Tuesday 6 January 2015

Ferry to France vs Plane

Ferry to France vs Plane – Travel from the UK to Western France: An Infographic

The perfect choice for families – from start to finish

Travelling with your family by ferry to France with Brittany Ferries is so easy - and far less hassle than flying. Enjoy the freedom of taking your own car to France packed with everything you need. Avoid the hassle of airports, long queues, excess baggage charges and lengthy check-in times – ours is just 45 minutes before departure. Arrive closer with our choice of cruise ferry and high-speed sailings direct to the holiday regions – avoiding the long drive through northern France. Start your holiday on board and enjoy everything from a great choice of dining, stylish bars and lounges, kids' play areas and shopping. Or simply tuck the kids up for a good night's sleep in your comfortable en-suite cabin.

Take a look at our 'Ferry to France vs Plane' infographic and follow our family across the Channel to their holiday homes in the Loire valley in Western France.



Saturday 3 January 2015

London to Marseille in 6 hours

TICKETS for Eurostar’s direct year-round London-Marseille service have gone on sale, with prices starting at €111 return. 

Journeys from the heart of London (or Ashford) to the centre of Lyon, the French capital of gastronomy will take about four-and-a-half hours, while Provence will be reached in a less than six hours, and Marseille in little more than six hours. 

Friday 12 December 2014

Fines for bad cyclists

ROAD safety authorities in France are calling for more fines to be issued to cyclists who put themselves and other road users in danger. 

It is believed that the widespread handing out of token fines would reduce the number of accidents involving push bikes, as well as limiting cyclist deaths, which are up 6% this year. 

It comes after a recent survey by an insurance company that found that 44% of cyclists had a feeling of impunity – believing that police were not interested in pursuing them for minor breaches of the Code de la Route. 

Cycling fines have already been tested out in Strasbourg, where more than 800 have been handed out since 2012. The city has reported a 37% fall in accidents since. 

Many believe that cycling fines should be extended to all French cities and big towns. Nine breaches of the Code de la Route would initially be covered,  including cycling up one-way streets, ignoring red lights and stop signs, using a mobile phone and refusing to give way to pedestrians on a crossing. 

And before the cycling lobby raise their hackles at this, the French are pretty tough on motorists, too.



Monday 1 December 2014

Ban of hoardings

Ban on advertising hoardings in Grenoble

ADVERTISING hoardings are being banned in the streets of Grenoble – and the ecologist mayor, Eric Piolle, is planning to replace them with trees.

The Mairie says it is not renewing its annual contract in a move that will cost €150,000 a year. Only stand-alone panels are affected as bus-stops will still carry advertising for the moment.

Grenoble was the first city in France to elect an ecologist mayor and getting rid of the hoardings was a campaign promise by Eric Piolle. It is a first in France and Europe.



Friday 21 November 2014

A Nice facelift

Improvements at Nice airport

Nice Côte d’Azur Airport has announced that Terminals 1 and 2 will benefit from a €30 million renovation, which will commence in January 2015 and run until 2017. 

New for Eurostar

London to Paris in just 2 hours
Eurostar passengers making the 306-mile journey between London and Paris will soon have their journey time cut by 15 minutes, after the company unveiled a fleet of new high-speed trains. The trains will go into service at the end of 2015.

The launch comes on the eve of the 20th anniversary of the start of Eurostar services in November 1994, when the journey time was just under 3 hours. There were just two trains a day when the service started. Today, there are between 15-17 daily services to Paris.

The e320s, created by Italian design house Pininfarina, will be equipped with free WiFi throughout and customers will have more space per seat, each equipped with power points and a USB socket.

The number of passengers travelling on Eurostar's trains topped 10 million for the first time last year, giving it around an 80% share of the travel market between London and Paris, and London and Brussels.

In another direction, May 2015 will see the start of a new year-round Eurostar service to Provence, stopping at Lyon, Avignon and Marseille. That will be followed at the end of 2016 by the launch of a route to Amsterdam with stops in Antwerp, Rotterdam and Amsterdam's Schiphol airport along the way.

Thursday 16 October 2014

EUROSTAR ANNOUNCES NEW YEAR-ROUND CONNECTING SERVICE TO GENEVA

Eurostar has today announced a new year-round service to Geneva via Lille, in partnership with international high-speed train service “TGV Lyria”. From Thursday 9th October, travellers will be able to purchase tickets for the new Swiss route, with the inaugural service leaving London St Pancras on the 14th December 2014.

With an easy connection on to a “TGV Lyria” service in Lille Europe, passengers can travel from London to Geneva in just over 6 hours (London to Geneva will take 6 hours 18 minutes with a 37 minute connection in Lille) with services specially timed to ensure a fast transfer between the two trains.

Recent Eurostar customer research revealed that Geneva is one of the most desirable destinations for UK travellers. With four daytime services each week (on Monday, Thursday, Saturday and Sunday), the new Geneva service means passengers can sit back, relax and enjoy beautiful views of France and Switzerland before they arrive.
For those wishing to venture further, the new route offers passengers a convenient way to travel to some of the most popular destinations in Switzerland, with simple onward connections from Geneva to Aigle, Martigny, Sion, Sierre, Visp and Brig.

The new Swiss service coincides with the refurbishment of Lille Europe station designed to significantly increase the capacity of the Eurostar terminal in order to accommodate growth in the number of connecting passengers. The new look Eurostar terminal will be unveiled in December this year.

Return fares start from £116. For more information or to book Eurostar tickets visit www.eurostar.com or call the Eurostar contact centre on 08432 186 186.