Family trip report London,Paris ,Normandy
Nov 2nd, 2006, 04:31 PM
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Family trip report London,Paris ,Normandy
I just returned from a fantastic trip to London,Paris and Normandy with my husband,son age 8, daughter age 11, and my mom and dad. This was a suprise trip for my mom who never wanted to go to Europe. I thought I'd just list the highs and lows.
London:
Highs
Used Ray Skinner London transfers to pick us up from the airport, he was there with a sign even though our plane was 3 hrs late. We ended up using him 2 other times while in London
London eye: My kids could not get enough of this.
Slides at the Tate Modern: Lines were long but worth it
London Tower: We loved this dispite the crowds.
National Gallery: Terrific, but the kids were not so into this. On the other hand they loved Madame Toussauds
Isle of Man: My parents flew here for a couple of days, they loved it, wanted to stay longer.
Iranian restaurant: I forgot the name, but the Iranian restaurant, just down the street from Kensington tube stop was incredible, we ordered take out to have in our apartment twice.
Boat rides along the Thames
The Aquarium, while this was not my favorite, it definitely was my sons
Lows:
The cost, We still can not get over the price. I think we were totally unprepared for this. Just take the cost of items in the US double them, and that comes close.
Example: 4 Mary Poppins tickets $500.00, Dinner for 4 at an average resaurant with out drinks $75.00 ouch.
Food: I think the food is very spread out, and lacking in sit down restaurants. Sandwiches are nice, but its also nice to have a place to sit and relax.
Shakespeares globe: Nice, but $20 bucks for a 10 minute peek, eeks
That being said we did enjoy London but were ready to move on Paris
Paris:
My husband and I have been to Paris several times but my parents had never been or wanted to go.
Eurostar: We all enjoyed this, We used Bee shuttle to pick us up. They were there waiting with a sign.
Apartment in the Marais, VRBO.com beautiful, clean and stocked with food and water. The nicest owner, it was like having a friend in Paris. This was much cleaner than our apartment in London.
Hop on Hop off bus: This was a favorite of my parents, While my husband and I would rather walk, my parents were content riding this bus and listening to the commentary over and over again.
Food: Everything we had was great, for 6 of us we usually spent about 150 euros but that included a bottle of wine and 3 hot chocolates. My husband and son are foodies and were always trying new foods asking the waiters for suggestions. We always left happy. My dad who never had any desire to go to Paris was in ahh. And need I mention the croissants, Oh la la.
Next up Normandy:
London:
Highs
Used Ray Skinner London transfers to pick us up from the airport, he was there with a sign even though our plane was 3 hrs late. We ended up using him 2 other times while in London
London eye: My kids could not get enough of this.
Slides at the Tate Modern: Lines were long but worth it
London Tower: We loved this dispite the crowds.
National Gallery: Terrific, but the kids were not so into this. On the other hand they loved Madame Toussauds
Isle of Man: My parents flew here for a couple of days, they loved it, wanted to stay longer.
Iranian restaurant: I forgot the name, but the Iranian restaurant, just down the street from Kensington tube stop was incredible, we ordered take out to have in our apartment twice.
Boat rides along the Thames
The Aquarium, while this was not my favorite, it definitely was my sons
Lows:
The cost, We still can not get over the price. I think we were totally unprepared for this. Just take the cost of items in the US double them, and that comes close.
Example: 4 Mary Poppins tickets $500.00, Dinner for 4 at an average resaurant with out drinks $75.00 ouch.
Food: I think the food is very spread out, and lacking in sit down restaurants. Sandwiches are nice, but its also nice to have a place to sit and relax.
Shakespeares globe: Nice, but $20 bucks for a 10 minute peek, eeks
That being said we did enjoy London but were ready to move on Paris
Paris:
My husband and I have been to Paris several times but my parents had never been or wanted to go.
Eurostar: We all enjoyed this, We used Bee shuttle to pick us up. They were there waiting with a sign.
Apartment in the Marais, VRBO.com beautiful, clean and stocked with food and water. The nicest owner, it was like having a friend in Paris. This was much cleaner than our apartment in London.
Hop on Hop off bus: This was a favorite of my parents, While my husband and I would rather walk, my parents were content riding this bus and listening to the commentary over and over again.
Food: Everything we had was great, for 6 of us we usually spent about 150 euros but that included a bottle of wine and 3 hot chocolates. My husband and son are foodies and were always trying new foods asking the waiters for suggestions. We always left happy. My dad who never had any desire to go to Paris was in ahh. And need I mention the croissants, Oh la la.
Next up Normandy:
Nov 2nd, 2006, 06:40 PM
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Continuation: Normandy
We took the train into Bayeux, rented a car, drove 20 minutes to the beautiful Chateau de Lignerolls. We had never stayed in a bed and breakfast before, so we did not know what to expect. We had our own entrance, each room had a sink, the bath was down the hall but robes were provided, one room had its own bath. There were lovely public areas decorated with a modern decor and wine and cider were offered by the hosts Roel and Pia. Breakfast was great.
D-Day Tours-My husband and dad did the tour put on by our host Roel (Victory Tours) along with 4 others. They really enjoyed their tour and mark it as the highlight of their trip. They drove the rest of us to the same sights they saw the next day.
Beaches: While they were doing the tour, and my mom was sick in bed with a mild cold, the kids and I took the car and go wonderfully lost in Normandy. We never worried, we just went from one small picturesque town to the next, until we landed on the beach. Wow, we didn't want to leave. We also made it to a couple D-Day sites and I tried to explain as well as I could to my children. They got a better explaination the next day from their dad.
Food: A highlight of my son was sharing a Fruits de la mer platter with my dad. It was fun seeing his delight in cracking the shell fish and then eating them. This was in Port en Bessin, we ended up coming here several times to look at the beach and collect shells.
Regrets: Not getting to see the tapistry, we had really wanted to, but we were so overcome with the sites, the chateau, and the beaches we just did not have enough time. Next time I would do a least 3 days in Normandy instead of 2and1/2. But who knows, if I was there 3 I would probably need 4.
We were a little sad to leave Normandy, but once we arrived back in Paris we were ready to get back into city life.
Paris highs continue:
Eiffel tower: Lines were long at night, but my son insisted. Wonderful as usual
Louvre: Again long lines but worth it. My daughter enjoyed looking for paintings she studied at school. My son was thrilled by the signed copy of the Mona Lisa he bought at the gift shop ( he really believes it is real). My parents enjoyed it all.
The Lido: When my mom saw this on the Champs D'Elysee she had to go there. So we left my parents who don't speak a word of french there to buy tickets, see the show, and make it home on their own. To be honest I was a little worried, but have no fear, they did show up at the apartment about 11:30 and had a wonderful time. Mom is still talking about the show.
The Cluny: My daughter and I wanted to go here. She she had done a report on the Tapistries at school and I had just read the book The Lady and the Unicorn.
Transportation: We used Bee shuttle again for our departure out of CDG. I am most impressed by all of the shuttles we used. That was my biggest fear having 6 people, lots of luggage and a hard time getting around. That never happened. We used the Metro in Paris, The Tube in London, car in Bayeaux.
I could go on and on with our highlights, it was an incredible trip. My mom who never wanted to go to Europe, cried when we returned home, she had so much fun. My dad was pleasantly surprised. My kids learned endless amounts of history, and my husband and I got a vacation. Not the fast paced type we usually take in Europe, but a slow paced family vacation.
We took the train into Bayeux, rented a car, drove 20 minutes to the beautiful Chateau de Lignerolls. We had never stayed in a bed and breakfast before, so we did not know what to expect. We had our own entrance, each room had a sink, the bath was down the hall but robes were provided, one room had its own bath. There were lovely public areas decorated with a modern decor and wine and cider were offered by the hosts Roel and Pia. Breakfast was great.
D-Day Tours-My husband and dad did the tour put on by our host Roel (Victory Tours) along with 4 others. They really enjoyed their tour and mark it as the highlight of their trip. They drove the rest of us to the same sights they saw the next day.
Beaches: While they were doing the tour, and my mom was sick in bed with a mild cold, the kids and I took the car and go wonderfully lost in Normandy. We never worried, we just went from one small picturesque town to the next, until we landed on the beach. Wow, we didn't want to leave. We also made it to a couple D-Day sites and I tried to explain as well as I could to my children. They got a better explaination the next day from their dad.
Food: A highlight of my son was sharing a Fruits de la mer platter with my dad. It was fun seeing his delight in cracking the shell fish and then eating them. This was in Port en Bessin, we ended up coming here several times to look at the beach and collect shells.
Regrets: Not getting to see the tapistry, we had really wanted to, but we were so overcome with the sites, the chateau, and the beaches we just did not have enough time. Next time I would do a least 3 days in Normandy instead of 2and1/2. But who knows, if I was there 3 I would probably need 4.
We were a little sad to leave Normandy, but once we arrived back in Paris we were ready to get back into city life.
Paris highs continue:
Eiffel tower: Lines were long at night, but my son insisted. Wonderful as usual
Louvre: Again long lines but worth it. My daughter enjoyed looking for paintings she studied at school. My son was thrilled by the signed copy of the Mona Lisa he bought at the gift shop ( he really believes it is real). My parents enjoyed it all.
The Lido: When my mom saw this on the Champs D'Elysee she had to go there. So we left my parents who don't speak a word of french there to buy tickets, see the show, and make it home on their own. To be honest I was a little worried, but have no fear, they did show up at the apartment about 11:30 and had a wonderful time. Mom is still talking about the show.
The Cluny: My daughter and I wanted to go here. She she had done a report on the Tapistries at school and I had just read the book The Lady and the Unicorn.
Transportation: We used Bee shuttle again for our departure out of CDG. I am most impressed by all of the shuttles we used. That was my biggest fear having 6 people, lots of luggage and a hard time getting around. That never happened. We used the Metro in Paris, The Tube in London, car in Bayeaux.
I could go on and on with our highlights, it was an incredible trip. My mom who never wanted to go to Europe, cried when we returned home, she had so much fun. My dad was pleasantly surprised. My kids learned endless amounts of history, and my husband and I got a vacation. Not the fast paced type we usually take in Europe, but a slow paced family vacation.
Nov 2nd, 2006, 07:02 PM
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VRBO.com 79965 is the apartment in the Marais, much nicer than pictures show. A rare suprise. Dealing with them was also very easy, just a small deposit and then pay the rest upon arrival.
Nov 2nd, 2006, 09:43 PM
#8
Great report! Sounds like everyone had a wonderful time. My last trip to Paris was my first visit to the Cluny and I loved it and especially the tapestries.
I do have one question tho'. Re the costs of things in London - you (and lots of other posters) say how expensive things are. $500 for 4 tickets to Mary Poppins?? How?? The very top priced tix are £55 on fri/sat nights and £49 all other nights. So the very most I can see them costing is $400. And that is just the best seats in the house. And there are lots of great seats for less than £40 per person. So you could have had 4 good seats for less than $300. Did you use a "ticket broker"?
I do have one question tho'. Re the costs of things in London - you (and lots of other posters) say how expensive things are. $500 for 4 tickets to Mary Poppins?? How?? The very top priced tix are £55 on fri/sat nights and £49 all other nights. So the very most I can see them costing is $400. And that is just the best seats in the house. And there are lots of great seats for less than £40 per person. So you could have had 4 good seats for less than $300. Did you use a "ticket broker"?
Nov 3rd, 2006, 06:16 AM
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I just checked the credit card statement and it was $472.00 plus we bought programs for Mary Poppins. I think we went on a Friday sold out show and bought tickets thru the box office the day prior. Maybe not good planning but thats what we did. We did enjoy the show.
As for the Marais apt. Mom and Dad were at a nearby hotel prior to Normandy, with permission when we returned they stayed with us the final 3 days. Actually had more room than in our 2 bed + flat in London, It turned out to be really fun. Was very convenient.
As for the Marais apt. Mom and Dad were at a nearby hotel prior to Normandy, with permission when we returned they stayed with us the final 3 days. Actually had more room than in our 2 bed + flat in London, It turned out to be really fun. Was very convenient.
Nov 3rd, 2006, 07:12 AM
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Hello happytotravel, sounds like you had a fine time.
How did you find travelling this time of year? Were you affected by the time change at all (which would limit further the number of daylight hours in the afternoon/early evening. And, I'm assuming it was sweater/jacket weather - or....?
How did you find travelling this time of year? Were you affected by the time change at all (which would limit further the number of daylight hours in the afternoon/early evening. And, I'm assuming it was sweater/jacket weather - or....?
Nov 3rd, 2006, 07:15 AM
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Enjoyed your highlights trip report. We did a similar trip last March with kids about the same age and my parents who had never been to Europe. It is great to have shared those experiences with 3 generations. Glad you had such a wonderful trip!
Nov 4th, 2006, 01:13 PM
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My family is looking for an apt to rent in late March in Paris. Can you take a moment to describe the neighborhood immediatey surrounding the Paris apt? Restaurants, boulangeries, boucheries or markets nearby? What was closest metro stop? Thanks!
Nov 4th, 2006, 02:13 PM
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"Just take the cost of items in the US double them, and that comes close.
Example: 4 Mary Poppins tickets $500.00"
Although I see you reduced that to about $450.
But actually the top price to Mary Poppins in London is 55 pounds ($ 104). The top price to Mary Poppins on Broadway is $110.
So while London theatre used to be a great bargain compared to Broadway, they are now pretty much becoming even -- and certainly not "double the cost" in London!!!
Example: 4 Mary Poppins tickets $500.00"
Although I see you reduced that to about $450.
But actually the top price to Mary Poppins in London is 55 pounds ($ 104). The top price to Mary Poppins on Broadway is $110.
So while London theatre used to be a great bargain compared to Broadway, they are now pretty much becoming even -- and certainly not "double the cost" in London!!!
Nov 4th, 2006, 06:34 PM
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Hi happytotravel. Great report. I especially enjoyed the picture you painted of your son and father enjoying a shared meal. You son may not always remember what sites he saw when, but I'm sure he will always remember a special time in France with his grandfather.
Nov 4th, 2006, 07:38 PM
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Great fun to read. Thanks!
If you go back to Normandy with the kids, consider visiting La Domaine St. Hyppolite just south of Lisieux. A real working (cooperative) dairy farm where you can observe the milking, making of cheese and get a tour of the grounds (dovecot, cider house/press etc.) and they sell Crème de Calvados to die for!
If you go back to Normandy with the kids, consider visiting La Domaine St. Hyppolite just south of Lisieux. A real working (cooperative) dairy farm where you can observe the milking, making of cheese and get a tour of the grounds (dovecot, cider house/press etc.) and they sell Crème de Calvados to die for!
