Are there any neat French towns on the rail line between Ghent and Paris? We saw Lille on the map, but Rick doesn't mention it, nor any of the other towns along the way. Rouen is off the path a bit; is it worth a one night stay, or would we be better off going directly to Paris? We already plan 3 or 4 days in Paris. Also, what are some good Paris hotels? We stayed in Rue Clare last trip and liked that neighborhood.
Posted by
London, United Kingdom
4684 posts
Travelling via Rouen is difficult unless you have a car. The French transport system is very Paris oriented and rail and bus services between regions without passing through Paris are mostly poor to non-existent.
Posted by
Wyckoff, NJ, USA
7750 posts
Lille is not a town, but a bustling city, nicknamed "Little Paris", for its architecture. I went there for the art museum, and was glad I did, but that's specialized tourism. Others might want to ride the older but driverless subway system. I suggest you look at the TripAdvisor Paris forum for a recent thread about "Grand Hotel Leveque Full for 2013 Already". (That's for identification purposes, not a statement of Internet Fact ... ...) It mentions several alternatives to the named hotel, and many opinions about the Leveque. http://www.tripadvisor.com/ShowTopic-g187147-i14-k5502074-Grand_Hotel_Leveque_full_for_2013_already-Paris_Ile_de_France.html
Posted by
washington
837 posts
I would suggest looking elsewhere anyway. If you check the tripadvisor.com rankings, this hotel is not even in the top 1000. I know a lot of people are leary of tripadvisor. I have used it for 7 trips and never been disappointed.
Posted by
OP
Puyallup, Washington, USA
3 posts
Thank you all for the helpful information. We have booked the Loiret in Paris for our stay there. We hope to take a side trip to Normandy at the end of our Paris stay.
Any suggestions for car rental for this type of trip?