muyil

We are a group of five friends traveling together through France. We will be driving from Paris to Brittany to the Loire Valley then down to Provence and back to Paris. We have rented a minivan - the Renault Espace. We are really excited about our trip but are worried about the price of gas/diesel. Is there anyone out there that can tell me how much the liter or gallon of gas or diesel is? I would greatly appreciate the information. Anything else we need to consider? Thanks!

Underhill

It seems to me that we paid around $4 per litre last September, but someone else may have more recent information to give you.

laverendrye

$4 per litre?? You must mean per gallon. Last June in France, at any hypermarché the price (for diesel) was about €0.82 per litre, and I can't imagine that the price quadrupled in such a short time. Gasoline was around €1 or so. It's always best to rent a diesel in terms of fuel costs. As well, prices are always lowest at the hypermarchés (Carrefour, Casino etc), sometimes by 15% or more.

Here's a website that will give you an idea of current prices:

www.aaroadwatch.ie/eupetrolprices/default.asp

Dave_in_Paris

Paris pump prices: diesel 1.01 euros per liter; regular unleaded 1.08 euros per liter. The Espace is not all that small, but I do expect it has good gas mileage.

caroline_edinburgh

Irrelevant but it just occurred to me to wonder... If what we Brits call petrol is called gas by Americans, what do Americans call gas, as in a gas cooker ?

tedgale

Since you ask for other useful info, here is a piece of advice I cannot emphasize enough:

Those hypermarches (Leclerc, Carrefour) are great resources but the pumps are sometimes unmanned. The 24-7 you often see indicated means access *with a bank card* is available outside their normal operating hours.

You need a (local) bank card to operate them: Debit cards and credit cards often do NOT work in their machines, it seems.

Sundays, especially Sunday afternoons, are bad for finding a manned pump -- other than on the motorways, say.

A couple of times in remote towns we found ourselves low on gas and had to beg other customers to accept our cash and fill us up using their bank card.

Needless to say, we got a few curt and suspicious refusals along the way. We are much more *avertis* about filling up regularly, nowadays.

laverendrye

Caroline: Gas, as used in a stove (not a "cooker" here) is simply called that. I doubt that anyone is confused, as gasoline fuelled stoves are a rarity (dangerous and mostly used for heating).

Muyil: You should be aware that diesel fuel is called "gazole" in France, which can be confusing.

walkinaround

caroline,
they also say "gas" as in "gas stove" (gas cooker). or alternately, "natural gas".

Dave_in_Paris

You should also be aware that "regular" gas is called "super." There are two grades of super. If the Espace takes gasoline rather than diesel, check the owner's manual for the recommended grade.

rex

Although a "gas" stove (or range) is called just that when in one's home - - the portable type, used say... for camping... is often called a propane stove.

And the trendy" thing in excessively affluent American homes is to have a big, elaborate "gas grill" on patio or other outdoor spaces - - though increasingly, they are virtually a duplication of the gar "range" found indoors in the kitchen. Typically in stainless steel or some other weather resitant surface.

Best wishes,

Rex

MorganB

Dont forget that the autoroutes are toll. They are not cheap either. Use http://www.viamichelin.com to caculate tolls. The Espace is lovely but be aware that standard rental agencys rent it will 3 rows of seats. This limits the cargo area greatly. You can fold down the back row which will help but it does not fold flat into the floor.

caroline_edinburgh

Thanks folks - my bit of learning for the day !

hopingtotravel

I assume this means the unmanned machines will not take cash either?

MorganB

No unfortunately they dont take cash.

Budman

There were unmanned gas stations in Italy that took Euro. I would think France would be just as progressive?

Rent a diesel -- I repeat -- Rent a diesel if you can. Fuel is less expensive and diesels get better mileage.

jsmith

Thank you, Leverendrye, for the website of diesel and petrol prices which I take the liberty to repeat:

www.aaroadwatch.ie/eupetrolprices/default.asp

Since the prices are in liters be aware that 1 gallon is 3.7854 liters. For myself, I'd call it 4 liters which is close enough for government work.

nonnafelice

That site lists prices from Feb 2005. At least in the US, prices have taken a big jump since then, and I suppose the same is true in France.

Here's another site with somewhat more recent info:
http://www.day-tripper.net/pricespetrol.html
It says "Latest (March 2005) - Diesel now 96.9 cents and Petrol (95) now 1.109 euro in France."

Since the euro is now worth about $1.30, that would make gas in France something like $5 a gallon in US terms -- a bit more than twice what we are currently paying in my area of New England. Is that about the same ratio as it's historically been?

laverendrye

jsmith: If I were still using gallons, for me, 1 gallon would equal 4.54609 litres. However, I've been buying gas in litres for nearly 30 years.

Underhill

Sorry about the incorrect figure. Of course it was for a gallon.

jsmith

I should have specified the US gallon. You,laverendrye, must have used the Imperial gallon.

Nonnafelice, good site for more up-to-date French prices but with the volatility of currency and crude any price, no matter how current, is no more than an indication. The gas I paid $2.159 for on Sunday was $2.119 on Monday at the same Cumberland Farm station.