The best train deal in Alsace

Quite by accident, looking up the fare from Strasbourg to Mulhouse, I came upon one of the best transport bargains I’ve seen.   The TER (the regional train system in France) sells a one day pass for unlimited travel throughout Alsace, including the TER trains, local buses and trams.   For 34 Euros, the pass  (called the Alsa + Groupe Journée)  is good for up to 5 people (not necessary to be related) traveling together.   Good only on a Saturday, Sunday or holiday, but those are the best times for most excursions anyway.

Another pass, the Alsa + Individuel 24 heures, is good any day of the week, but costs 33 Euros and is valid for only one person.

We used the pass to go from Strasbourg to Mulhouse, to Colmar, and back again to Strasbourg, as well as for the tram in Strasbourg.   We could have gone in a different direction, or made multiple stops.  A super great deal.   You can't buy this ticket in the US though - passes can be bought at the local train stations.

If you read French, the pass is explained here:

http://www.ctbr67.fr/rubriquetarifs/alsa-plus/

Strasbourg - Marchés de Noel

Having recently spent a week in Strasbourg during the Christmas market season, I have a few hints and suggestions for anyone planning the trip.

First of all, do go.    

Strasbourg is a beautiful city of great charm and culture in any season, but nowhere else in France comes near the Christmas mood generated in Alsace.   It lasts the longest, offers the most variety, and yes, even the weather, which is wintery and sometimes snows, lends something to the mood.  There’s a reason for all that vin chaud.

 The Christmas markets in Alsace begin during the last week in November and continue on until the end of January.  Markets in Strasbourg and Colmar are non-stop;  markets in the smaller towns and villages are shorter or may be only one or two weekends.   We were there early, during the first week of December, and the crowds were already intense.

Forget driving

If you’re staying in Strasbourg, there’s an excellent tram and bus system that will get you anywhere you need to go, and if you stay at one of the major tourist hotels, you can virtually walk the entire city.   The views along the canals are lovely, the shop windows are full of beautiful things, and at night the lights are spectacular.  Walk.

If you want to visit some of the smaller towns, many are easily accessible by train.

Shop during the day

If you want to shop, it’s less busy during daylight hours.  In the evenings, the crowds gather and its sometimes hard to make your way through the aisles, especially at Place Broglie and around the Cathedrale.  

Lights, lights, lights

Every street has a different style of Christmas lighting, so go out after dark to get the full effect of it all.   Sip a vin chaud (plenty of non-alcoholic alternatives too if you prefer), taste the gingerbread or the bretzel, and walk from one market to the next.

 

The Markets

This year Strasbourg had eleven different locations around town where Christmas markets were set up – everything from the Russian handicrafts (this year’s international guest) to the foie gras market, to the traditional cookies (bredele) and local wine market.  Our favorite was the huge market at Place Broglie, which had lots of Christmas decorations and lights, as well as the Christmas tree market.  

And of course one market surrounds the Cathedral.

Strasbourg - that's in France?

When I told someone recently that I was off to Strasbourg and its Christmas markets, she frowned.  "That's in Germany, right?"

Well, no, not recently, though Strasbourg and Alsace have been traded back and forth for a long time.  You won't go wrong if you just say that people here are Alsatian, with their own history, culture, language, cuisine - and oh yes, the first Christmas market - in Europe - took place here, in Alsace in 1570.

The Christmas markets run from the end of November until NewYear in Strasbourg and Colmar, and on slightly lighter schedules throughout the smaller towns and villages of the region.   This year Strasbourg boasts 12 markets, spread all over town, with various specialties and moods.   Everywhere there's the scent of vin chaud (hot mulled wine) and stands selling cookies and bretzels and tarte flambée.   At night, with the whole city lit up and the crowds filling the streets, it's a midwinter carnival. 

Details to follow...

There's a M'App for That

For years I’ve been supplying clients with Paris city maps, Michelin route maps and all sorts of printed information.   I’m a map lover, and I’ll probably never stop using the paper variety.  But that pile of paper can take up a lot of room in the suitcase.

Though I’ve been slow to catch on, my last trip gave me a chance to use some of the smart phone options available.   It’s a revelation.   Of course some apps are a lot better than others.   Here are a few of my favorites for France:

City Maps to Go

For a whole host of cities in France and elsewhere in the world.   What I like best is that you can stretch it out large enough to read the street names and shrink it down so that you can see where you’re headed.  

Cost:  $1.99

France Travel Guide by Triposo

A good basic sightseeing guide for many major locations in France.

Cost:  Free

XE Currency

A basic currency exchange – up to date if your phone’s online. 

Cost:  Free

RATP

The guide to the Paris metro.  Maps of the metro lines, bus routes, RER and station exit maps.   You can map your trip across town, using subway,  bus or a combination.  Traffic reports too if you’re online.

Cost:  Free

SNCF

Train timetables and itineraries, maps of train stations. 

Cost:  Free

France 24

The news from France – in English.

Cost:  Free

Time Out Paris

One of my favorite restaurant and travel guides for Paris

Cost: Free

Pudlo 2012

A really good restaurant guide for Paris – in French

Cost:  $3.99

Set...

Someone asked me recently how I would pack for my upcoming trip of seven weeks.   The  answer ought to be – the same as for a shorter trip.   As little as possible.

The experienced traveler, it was said, was one who could stick her toothbrush in her  book – and leave.

The other old rule is to lay out everything you plan to take, then take half the clothes and twice the money.   Not bad advice.

Almost all of us end up carrying too much, and forgetting something that matters.  With more and more restrictions on baggage size and weight, with more fees for extra bags, it pays to travel light in more ways than one.   If you need a list of reasons, consider the following:

Most international flights still allow for one free checked bag and a carry-on.   Extra bags and extra weight bring extra fees.

Travelers using public transportation – bus, train, subway – move easier with fewer bags.   Many subway stops – and parts of train stations – lack elevators or escalators.   Lighter is better.

European cars are still smaller and have smaller trunk space.   Too much luggage and you may have to up the size of your rental just for the suitcases.

Lots of small, charming, historic hotels lack elevators too – they also lack bellboys.

Finally, you will probably buy things – which will add to the stuff you’re carrying.  Best to start out light, at least.

Packing Tips

Carryon luggage

Pack valuables and necessities in your carryon – that includes medications, glasses, tickets, itinerary information.

Carry your passport and money on your person – have photocopies stashed in your carryon and your checked luggage.  For women, a purse with a zippered section – for men, NEVER in your back packet.

Pack one change of clothes – or at least underwear – in your carryon.   If your checked luggage goes astray for a day or longer, you’ll be a lot more comfotable.

Carry electronics – computer, cameras, etc in your carryon.

Condensing the Necessary

If you carry a computer or tablet, lots of your travel information – guides, itinerary, local information – can be carried electronically.   Maps can be had from the tourist office.

If you have a smart phone, numerous travel apps can replace paper.   See the upcoming post for details on travel apps for France.

Pick a color for your wardrobe and take mix and match, layers, and, for women, a variety of scarves.  You’ll look very French.

Do Take:

Converter plugs for your appliances – computers, chargers, phones.   They’re small and necessary.

A small kit with eyeglass repair screws, small scissors, bandaids, aspirin, etc.

A corkscrew and knife (in your checked luggage) if you like to picnic.

Extra plastic bags for all kinds of uses

Don’t Take

Valuable jewelry

An alarm clock, if there’s one in your phone

A hairdryer, if you’re staying in hotels.  You might want one if you’re renting a house or apartment.

Underground in the Loire

The lovely limestone of the Loire valley, called tuffeau, has been quarried since the Middle Ages to build the houses, walls, castles and fortifications of the region.

Its production left behind thousands of kilometres of quarries and caves, which, over the centuries have been reused and adapted to hold everything from entire villages to mushroom production to upscale housing.

If you’re in the region and between chateau visits, you can stop for a meal at one of my favorites,  La Cave aux Moines,  whose restaurant, les Pieds Bleus (the Blue Feet!) serves a wonderful meal of rillettes, various kinds of mushrooms grown in the caves, and fouées, a flat bread baked in the wood-fired oven in the restaurant, all presented by candlelight and firelight, deep inside the troglodyte cave.  La Cave aux Moines is located on the main road between Tours and Saumur.   Here’s the website.

http://www.cave-aux-moines.comwww.cave-aux-moines.com

Another troglodyte restaurant in Montlouis (a great place to taste Loire valley wines), Restaurant La Cave, serves a more elegant (and expensive) menu.   The owners are also winemakers for 5 generations, and you can tour and taste the wines as well.

http://www.restaurant-la-cave.com

Le Jour de Merci Donnant

Happy Thanksgiving

Not a French holiday, but the classic description by columnist and humorist Art Buchwald explains it all to our friends in France.

Click here to read and enjoy:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/11/23/AR2005112302056.html

Ready...

Planning and packing for a long trip isn’t much different than packing for a shorter one, but there are a few extra things to think of when you’re headed across the pond to France.   As I’m getting ready for a long trip of my own,  I thought I’d share some of the things I’ve learned.

Everyone always asks about the best way to deal with money matters.   Here’s my list of things to know:

Notify your bank and credit card companies of your travel plans.

In the interest of fraud protection, you might find your credit or ATM card refused (or swallowed by the machine).  No fun at all. 

Changing money

In France and in much of western Europe, the easiest way to change money is via your ATM card.  It’s also the method with the best exchange rate.  However:

            If your password is a word, memorize the corresponding numbers i.e.  ohno = 6466.   French bank keypads have only numbers, not letters.

            Look for this symbol or one like it to find an ATM machine:

 

Your bank will probably charge a fee to make withdrawals, though some do not – check beforehand to see how much, and what your daily limit is.   French banks have a daily limit of 300 Euros, so even if your limit is higher, that’s all you can get in one day.  Doesn’t matter if it’s a different bank – 300 Euros a day from bank machines is all you’ll get.  Plan accordingly.

A few traveler’s checks as backup doesn’t hurt, but it’s no longer necessary in France.   Places to cash them are getting fewer and fewer, whereas bank machines that take your ATM card are everywhere and function 24/7.

Change a little money into Euros before you go, but wait until you’re in Europe to change large amounts.   You’ll get a much better rate.

Credit Cards

Visa and Mastercard are widely excepted.   Some merchants will not accept American Express, and virtually no one accepts Discover.

If you rent a car, the car rental company will put a hold on your credit card for the amount of the insurance deductible – usually between $500. and $1000.,  possibly more if you rent a luxury vehicle.  It won’t be charged to your card, but it will change your available credit.  Again, plan accordingly.

Carry at least one different credit card than your traveling companion, in case one of you has a problem with your card.

European credit and debit cards operate on a chip and pin technology as yet unused by most American credit card companies (some are just starting to try them out.)   What this means is that your American credit card does not work in many useful machines,   These include:

Ticket machines for train tickdets, metro tickets, bus tickets.

Bike rental in Paris (Velib) and elsewhere in France

Electric car rentals in Paris and Nice

Gas station pumps at automated stations (many have no human attendants after hours)

Machines that will provide cash against your regular Visa or Master Charge card charge exhorbitant exchange rates.   Avoid them.

Likewise, hotels will change money or cash traveler’s checks at very high rates.   Smile and say no thanks unless you’re either desperate or have money to burn.

Lots of money woes can be avoided by prepaying many costs before leaving home.  Hotels, trains, car rentals, guides – all can be prepaid.

Finally, if you are, for some reason, removing more than $10,000. cash from the US, Uncle Sam will want to know. 

E-Vasion by Bike

 

For several years Paris Charms & Secrets  (http://www.parischarmssecrets.com/)  has been running tours of the French capital on electric bicycles.   Their rep once explained to me that it meant that little old ladies could go just as fast as younger people on the tour.  I’m not sure what category he put me in.  

Now there’s an agency in Provence, in the Luberon, offering e-bike rentals and tours, starting from three different villages.   Sun-e-bike has 200 electric bicycles available departing from Bonnieux, Gordes, and Lauris, for 35 Euros a day (insurance is available, as are baby seats, extra batteries, and other items.)   They’re also offering pre-planned itineraries with hotel and transfers.   For Provence lovers, this looks like a great slowed-down way to explore the Luberon, with a little help getting up that hill in Gordes!

Sun-e-bike - http://www.location-velo-provence.com/en/bike-rental/bike-rental_12.2.htm

All That Jazz in Burgundy

 

 The French love jazz and of course, they love wine, so it makes sense to put the two together.   Jazz å Beaune, music and wine festival, takes place on October 18, 19 and 20 this year.  International jazz musicians, young and upcoming talent and oh yes – Burgundy tasting before each performance.   Tickets on sale on the Beaune tourist office site, some free concerts on the first day, jam sessions late into the night on the last.

http://www.beaune-tourism.com/burgundy-news/Jazz-A-Beaune.asp

Fork It Over!

  -->

One of my best discoveries this year was La Fourchette, an online restaurant reservation service in Paris and elsewhere in France.   Available in French (www.lafourchette.com ) or in English (www.thefork.com) , it costs nothing to subscribe and offers a painless way to make sure you’ve got a dinner reservation.

Restaurants are sorted by location, price range, ambiance, and cuisine, so you can pick your neighborhood, your budget or your menu for the evening.   Many of the restaurants offer discounts for booking through the service.   Restaurants are rated, though I take that as I take all ratings, with a healthy bit of skepticism.  You can also preview the menu without doing all that walking.

Paris dominates, but most major cities in France are well-represented, and there’s a good selection in Spain as well.  And no, it’s not every restaurant, but you’ll find plenty of well-known names, along with some more modest ones.

La Fourchette is easy to use – once you subscribe, you can request a reservation for a particular date and time, and receive a comfirmation by e-mail or text.   Only once in a couple of weeks did a restaurant come back unavailable.

Apps available for your iPhone or Android too.   Bon Appetit!

P.S.  No - the fork in the picture's not in France.  Any guesses?

Picking a Paris Apartment

 If you've decided to go the apartment route, especially in Paris, it pays to do your homework.

Picking the Perfect Paris Apartment

 

Picking a Paris apartment requires a bit of reading the fine print, not to mention reading between the lines.   There are wonderful places and less wonderful ones.

Many think that apartments are less expensive than hotels.   If you’re staying at least a week, this is often true.   But like hotels, apartments come in all categories, so a deluxe apartment for three or four days will be comparable in price to a deluxe hotel room, and a budget apartment for a few days will cost about the same as a budget hotel.  In between lie all the varieties of size, location, decoration and amenities.

So what do you have to look for?

Size

The smallest Paris apartments are very very small.  Some are smaller than small Parisian hotel rooms.  Lots of listings give size in square meters.   Pay attention to this.

Size – number of guests

“Sleeps four’ often means that two people get a bedroom and two get the couch in the living room.  This might be perfect for you – or not.  (Sometimes there isn’t really a wall between the bedroom and the living room – it’s just a divided space.).  Check those photos and ask questions.

Size – the building

The listing will tell you if the building has an elevator.  If it doesn’t mention one (or a lift, which is the same thing), there’s no elevator.  If the apartment’s on the 4^th or 5^th floor, remember that you will have to carry your suitcases, groceries, purchases -  up.

Location - A

The more desirable the location, the higher the price – just like a hotel.

Most expensive are the center arondissements 1 -8.   Trendy neighborhoods cost more.

Location - B

You will see “a few steps from’ and ‘a stone’s throw from’ in too many listings to count.  Check the map and see how far away the metro stop really is.

Location – C

In general you want to be in a neighborhood where cafés and restaurants aren’t too far away.   Some residential neighborhoods don’t have much commerce (people who live there year round have cars.)   Pay attention to the description about this too.

Amenities

Good apartments come with linens, cooking facilities and equipment, washing machine (French style – an adventure), WIFI, telephone.   There are lots of variables here.   Heat in winter may cost extra.

Amenities B  (for bedding)

Bed sizes are often given, but can be misleading.  Some people advertise 140 cm as a queen bed (it isn’t – at least not in the US). 

Décor

The least expensive apartments are sparsely furnished and testify to the proximity of Ikea.  Some have increased their floor space by putting the bed on the mezzanine, accessible by ladder (something to watch for in the photos.)   Other apartments have gorgeous classic furnishings.  Look carefully and read carefully.

Deposits

Most apartments require a substantial deposit – 30 percent or so, plus the balance upon arrival plus a large damage deposit.   Methods of payment vary, so be sure you have your arrangements in order.

Owners

Apartments are rented by agencies, by groups, by individuals.   Specialty agencies generally inspect apartments regularly.  Individual owners may have one or more properties, and may also be your next door neighbors.   Everyone’s online, but check carefully to see if you can ask questions and get answers.

Sources

Apartment rental agencies abound and are easy to find since the internet arrived.  Google Vacation apartments in Paris (or anywhere else in France) and you’ll get a long list.    I’ve personally used VRBO  (Vacation Rental by Owner  www.vrbo.com)

 with good luck.   They have a sister site as well called Home Away (www.homeaway.com)

Gite.com is a French agency with apartments and house rentals, and often

has special offers for last minute bookings.

http://www.gites-de-france.com/ has an extenisve listing of house and apartment rentals, as well as chambres d’hôtes (Bed and breakfast lodging).   The site is in French only.

Hotels versus Rentals

 Hotels versus Rentals

I often get calls from clients looking for house or apartment rentals in France. It’s easy to be charmed by the vision of your own little home in France, buying your morning croissants at the local bakery, sipping an apéritif on your terrasse overlooking the – fill in the blank – vineyard/red tiled roofs/ Eiffel Tower.   And it can be lots of fun – no doubt.  

The pluses – more space, kitchen facilities, a more residential location, and most of all, the feeling that you’re part of the place rather than just a visitor.   I've rented apartments and even a small house in Paris and in Nice, and a charming house in the Dordogne. 

But it’s not for everyone and not for every trip.

When should you choose a hotel rather than a rental?

On your first visit, or especially your first trip to Europe.

            You have enough to get used to, without keeping house.

If you require or desire someone available for advice, booking restaurants, giving directions.

            Most apartments or rental houses have someone you can call when the plumbing breaks down, but on-site help is quite variable.   Sometimes there’s a lot and sometimes there’s none.

If you’re only staying a few days

            There’s no cost advantage and you’ll spend more of your time dealing with practical matters.

If you like to be waited on

            With a rental, you make your own bed, do your own dishes, tidy up after yourself.

On your honeymoon.

            See above.

If you don’t want to pay a large amount in advance.

            Rentals require substantial deposits and damage deposits – for good reason.

And when should you consider an apartment or house rental?

When you’re staying longer than a week in one place.

            Your fantasies can come to life – you’ll feel part of the neighborhood.   And a rental’s cost advantage becomes stronger with longer stays.

If you’re independent and know your way around the city or region.

If you’re traveling with a big family or group of friends.

            Lots of private space to spread out, easier with children, and a budget advantage for meals as well as housing.  Even if you don’t cook much, having a kitchen available for drinks and snacks is practical and economical.

If the fantasy is just too strong to resist.   Here’s the view out the window on the street where we lived in Nice.  Our neighbor in Vieux Nice was the Palais Lascaris.

In the next post, I’ll give you some tips on what to pay attention to when booking a rental property.

It's May - let's faire le pont!

It’s May – let’s faire le pont!

There are a few French words or phrases which aren’t in the basic traveler’s vocabulary, but that help make sense of the world you encounter in France.   One of these is faire la grève – to go on strike, which you may be unlucky enough to learn if your trip coincides with one.   That’s another topic.

But faire le pont – to make the bridge – is an expression for the month of May.   It means to take an extra day off from work and make a bridge between the official holiday and the weekend.   For example, today, May 1, is the fête du travail, and a Tuesday, so you might as well have taken Monday off and voilà – a nice four day weekend.

                                         Le pont des arts, in Paris - a favorite pont

May is traditionally an especially good month to faire le pont.  This year’s jours feriés include:

May 1 – fête du travail  (Labor Day)

May 8 – Victoire 1945

May 17 – Feast of the Ascension

May 27 – Pentecoste

May 28 – Pentecoste Monday

That makes three good ponts, plus the weekend of Pentecoste, a pont all in itself.

Though France is technically a secular country (remember the Revolution?), religious holidays still figure on the calendar of legal holidays.  As Voltaire would have said, c'est le meilleur des mondes possibles.

Spring in(to) France...

I've spent the last three weeks in France, mostly acting as coordinator for the photography workshops in Nice and Paris.   When we arrived in Nice, the Niçois were determinedly dining outdoors under the electric heaters, wrapped in their scarves and parkas.  (We thought the weather was fine,  but then, we’re northerners.)  Even sitting on the beach, there was something in the way they dressed that said it was still winter.

 

But in Paris the March heat wave caused spring to burst out early.  The chestnut leaves unfurled, the willows greened and by the time we left, the Luxembourg gardens were flowering, with tulips, cafés and crowds.   Vive le printemps!

 Our last week in France was spent in Montmartre, where we explored for the first time the advantages of the city bus system, rather than just relying on the old familiar metro.   It's slower, that's true, but it's a whole different point of view above ground.   Details to follow.

Les Soldes 2012

SOLDES !

The annual Paris winter sales are running full force now, and continue on until February 14. Similar sales run at approximately the same dates throughout France, so you can go bargain hunting in Nice or Lyons as well. And if you have a favorite French shop, many of the sales are also taking place now online.

Lots of websites -mostly in French- are devoted to bargain hunting strategies and styles. About.com has some good advice:

http://goparis.about.com/u/ua/shopping/Paris-Sales-Tips-Readers-Share-Their-Paris-Annual-Sales-Tips.htm

Bargains in winter also include Paris hotels, with many discounts until the end of March. And for travelers from North America, airfares are at their lowest this time of year.

Shoppers should keep in mind that the sales are twice-annual. Summer sales in 2012 will run from June 27-July 31 in Paris and most of France, July 4 - August 7 in most of Provence and the Riviera.