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Since today, Monday, is train travel day, we shall see. Hopefully all the timings and bookings of the trains works out.......
2 months agoType 2.6 fun?
2 months agoWhat an absolute star Ian is !
So glad you made it and wishing you luck with the trains today!
So glad you made it! We wondered if the closing ceremony of the Paris Olympics might be an issue and we might see you on the stage with Tom Cruise!!
2 months agoPrices for Ritter Sport have gone up considerably.
2 months agoWhat a crazy start to this adventure! Hoping that everything on the other side of the pond goes more smoothly!
2 months agoWhat a harrowing tale with the airlines! It sounds very much like our experience with our flight to Barcelona back in spring that cost us two days of our tour and the use of our suitcases. It still makes me angry each time I think of it.
2 months agoWow, I can’t believe your resilience in the face of all these obstacles. The SNCF debacle is paling into insignificance. Good luck with the airport sleep and the flight!!
2 months agoThank you. We are especially looking forward to the 2 weeks cycling along the Loire with the 3 Montreal grandchildren.
2 months agoBest wishes for the adventure ahead!
2 months agoSo sorry to hear about your daughter, Steve & Dodie- Ann and I send our sympathy and thoughts. And good luck with your upcoming ride!
Michael & Ann Hutching
There are probably few, if any, long time cycle tourers who do not have a smattering of hospital experiences. The ones who have really negative ones are probably amongst the unfortunate minority.
2 months agoIn a weird way it is reassuring to know that everyone! has difficullties with SNCF. We alternate between arguing the point in our reasonably usable French and "being unable to speak or understand" any French at all. Hoping all goes smoothly on Monday, but it tends to be a crap shoot. Dodie
2 months agoHi,
For what it’s worth, my experience as a French resident, and regular user of the railway is no different than what is being reported here. I do have available to me work around that those trying to book from out side France don’t have, so I’ll add them here in case you find yourself in France needing a train. First, sncf.connect is the worst when it comes to finding anything that is not a TGV or other long distance train. I use hafas, the Deutschebahn site, in English to string trains together, or I use a travel agent. Not always reliable, but better than the sncf. Second, I argue A LOT with ticket takers. My experience has been that if I can get on the train with my bike, I can get to my destination, rules be damned. Only once did I have to pay the contrôleur anything extra, and it was only €10. This might not work if your French isn’t very good, but it might. I also note that when I know what might work from consulting the internet, I write the trains down and go to a ticket agent and hand them my list. If I have a ticket in hand, and the contrôleur gets upset I can tell him to take it up with management. By selling me a ticket, the sncf is obliged to honor it regardless of whether the ticket agent made a mistake.
Now, things do change, so maybe I’m not completely current, but it’s worth a shot trying some of these strategies.
Cheers,
Keith
Steve may be still living in the past, Ritter Sport pricewise.
2 months ago