Hotels near CDG

an anyone recommend a hotel neard CDG for a quick overnight stay. We fly out early next morning?

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Suite Hotel An Accor hotel Happy Travels!

Bestwestern univers/Snc Hotel/Beau Sejour/ruc /Cannes Gallia

i am planing to stay in cannes for 3 nights on 26 july 09 and planing a day visit to monaco and st tropez ... which hotel do you advise? location and view? thank you

Avoiding lines at the Louvre

I read somewhere(but forgot to save it) where to enter the Louvre to avoid the longer lines. We will be there the second week of june.

Thanks,

Chesapeake Bay House

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There really are no long lines at the Louvre, as there are so many entrances now. If you see what appears to be a long line at the Pyramid entrance, that%26#39;s the line for security. Actually, there are two lines - one for those with bags (long) and one for those without bags (short), and the line moves very quickly. Tickets are purchased once you%26#39;re inside.

There%26#39;s a diagram on the Louvre website with the many entrances.

The problem is more crowds once inside. For whatever reason, we%26#39;ve always had very good luck visiting on Wednesdays just after lunch - perhaps because the morning crowds have thinned and those choosing Wednesday for later closing haven%26#39;t yet arrived.

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Thanks ..that is very helpful.

Chesapeake Bay House

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The Carrousel entrance is often mentioned as an one that doesn%26#39;t have lines (if you search for it, you%26#39;ll see some recent trip reports where the folks used it). When at the Louvre on this past busy Easter Sunday, we used the Pyramid entrance. The security line was long, but moved quickly; the ticket lines though, were really, really long. Luckily, we had Museum Passes, so we could go right in.

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You can also use the automatic ticket machines. You can select English and use cash or an American credit card. We%26#39;ve never had a problem finding an available ticket machine.

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Thanks,

I am not sure the museum pass works for us , but thanks for the info.

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thanks, I didn%26#39;t know about the automated ticket machines. I wlil look for them inside the museum.

Thanks again.

Naturist Beaches & Gay Friendly Areas

Anyboby any tips on the best naturist/gay beaches and gay friendly areas in Nice. Would be nice to hear from like minded people or Nicosians who know the best areas. Also the best bars were travellers are welocomed. Thanks.

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Gay guide to Nice

http://www.geocities.com/peejeepee/

gay provence directory

http://www.gay-provence.org/en/

gay guide

www.absoluliving.com/Nice/Guide/index.en.asp

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%26#39;Thy Jeffs%26#39; is a small bar at the end of my road, on the corner of Place du Pin. It%26#39;s a gay bar or very gay-friendly I believe. I%26#39;ve had a drink or two there with my young daughter - there is pavement section as well as the inside bar. The Thy Jeffs staff will be able to advise you about other clubs and bars too.

Castel Plage is a gay-friendly private beach right at the end of the Prom by the Castle Hill - you will see the rainbow flag flying from the roadside. You can pop down for a drink/coffee/lunch/dinner without an entrance fee or pay an entrance fee to use the sunbeds/parasols on the beach part. Gays men seem to be put on the left hand side as you gaze down from the prom and straight couples and families on the right.

Photography Tips for Nice

Hi,

I travel to Nice next week for a 9 day holiday and am really looking to getting out and about with my camera (I%26#39;ve just finished a digital photgraphy course) and I am looking for ideas of where to photograph and where the best spots and times of day to get scenic pictures.

I also like taking pictures of architecture, repeating patterns and bright things. Any advice would be great and if you have pics of Nice already on flickr that you are happy to share then pls let me know your flickr name.

Thanks

Kathryn

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Top of Castle Hill and Old Town Nice

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I think you%26#39;ll find the old town (Vieux Nice) to be very inspiring with its narrow streets, quaint houses, markets, etc.

For aerial views, the Colline du Château is a great place.

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The port - lots if repeating pattern and possibility for abstracts in the port area with the traditional fishing boats and newer boats , bundles of net and weights , reflections

Musiciens and Cimiez , old town areas for architectural detail - mediaeval, belle epoch and art deco architecture

Russian cathedral

lots of colour and repeating patterns at the markets - especially lay out of veggies , fruits etc

Also before lunch or dinner; tables set for al fresco dining, sunbeds and chairs and umbrellas on the beaches

Personally i prefer to go to Mont Boron/ Mont Alban rather than colline de Chateau as I do a lot of nature photography as well as architectural details -to me there are better views, higher up , and you have the views over Villefranche and cap ferrat as well as over colline de chateau, the port and the baie des anges - and fewer people

But colline de chateau can be good for roof tiles and patterns if its not too hazy.

Look out for the sailing school boats and kayaks they can make amazing patterns especially looking down on them

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I was testing my brand new camera on my holiday in Nice and find that I took most pictures in Eze and Villefranche, stopping along the way snapping aerial views of the riviera. Definitely worth a trip out. Nice old town, the castle hill %26amp; the port have a lot of good spots too!

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Best locations IMO: Eze-Village, Villefranche-sur-Mer, Cours Saleya and the Old Town before sunset, old streets in San Remo and the food market in Vintimille and San Remo (the ones where the locals are going), old villages behind Menton (Sospel, Peillon, Touet L%26#39;Escarène, the Old Town in Menton and so much more...

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Kathryn - thank you for asking that question. I too am into digital and am now shooting in raw. I have made a list of the suggestions given here. I am sure we will both have some fun photographing Nice.

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Thanks everyone what great advice - i thought i was excited about my holiday before but I am even more now!

Selkie and YMCA you are great ambassadors for Nice - I have found the advice you have given throughout this forum invaluable when planning the trip!

Weather for next week in Calvi

I%26#39;m going to be in Calvi on Sunday for a week and the weather forecast doesn%26#39;t look great. Should I stop worrying because showers won%26#39;t last long or should I pack my waterproof and boots and turn it into a hiking holiday?

Thanks

P

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I%26#39;d take the waterproof and boots - I%26#39;d take them whatever the forecast, because it is often changeable, with wind as well as rain meaning that you may not always be able to spend all your time on the beach.

And you wouldn%26#39;t want to miss the wonderful walking in Corsica, anyway.

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That%26#39;s good advice. When we%26#39;ve gone away in the summer to other countries we%26#39;ve wanted to go walking but it%26#39;s been too hot to consider it. I%26#39;m thinking positively now!

Thanks

P

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when i looked at the forecast it looked really sunny?

trip reporrt day 6........

DAY 6:All slept in a bit and headed off to montparnasse tower about 10.30. No waiting time here for entrance or lifts.Wonderful view from the 56th floor.You can see all of paris from here including a fabulous view of the eiffel tower.We walked up a few flights of stairs onto the roof which was very spectacular.If you take kids to paris they will love this place-not so crowded and best views ever.Bought some lovely tea towels from gift shop,10 euro each.Also had lunch at tower cafe which was very good.

Mid afternoon decided to make our way to sacre coeur on the metro.Lots of people around here,but still easy to walk around and get into church.Encountered string men walking down main steps but they were not aggresive at all-easy to say %26quot;non Merci%26quot; and keep walking.Loved all the little shops around this area- kids bought some quirky pens from a shop here somewhere.

Dinner at Cafe de champ des mars which was nice and quick after another busy day.

DAY 7:This morning we moved from Paris perfects Cognac apartment to their Chateneuf which is simply beautiful.Like a home away from home to us and would easily go back here in a heart beat.

After quickly unpacking we went to l%26quot;armee museum and Napoleons tomb.Fantastic time here,loved all the cannons and mediaeval armour displays.Teen son was very impressed with all here and thought it was pretty cool that Napoleon had such a magnificant burial place.

Afterwards we walked to Rodin museum(no wait to get in) and enjoyed the beautiful gardens and sculptures.Spent a couple of relaxing hours here.

Evening we had pizza from Pizza Emporter on rue Augereau-great pizzas.

DAY 8:Got to St Chappelle about 9.15,15 mins before opening so not many people in line.What a beautiful place this is and we got to enjoy it in full as the crowds were not about yet.Enjoyed sitting quietly gazing at the rainbow of colours in the stained glass windows.Hubby sure went crazy with the camera here!

Afternoon took teen girl to champs elysee and we all enjoyed the shops here.Found a couple of t-shirts at esprit for 12 euro.

Evening we walked to eiffel tower and line wasn%26#39;t too long so we decided to go to top.Only waited about 20 mins for the lift. Was nice to go to top,but view was a little hazy as it had been a very warm day and a storm was on the way.Got back to apartment about 10.30 and shortly after a storm came over the city and we had the spectacular sight of lightening around the eiffel tower.This was the stuff you see on post cards and movies -truly amazing.Finally crashed out about 1am.

DAY 8:Went to catacombs thismorning.This was the only day we had any rain and we got caught in a shower waiting to go into catacombs.Really enjoyed our visit though- this was a favourite of the kids.

Afternoon hubby went to st sulpice while teen girl and I loked around le bonne marche.

Dinner we went to La Terrasse and finally got to try snails!They were delicious (in garlic butter), even the kids enjoyed them.Other dishes we had were steak,bass fillet,chicken and rice, salad.For dessert we shared crepes,chocolate cake and berthillion sorbet and ice cream.Really enjoyed our meal here,great waiter.Total 127 euro.

DAY 9:Last morning in Paris so we took a relaxing river cruise before heading off to the airport.Great way to finish our trip.

We saw so much in 9 days and the advice from TA members was very valuable in the planning stages.A little research for a big trip certainly pays off. We saw gypsies,ring scam,string men ,beggars,street peddlars but had no problems at all simply due to the fact we were aware of their way of operating.

Any way back to reality this week.So wish we were still watching the eiffel tower sparkle while enjoying mouth watering pastries.Maybe one day.......

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You really covered some ground in 9 days! I%26#39;m impressed with your organisation. That%26#39;s the way I like to do it - get organised and make best use of time. What a shame to be back home - esp now it%26#39;s getting colder and darker!

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Loved your report - we had to Paris in 16 days with 3 teens! Thank you!

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thank you for the great report

The ET in the storm sounds magical!

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thanks for another wonderful report,, really enjoyed it.

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enjoyed the reports blinki, apreciate the time and effort

4 weeks till we do an aussie invasion of our own!

T

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enjoyed the reports blinki, apreciate the time and effort

4 weeks till we do an aussie invasion of our own!

T

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St Chappelle is my favorite .... the dark rich colors, in the church will always be my vision of Paris. My personal highlight.

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Thankyou all for your kind replies.We had a fabulous trip, a trip of a lifetime. Hope all of you heading to paris soon have a wonderful time.Enjoy every moment and soak up as much as you can.Bon voyage