about 150m north of Place des Vosges and close to the Musee Carnavalet and Musee Picasso. You are also quite close to the Bastille and the Oberkampf areas for nightlife. Plenty of good places to eat in the area too. There is a good food market in the Place d%26#39;Aligre near the Bastille with cheese shops, butchers, seafood shops, charcuteries etc in a covered market and lots of fruit and vegetable stalls in the street outside. There is also a covered food market in rue de Bretagne to the north.

Check out your address on this site to get an idea of what your street looks like

http://photos.pagesjaunes.fr/

This site will give you an idea of what you will find in the northern (3rd) area of the Marais

www.parismarais.com/historical-marais.htm

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Removed on: 10:15 am, August 23, 2009

Seine dinner cruise

I have just booked a Valentines day dinner cruise on the Seine for my wife and I. Has anyone ever done it? Will we enjoy it?

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Hello Chris and welcome to the forum. If you do a search of %26quot;Seine/ River Cruises%26quot; you%26#39;ll see many responses...however.....

General feedback seems to be that it%26#39;s pretty pricey for the meal quality - however it is good for a memorable occasion - which it appears to be as you%26#39;ve got it booked for Valentine%26#39;s day - your wife is a lucky gal!

enjoy!!

Sandra

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Yes, I did it last year. It was nice enough but the food was just ok and quite expensive. If I were you I would go to a nice restaurant such as the many recommended on this board then take a cruise afterward. I%26#39;m pretty sure there are some you can take without dinner that are very nice.

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Removed on: 9:15 pm, August 22, 2009

eaterys in antibes-juan-les-pins

I will be spending a couple days at the Mexicana hotel and looking for suggestions on budget minded places to eat.I%26#39;ll be there early Oct....tanks for any suggestions Loretta

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Cafe de Chineurs, Antibes, does excellent food at very reasonable cost in good location.

Only thing to watch is the occasional outbreak of %26quot;French Waiter%26quot; Syndrome. The food is really good and eaten there many times, but last trip we were forced to walk out , after twenty minutes of no-one willing to take our order, waiters just scuttling backward and forward avoiding eye contact. We gave up.

But its good enough to go back.

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Greetings Loretta,

Had some great shellfish at L%26#39;Oursin in Antibes last year. It was located on rue Republique, and there were some other retaurants in the same area. Pimm%26#39;s for an atmospheric coffee, was a local hangout. Also had great mussels at Le Ruban Bleu on the Promenade du Soleil in Juan-les- Pins. Enjoy!

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many thanks for the suggestions.I%26#39;m not teribly fond of seafood so I may be in trouble.Any other places that may lean more heavily on veggies ?? Loretta

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Removed on: 9:20 pm, August 22, 2009

Laundry

I%26#39;m planning to go to paris this summer for 2 weeks.I know this should be the last thing to think of when planning a visit to this beautiful city, but I was wondering where can I find laundry facilities around my hotel area?

I booked two hotels : first 7 nights at hotel opera folkestone in opera/ Madeline area and then 7 nights in hotel d%26#39;albe st michel area. does any one have an idea what%26#39;s the most practical way that doesn%26#39;t cost a fortune to do a laundry ?

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We%26#39;ve had similar questions before - for a variety of answers do a search. THere are launderettes in Paris; average €3.50 for a wash and weird pricing for dryers - could be 40 centimes for 8 minutes, 50 for ten minutes etc. etc.

Get a map of Paris, go t pagesjaunes.fr, type in %26quot;Laverie en libre service%26quot; as your search item and the location %26quot;Paris 8%26quot; or whatever to work out your nearest.

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Thanx alot for the info. btw the link in your post is in french but in the top right is the UK flag for the english language version .

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Yeah sorry, forgot they have English too. Happy hunting :-)

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i will be using self-launderettes as well but am wondering,

do i need to bring some detergent? does it matter liquid or powder. I could use some tips as last year I turned our load of laundry grey! (this was washer in apartment) :)

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I have been in the same predicament as you. When I was in Rome last year, I simply brought my laundry to a Chinese laundry in the morning and picked it up in the afternoon. It was about $15. It was nicely washed, dried and folded and I didn%26#39;t ned to wait around for hours.

When I was in Mexico last week, I had an apartment with a washer/dryer but I had to go out and buy laundry detergent, which was enough detergent for about a month%26#39;s use.

So, my suggestion is to find a laundry where they will do it for you. If you plan to do it on your own, bring some powdered laundry detergent with you (remember, limited liquids on the plane), or bring some of those small personal-size packs of detergent. Knowing Paris, laundry detergent will be costly there.

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b --

Don%26#39;t ask for directions at your hotel, they prefer to do your laundry at their high prices - and the fact of the matter is that underwear and tee shirts are cheaper to replace than the price for most hotel laundry services - and that%26#39;s everywhere in the world I%26#39;ve ever been, except small inns in Tanzania.

Ask at your corner brasserie - often the at least some of the staff there drop their laundry off in the morning and pick it up on the way home, so someone there will have your answer. It%26#39;s always worked for me.

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This post is very helpful. We are staying in an apartment for two weeks this March and it does have a washer but after reading all the horrow stories re: drying time, I will try BC1Traveler%26#39;s suggestion of asking at the corner brasserie. Thanks!

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Most places have detergent dispensers - but they%26#39;re not cheap. I can%26#39;t see any reason not to use liquid but I%26#39;ve only ever seen powder or tablets being used.

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I was able to buy a small bottle of Tide for $1.79. I found it in the travel section at Target. It was enough for 4 loads and was small enough that it took up very little space in my luggage. they also had travel size packets of Woolite. I%26#39;ve seen laundrymats all over Paris. Just never when you seem to need one. As far as washing in the apartment if its just small stuff like underwear. Wash it and hang it up to dry. For towels we washed them in the apartment while we were out and took them down the street to the laundrymat to dry while we shopped for dinner supplies. We happened to be staying just off Rue Cler that time so it was really convenient.

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Suzanne,

With the liquid container restrictions when traveling from the US, it makes it nearly impossible to bring liquid detergent with you purchased from a place like Target.

50th wedding anniversary dinner

My parents will be celebrating their 50th in paris. I am looking for a nice but not over the top restaurant that we can take them to. In addition to 4 adults, my children 6 and 9 will be with us. So, I need a nice upscale restaurant that won%26#39;t mind two well behaved children (who have very good manners and used to eating in fine establishments) who love gourmet food. 50 years is a great reason to celebrate!

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Jules Verne on the Eiffel Tower?? That%26#39;s pretty special....

Les

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I agree with Jules Verne suggestion. Here%26#39;s a link:

tour-eiffel.fr/teiffel/…index.html

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We celebrated our 50th last June and had very good dinner at Goumard on the actual night. But with children, I would suggest Les Bouquinistes where we ate on an other night. It is a bit less formal, located by the Seine, great service and wonderful food.

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I am sorry, but Jules Verne is pretty much over the top. It would also take about three hours for dinner, which is a challenge for your average 6 and 9 year olds.

For something more affordable, a bit more relaxed, but also breathtaking you could look at :

Georges on the roof of the Centre Pompidou - great view, very modern environment, fusion food.

Le Train Bleu in the Gare de Lyon - this is a Beaux Arts historical monument. The decor alone makes you feel very special and the food is good.

One of the Flo Brasseries - this chain has purchase many of hte most beautiful and historic brasseries in the city. Go to their website and check out the ones that tempt you the most.

I love the food at Bouquinists, but frankly, you could be fine dining just about any where in the world. For this event I would want something that screams Paris.

The is a N. African restaurant on top of the Institute du Monde Arab that has good food and spectacular view.

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This restaruant is one block away from Notre Dame Cathedrale (direction of the right bank) not far away from the 5e Latin Quarter...

This cute little restaruant called %26quot;Au Vieux Paris d%26quot;Arcole%26quot;.

www.auvieuxparis.fr

The building is ivy covered, and very romantic and cozy looking inside ( rue Chanoinesse).

The menu looks great. You can make reservations on line and get a free wine. The Orange Duck is very good.

They do have rooms to accommodate small groups. And it is in a reasonable price range. Children there should be no problem at all.

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I only mentioned jules verne because of special occasion, gourmet food...

Sorry...I wasn%26#39;t thinking of the timing issue. My bad I guess. Just a suggestion though!

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My mom had actually mention Jules Verne as a thought. I guess my kids aren%26#39;t average since I don%26#39;t think a 3 hour meal would be an issue. I%26#39;ve gotten the evil eye just for stepping foot in certain restaurants with my kids. Would this be an issue?

Thanks for all the other suggestions too. I%26#39;m going to check them out in case M%26amp;D don%26#39;t want to go to Jules Verne -or we can%26#39;t get in on June 28th!(and for other nights out) We have an apartment, but mom aready says she doensn%26#39;t want to eat dinner in!

My dad will have just finished radiation for a reoccurance of cancer, and we want to celebrate!!! I%26#39;ve already gain 5 pounds just thinking of all the wonderful food.

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If you don%26#39;t think your kids would mind the lengthy meal, I think the Jules Verne is probably a great place to celebrate such a wonderful occasion. It would be unforgettable. And I am sure that if your kids are well behaved, they will be treated like a little Mademoiselle and Monsieur...(boy and girl?)

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Les - you were not wrong, I was merely trying to respect OP%26#39;s request for %26quot;not over the top%26quot;.

Muffya - If you agree that Parisian kids in general are well behaved at the dinner table and love gourmet food, perhaps you would like to draw from the wisdom of their parents : children and Haute Cuisine dot not mix, with the possible exception of Sunday lunch.

If you want the Jules Verne, I HIGHLY recommend that you go for lunch instead of dinner. It is easier for the kids at this hour and the meals only last 2 to 2.5 hours. Actually, I find it easier for adults at this time of day and infinitely more enjoyable, which is essential when spending $200 per person. Oh, and you will get considerably less evil eyes (none, actually) in the afternoon.

If you really must do dinner, I would recommend trying a three hour sit down meal at home with the kids to see how it goes. At a restaurant like this, books and activities would be inappropriate and getting up regularly is out of the question.

check out their menu at

bestrestaurantsparis.com/restaurant-paris/de…

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%26lt;My dad will have just finished radiation for a reoccurance of cancer, and we want to celebrate!!! I%26#39;ve already gain 5 pounds just thinking of all the wonderful food.%26gt;

All the more reason to celebrate at a memorable restaurant. Best wishes to you and your family!

Train travel

We are going to France in July and are trying to decide whether to hire a car for all of the time or whether train travel would be an easier option. As a family(children 17, 15, 13 %26amp; 13) are there any good deals available for tickets/family railcards etc?

Fly into Paris

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It%26#39;s hard to give you any kind of worthwhile answer without some idea of your itinerary. Some places you really need a car, other places a car is the last thing you want.

There are significant advance purchase discounts (non-refundable) for longer trips and also some discounts that will apply automatically if you are booking for a party of six.

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Thanks IrishRvr

Our problem is that we haven%26#39;t decided where we are going other than that we are flying into Beauvais, Paris and are going to the Genesis concert at Parc Des Princes. We still have to decide whether we are going to travel a bit %26amp; come back to Paris to fly home or travel south as far as Marseille to fly home or Grenoble if Ryanair eventually put on flights back from there!! We have been advised not to hire a car in Paris!!

As I%26#39;ve asked in a previous forum any suggestions would be welcome!

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First off you definitely do NOT want a car in Paris. Probably the chepaest way for you to get from BVA to your hotel would be to take the airport coach to Porte Maillot on the western edge of Paris (13€ pax) and then, assuming you are travelling reasonably light, the métro from there to your hotel.

Obviously in July the south of France will be very busy, especially along the coast. What I would be tempted to do would be take the TGV (high speed train) from Paris to Avignon and then pick up a (large!) vehicle and head AWAY from the coast and the most touristy parts of Provence, either NW up into the Cévennes or NE up into the Lubéron and the foothills of the Alps. If the Grenoble flight is an option you could end up there and fly home. Otherwise even if you head away from the coast it would be fairly easy to get back to Marseille.

The six of you could travel one way from Paris to Avignon by train for as little as 150€ with advance purchase tickets. It would probably cost you more than that in fuel and tolls to drive from Paris, tplus the cost of the vehicle. And it would take 7-8 hours to drive whereas the train would take you 2.5-3 hours.

I hope this helps your thinking. Ask away if you have any more questions.

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Removed on: 3:17 am, August 23, 2009