Running of the Bulls and Tour de France

Old Mar 9th, 2015, 11:13 AM
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Running of the Bulls and Tour de France

Hello,
I will be travelling July 2015 for the San Fermin festival and then hope to catch some part of the Tour de France in the Rennes region. I need to figure out how to get from Pamplona to Rennes or we may have to go to Paris and then rent a car. There are flights from Pamplona to Rennes but its only once a week. Flights from neighboring San Sebastian to Rennes are E380 pp. Is there a better route that I am over looking? I always come to the forums every time I am stumped. any help would be appreciated. thanks
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Old Mar 9th, 2015, 11:46 AM
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You can fly from Pau to Rennes via CDG or ORY, or from Biarritz to Rennes via Lyon. All fights depart very early in the morning. The flight out of Biarrtiz is the quickest, and reasonably priced.

The only air service out of Pamplona would be on Iberia, Air Nostrum and Air Europa, which means you would have to connect through Madrid or Barcelona, with either two or three stops.

You can also take the train from San Sebastian to Rennes.
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Old Mar 9th, 2015, 12:25 PM
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Thank you Robert. The flights from Pau or Biarritz are on which airline? I checked both vueling and Iberia and they offer neither of those routes. Thanks
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Old Mar 9th, 2015, 12:30 PM
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To get to Rennes from anywhere in Spain that you are in no doubt is quickest to go via Paris - cross-country trains in France are much less frequent and slower than the bullet trains that fan out from Paris, including to Rennes. Flying will be much faster and probably cheaper.
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Old Mar 9th, 2015, 12:30 PM
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Robert,
I am sorry if my question was confusing. I need to figure out a way to get in to Rennes from Pamplona or some where in that area.
Did you mean for me to get into Biarritz from Pamplona and then catch a flight to rennes?
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Old Mar 9th, 2015, 01:31 PM
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Yes, you can fly from the Biarritz airport to Rennes in around 3-1/2 hours. A private transfer from Pamplona to Biarritz takes just under 1-1/2 hours. There's bus service to the airport from San Sebastián but it's easier if you just get a transfer from Pamplona.

The airline is HOP Brit Air (www.hop.com/en/). There is a one-stop flight at 06:40 (160.32€) and another departure at 13:25 (185.32€) with a connection in Lyon. These are the quickest flights.
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Old Mar 9th, 2015, 01:34 PM
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Of course it's one of the discount airlines, so you'll have to pay extra for a checked bag.
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Old Mar 9th, 2015, 01:37 PM
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Air France also has a moring flight, but it takes twice as long to reach Rennes, although it may be cheaper overall then flying HOP Brit Air.
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Old Mar 9th, 2015, 03:00 PM
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I expect you realize that seeing the Tour de France as arace is done on TV. To see the riders at any particular point on the tour requires arriving early (probably the day before), to a place where all the hotel rooms for miles around have been prebooked long before. Then, if you find a place to stand, you get to see the publicity parade of sponsors, a minute or two of riders blurring by, and it's over. There is more time seeing riders if you score a place for the 7 circuits of the Chanps Elysses in Paris on the last day, or if you camp out for a week on a mountain (uphill) leg where the riders are well spread out. Usually rods in the area are closed long before race day.
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Old Mar 9th, 2015, 05:58 PM
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Thanks for all the helpful info.

AJ,I understand the circumstances of the TDF but its on my friends bucket list and there isn't a way around it.

Robert, I am looking into the Biarritz-Rennes option.
I found a flight on Iberia from Bilbao to Paris at 930 that's $89. I am really tempted to book that cuz that's the cheapest option I have found so far. Its just that the flight leaves at 930AM and I need to make sure I get to Bilbao from Pamplona in enough time.
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Old Mar 9th, 2015, 06:19 PM
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I've been to several stages of the TDF, including the cobbles last year. The key is to have the route well mapped out for your selected location. If you plan ahead it is well worth it, and possible to see them early in the day and again later in the race day. Well worth the time and effort.
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Old Mar 9th, 2015, 07:42 PM
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It's about a 2 hr 20 min drive from Pamplona to the Bilbao airport. Typical private transfer is around 220€. You'll need to be there at least 90 minutes before departure.
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Old Mar 9th, 2015, 10:05 PM
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Part of the fun of the TDF is the atmosphere before the race!

We arrived in a little town around 4 hours before the race was due to pass through, and found an excellent spot on a long curve in the road. This way it's not just a 2 second flash of riders going past on a straight stretch.

We had a great time catching the throw-outs from the caravan, and sharing them around with our neighbours so no one missed out. There was a long break between the caravan and the racers - enough for the locals to go home, eat a meal and return. So be prepared to spend some hours in whatever the weather throws at you, Di
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Old Mar 18th, 2015, 11:37 AM
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Thanks for all the input. I have reconfigured my itinerary to make this a little easy or i hope i did. Instead of catching the tour in Rennes and making that trek, I was thinking of going to Pau instead. Its a lot closer and there has to be a better way to get there than to Rennes.


I am yet to figure out how to get from Pamplona to Pau. I read up on renting a car but it seems pretty expensive to rent in Spain and then drop it off in France.
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Old Mar 18th, 2015, 02:43 PM
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You can take the Conda bus to Biarritz and the bus or train to Pau. Conda also a bus that takes the pilgrims over to Saint-Jean-Pied-de-Port to start their walk, but getting to Pau from there by public transit could take the entire day.
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Old Mar 29th, 2015, 01:03 PM
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I have been trying to figure out this itinerary for so long and was hoping revisiting it, i would be able to crack the code. so here is what i have so far. PLS tell me if i can do any better.
I figured i could drive from Pamplona to Pau, do the TDF (10 seconds of it) and then will have a car to tour that region. Return the car back to San Sebastian and get a flight to Paris or a train from Hendaye to Paris.
As much as i am trying, i cant seem to aviod a long travel day. atleast with my own car i have some flexiblity.
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Old Mar 29th, 2015, 02:47 PM
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Sounds fine to me, but be sure you make reservations for somewhere to stay. It's high season and places in the Pyrenees, both the French and Spanish sides, fill up from mid-July to mid-September.
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Old Mar 30th, 2015, 07:13 AM
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hotels is the next step. Is there a direct bus or train from Pamplona to Biarritz? I was thinking if I pick up my car in france I wont have to make the drive back to San Sebastian to drop it off.
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Old Mar 30th, 2015, 07:47 AM
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You can take the train to Irun/Hendaye and pick up a car on the French side. The only direct bus to Biarritz is a beach bus that runs during the summer months, but I haven't seen the schedule. Otherwise you can take the bus to San Sebastián-Donostia and the TOPO to Hendaye, or the PIESA bus to Biarritz. The Biarritz airport would have a better selection of cars.
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