France Blog: France Links

France Links

We have gathered a few sites (many in French only) which we use often when planning a trip. We find them quite useful.

A trip to France often starts on a ferry.

Eurostar train from London St Pancras to Paris Nord: https://www.eurostar.com/uk-en
DFDS ferries operating from Dover (to Calais and Dunkirk) and Newhaven (to Dieppe): https://www.dfdsseaways.co.uk/
P&O ferries operating from Dover (to Calais): http://www.poferries.com/en/portal
Irish Ferries operating from Dover (to Calais) and Dublin (to Cherbourg): https://www.irishferries.com/uk-en/Travel-to-France/
Brittany ferries operating in the UK from Portsmouth, Poole, Plymouth and in Ireland from Cork, Rosslare: https://www.brittany-ferries.co.uk/
Eurotunnel Le Shuttle: https://www.eurotunnel.com/uk/home/

Many French motorways have tolls; this website (only in French) is easy to navigate and gives you a good overview of the different companies running the motorways in France as well as easy access to their prices.
There is another website, but not so user friendly and a bit awkward to navigate. It informs you of the price and duration for a given journey. However, it is preferable to use the French version (click on the French flag in the top corner of the English page) as some features, such as interactive rates from one point to the other, do not work on the English version.

A gîte with real charme in the Cévennes.

Gîtes de France for self-catering rental holiday accommodation through all of France, highly recommended: https://www.gites-de-france.com/en
Clé Vacances, a similar organisation, but we have not used them so far: https://www.clevacances.com/en/
France has a great network of “Camping Municipaux” which are campings owned and managed by towns and villages; while some are on the expensive side with swimming pool, bar or whatever the modern camper needs, still many are a bit basic and no-frill affairs offering a pitch and clean showers/WC at a reasonable price. However, they are not always easy to find and contact: many still do not have an internet presence, the reception might not be manned 24/7 and French might be the only language spoken if you manage to phone them. This website (unfortunately only in French) is very useful to locate them ONLY: unfortunately its owner has died in 2015 and the site has not been updated since: many links are obsolete, prices are not accurate, so only use it to get an idea of locations.

Unfortunately in French only, but type your location and you'll get a list of restaurants in the area with average prices and reviews: https://www.lafourchette.com/

Mapping: you can find maps of the whole of France on the IGN website. Click on the top left square marked “CARTES” to select the type of map you require (road map, topographical map and much more). The topographical maps are particularly useful when planning an itinerary for a hike.
Hiking: we recommend this website (unfortunately only in French) if you are looking for hikes around the place where you are. Simply click on the Je cherche une rando button and on the next page enter your location. You'll get a full list of hikes, each with a map, most with a gps file and a description to download. You can refine your search by clicking on “Plus de critères” where you can select a duration (half-day, one or multi-days), type (hiking, snowshoes, via-ferrata, etc).
Via-Ferratas: this website (unfortunately only in French) has a nice interactive map which enables you to locate via-ferratas near where you are and provides descriptions, photos, ratings and often documentation from the local tourism office, including access and pricing if relevant.

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