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| On
this page you'll find information and tips about getting to Aquitaine,
suggested stop-over hotels, local B&Bs, and useful hints on topics
such driving in France, traveller's insurance, guide books for further
reading, weather in Aquitaine, etc. We'll continue to expand this page
throughout the year. |
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Useful
Travel Links: If you need to hire a car, there are four outfits which we regularly use ourselves. For an instant quote online try Your Car Hire plus there's France Car Hire, Rental Car Group, Holiday Autos and Car Hire Search. |
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For
low-cost flights, the usual suspects fly from the UK
& Ireland (Birmingham, Stansted, Luton, Gatwick, Manchester, Bristol,
Dublin) into Bordeaux and Biarritz, plus Pau, Bergerac and Bilbao. Try Ryanair, Flybe, Easyjet
and BMI Baby
for schedules and fares. BA
fly from Heathrow and Gatwick to the region (Bordeaux,
Bilbao); Aer Lingus
operate Dublin to Biarritz. There's now also quite a few websites which sift through dozens of low-cost routes across Europe, such as SkyScanner and Cheap Flights. Aquitaine is increasingly well-served by Scandinavian low-cost carriers, such as Sterling (from Oslo & Copenhagen to Biarritz), Norwegian (Oslo-Bordeaux), Fly Nordic (Stockholm-Bordeaux). For airport transfers from Biarritz, Sea Lifts is the organisation to talk to - Alternative Aquitaine clients get a 10% discount. For cross-channel ferries contact Chateau Vary - discounts available for Alternative Aquitaine clients. For the long crossing to Spain there are two operators - Brittany Ferries (Plymouth-Santander) and P&O (Portsmouth-Bilbao). To take your own car through the tunnel, you might want to consult the Eurotunnel website. Lastly, if you prefer to sit back and relax on the train, you should contact Rail Europe for a comprehensive information and booking service, including Motorail services. The two operators in France are of course TGV for fast connections to Bordeaux and Biarritz, and SNCF for more local services. For a completely plane- and car-free holiday resorts such as Arcachon, St Jean de Luz and Biarritz have good train connections, and you can easily manage without a car while you are there. |
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| Stop-Over
Hotels & B&Bs
Many
clients travelling down to Aquitaine by car enjoy a stop-over en-route.
Over the seasons, we've gathered a few recommendations for stop-over B&B's
and charming hotels. |
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| Our
Featured Stop-Over Venue - Château
La Colaissière Luxurious renaissance château with moat and drawbridge. Situated in the heart of the Loire valley, just a few kms south east of Nantes - nearly mid-point between the north coast and Aquitaine. The château features a gastronomique restaurant and Alternative Aquitaine clients can enjoy a 10% discount on their total bill (restaurant and accommodation). |
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Poitiers: Le Vieux Château (budget). Midway between Paris & Bordeaux, comfortable 12-bedroom auberge Vendée: Château de Mesnard-la-Barotière (mid). Castle south of Nantes, chambres & table d'hôtes Vendée: Le Relais (budget). Les Herbiers market town. Straightforward accommodation and great food Cognac: Hotel de Bordeaux (mid). 15-bedroom hotel-restaurant in Pons, north of Bordeaux Tours: Château des Ormeaux (luxury). 8 rooms plus adjoining manor house. Swimming pool and vineyard Angers: Château des Briottières (luxury) 15 bedrooms, swimming pool, tennis court Le Mans: Hotel Mercure (mid) "within easy walking distance of the historic town centre with good choice of places to eat, secure parking and very reasonably priced" - thanks to the Beaumonts for this contribution Chinon: La Renaudiere (mid). Lovely renovation of Loire château. Large rooms, lots of character, delicious breakfast, charming French owner, pool table. Also has a fantastic family-suite with two connecting bedrooms. We also find these two guides very useful for charming places to stay: Alastair Sawday and Relais & Châteaux |
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Aquitaine Hotels & B&Bs If
you are looking to mix self-catering with catering, or you need an extra
night either side of your holiday to match your flights, we can also recommend
these firm favourites:
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| Driving
in France Naturally
we do a lot of driving in France and whilst most of it is blissful and
carefree, there are times when you're left wandering if there's such a
thing as a driving test in this beloved country. It seems as though indicators
are an optional extra that most French motorists feel they can do without.
We've often considered it safest to be a on a push-bike in France as the
French have the utmost respect for cyclists; many's the time we've observed
a motorist slowing down behind a bunch of cyclists, indicating and pulling
out carefully - before carving up another driver at the next roundabout...c'est
la vie! To help you be prepared for your time on French roads, the AA and RAC plus European Driving Regulations provide some useful information and advice. The AA also provides route plans and driving times. Don't forget you'll need to extend your car insurance and breakdown cover for your trip. There's also a useful guidebook - 'Your Glove Box Guide to Trouble Free Motoring' - on the subject of driving in France which you can buy from AllRich Publications. Top Tips > If you're driving to the beach, try and get there early in the morning or leave at lunchtime. In August the coast roads and car parks jam up quickly. The RN10 between Biarritz and St jean de Luz is notorious for jams in the summer. > 24 hour petrol stations do not normally take UK credit cards if you intend to pay at the pump. Also, most petrol stations do not open in the evenings or Sundays so fill up whilst you can! |
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Driving
Tip: Travelling from the north coast ferry ports to the northern-most
resorts of Aquitaine (e.g. Soulac, Montalivet, Lacanau, Cap Ferret), take
the Royan Point de Grave ferry crossing
and miss out the Bordeaux ring road. You'll save a couple of hours' driving.
Ferries run every 30-45 minutes in summer, the crossing takes 30 minutes.
The fare is approx. 35 EUR for a car and four passengers. More details
and downloadable timetable from the Royan
Tourist Office |
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| Travel
Insurance |
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| It
is a requirement of our booking terms and conditions that you take travel
insurance to protect yourself and your family (and we also recommend protecting
your car if you are driving your own vehicle into France). If you're renting
a privately owned property (i.e. any property other than a Mer & Golf
villa, Seaside Apartment or Holiday Lodge) you will also need to be sure
that your policy covers you for personal liability in
case of accidental major damage to that property. If you have an existing travel insurance policy or household policy, please check your cover to see if this includes the appropriate cover. If you need to purchase cover, we recommend you contact Voyager Insurance by clicking on the link to the right. Voyager offers a policy with or without breakdown cover, specially designed for European holidays. Prices start form as little as £5.90 for an adult and £15.80 for European Vehicle Assistance. Please note that Voyager only issue policies to UK residents. |
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To
get an update on the weather down in Aquitaine, try Meteo France
or Holiday Weather
- the latter gives 5 day forecasts for several Aquitaine resorts. For
pouring over weather statistics, the Weather Underground
site provides useful anaylsis and is very distracting to weather bores
like us! |
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| Miscellaneous
Travel Trips
For France-specific information, advice and travel tips, consult the UK Tourist Office for France
or Holiday France's Travel Directory.
Don't forget that the E111 health forms are no longer applicable and you
will need an European Health Insurance Card
instead - you can apply online. Lots of holidaymakers to France want to take their dog along too. You will need specialist advice on this subject and there are companies to help you such as Dogs Away. For further reading, we recommend the Cadogan guide books covering "Bilbao & The Basque Lands" and "Gascony and the Pyrenees". The Michelin Green Guide for the "Atlantic Coast" is also a big help. Any good bookseller online will have these guides in stock. For a bit of easy holiday reading try Martin Calder's A Summer in Gascony or Celia Brayfield's A Writer's Year in the Béarn. If you want to purchase some maps before you travel, there is an online mapstore we like called My Destinations. And finally, one of the things we love about France is visiting antiques and brocantes shops. We've found a good website for you to find antiques and brocantes in Aquitaine. Bon voyage et bonnes vacances! |
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