GCT Seine: Paris to Normandy

[PCruzer]

We will be leaving on Sept 14th for the GCT trip, The Seine: Paris to Normandy. We are doing the pre-trip to the Loire Valley. Not sure if we should mostly bring clothing for cooler weather. We are bringing a few short sleeve items, but mostly long sleeve. Is this a good idea? I would think that Paris could be warmer, while more north in the Normandy area it could be cool. Could be cool on the riverboat also. Is that a good packing plan?

[Carhut]

Have a wonderful trip. We did the same one back in June. They always say dress in layers. Short sleeves with long sleeve shirt or light jacket should work fine for you. Take an umbrella or rain gear, just in case.

[PCruzer]

Carole -

Thanks for the info. This type of trip is a first for us. We've been on many ocean cruises, but I tend to think that this trip will be much different than an ocean cruise. As far as dress goes, do people wear something different every night to dinner? Is it much more casual in dress than an ocean cruise? I've been setting aside clothing to bring on this trip for months now. At the moment I have a big mound of clothes on the bed that I have to go through and figure out what to bring with me. I just don't want to have all the wrong clothes with me. :eek:

 

Pam

[micked10@earthlink.net]

PZCruzer,

Like you we have been on 26 ocean cruisers but only 3 river cruises. I have found that on the river cruises the dress is much more casual. I took a nice pair of black slacks on our last River Cruise ( in Apr., 2008) and a dressy silk tops for dinner--nothing beaded but just nice tops. That worked out very well and since the tops were light weight and could be rolled in the suitcase they didn't take up much room. I also noticed that if we had been out sightseeing during the day and got back late afternoon to the ship many women just wore the same thing to dinner---no shorts or jeans though. My husband did not even take a suit. There are no formal nights like you have on the ocean liners. He mostly wore slacks and a collared polo type shirt. Everyone dressed just about the same--no cocktail dresses, no beaded jackets, no suits for men--pretty casual but nice.

We were on Viking the 1st time and Uniworld the 2nd and 3rd times. Dress was the same on both lines.

Hope this helps. With the weight restrictions these days you can't pack too much anyway so this was nice!

Have a great time. We did a land trip to Paris 2 years ago and it was wonderful. You will love it!

micked10

[PCruzer]

Micked10 -

Thanks for the info. It confirmed what I thought. I am bringing clothing in the same color scheme, so I can mix and match items. Now if only I could predict the weather for France!! I am planning on bringing some short sleeve tops but mostly long sleeve. Hope there's not a heat wave!!! Thanks again.

 

Pam

[micked10@earthlink.net]

PCruzer,

We were in Paris from the 1st of Sept. until the 9th of 2007. It was pretty warm and I wore capri's and short sleeves except the day we went to Normandy. I wore a light jacket that day. We flew from Paris to Rome for a Mediterrean ocean cruise of the Greek Isles so had to be pretty conservative in packing, since I wanted my dressier clothes for the cruise. I took mostly black and khaki colors and, like you, tried to mix and matchwith some colored tops. It really worked out well. I tend to overpack but have been trying to be a little more conservative because of the weight limits.

Sept. was a wonderful time to be in Paris. If you have the time do the Lights and Illumination tour at night. It starts at 11:00 at night and drives around Paris. All the buildings are illuminated and the Eiffel Tower is all lit up--it is a beautiful sight!

micked10

[Carhut]

Carole -

Thanks for the info. This type of trip is a first for us. We've been on many ocean cruises, but I tend to think that this trip will be much different than an ocean cruise. As far as dress goes, do people wear something different every night to dinner? Is it much more casual in dress than an ocean cruise? I've been setting aside clothing to bring on this trip for months now. At the moment I have a big mound of clothes on the bed that I have to go through and figure out what to bring with me. I just don't want to have all the wrong clothes with me. :eek:

 

Pam

 

Pam, here is my email address: caesker@hotmail.com

 

If you send me yours, I'll send you pictures taken at dinner and you will see what other people were wearing.