November 2010 - Paris!

Wow, a month in Paris...I am jealous!!! Scott and I are here for our last night tonight...Nov sounds lovely...will have to seriously consider it!

Joan, I am sorry to hear that you haved had to cancel your Paris travel plans, but I understand since we have also had to put our Jan. Paris trip on hold also, again for family health reasons. We have not rebooked yet, thank heavens for trip insurance. I have been watching this board recently and have certainly missed your daily updates. Heres to a safer, healthier 2010 for everyone!
Poconolady

I'm sorry to hear about the family health problems, Joan. I hope things work out for all those involved.

You have so many fans here who enjoy your very generous reports during your trips. We look forward to your November trip and all the great details and pictures that go with them.

I will get to show my 25 year old daughter Paris for 4 days in May and Den and I will share a 2 bedroom apartment in the Marais with our best friends from September 24 to October 10. I hope to enjoy Daniel Rose's new restaurant by the fall.

Again, my best wishes for your family. Jo

Happy New year Joan. I am sorry you had to cancel and hope your relative is better.

Oh would I love a month in Paris. Going for 10 days in March so that will have to satisfy my cravings for awhile.

Joan,
I checked on your adventures during your last trip (November) every day at work. It gave me something to look forward to. We were going to go for Thanksgiving week 2010 but it looks like we will be there for Spring Break 2011 instead to celebrate our daughter's graduation from college. We have taken her once and she is dying to go back. We are in the process of planning 2 weeks in Italy this March and it will probably work out better for 2011 money wise. I will just have to read your entries and look at your pictures and count down the days until March.

Don't worry, Joan. We will all be here in November, reading your daily blog. Perhaps I can book myself into having a live guest appearance...

-Roberta

Joan, The France Forum will shine a little less brightly without your delightful reports and consistently helpful nature. My thoughts and prayers are with you and your family and hope to log in and see one of your threads very soon. Best, Karen

We do have a lot of really nice people on Fodor's!

I am just waiting for the 331 days out to be able to complete my fall reservations. They used to let you book the departure and hold it for the later return. They no longer allow you to do that. Have to wait for the 331 days for both ends. It can cause you to lose the first one. But then, we know that the airlines are not really that helpful!

I should have my tickets within the week for Nov!! Then I will be happy!

Now, Sue, Roberta, GraceCO, maybe Elle...Stu and Ellen..begin thinking about November.....

a bientot...

Joan

Oh Joan, so sorry to hear about your relative, and sorry that we'll miss meeting once again in Paris this May (for which I still don't have airline reservations yet). Warmest wishes for all good things in the new year, EJ

Sorry to hear u have a family member with health problems. We will be leaving this week and will take all your wonderful restaurant recommendations. BTW-we did manage to get a res for 16/1 @ Le Pamphlet. Not sure what the deal was when u called the second time. Anyway, hope things work out well for you and u can have Paris on the horizon.

yestravel,

Glad you did get a reservation at Le Pamphlet. I think I told you that the person I spoke with was very difficult. I really didn't feel certain of the information that she was giving me.

Have a great trip..

Joan

I now have my tickets for Paris for November!!

The airlines are becoming so difficult with their frequent flyer programs...3 tiers and very few spaces on flights that you want! I used the Delta Pay with Miles program. Everytime you pull it up you may get different flights.I tried and tried and finally got the ones that I preferred, so I quickly bought them!! They even gave me preferred seats without my selecting them! Everything will change a zillion times before Oct. 31st when I leave here.

At least, I am now set for November!!

a bientot...

Joan

This is very exciting news for you Joan!

Happy New Year!

Hello Joan, Sorry to hear you had to postpone your trip until Novmber. These things happen from time to time but you have something to look forward to........more of those glorious Christmas lights in Paris!
As you know, we have booked the Hotel Relais Bosquet Eiffel for two nights just so that we can walk to some of the restaurants you have talked about whether it be for a lunch or dinner. I think it will be a perfect end to the first part of our trip to Paris. Anything not accomplished could be put on hold until our return three weeks later at the end of August.
I look forward to relating our experiences at the hands of the Constant kitchens!

Joan et al,

I am sorry to hear about your family's health problem but Paris before Christmas sounds lovely.

I am a new Fodorite planning my own Paris stay for early October. Unfortunately, I only have five days to spend in the city. I know that this sounds very short to those who get to do months at a time, but I will take what I can get and will conserve my energy to spend my time in Paris to its fullest.

I have seen many of you write about restaurants in Paris and wanted to know if you only had five days, what are the no miss restaurants (I am not concerned about budget for a few nice dinners but would also appreciate any particularly well priced fabulous finds.


Thanks and I look forward to hearing more about the city in the future. Happy travels.

Hi, Joan

I've just realized that this was your thread. I am happy to see that you have scheduled your next trip to Paris in spite of the family health problems.

As you know, I'll be there in May with my group and will surely visit some of the places you and I went to together. I'm sure Florent, Michael, Madelyn et al will miss seeing you then.

By November I will be missing Paris myself and will be sure to keep up with your posts. Let's hope the weather will not be quite so cold then as it was our last couple of days together in December.

All the best, B

HeaAndrews,

There are so many..not sure of your style, but go to the Bar Vendome in the Hotel Ritz, for lunch..you cn't beat the Christian Constant 4 for value. Cafe Constant is a simple bistro with great food. no reservations, so be there before 7:30 for dinner. The Constant Violon d'Ingres is really a dinner bargain, or try it for lunch. Au Bon Accueil is a good spot. I always go to the Hotel Crillon's l'Obe restauant for lunch.l'Epigramme is a good spot and so is Au Gourmand and Le Florimond.

These are but a few that I can highly recommend.

Tod,

I think you will enjoy the area. Remember to go to the Constants early, by 7:30 for a table.
I think you would like Au Petit Sud Ouest, too. Their menu is the same lunch and dinner.

I am delighted to have November taken care of, and a trip to look forward to. I always have a trip to look forward to!

a bientot...

Joan

Joan,

Thanks so much for the input! I will be researching this places and might have a few more questions before we nail down our "must eats". One of Constants restaurants will definitely be on the list and I am toying with doing one of Guy Savoy's places as well.

Heather

Joan, so sorry to hear you had to postpone your trip(s) to Paris but glad that you're all set for next Autumn. I'm happy to report that my husband and I have been able to get 2 frequent flier tickets and we'll have 10 days in Paris in late September into October. As much as we'd love to rent a Paris Perfect apartment, even with their "sales" it's more than we want to spend on lodging. We also found that we loved Montparnasse area and we've found a lovely apartment through VRBO and are renting directly from the owners and hope for a better experience than we had last year with VIP!

I'm sorry our trips won't overlap! Maybe in 2011.

plafield,

I'm sorry that I will not be in Paris whre you are there, too.!

Glad you found a nice apartment in the Montparnasse area. It is a nice area with lots to do..great shopping!

Yes, you deserve a great stay this time, after the really bad experience that you had last year.

a bientot..

Joan

I have been mostly nailed in place due to family obligations since 2005, so no sympathy from me for a delayed trip! (I just want to annoy!)

Of course, I live in Paris, so being nailed in place is perhaps not as bad for me as it is for a lot of people.

I, too, have enjoyed reading Joan's posts from time to time, and we actually took her advice and spent a full month in Paris. What a wonderful way to experience a city.

My question for Kerouac, Joan, and others planning future trips to Paris is when to expect lower air fares for a flight next October. They seem to be hovering around $1000 rt right now, and I am not sure how long to wait. Opinions?

Air fares from where?

I have been seeing air fares for next month going for something like 530€ from San Francisco to Paris, which is pretty damned cheap for the west coast.

October can be worse or better -- who knows what the future has in store, since the fares change each and every day?

map,

I just bought my tickets for the month of November 2010. I live in Asheville, NC and I take the shuttle to ATL and then on to CDG. All via Delta and/or one of their codeshare partners. I used thier 'pay with miles' for part of the ticket and paid them the balance. My ticket total cost was $949.20 with all taxes. Never any of the good bargains from here.

Glad to read that you spent a month, too. Makes a difference, doesn't it?

a bientot...

Joan