We re going to Nice from Frankfurt, and until I thought train would be best (plane not really though it's faster, I don't want to risk losing our luggage (and yes I know it'd be better to just have a carry on))......but now I wonder if it's not better to take a rental car?
Has anyone done this? I know it goes via Switzerland and then bigger cities like Milan etc.
I guess on a train we could both relax......
Would much appreciate anyone's input. TIA!
It would depend on how much of a hurry you are in to get to Nice. It would be a nice drive if you had plenty of time to make stops along the way to see places that interest you. If not, take the train. They are fast and comfortable.
Where did you see a train route from Frankfurt to Nice that goes through Switzerland and Milan?
Both Rome2rio and the DB Bahn search sites are showing the fastest routes through Paris with a total travel time of almost 11 hours and a transfer between 2 train stations in Paris. The trains shown are fast ICE and TGV trains. This would be my 2nd choice.
R2R shows total transportation time for flying at about 4 hours and 15 minutes, including to and from the airports by ground transportation. More than one airline flies this non-stop route. I don't think there's much chance for lost luggage. I think this is really the best choice.
R2R also shows that driving takes about as long as the train, and that is going the route you mentioned through Switzerland, Milan and Genoa . That doesn't count any stopping along the way, the cost of the vignette for Switzerland, tolls, the heavy cost of dropping the car in another country, etc. They do list the cost of fuel and an estimate of rental car cost.
I would not drive unless you would enjoy the driving and plan to keep the car to drive around France and then return it to Germany.
Hi Susan and Lo, thanks for your responses.
There is no train via Zurich, etc, they all go via Paris. The Zurich route would be if we drive.
We could take some time, but it is a hard call.
Thanks so much for your input - will definitely take it into consideration. Right now I'm leaning toward the train, if only because I know there is so much to see down the Riviera too.....that's always the bummer...time is so short.
Thanks again!
That flight may be cheaper than the train, as well; see www.skyscanner.com. The cheapest Frankfurt-Paris-Nice ticket that SNCF has now, for travel 3 months away, is 84 euros/person in 2nd class, limited seats at that price.
Rick’s France rail travel page has the link and tips for buying “Prems” rate TGV tickets through SNCF (cheap, reserved, nonrefundable, available three or four months ahead of your travel date) to print at home and pay with PayPal. It does not always work with US credit cards, unless you have an extra level of security set up.
Car rental is more expensive when you pick up in one country and drop in another. If you wanted to drive and make stops along the way, you might train as far as Strasbourg, France, and pick up a car there.
Thanks, Laura - never heard of Skyscanner and just checked it out..and got the same as other places I have checked. For our date, a one way ticket pP is 755 for a nonstop flight.....one stop flights are 150-200 pP but then you're on the road also for 6 hours etc. so it's not really worth it.
My car calculations have us at $200 more if we pick up a car in FRA, keep it for our trip and return in Nice......than if we drop one, take a train, be without a car and pick one up again in Nice. So it's not too bad...of course there are other expenses etc.
Thanks so much for your input! Sure wish we could find a cheap flight :)
optimal,
If you don't mind a budget flight with one layover, you could use Vueling from FRA to NCE (one stop at BCN). I checked an arbitrary date in mid-June and they have flights listed at €139.98 PP (there would be some additional fees of course). There could be other solutions with RyanAir or others, but I didn't check.
Another option that might work would be to travel by train from Frankfurt to Basel (direct trains about 2H:50M) and then connect with an easyJet flight from the Basel-Mulhouse airport. They currently have flights listed to Nice at CHF 40.95 PP (plus a few fees of course), with a flight time of about 1H:15M. You could stop for one night in Basel to have a quick look at the city, or just time your departure from Frankfurt so that you go directly to the flight.
If you'd prefer to travel by train, one of the easiest trips appears to be a departure from Frankfurt at 08:57, arriving Nice Ville at 19:55 (time 10H:58M, one change in Paris). One point to note with that trip is that it arrives at Paris Est and departs from Gare de Lyon, so you'd have to get between the two stations by Metro, Taxi or whatever (I didn't check the distance between the two stations).
Thanks so much Ken for checking all of that out! :) I know I would not want a layover at all, as the stress of security, waiting in line etc is not something I like....so I think I'd rather take a train, overall.
So appreciate your input! :)
Just to clarify, the second flight option I listed is a direct flight, so no layovers. However, you would have to get from Frankfurt to Basel-Mulhouse by train to connect with the flight. The overall travel time with that flight option would likely be in the range of 6-8 hours, so a bit quicker than the rail trip I mentioned.
I agree with you about the usual airport hassles, as I also try to avoid them whenever possible.
