Least expensive transportation from London to Normandy
Nov 20th, 2007, 04:38 PM
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Least expensive transportation from London to Normandy
Have been looking at rail, car,and ferry travel from London to Calais or Caen on dial up server and am about to pull my hair out! Can anyone who has done this trip help me with ideas. Would prefer not to drive in England, especially in London but trying to find best way for four guys to travel to rental in Normandy. Thanks for any advice
Nov 20th, 2007, 10:26 PM
#3
since you are probably going to need a car when you are staying in Normandy -- I'd take the train from London to Portsmouth, then a ferry to Caen, Cherbourg or Le Harve and pick up a rental car there. (or you could go LOndon to Dover by train, ferry to Calais and car from there)
Nov 20th, 2007, 10:39 PM
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Asking what we'd do won't get you very far, since practically everyone who goes to Normandy from the London area gets into a car, drives to Portsmouth or Calais/Folkestone then gets the ferry or tunnel shuttle across.
Public transport around Normandy is dreadful - as it is practically everywhere in France apart from the oversubsidised TGVs - so you need a car when you're there, so you may as well hire a car somewhere else and drive in.
As a result, there really aren't any convenient flights from the London area to Normandy's few airports (or indeed from anywhere else, since French holidaymakers drive there from home too). There are a couple of flights from Shoreham (follow links at http://195.7.104.1/normandy/fr/12transp/index.html), but getting there is a bit of a pain.
The only alternative to janisj's recommendations is to fly to Paris, then collect a hire car at CDG or Orly.
Public transport around Normandy is dreadful - as it is practically everywhere in France apart from the oversubsidised TGVs - so you need a car when you're there, so you may as well hire a car somewhere else and drive in.
As a result, there really aren't any convenient flights from the London area to Normandy's few airports (or indeed from anywhere else, since French holidaymakers drive there from home too). There are a couple of flights from Shoreham (follow links at http://195.7.104.1/normandy/fr/12transp/index.html), but getting there is a bit of a pain.
The only alternative to janisj's recommendations is to fly to Paris, then collect a hire car at CDG or Orly.
Nov 21st, 2007, 12:37 AM
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From London to Caen, the easiest route is by train to Portsmouth then to Caen with Brittany Ferries (www.brittany-ferries.com). I've done it several times, booking a cabin on the ship, leaving London in the early evening and getting to Caen in the morning. There is a connecting bus from the ferry terminal at Ouistreham to the centre of Caen. There are good connections by train to Bayeux and by bus to Honfleur, amongst other places.
Nov 22nd, 2007, 02:51 AM
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Eurolines coach service london-caen, I've done this trip before it's extremely inexpensive. Can't remember what I paid, maybe 20 quid.
It's a 9 hour journey or so, nice thing is that the coaches are super modern and show films (altho maybe in spanish!). The coach boards the eurostar which is quite cool.
It's not a bad journey.
It's a 9 hour journey or so, nice thing is that the coaches are super modern and show films (altho maybe in spanish!). The coach boards the eurostar which is quite cool.
It's not a bad journey.
