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Getting there |
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Introduction We have travelled to Le Vieux Mas in many different ways. This page gives you the benefit of our experience. It is comprehensive and so may also seem complicated. It isn't, it is just a reflection of the richness of choice. If in doubt just treat it as a directory - links to all the main websites that you may need are here (opening in a new window) To see where the house is in France, look at the map of the area on the "Location" page. Air More and more visitors to Le Vieux Mas are flying to the area and then hiring a car. There are a number of airports nearby and a number of airlines flying to them. The main choices are: Nīmes is the nearest airport, just over an hour away. Ryanair flies there from Luton, East Midlands and Liverpool. Montpellier is probably next nearest at about two hours away, and with a scenic route to the house available through the vineyards. You can fly there from Gatwick (Easyjet) and Stansted (Ryanair) Avignon is also about two hours away. It is a destination newly served by airports in the UK and in current conditions it is worth considering viability. You can fly there from Exeter and Southampton (Flybe) and Edinburgh and Leeds Bradford (Jet2). Marseilles is further in miles but well north of the city and with fast roads, so still not much over two hours. You can fly there with Ryanair from Birmingham (also BMI baby), Bournemouth, Edinburgh, Manchester, Prestwick, Stansted and several other European cities (Ryanair). Or with Easyjet from Bristol or Gatwick (also BA). Beziers is a new Ryanair destination with flights from Bristol, Luton and Stansted. It is not much further than Montpellier. We have not driven directly but it will be about two and a half hours. Rodez, nearer three hours, also has a Ryanair flight. Visitors have also flown to Cacassonne, Perpignon and Toulouse. If it suits, it can also be worth considering flights to Barcelona and other northern Spanish airports, which can be cheap because of competition - car hire can also be cheaper in Spain. Routes are constantly changing and to keep up to date try the Languedoc Page cheap flight section. For pricing, you may want to use a site such as Skyscanner to get and overview, but always check the latest prices on the relevant airline site. It is almost always best to book early, especially for peak periods, but most airline promotions stretch only a few months ahead so it can pay to wait. Rail Train travel to the house is easy and relaxed. On summer Saturdays you can travel by Eurostar direct from London or Ashford to Avignon in less than six hours, arriving early afternoon (the return journey leaving late afternoon). Otherwise, one easy change at Lille or a short metro trip in Paris gives you many more journey options, including arriving at Nīmes which is slightly more convenient for the house. Fares start at £100 for early booking, direct with Eurostar or via Rail Europe. The latter can also book sleeper trains (available at Lille, via a 100m walk to Lille Flandres station) and Motorail. The SNCF (French Railways) site also allows you to buy tickets direct and have them posted to your home. Getting the cheapest tickets to travel by rail is still a bit of an art (as in the UK itself). The main guidelines are:
Supplementary points:
Road Although it is easily possible to drive to the house from the northern French coast in one day, a stop-over en route, perhaps around the Loire region can add to the pleasure of the holiday. For crossing the channel, some visitors, especially from the midlands northward, may find advantage in the crossings to Normandy, as this gives the chance of some sleep and an early start in France. Brittany Ferries goes to Caen from Portsmouth, and LD Lines goes to Dieppe from Newhaven and Dover and to Le Havre from Portsmouth. Of the short crossings, Boulogne, is convenient for the A16 and a route round the west of Paris on to the A71/A75. LD Lines go there from Dover. P&O and SeaFrance go from Dover to Calais, as does Eurotunnel. A useful site for all crossings is Direct ferries. I am very happy to give advice on routes to the house. For many visitors, the best route is down the centre of France on the A71/A75 by Clermont-Ferrand as this is quieter, cheaper and more attractive. Another route mainly avoiding the busy eastern autoroutes takes the incomplete A77 which leaves the A6 east of Paris. To plan a route try the Michelin route planner, which has reasonably clear directions and details of hotels and restaurants en route. Bison-fute is a useful site on roadworks, heavy traffic etc.Car Hire If you travel by air or train, you'll want to hire a car. Check all the main car hire companies as rates vary unpredictably. To explore rates you might want to start at the link below, but if you are a member of the AA or have other affiliations check independently. Don't assume that the offer you get from your airline or rail company is a good deal - it may be, but often will not be. For a car rental search site try Carhiresearch, Carrentals.co.uk or Mastercars - but check the direct providers too, as they may have special offers only on their own sites, or may offer better discounts for your affiliations. Bookings, etc To make travel arrangements you may want to book via Chez Nous which can offer discounts if you give them my property booking number. However don't assume that these discounts are the best you can get, shop around. For example if you are a member of the AA or RAC they may be able to book your travel at good rates as well as provide other travel services such as insurance cover for driving outside the UK A general site which can give you details on travel to France is the French Travel Centre.
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