Corky

After spending a few days in London two Can. seniors planning to travel in N. France from 17-27 May need assistance in these areas.<BR>1-Is it better (cheaper)to rent car at Calais rather than in U.K?<BR>2- If that is the case how can I get from either Victoria or Waterloo to pick up car?<BR>3- Any favourite travel cos. that post late deals on the internet?<BR>4-Any self catering properties that you personally could recommend in Normandy,East Brittany, Upper Loire areas?<BR>Had contemplated staying at 2 or 3 different locations for 3-5 days.<BR>Have searched Brittany Ferries &amp; Hoverspeed sites but so many to peruse, could you recommend any speific properties that would suit us?<BR>Would welcome any input you could give us as we are endeavoring to put together an itinerary that is practical for 2 seniors.<BR>Thanks in advance for any help you can give us on any of the above topics.

Corky

I guess many are preparing for the Easter holiday. Not the best time to post

sheila

We stayed at a self catering place in Brittany, just outside Josselin called the Manoir de Montgrenier which was very nice. their web site is http://www.booknowrentals.com/Brittany-Cottages.htm

Corky

Shelia could not find Manoir or web site.Could check your info. again? Thanks

Hiroshi

I am not English. However, I know that many car hire agencies do not allow cars into Europe because of the costs of retrieving it if you abandon it. Ask!

welltraveledbrit

My parents live near Ashford in Kent which is on the Eurorail route from London to Paris and one year when visiting them we went over to northern Franc...Normandy/Loire/Paris. <BR>At the time (about 4 years ago) it was definately cheaper and easier to rent a car in France. The problem with renting in England and bringing the car to France was two fold...<BR>1)Insurance and rental rates were more expensive when you said you wanted to take the car out of the country and <BR>2)You have to pay to take the car on the Eurostar or the ferry which greatly increases costs.<BR>So we rented from Hertz, picking up the car at the first French stop (don't remember if it was Calias or not?) drove through Normandy and the Loire and the on to Paris where we dropped the car off. Dropping the car in the center of Paris was very hairy! Not fot the faint of heart. At the time Hertz had no additional charges for dropping the car in a different location. Also, because it was cheaper we bought roudtrip Eurorail tickets to Paris and just didn't use the section from the first French town to Paris.<BR>As you may already know it is generally much cheaper to organize the car rental from the US.<BR>We went in January and just found places as we went, because it has beeen a few years I don't remember the names! We loved the Loire but found Mont St Michel too touristy to be enjoyable. <BR>Hope this may help.<BR>

BAK

French cars have the steering wheel on the same side as Candian cars.<BR><BR>British cars have the steering wheel on the opposite side.<BR><BR>So if you rent in England, yhou'd have the steering wheel on the &quot;wrong&quot; side twice. Once worong compared to what you have at home, and once wrong because you'll have the wheel on the curb side of the car in France, not on the side that faces oncoming traffic.<BR><BR>BAK

nigel

You will not need a car in London. So, why not tate the train to Calais (www.eurostar.com) and then rent a car there. I have never driven in France,but they drive on the same side as Canada, so that helps you along. <BR><BR>Book ahead with Eurostar for the best rates. If you are coming back to London, get a return ticket. If not, then go for a single. NB some single fares are v dear, so you might want to buy a return ticket with a fictitious return date.

isabel

You definitly want to rent the car in France - for all the reasons stated above. If you don't want to take the eurostar (fastest but most expensive option) you can take a ferry which is quite cheap if you do it as a passenger (as oppossed to doing it with a car). I think Stella Line is the main one but there are others. Best route is from Dover to Calis, and if the weather is good it's a very nice trip. <BR><BR>I would do that even if you rent a car in England. Obviously not a good idea for London, but if you wanted to see some of the country side you could rent one after you leave London (Gatwick would work, take the train there - fast and cheap and much easier than driving in central London) and drive around Kent and the south of England and drop it at Dover. I did that a couple years ago and it worked fine. Rented another car once I got to France.

Corky

We would like to convey to all who replied to our inital post our thanks and appreciation for taking time to give us valuable info. that we can use as we prepare for our trip.

sheila

They've changed their web site since last year, but I tracked them down.<BR><BR>http://www.gu84.dial.pipex.com/bed-breakfast-france-br28.htm<BR><BR>

Corky

Discovered that it is faster and less hassle to take the Eurostar from Waterloo.<BR>Dover-Calais by P&amp;O, Hoverspeed takes approx.1 hour but total time from London is 1 1/2 hrsand seniors off hours return costs 110GBP.

phisy

I'd take the eurostar and then rent a car in france. Can't imagine why you'd need a xcar in either Paris or London-both cities very very easy to get around using mass transit-