This is one part of a multi-part trip report. See intro for the other sections
General notes about France
- Definitely read/study Rick Steves’ guide book before you go - D’uh! Rip sections out as he suggests. We Highlight it. Mark it up. Carry the appropriate section on our day trips. You come across a fellow traveler with a Rick Steves’ book in hand it’s like meeting a friend in a foreign land :-)
- Download relevant Rick Steves’ audio tour of places of interest ahead of time (you may not have data plan in France). That said some aspects of the tour could’ve changed since the audio was recorded. For example some of the Louvre exhibits were unavailable when we went.
- Paying for a guided tour sometimes is worth it. For example we hired one of Rick’s recommendations for Normandy (Bayeux Shuttle). Our tour guide Nev Griffith was a fount of knowledge; without his insight we would’ve missed out on a lot of the details.
- Learn at least some rudimentary French. They appreciate it and I think it is just polite. Even if you have to stumble and speak broken Frenglish. They will jump in and help you.
- Every conversation begins with a “bonjour”. Yes, every. It is standard practice to greet the other party before you plough into the question you want to ask, order you want to place or direction you want to get or…
- Plan a down-day in the middle of your trip. Whether you walk a lot (we averaged 7miles a day) or not after a while you will want a breather. Also great to catch up on mundane things like laundry :-)