Just returned from Viking's Portraits of Southern France

[rrgator]

Thanks Huffy, we are taking the same cruise the first of May and I thought I had missed something in your review. Mainly the last 4 days!:) Glad to see how nice it was.

 

We are thinking about eating off the boat in Lyon, now that I know that it is the gastronomical capital of France. I always thought Paris was, but I stand corrected.:D I can't decide which restaurant to make a reservation for, so would you mind telling me which one you had chosen? Thanks.

[Huffy2k]

rrgator, I wish I could help you but our cruise director made reservations for us (and then was kind enough to cancel them when we decided to stay on the boat) and I can't remember the name of the restaurant. I'm sure your cruise director will be able to make some wonderful suggestions, I really regret not being able to dine in Lyon - I hear the food there will just blow you away.

 

I'm sure you will have a wonderful time on your trip - we're still talking about our cruise even after a whole year has passed!!!

[German1]

I think rjscott asked if we were going on the Hermod, I'm sorry I don't quit have the hang of how the thread works yet. We are on the Viking Heimdal leaving Sept. 6, 2014. Can't wait to hear everyone's experiences and their impressions of the new long ships.

[susan1234]

I have been reading every post above but couldn't find the answer. Hopefully someone here may help. We will be taking the June 21st 2014 cruise from Chalon-sur-Saone to Avignon, but did not purchase the air and transfer. What city would you recommend us to fly to: Paris or Lyon? How far is Chalon-sur-Saone from Lyon?

 

Thank you in advance for any tips and advice of how to get to the boat.

Edited April 5, 2014 by susan1234

[ninaks]

We are doing the same trip. We have decided to fly into Paris and stay there a couple of days to get over jet lag and enjoy the city. We will then take the high speed train that takes 2 hours to the ship. It is overwhelming to me when you fly in the day the cruise starts. I need some time to get over jet lag.

[rjscott]

I have been reading every post above but couldn't find the answer. Hopefully someone here may help. We will be taking the June 21st 2014 cruise from Chalon-sur-Saone to Avignon, but did not purchase the air and transfer. What city would you recommend us to fly to: Paris or Lyon? How far is Chalon-sur-Saone from Lyon?

 

Thank you in advance for any tips and advice of how to get to the boat.

 

Susan,

We are just back and did the reverse itinerary, ending in Chalon sur Saone. It was about a 1 1/2 hr bus ride to Lyon airport for our flight out. You could fly to Amsterdam or Paris and connect to Lyon fron there, but then you will need to arrange transport to the ship from there. Also, the ship is not docking directly in Chalon sur Saone, but a bit out of town. So, you might want to contact Viking and ask about obtaining a transfer from Lyon to the ship.

Becki

[iwanderafar]

I have to admit though, as a Monty Python fan, I was picturing the rude Frenchman from Monty Python and the Holy Grail standing on the wall taunting the Britons seeking the holy grail ("I told 'im we already got one"). :p

 

A lot of The Holy Grail was filmed in Scotland. It's well worth a trip to see all the locations. It's a great little semi-country with friendly people and interesting castles.

 

Thanks for the review. We're doing Viking Danube soon and I love the south of France so you're evoking a lot of wonderful memories.

[iwanderafar]

I have been reading every post above but couldn't find the answer. Hopefully someone here may help. We will be taking the June 21st 2014 cruise from Chalon-sur-Saone to Avignon, but did not purchase the air and transfer. What city would you recommend us to fly to: Paris or Lyon? How far is Chalon-sur-Saone from Lyon?

 

Thank you in advance for any tips and advice of how to get to the boat.

 

Lyon is about 80 miles to Chalon sur Saone. Dijon is only about 40 miles away. You can get a direct train (see RailEurope.com) from Paris Bercy to Dijon for about $76 that takes about 4 hours (it's a slow train, not the TGV). Or you can fly or take the train to Lyon and then take a train to Chalon-sur-Saone. There are three train stations around Lyon (Part Dieu, Perrache, and Saint Exupery) so make sure you know which station you're going into and out of.

 

Any train going to Lyon, leaves Paris from Gare de Lyon.

 

Or you can rent a car one-way (see AutoEurope.com) and drive there. It takes about 4-5 hours depending on traffic around Paris. If you do that, stop at Beaune along the way. It's a beautiful, ancient town from pre-Roman days.

[susan1234]

Thank you all for the helpful replies. I am thinking of flying into Lyon, stay a night and go to the ship the next day.

 

Do I take train or taxi?

[susan1234]

.... you might want to contact Viking and ask about obtaining a transfer from Lyon to the ship.

 

I did. Have not heard from them. To my understanding, Viking only offers transfers for pax who have bought air from them?

[susan1234]

We are doing the same trip. We have decided to fly into Paris and stay there a couple of days to get over jet lag and enjoy the city. We will then take the high speed train that takes 2 hours to the ship....

 

Could you please explain 'high speed train that takes 2 hours to the ship...' If that is the case, I will fly to Paris instead of Lyon a day before.

[iwanderafar]

Could you please explain 'high speed train that takes 2 hours to the ship...' If that is the case, I will fly to Paris instead of Lyon a day before.

 

Susan, In France they have a couple types of trains. The ordinary (slow) train tends to make stops at most of the stations along the route and it's speed is also slower. The fast trains, call TGVs which stand for Train a Grande Vitesse (Trains of Great Speed), make many fewer stops and go about 175 mph. So the TGV train trip from Paris Gare de Lyon (Gare means train station) to Lyon Part Dieu takes about 2 hours or about 1 hour 40 minutes from Paris Gare de Lyon to Dijon Ville. From either Lyon or Dijon, you can catch a connecting train to Chalon Sur Saone. You can buy train tickets easily online via railEurope.com. If you try to do it through SNCF.com, which is the French rail company, they will transfer you to railEurope.

[susan1234]

Ah, thank you iwanderafar, it is all clear now. I thought the high speed train from Paris would go all the way to the ship :)

 

Having suitcases, changing trains may be a bit of a hassle :(

Edited April 9, 2014 by susan1234