Page 12 - (DK Eyewitness) Back Roads Travel Guide - France

10 BACK ROADS FRANCE

Getting to France

France benefits from excellent air, road and rail networks, both
internal and international. Direct flights from all over the world
serve Paris and regional airports. Paris is the hub of Europe’s
high-speed rail network, including Eurostar to London, Thalys to
Brussels and high-speed TGVs to Geneva, Frankfurt and Munich, as
well as France’s vast and efficient internal state railway system, SNCF.
Motorways cross over into all neighbouring countries, including,
via the Channel Tunnel, the UK. France can also be reached by
frequent Channel and Mediterranean ferry services. Above A 1960s souvenir glass ashtray from Air
France, the national airline
Arriving by Air Freight carrier Norfolkline and DFDS Marseille and Toulon. Corsica Ferries
France is served by nearly all Seaways also take cars on their also runs from Toulon and Nice to
international airlines. Air France has crossings from Dover to Dunkerque Corsica and to Corsica from Italy,
direct flights from over 100 cities and Calais, while P&O North Sea with sailings from Savona, Livorno
worldwide. Full-service and budget Ferries runs an overnight service and Piombino. La Méridionale
carriers, such as British Airways and from Hull to Zeebrugge in Belgium, serves Bastiat, Ajaccio and Propriano
Ryanair, fly direct from London and which has good road links to the from Marseille. SNCM Ferryterranée
other UK and Irish airports to Paris whole of northeast France. also runs ferries from Marseille to
and a number of regional destina tions. Transmanche Ferries/LD Lines several destinations in North Africa.
From North America there are direct sail to Dieppe from Newhaven, from
flights to Paris on several major carriers, Dover to Calais, and to Le Havre The Channel Tunnel
such as American Airlines and Delta from Portsmouth, Newhaven and The Channel Tunnel is a 52-km
Airlines, with internal links to Rosslare, Ireland. Condor Ferries (31-mile) rail link beneath the English
regional airports such as Nice and have a summer-only fast ferry from Channel. There are two ways to use it.
Lyon. Connecting flights operate to Poole to St-Malo. They also run a Eurotunnel rail shuttles carry vehi cles
Paris from Australia and New Zealand. service between St Malo, Jersey and their passengers (who remain
There are direct flights to Corsica from and Guernsey, and a summer with their car) on specially constructed
several UK airports, as well as from Sunday timetable from Portsmouth trains between Folkestone in Kent
Orly, Nice, Montpellier and Lyon. to Cherbourg. and Sangatte near Calais. The termi-
The two main Paris airports are Brittany Ferries runs a fast ferry nals link directly to motorways – the
Roissy-Charles-de-Gaulle (CDG) and from Portsmouth to St-Malo, M20 in England, the A16 in France.
Orly. CDG is 23 km (14 miles) north- Cherbourg (summer only) and LPG-powered vehicles are not permit-
east of the city centre and Orly is Caen. They also sail from Poole to ted on Eurotunnel. Rail passengers
14 km (9 miles) south of the city. Cherbourg and Le Havre. There is without transport can board Eurostar
also a service from Plymouth to trains in London or Kent, and dis-
Arriving by Sea Roscoff and to Santander and Bilbao embark at Paris, Disneyland Paris,
There are numerous ship and in Spain (convenient for southwest Calais-Fréthun or Lille. In summer a
catamaran crossings between the UK France), and a weekly overnight direct service runs to Avignon on
and continental ports. P&O Ferries, sailing from Cork, Ireland, to Roscoff. Saturdays, and in winter there are
DFDS and My Ferry Link run frequent Corsica is accessible by SNCM direct trains from London to the ski
services between Dover and Calais. Ferryterranée ferries from Nice, resorts of the French Alps.