France: Budget Travel Guide

Martinique, an overseas French overseas department located in the Caribbean, sits between the independent countries of Dominica and St. Lucia. Martinique is fully integrated into the French state, with representatives in Paris and the euro as its currency. As you might expect, it is not the least expensive place to holiday in the Caribbean by » Read more

Here’s an oddity that we came across today while booking train tickets on the TGV for our upcoming two-week trip to France: First class train tickets for our journey were actually cheaper than the second class tickets. But here’s the catch: By default, the SNCF website (the official French railway website, which is the only » Read more

Ready to hit the road in France? While we love speeding around the country on the TGV’s high-speed rail network, sometimes it makes more sense to head off on your own four wheels. Renting a car allows you complete control over your itinerary, and permits you to visit smaller towns, tiny villages, and out-of-the-way wineries. » Read more

EuroCheapo Flash: Eurostar has just announced €39 one-way tickets between Paris and London for summer 2016 travel. Planning to take the journey this summer? Book it now through the SNCF to get this sale fare. But don’t delay, as the sale fare has been limited to 100,000 passengers. Related: See all flash deals on European » Read more

Good news for Cheapos planning to take the train in France: The SNCF offers a “Best Price Calendar” that makes it simple to find and book cheap TGV tickets for your trip. But first, a quick reminder: Book your tickets in advance through the official site of the French railway, the SNCF. Why book through » Read more

While day tripping from Paris is quick and easy to many destinations like Versailles or Disneyland Paris, it can also be tiring. Sometimes you’ll want to just spend the night and, well, chill. Many dining experiences and other nightlife aren’t always easy when you have to catch the last train back to Paris. With that » Read more

Nostalgic for your days abroad? You know, that semester or two when you lived (and studied a bit) in a country far removed from your home campus, parents, and perhaps significant other. It’s a time of self-discovery, new tastes, new languages, and new options. If you have been lucky enough to count yourself among the » Read more

Calais, the closest French port to England, is the principal crossing point between England and France. The Channel Tunnel links England to Coquelles, just a few miles from Calais; through it car and train passengers utilize Calais as a gateway to France and beyond. But in fact very few people take the Eurostar to Calais-Fréthun, » Read more

If you’ve fallen in love with France as I have, you have probably traveled there more than once. Now that you have seen Paris and beyond, including all the regular tourist attractions, its time to learn about the fabulous Gard region of France. The Gard is located just west of Provence in south central France. » Read more

What’s the biggest expense for anyone coming to Paris? Usually, the plane ticket. If you’re looking to trade in that round trip for a cheaper one-way ticket to the City of Light and start up a life here, it’s harder than you think—but not impossible. Expat Aurelia D’Andrea, a California native, literally wrote the book » Read more

Because the French railway network extended its tentacles only slowly north from Paris to the ports, there was a spell in the mid-19th century when the Channel port of Boulogne remained conspicuously isolated from the rest of France. Brits could get there easily from London, using the new rail routes to the Kent coast and » Read more

Type “Bordeaux” into Google and the all-knowing gods of auto-suggest will fill in “wine” for you. But I was inspired by my friend Emilie, a Bordelaise who doesn’t drink. She’d always told me there was plenty to do in Bordeaux that doesn’t involve red wine. I recently spent a week in Gironde, the French region » Read more

The places at the end of the road are always the most interesting. After the glitz and gloss of Antibes and Cannes, after the bustle of Nice and Monaco, you might at first think there is not much left to the French Riviera. Yet the best is yet to come. For Menton, the very last » Read more

Looking for an easy day trip from your Paris vacation? Why not visit Reims (oddly pronounced with a nasal “Ranse”), the coronation site of French kings and the epicenter of the Champagne region. Here we’ll explain how to get there and some suggested sights while you’re there–and where to get a great lunch for Cheapo prices! » Read more

I just returned from 16 glorious days in France. The journey included six days in Paris and ten days on the road, driving through the rolling countryside to pebble beaches, sun-kissed villages, and major cities. Today I’m posting some “postcards” from the first week of the trip. 1. Vélib’ at work (above). The good news: Vélib’, the city’s » Read more

Throughout France today, 2008 was ushered in with a countrywide smoking ban in restaurants, cafes, and discos that smokers have been anticipating for months. In early 2007, a similar law banned smoking in public spaces and work places, but this is the biggie — no more smoking at the table, over an espresso, or on the dance floor. » Read more

The Gers in France’s southwest is a land of rolling hills and medieval bastide towns. Utterly unspoiled by mass tourism and sparsely populated by farmers and secondary residents from Britain and the Netherlands, the region comes alive in summer with a series of top-notch music festivals, notably Jazz in Marciac and Tempo Latino in Vic-Fezensac. In » Read more

For several years now we’ve been hearing a buzz about the rediscovery of Biarritz, the Atlantic coast beach resort town in the southwestern corner of France. Part of what makes Biarritz so interesting is its history as a tourist spot. Once Napoleon’s holiday destination of choice, Biarritz long ago lost its preeminence as a French beach resort to various Côte d’Azur » Read more