I am not always good at being succinct, but I will do my best not to ramble on too much.

Traveled with my friend Maritza, August 31 to September 11. Destinations: Paris and Venice -- five nights in each city.

THE FLIGHTS:

Delta/Air France, 80,000 points plus $75 for each ticket to cover airport fees.

First flight on a Delta 767 (I think) in Business Elite, Los Angeles to Atlanta. Seat was very comfortable -- recline and leg rest excellent. Blanket skimpy. Individual movie screens additionally offering video games. Food just so-so.

Second flight from Atlanta to Paris on same type plane, and again very comfortable, nicer blankets/pillows and amenities such as toothpaste/brush, comb, mints, hand cream, etc. Service was excellent. Meals not so great. We were to have a three hour layover. We had just carry-on luggage, something I like to do at least for the trip over. That gave us the opportunity to catch an earlier flight eliminating two of the three hours. My carry-on bag is 20x14x10, and my personal item a large sachel. It was amazing how much I could fit into these two bags. We landed in a remote area and had a long bus ride to the terminal.

We used Paris Shuttle to get to our hotel; Mark Harris was kind enough to help us out as we were staying on the periphery. They normally do not service this area.

Flights between Paris and Venice were first class on Air France. There is not a lot of difference between coach and first class. They draw a curtain, probably because the seats in both classes of service look exactly alike -- three seats across in each section. In first class the center seat is a bit narrower and there is a tray sitting across it. One of the best airline meals I ever had was on a similar Air France flight. Not this time, however. The meal was mediocre at best. Very good service.

I did not realize there is a new airline terminal in Venice. This is a far cry from the tiny, chaotic one they had. But now we had to take a motorbus to the dock, whereas before you could walk from the terminal. Once on the waterbus (10 euros), it is necessary to step down into the boat to be seated. They pile luggage in the front of the boat, so there is a view of Venice only from side windows as you ride in. This is very sad as that view is breathtaking. It took almost an hour to get to San Marcos.

I flew back to Los Angeles via Paris and Cincinnati on Air France. The flight between Paris and Cincinnati was an Airbus 340 with three classes of service. In my opinion, Delta's BusinessElite was better than business class on this plane. My friend flew back on an Air France 777, and said business class was better than Delta's BusinessElite. Going through Customs took only moments, as did getting my checked bag and rechecking it. The service on board the Air France flight to Cincinnati was about the best I've ever experienced. The last flight was first class on a standard domestic plane.

I took advantage of the busines class lounges at both airports. The one in Paris is huge, offering shower rooms, a "relaxation" room, and about half a dozen computers set up with free internet service. Lots of free beverages: booze, soft drinks, juice, and water, but the only food I saw was biscuits. The one memorable thing in Cincinnati was the massage chairs. I don't like vibrating chairs, but this one didn't vibrate; instead it made me feel as if my back and legs were actually being massaged. I'd like one of these at home.

Air France was strict about carry-on baggage. Delta did not even weigh our luggage going over. Air France weighed the luggage on the return, and even though I was slightly over the allowance, they made me check one of my bags. Also, Air France required that we reconfirmed each flight 48 hours prior.

More to follow.

THE HOTELS:

In Paris we stayed at the Marriott Courtyard in Neuilly using 95,000 points for five nights. Had wanted to stay at the Marriott on Champs Elysees (between Metros Franklin Roosevelt and George V), but they wanted 195,000 points to override the blackout dates. I've tried numerous times to stay here, but it is always blacked out. This was the second time I stayed at the Courtyard. It is located in an upscale, residential neighborhood, about a 10-minute walk to the Metro (Anatole France) and there is a bus stop around the corner. There are restaurants and other services within an easy walk. We liked eating here as this area is not frequented by tourists. The hotel has a restaurant, a garden, and a parking garage. Our air-conditioned room was plain but adequate in size, especially for Paris. The bathroom was modern and offered enough counter space for two women to spread their toiletries easily -- and we had a lot. The beds were hard. I requested a no smoking room with a garden view. Not only did we not hear traffic, we did not hear noise from other rooms, not even plumbing noises.

Stayed at the Europa and Regina in Venice, close to San Marcos. We could not have been more delighted. This is a Westin hotel in the Starwood group, costing 40,000 points for five nights. We upgraded from a courtyard view to a partial canal view for an additional 4,000 points. I'd heard mixed things about this hotel. They do have some small rooms, but we had a large, beautiful one -- I'm guessing it was at least 650 square feet including the bathroom. It was decorated with a lot of Venetian character -- pictures on the walls, Venetian chandelier, fabrics, etc. We had Westin's Heavenly Beds, turndown service at night with chocolates, terrycloth robes, and terrycloth slippers. The marble bathroom had a separate tub and shower, bath sheets, hairdryer, and Venetian glass light fixtures attached to the large mirror over the sink. Our view, although limited, was beautiful. The rest of the hotel was just as beautiful. I didn't bring anything electrical, but I saw an electrical outlet in the bathroom that had the ability to accept an American plug. That's the first time I've seen that in Europe. The closet was large with lots of hangers. Central air that came in handy as a couple of days were warm. www.westin.com/europaregina.

Starwood appears to have the concept down well for expressing appreciation for those in their loyalty program. I've used Marriott points before, and I do not take the privilege lightly; however, Marriott could learn a thing or two from Starwood. Marriott requires that you order a certificate in advance and it notes that it is not replaceable if lost or stolen, and it must be presented at checkin. With Starwood, you need to make a reservation -- that's all. Starwood does not have blackout dates. At the Europa and Regina, when we checked they made a big deal over our loyalty to Starwood, and management sent a bottle of champagne to our room. They offered "instant rewards" while at the hotel. For 1,500 points one morning I had a buffet breakfast that goes for 50 euros -- the buffet was not impressive, but it was nice to sit in a pretty dining room and look out over the canal. I couldn't help but wonder what they would think of a $9.99 breakfast buffet in Las Vegas. For 3,000 points you can get a logo brass keyholder -- I'm not sure how they determine their point values.

Maritza had to go home earlier than I, and as her plane departed early in the morning, it was necessary for her to reserve a private water taxi at a cost of 80 euros -- sort of a limo, but on water. I was able to book the hotel's shuttle at a cost of 30 euros; it runs only six times a day, so I was lucky it coincided with my flight. The first water bus going from Piazza San Marcos to the airport departs at about 9 am, so if you have a morning flight, a private -- and expensive -- water taxi may be necessary.

More to follow.

luvtotravel...enjoying your report so far. Keep it coming!

WHAT I PACKED:

Okay, so carry-on is not so easy, but it can be done. I took four pairs of black trousers, a lot of tops that could be layered -- all solid colors in blue and black -- and one blue and black blazer, a couple of scarves if I felt like dressing up a bit, and two pairs of shoes. Ladies, I must tell you about this fabulous underwear I found -- three pairs take up the space of one of my cotton undies, weigh nothing, and dry in just a few hours. It's called Barely There, model #2870 -- they have more than one model, so look at the number. I bought them at Mervyn's (So.Calif). My luxury item was a CD player, headphones, and two small speakers. What could be better than to listen to accordian music, a little Maurice Chevalier, and Edith Piaf in Paris, and to Andrea Bocelli and other traditionally Italian music in Venice.

WHAT WE DID IN PARIS:

The Carte Orange turned out to be a great bargain as we were on and off the Metro and buses a lot and fit perfectly into our Monday-Saturday stay.

As we'd both been to Paris several times, we were able to skip many of the major tourist spots. We walked up and down the Ponte Alexandre III our first day admiring the beautiful sculptures. Went to bed very early that first day as we did not sleep on the flights. This allowed us to get up at 4:30 am the next day to catch the first train to Vernon -- with time to spare. Departure point: Gare St. Lazare. The train ride is about 45 minutes to Vernon where we hopped aboard the bus to Giverny. We were among the first people to enter and I was able to get a photo of Monet's house without anyone standing in front of it. I walked through the gift shop with no one else in it. The gardens were so packed the first time I visited here, it was nearly impossible to move down a garden path, and getting into the gift shop was close to impossible. This was a treat. There were some sections of the garden where I did not see another person. The flowers were glistening, and I hope some of my photos turn out well. The tradeoff to arriving so early was that it was overcast, but I think it was worth the trade. In the past, the bus from Vernon dropped us off directly in front of Monet's home. This time we were dropped off in a large parking lot and walked about ten minutes. They need to work on their signage, especially to get people back to the bus which runs infrequently.

More to follow.

In the afternoon, we went to the Galleries Lafayette. Beautiful department store, but expensive. We enjoyed the food halls. They stopped me from taking a photo of a marzipan display -- I'm not sure what they think I was going to do with it. We went to the top floor for a great view of the city. There is a cafe up here where we relaxed for awhile. They were serving some great-looking ice cream, but at 5 euros for a scoop. Even on vacation, that's pricey.

We reserved a private photo tour being offered by Paris Photo Tours, http://parisphototours.com. We met Christiane at 8:45 am and stayed with her until 7:30 pm. I do believe Christiane would have kept going but we were just out of steam and our legs were starting to scream at us. We wandered around Montmartre and then to St. Germain, Luxembourg Gardens, over to the Place de la Concorde. One of our stops was the grocery store used in filming "Amelie." I can comfortably recommend Christiane as a guide, and also recommend that you give her some idea of what you would like to photograph -- monuments, cafes, people, etc. We had a delightful day and felt that we were touring with a friend. As she lived in the U.S. her English is excellent. That evening we took hot baths and had dinner at the hotel as we could barely move.

We felt we had mastered the Metro. I took two maps with me -- one put out by The Rough Guide, with city streets, landmarks, metros stops, etc. It is plastic, lightweight, and waterproof. The second map was for transportation only -- large; one section for the Metro, one the bus routes, and one the RER stops. Before heading out we would chart out our destination using both maps and write the steps on a piece of paper. That way we did not need to pull out a map while enroute. I marked both maps with removeable plastic arrows (like Post-Its) so we could easily and quickly find locations. This helped, too, when people were giving us directions. We did our best to not look like tourists. We'd write down the line numbers, colors, line directions, etc. (It is crucial to know the name of the end of the line.) I couldn't believe how easy it was -- so easy it did not feel foreign at all. We never saw any indication of pickpocketing, nor did we feel in jeopardy in any way. We also kept our cameras in our purses except when in use.

I would not call Paris fashionable. People appeared to dress for comfort and convenience. Mostly drab colors. I noticed the women sitting on the Metro would hold their purses on their laps with their arms around them. A few times we saw young people singing or playing instruments and then passing a cup around for change.

I wanted to practice the little French I know, but frequently when saying bonjour, people would respond in English. There was much more English spoken on this trip than I experienced in the past. Occasionally, however, someone would respond in French and I would have that "dear in the headlights" look on my face. All in all, people were very nice to us.

We went to the Bastille market. Much of it is food, but we managed to each find some things to buy and enjoyed the atmosphere.

Maritza took a tour of Notre Dame while I climbed to the first level (about 250 stairs) to where the gargoyles are looking out over the city. It was a clear day, and I hope my gargoyle photos reflect what I could see. There were another 150 stairs to the top, but I'd had enough.

We wandered through the main street on the Ile St. Louis one evening and went back to do some shopping the next day. This is the most charming area I've seen in Paris, and I think it would be great to stay in one of the small hotels here sometime.

One afternoon we checked out the ladies rooms in some of the high end hotels. I'm not sure when I started doing this, but it is something I do when traveling. So far, Asian hotels do a better job at this than European hotels. The Four Seasons had beautiful floral arrangements throughout the hotel. That afternoon we also walked along the Champs Elysees and stopped for a while at Sephora -- it was so crowded you'd think they were giving something away.

If there are people in Paris who do not smoke, we did not cross their paths.

We ate at some restaurants recommended on this board. My thanks as we enjoyed them. La Pomme, 18 Place Dauphine, behind St. Chapelle, was a quiet respite from an otherwise hectic day. I had a warm goat cheese salad and Maritza had boeuf bourguignonne. Les Delices d'Aphrodite, 4 rue de Candolle, near Metro Censier (this station is closed for a few months), served good moussaka. La Scuderia del Mulino, a couple of doors from the Moulin Rouge, served up a good Italian lunch. La Crepe en L'Isle on the Ile St. Louis is where we had crepes -- twice. First for brunch, then later for dessert. Auberge de la Reine Blanche, also on the Ile St. Louis, was a good suggestion for dinner, www.aubergedelareineblanche.com. This is where I had my favorite meal in Paris -- marvelous mussels marinere followed by duck breast with honey.

That's the report from Paris. Will work on Venice tomorrow.

Your posting was very timely. I have just
booked to Paris from L.A. on Delta via Atlanta with a Business Elite upgrade. The agent actually made an error, and booked me this way even though a seat was available on Air France (via codeshare) business class nonstop from L.A. (no longer available, of course!) Should I feel terrible (am told Air France business class on 777 is excellent) or was your experience from L.A.
via Atlanta good? I flew Delta via Cincinnati
to London last year (again using an upgrade) and that service was pretty bad
for business class. Appreciate your thoughts. Incidentally, am excited about Paris, since haven't been there in many years and am having special trip with my
daughter this November. Tell us a little bit
more, s.v.p. about your dinner at Auberge de la Reine Blance.

Boone: Not sure what to tell you about your flight. My friend flew on Air France 777 and said it was better than BusinessElite on Delta; also would be non-stop. I was happy with the BusinessElite to Atlanta -- seats were very comfortable. Did not care a lot for Air France to Cincinnati -- most due to the foot rest. Instead of a flat surface it was a bar, and the seat did not recline as much.

The Auberge de la Reine Blanche is a small, pretty restaurant with miniature furniture tacked onto the walls. It was reasonably priced.

To get there, exit the Metro at Pont Marie and walk across the river onto Ile St. Louis. Walk one block and turn left onto rue St. Louis en L'Ile. The restaurant is half way down the block on the left.

Boone: I just looked at the postcard I picked up at Auberge de la Reine Blanche. The address is 30, rue Saint-Louis en I'Ile, closed on Wednesdays and at lunch on Thursdays. Reservations (we didn't have one) at [email protected]

ABOUT VENICE:

Somehow, I need to avoid these morning flights in the future. We had a taxi pick us up at 6:00 am to take us to CDG -- the cost was 45 euros. This was reasonable as it was early on a Saturday morning with light traffic.

Once unpacked we went out for a spaghetti lunch. We split up and wandered the city until early evening. When booking the trip I did not realize we would be in Venice on a busy weekend. We arrived on the last day of a major international film festival and the day before an historical regatta. The city was packed. It took a while to find my way to an area that was not exploding with people or shops. I don't remember Venice having so many shops -- there must be thousands of them selling glass, masks, and paper products, and I don't think I'm overstating the situation.

My biggest disappointment in Venice was the graffiti. So very sad to see so many of these beautiful buildings defaced.

What's with all these guys selling handbags from the street?

Late in the evening of our first day in Venice Maritza got a call from her husband telling her that her mother had a heart attack and was in the hospital. Delta was great and changed Maritza's airline ticket with no hassle or charge, and she went home the next morning. (Maritza's mom is now home and is doing fine.) We were up at 5:00 am to catch a water taxi to the airport -- 80 euro.

I was now on my own and feeling a bit blue -- and tired. The last time I was in Venice I tried taking the #5 motor bus from the airport and thought I'd try it again. Bad decision as it filled up along the way with locals headed into the city for the festivities and took a long time to reach the bus terminal. Think sardines.

I picked up a 72-hour vaporetto pass (22 euros). It was a good value as I jumped on and off the vaporettos frequently. Also, it was convenient not to need to purchase a ticket each time. To avoid walking across the Rialto Bridge -- more to avoid the crowd than the steps -- I took the vaporetto one stop. The system is easy to learn. Once at the "bus" stop, look at the arrows pointing in the direction you want to go. Not every line stops at every dock, so be sure to know which line number you need. The maps handed out at the hotels will note the stops and line numbers. I did not bring a map of Venice with me and used the one the hotel provided. The city is built as a maze, and even with a map I had difficulty figuring out where I was sometimes. I suggest you bring a map with you, and find one that includes hotel names. There seemed to be a hotel on every block and they would work well as landmarks. When using a pass for a specific time period, do not punch it in the machine -- just have it with you. The vaporetto system is on an honor basis -- just don't get caught without a ticket. Twice there were officials aboard checking to see that people had tickets.

Learn where the major destinations are (San Marcos, Accademia, and Roma are some) and follow the signs with arrows. You'll come across at least one of these signs at every square. I liked finding signs that had arrows pointing in two directions -- not puzzling really -- it just means you can take either lane to reach your destination.

After wandering the city I returned to my hotel to see what the regatta was all about. It started at 4:00 pm and even though I could see the Grand Canal from my balcony, I went down to the hotel's dock. There I had a great spot for photographs and the light was in the right direction. Again, I'm hoping I got a couple of good shots. The regatta turned out to be not such a big deal and I hung around for only half an hour.

There are several internet shops in the city. The one I recommend is near the Rialto Bridge. My thanks to the person on this board for recommending it. From San Marcos, cross the Rialto Bridge. It will be behind the shops on the right. I don't remember what they charge, but most of the time I paid 3 euros for about 30-45 minutes at two of the shops. The keyboard is different, so be sure to ask how to use the @ sign. The same goes for the French keyboard which is even more different than the Italian keyboard. For the French keyboard, I think you need to use Control/Alt and the @ sign.

(Will these tourists never leave?) Sunday and Monday were pretty days and I spent them exploring and browsing the shops. We had reservations for a tour of the Veneto hill towns on Monday, but it was canceled as Maritza and I were the only ones to sign up for that day. It was a big disappointment as I was very much looking forward to a trip to Asolo. Guess that means I'll need to return.

There is a lot of restoration going on to both buildings and canals. It was nice to see the sensitivity of the work as, in many cases, they put up facades painted to look like what was underneath.

My thanks to the person on this board who posted the local phone number to call to make reservations for the Secret Tour of the Palace. I called Monday and got a reservation for Tuesday morning. The number is 011-039-041-271-5911. It cost 12.5 euros. It was interesting and our tour guide was good.

For the rest of Tuesday we had drizzle. What had been a sea of people now became a sea of people with umbrellas. This did not deter me from walking for the majority of the day. I returned to the hotel after dinner with plans to rent a movie, but it cost 25 euros to rent movies on a daily basis rather than on a one-movie-at-a-time basis, so I snuggled into my Heavenly Bed with a good book instead.

After a leisurely breakfast at the hotel on Wednesday I ventured over to San Marcos and went up the Campanelle for a wonderful rooftop view of the city. The forecast was for rain, but the sun burst through the clouds for a gorgeous day. I found areas where I did not see other tourists and enjoyed the peace and quiet. I wandered around the Dursoduro area where I stayed last time. The crowds were beginning to thin out.

Each evening I went to San Marcos to listen to the orchestras and watch people attract the pigeons. This is a great place for people watching. I'm not sure about those pigeons, though.

Meals in Venice were okay, but not outstanding, so I have no recommendations. I stopped each day for a full meal for either lunch or dinner. Otherwise, I grabbed a slice of pizza and kept walking. I enjoyed having spaghetti every day, and stopped at least once a day for gelato -- all gelato is not created equal. I would also stop for licorice and pastries. (I went to Curves this morning to learn that I lost two pounds on the trip. That was amazing considering all the eating I did.)

I was up at 6:00 am Thursday to catch the hotel shuttle to the airport. First, I took my camera to San Marcos for some last minute morning shots. It was nice to see the square empty.

When it was time to leave Paris, I didn't want to go. When it was time to leave Venice, I didn't want to go. This is a sign of good trip and I can't wait for the next time.

luvtotravel, Great report!! So glad that you booked Christiane for a tour in Paris. She and Linda are great and their tours are not just for photographers. I can also recommend the Gastronomy tour...fabulous! Thanks for all of the great details as I am headed back to Paris in two weeks!

Great report, luvtotravel. You used the same net cafe in Venice that we did. Glad it worked out well for you, although the keyboards are a little hard to get used to, huh?

The wine bar next door was also fabulous, and a place that we frequented on our stay, as well.

Very nice report, glad you enjoyed Venice

For those pondering between Air France and Delta business class, I'd recommend Delta anytime.
I've flown both in business class (Salt Lake City-NYC-Venice on DL, Paris-L.A. on AF) - the service & crew were good on both (though Delta had a slight edge over AF), and the food was great.
However, I think Delta beats AF as far as seating - 60'' seat pitch as opposed to AF's 48'' (makes a HUGE difference), plus a 2-2-2 configuration on all airplanes, whereas on AF it's 2-3-2 on the 747-400 & 777 (2-2-2 on the A340).

Federico

Ahh, Luvtotravel, that was a great trip report!! And it did turn out to be succinct!

I'm glad Maritza's mother is at home & faring well. Terrible that this should happen while so far away.

I'm glad you had such a great time in Paris.

One question, I'm preparing a trip to Paris in March/April with my children & they've requested crepes Suzette. Might you remember if that was listed on the menu at your creperie on the Ile St. Louis? Many thanks!!!!

Beatchick -- Glad you enjoyed the report and hope you got something useful out of it.

How old are your children? The Luxembourg Gardens were filled with children -- they have a marionette show you might look into if they are very young.

I don't know if they have crepes suzette on the menu, but then I wasn't looking for crepes suzette -- I had a crepe with hamburger and tomatoes first, then later a crepe with ice cream. All they serve is crepes and ice cream. There's more than one restaurant serving crepes nearby -- you can look at the menu before being seated.

True, true. I just didn't want to lug the children hither & yon trying to find a place that serves them - LOL!!

The children are actually 1/2 grown. My son is 14 & my daughter will be 11 quite soon!

Thank you, Luvtotravel, I did get something useful out of your trip report & it is quite enjoyable to read!!