Have you ever spent days, weeks, even months, planning every aspect
of a vacation only to discover that you chose the wrong means
of transportation? Last summer, Marc took the train to Toulon
in order to attend his best friend’s wedding. Convinced that he
was saving money, he plunked down 500F and sacrificed six hours
on a TGV heading South. The next morning, Eric who had arrived
at the town hall directly from the airport gloated that he had
spent only 400F on a plane ticket, saving time and money. Examples
like this illustrate that in France, certain seemingly steadfast
rules of travel simply do not apply.
Special fares for travel by train abound, though unearthing the
appropriate one can be daunting. Everyone is eligible for the
tarif séjour, or 25% reduction, as long as they buy an aller/retour
round-trip ticket to a city located at least 400km away, and stay
there for a minimum of one night. The tarif congé can be applied
to a ticket once a year upon filling out a special form.
Train travel can sometimes be as fast, if not faster, than air
travel. No time is lost shuttling to and from the center of town
because train stations for the most part are located within city
limits.
But airfares can compare favorably to train tickets, especially
if purchased at the last minute. For rock-bottom tariffs, check
out www.lastminute.fr and Air France’s weekly coup de coeur specials,
available every Wednesday on www.airfrance.fr.Z.M.
A la carte weekend deals
Drive
Arrive at your dream destination in a dream car. Even if it’s
only for the weekend. Hertz’s service prestige allows you to drive
away in a sporty BMW Z3 coupé or a Mercedes Benz ML 320 for 3,400F
a day, unlimited mileage included (info: 08.03.85.38.53). For
the more budget-minded traveler, car rental agency Ada (info:
08.36.68.40.42) tops the list for reasonable deals on standard
economy-class car rentals, charging 569F for the weekend.
Tickets to Ride
For daytripping in the Ile-de-France, the SNCF offers the Mobilis card, which includes unlimited train, RER, metro and bus rides
for 32-110F, depending on the number of zones selected. Infoline:
01.53.90.20.20 or 01.53.90.10.10.
Pick up an Echappé Belle brochure at any train station before June 30 to get coupons entitling
you to a 50% discount on trips to a variety of destinations in
France.
Eurostar is promoting a number of weekend and round-trip specials.
Infoline: 08.36.35.35.39.
Thalys, the high-speed train line that services Belgium, Holland, Cologne
and Geneva also proposes bargain weekend rates. Thalys: 08.36.35.35.36
