I would appreciate any feedback! I'll be traveling March 2018 flying to Paris from US. My travel goals are: Mont. St. Michel (did Paris march 2017), Chartres and then off to the UK for a few weeks, ending in Edinburgh. What I've worked out so far is 1.) fly to Paris arr 7am. 2.) take Le Bus Direct to Gare Montparnasse 3.) Train to Chartres 4.) spend night in Chartres - Mercure Chartres Centre Cathedrale Hotel or Best Western Hotel Grand Monarque 5.) Train to Rennes 6.) bus to Mont. St. Michel 7.) spend night at Mercure Mont St. Michel hotel 8.) bus to Rennes 9.) train to Roscoff 10.) ferry to Plymouth. Working on the UK part right now. Any advice on what I've planned so far - BEFORE I purchase! Thanks!
Posted by
Corvallis OR
7151 posts
Do you have a preference for where you land in England? I'm not real familiar with the ferries between that part of France and England, but I know there is a ferry from St Malo to Portsmouth and getting from Mont St Michel to St Malo is easier than back to Rennes and then train to Roscoff. Maybe you have already researched the two routes and made your decision accordingly. If so, then you can just ignore my comments.
Posted by
Basel, Switzerland
8889 posts
The Mercure Mont St. Michel is not actually on Mont St Michel, it is on the mainland. According to their website ( http://www.mercure.com/gb/hotel-1263-hotel-mercure-mont-saint-michel/index.shtml ): "Just 2km from the Abbey and 7km from the station, . . . .. In a charming and peaceful location just close to Mont St Michel itself,"
Mercure are a chain of mostly new build hotels, I was not expecting a chain hotel on the island, so I looked it up.
The ferries from that part of France to England are run by Brittany Ferries, and are bookable here: http://www.brittany-ferries.co.uk/ferry-routes/ferries-to-france
Routes are:
- Portsmouth to Caen
- Portsmouth to St Malo
- Portsmouth to Cherbourg
- Portsmouth to Le Havre
- Poole to Cherbourg
- Plymouth to Roscoff
You will need a taxi from the station to the ferry terminal, and again on the other side. Portsmouth is a lot nearer London than Plymouth, and has lots to see.
Posted by
Washington DC
27929 posts
This summer I took the ferry from St. Malo to Jersey. Just fine. A few days later, when I was ready to move on to Poole, England, the ferry was canceled three days in a row--I assume because of weather. I ended up flying EasyJet to London Luton and scrambling to reach my non-cancelable room in Poole. Edited to add: My trips were not on Brittany Ferries.
I also had a ferry canceled on my previous visit to the Channel Islands more than 30 years ago. So that's 2 of the 5 ferries I've taken on that crossing that didn't sail. It appears that there is some risk in depending on a ferry, especially on short trips when a day's delay could be critical.
You may want to check out the flight possibilities on skyscanner.com. There are non-stop flights from both Dinard (cheaper) and Rennes to one London airport or another. The Dinard flights are on Ryanair to London Stansted Airport and run MWF, with additional departures during the last week of March. Fares are as low as $18! The Rennes flights are on FlyBe and (much more expensive) Air France; they run daily and land at London Southend Airport.
In both cases you'd need to research ground transportation from the airport to wherever you decide to start your English excursion.
Both Dinard and Rennes are very nice places to visit.
Posted by
OP
2 posts
Thank you all - great tips. My initial thoughts were to leave France and start the UK portion at the SW of England - thus the ferry. Your thoughts on ferry crossing cancellations are well noted! As for Mercure Hotel outside of Mont St. Michel - I think this is my preference. Bad back, and most other joints... do not make shuffling luggage up the Mont sound desirable.
As for the beginning of my trip - to Mont St. Michel - sound good? I'm gonna work on the UK part now, to see if the ferry to Plymouth is worthwhile.
Posted by
Portsmouth
5532 posts
My preference would be the ferry to Portsmouth from St Malo or Cherbourg. From Portsmouth there is a fast, direct rail link to London, Brighton to the east or the south west. Ferries aren't cancelled that frequently, the Fastcat from Cherbourg is the most likely to be cancelled if the weather is a bit rough but the larger ferries can handle a fair bit of rough weather (I've learnt from experience!). March should be OK weather wise however if you would prefer to fly then a flight with Ryanair from Dinard to Stansted will cost as little as £9.99.
Posted by
Tunbridge Wells
6113 posts
The ferries at that time of year don't run every day, so check that they fit with your timescale. At that time of year, I would be tempted to fly rather than sail, unless you are a very good sailor!
Posted by
1221 posts
Mercure is Accor's full service catch-all brand often used for properties that don't quite fit into one of their property types with tighter brand standards. Sometimes you get the concrete box; other times it's older properties whose remodeling still leaves behind some personality and charm. I've generally had good luck with them. (Just note that 'elevator' is not mandatory for a Mercure brand property, so check the property description carefully if it's relevant to you)