Rhonda

I will be travelling with my family to Provence over the holidays. My Mother in law is going to Europe for the first time to meet us a week later. She is a nervous traveler so I have attempted to pave the way for her. This is my perdicament, her flight lands at 7:30 a.m. so I tried to reserve a train ticket for her at 10:11 but it was sold out. The first train I could get reservations for her on was at 14:04 and that was in a smoking car. By your experience, what is the likelihood of her getting on an earlier train or even getting a seat in a non smoking car? Do you have suggestions about what a tired senior citizen can do at the airport for those many hours if she can not get on an earlier train?

Bob Brown

Did you try first class?<BR>She can get a discount for age, if she is 60 or older.<BR>No advanced paper work is needed.<BR>

SpellPolice

Predicament, Rhonda, Predicament.

xxx

You know what I'd do? I would book her into a comfortable hotel near the airport for the night. Then she can rest, recover a bit from jet lag, and start out fresh on the train (the first non-smoking car you can get) the next day.<BR><BR>It's hard to take a train trip after a long flight -- a night's rest could make the difference between a pleasant train trip and an exhausting one.<BR><BR>Don't even THINK of sending her in a train smoking car. I'm a smoker, and even I can't stand them.<BR><BR>Best of luck!

Rhonda

Yes I did get her a first class senior train pass for her. I tried to get her a reservation in either first class or second class, neither was available except the smoking car.<BR><BR>Is there a hotel that she could stay at right at the airport? I would like to have that option to give her.<BR><BR>Thanks

Fred

Here are some hotels at Charles de Gaulle. I suggest you write or fax them for more specific information, prices. I believe they all have shuttle service to the terminals but check with them to be sure.<BR><BR>Hotel Hilton <BR>95700 Aeroport Charles de Gaulle <BR>France <BR>Tel: 011-33-1-49-19-77-77 <BR>Fax: 011-33-1-49-19-77-78<BR><BR>Ibis Aeroport Charles de Gaulle (2 star)<BR>Tel: 011-33-1-49-19-19-19<BR>Fax: 011-33-1-49-19-19-21<BR>doubles about 400FF<BR><BR>Ibis Paris Roissy Charles de Gaulle (2 star)<BR>Tel: 011-33-1-34-29-34-34<BR>Fax: 011-33-1-34-29-34-19<BR>doubles about 400-400FF<BR>preferred by several people to other Ibis<BR><BR>Novotel Roissy Charles de Gaulle (2 star)<BR>Tel: 011-33-1-49-19-27-27<BR>Fax: 011-33-1-49-19-27-99<BR>doubles about 700-900FF<BR><BR>Bleu Marine (3 star)<BR>Tel: 011-33-1-34-29-00-00<BR>Fax: 011-33-1-34-29-00-11<BR>doubles about 600-750FF<BR><BR>Holiday Inn Charles de Gaulle (3 star)<BR>Tel: 011-33-1-34-29-30-00<BR>Fax: 011-33-1-34-29-90-52<BR>doubles abour 850FF<BR>(some people had problems with their shuttle)<BR><BR>Radisson SAS Hotel Charles de Gaulle (4 star)<BR>Tel: 011-33-1-60-03-63-00 <BR>Fax: 011-33-1-60-03-74-40<BR>about one mile from CDG Airport<BR>has shuttle service<BR><BR>Hotel Comfort Hotel Aeroport Roissy Charles de Gaulle<BR>Le Mesnil Amelot <BR>77990 Roissy<BR>For more Paris information e-mail me: [email protected]

Gretchen

As a not too senior senior even I would put up with a smoking car for the less than 3 hour train ride to Avignon (maybe not but even Marseilles is not much farther) than 1) find the hotel, 2)take all my luggage) 3)check in, unpack, spend an entire day and evening in a barren part of FRance, 4)---well, retrace 1,2,3. There are shops at CDG for her to spend some time in, the plane may be a tad late, etc. Those 6 hours will melt away. Just my thoughts.

Christina

I suppose you've thought of this and rejected it, but wouldn't it be easier for her just to fly? That would beat waiting around the airport that long, and doesn't cost much if any more than the train in my experience (and I've done it several times, flying from Paris to Nice or Marseille). Air France has flights all day long to Marseille that only take about an hour, as I recall, and many of them fly out of CDG. Her bags will be checked through, so she won't have to worry about that. At least, that's what I do flying from US on Air France, the extra leg to Provence is only about $100 or less, there were really cheap deals last summer, I think, because they are competing with the new TGV line now. And, those flights are nonsmoking, of course.

elvira

DON'T put that poor woman in a smoking car; I smoke, and I can't stand those cars (imagine someone smoking a pack of cigarettes inside a closet, with the door shut, and you going just after he puts out the final cigarette). Odds on she won't find a seat in non-smoking; unless one is familiar with the reservation system on European trains, finding a seat is impossible because you don't know what you're looking at on the reservations placard. <BR><BR>I'm with Christina; spring for the airfare. The alternative is to put her up overnight at a hotel, which will probably cost just as much as the plane ticket.