It looks like our trip to South Africa is getting pushed off until July, so we have decided to go to Paris for a long week before Christmas. I've been several times, but SO has never been and it is one of my all time favorite cities but I've not been in a long time and really don't want to stay where I have been in the past.
So what I've been seeing is the better flights are by Air France and British Air. I've flown neither and am wondering if one is better than the other?
Also, I need a hotel that is near the metro, preferably in a central location to shops and restaurants. I've looked at hotels until my eyes have gone bleary and know that I just need to bite the bullet. I'd like to keep the price under $200/night. Does anyone have any suggestions?
Both airlines are good enough, and considerably better than the American ones. I'd choose based on schedule, price, and alliance preference (provided that they're flying on their own metal -- if any flight options are operated by an American carrier, I'd pay a small premium to avoid it!)
We likely will be flying out of Vancouver as it looks like it is a bit less with better connections. Seattle is another option. There is a direct flight out of Seattle though. BA connects through Heathrow. There is another flight that connects through Amsterdam, can't remember airline though.
Try the Holiday Inn Saint Germain des Pres near the Saint Placide stop. We stayed there several years ago when we were on a pretty tight budget. Rooms are nice and the location is convenient.
We likely will be flying out of Vancouver as it looks like it is a bit less with better connections. Seattle is another option. There is a direct flight out of Seattle though. BA connects through Heathrow. There is another flight that connects through Amsterdam, can't remember airline though.
KLM is likely the one flying through Amsterdam, though in Seattle it could also be a Delta-operated flight since I think Delta runs one a day as well.
If they're similar in cost, I'd take the non-stop AF flight from SEA to CDG. I'd even take the non-stop if it was nominally (or a moderate amount) more, because I really value non-stop flights.
If it's cheaper to have a connection, then either BA or KLM will be fine. I'd avoid Delta, but that's just me. KLM / AF / BA are three comparable European airlines - better than the US airlines, but IMO not as good as Cathay, Emirates, etc.
I've done the SEA to CDG and SEA to LHR flight - both are nice, quite easy (LHR is about 7.5-8 hours going), and fast since they go over the pole.
I'm not sure how much you'd save by going out of YVR, but it can be really substantial (we saved $3K a ticket on our Asia itinerary by flying out of YVR, so I just bought flights from SEA to YVR to get us up there). Do account for the time it takes to get there / back and the costs associated with it, though; if it's not a pretty big savings, I'd say you're probably better just going out of SEA if that's the closer airport.
We save about $250/ticket plus long term parking if we fly out of YVR. Distance wise, we are about 30 miles closer to YVR than SEA. SO's mom lives 20 min from YVR, so we can leave the car in her garage and she can drop us off and pick us up.
If we spring for flying business, the difference is about $1500/ticket out of YVR. Doubt we'll do that though.
Post by alleinesein on Sept 4, 2015 0:04:33 GMT -5
I prefer BA to AF. I was underwhelmed the last time I flew AF. I try to fly BA to any European destination; it is super convenient for me since they have a SAN-LHR route. I also fly World Traveller Plus; its only about $200-300 more than World Traveller but the extra legroom is worth it. My last two long haul flights on BA they were offering business class upgrades for USD $600.
Try the Holiday Inn Saint Germain des Pres near the Saint Placide stop. We stayed there several years ago when we were on a pretty tight budget. Rooms are nice and the location is convenient.
I haven't stayed at this hotel specifically, but used to live in this neighborhood. It's a fantastic location. You're in walking distance of the Jardin de Luxembourg, all the shops on Rue de Rennes & Blvd. St. Germain, lots of great restaurants, the food hall at the Grande Epicerie, the farmers' market on Blvd. Raspail (Sundays, Tuesdays and Fridays) and, depending on the weather, you can also walk across the Seine quite easily to get to places like Tuileries and the Louvre from there. I've even walked to Montmartre from there on a particularly gloriously sunny December day, but it was an all-day enterprise of stopping for pastries, wandering in and out of shops, and basically taking my time and enjoying the walk.
The subway and bus connections are also quite good from this neighborhood, including to and from both CDG and Orly airports. There's a bus that goes straight to the Eiffel Tower, for example.
I would also consider AirBnB.
No advice on the airlines. I've flown Air France a lot and don't have any complaints, but can't remember the last time I flew BA. I flew Iceland Air on my most recent trip to Paris and was pleasantly surprised by how easy the layover in Reykjavik was. I'm not a huge fan of flying through London, but will do it if it means I arrive in Orly.
We likely will be flying out of Vancouver as it looks like it is a bit less with better connections. Seattle is another option. There is a direct flight out of Seattle though. BA connects through Heathrow. There is another flight that connects through Amsterdam, can't remember airline though.
If it's cheaper to have a connection, then either BA or KLM will be fine. I'd avoid Delta, but that's just me. KLM / AF / BA are three comparable European airlines - better than the US airlines, but IMO not as good as Cathay, Emirates, etc.
I've done the SEA to CDG and SEA to LHR flight - both are nice, quite easy (LHR is about 7.5-8 hours going), and fast since they go over the pole.
Do you fly Business? Delta beats the pants off of AF and KLM in business. mich1 if you are flying Economy I would still choose the non-stop and upgrade to Deltas Comfort Plus just so I could go non-stop.
Hotel in Paris? I loved this hotel : www.hotelderbyeiffel.com/en/ only stayed there once years ago. Now we stay at a friends apartment in Montparnasse
Do you fly Business? Delta beats the pants off of AF and KLM in business. mich1 if you are flying Economy I would still choose the non-stop and upgrade to Deltas Comfort Plus just so I could go non-stop.
Hotel in Paris? I loved this hotel : www.hotelderbyeiffel.com/en/ only stayed there once years ago. Now we stay at a friends apartment in Montparnasse
Always. But I don't assume everyone else is, and quite frankly I'm not a fan of Delta business on that particular route.
ETA: I did fly this right when it first came out and the plane was crap. Maybe they upgraded it?
Gotcha, the old one was bleh. Deltas new configuration really makes a ton of difference.
Gotcha, the old one was bleh. Deltas new configuration really makes a ton of difference.
Good to know they've gotten better - they didn't have IFE systems (which sucks for a nine hour flight) and the seats didn't recline flat. For the $$$ I was wholly underwhelmed and honestly haven't flown them in BC / first since, though I did know we have a few Delta fans on this board so now I know why!
You have my sympathies. Delta pulled that shit on me once , years ago, on a flight back from Rome.
KLM is likely the one flying through Amsterdam, though in Seattle it could also be a Delta-operated flight since I think Delta runs one a day as well.
If they're similar in cost, I'd take the non-stop AF flight from SEA to CDG. I'd even take the non-stop if it was nominally (or a moderate amount) more, because I really value non-stop flights.
If it's cheaper to have a connection, then either BA or KLM will be fine. I'd avoid Delta, but that's just me. KLM / AF / BA are three comparable European airlines - better than the US airlines, but IMO not as good as Cathay, Emirates, etc.
I've done the SEA to CDG and SEA to LHR flight - both are nice, quite easy (LHR is about 7.5-8 hours going), and fast since they go over the pole.
I'm not sure how much you'd save by going out of YVR, but it can be really substantial (we saved $3K a ticket on our Asia itinerary by flying out of YVR, so I just bought flights from SEA to YVR to get us up there). Do account for the time it takes to get there / back and the costs associated with it, though; if it's not a pretty big savings, I'd say you're probably better just going out of SEA if that's the closer airport.
We save about $250/ticket plus long term parking if we fly out of YVR. Distance wise, we are about 30 miles closer to YVR than SEA. SO's mom lives 20 min from YVR, so we can leave the car in her garage and she can drop us off and pick us up.
If we spring for flying business, the difference is about $1500/ticket out of YVR. Doubt we'll do that though.
Honestly, the European carriers have nice Premium Economies. If you want to do that out of YVR, I wouldn't be mad at you.
We save about $250/ticket plus long term parking if we fly out of YVR. Distance wise, we are about 30 miles closer to YVR than SEA. SO's mom lives 20 min from YVR, so we can leave the car in her garage and she can drop us off and pick us up.
If we spring for flying business, the difference is about $1500/ticket out of YVR. Doubt we'll do that though.
Well if you're that close to YVR then I guess it's a no brainer! Lucky! Their fares are almost always better, especially on international fares.
Sometimes....I still find it a crap shoot though. When I lived in KY, I would look at flying here out of LEX, CVG and SDF. There really was no rhyme or reason for the price, and it could vary as much as $300! So when I was flying out here regularly (about every 6 weeks), I had 6 permutations that I needed to check out. My home airport was LEX, but I flew out of the other 2 more.
The only thing that was consistent was that if I flew out here on miles, I could never get a seat into SEA, but always YVR for the same # miles. I have a NEXUS card so the border crossing isn't an issue.
We save about $250/ticket plus long term parking if we fly out of YVR. Distance wise, we are about 30 miles closer to YVR than SEA. SO's mom lives 20 min from YVR, so we can leave the car in her garage and she can drop us off and pick us up.
If we spring for flying business, the difference is about $1500/ticket out of YVR. Doubt we'll do that though.
Honestly, the European carriers have nice Premium Economies. If you want to do that out of YVR, I wouldn't be mad at you.
Most of my FF miles are on Delta, but since they changed the program I really don't give a crap about it anymore. Last Christmas, we flew First class from SEA to BTV and I don't even think we got the actual miles!
I'll keep accruing them, but it does not make me as airline loyal as I was.
Ditto AirBnB. Granted, we're REALLY slow and late on the ball of booking (we'll be there in 1.5 weeks!) but trying to find a decent hotel in the areas we were interested in for $100ish a night was getting nightmarish.
Post by kelley182 on Sept 21, 2015 13:38:12 GMT -5
When DH and I went to Paris about 4 years ago, many ladies recommended that we stay in the Latin Quarter. I am so glad we did. We stayed at Hotel de France which was fairly close to the metro and close to a ton of great restaurants but didn't seem touristy. Next time we go to Paris, we'll stay here again.
When DH and I went to Paris about 4 years ago, many ladies recommended that we stay in the Latin Quarter. I am so glad we did. We stayed at Hotel de France which was fairly close to the metro and close to a ton of great restaurants but didn't seem touristy. Next time we go to Paris, we'll stay here again.
Unfortunately, this place was booked up for the dates I'm looking.
Last weekend, I booked our flights. Air France had an inexpensive flight out of Vancouver to CDG, nonstop so I jumped on it. I have gotten a loose itinerary put together and just have to pull the trigger on getting the hotel/car reservations.
I've done Air France and it's pretty nice airline - they're premium economy is much better and well worth it. Never done British Airways but I hear it's nice. Paris hotels don't blow me away, and the ones that do are super expensive. Last time I was there I rented an apartment in Montmartre on Airbnb. Definitely the way to go for Paris as it's cheaper and Parisians know how to decorate their apartments.
Just got back from our trip and our first AirBnB was great - near St Germain-de-Pres. The second was a bit noisy but the location near Place de la Bastille was easy for piles of cafes and transit.