FRANCE A LA CARTE
NEWSLETTERS
November 2009
FRANCE A LA CARTE NEWS FLASH
SPECIAL SKI OFFER .... ONLY AVAILABLE until 30 NOVEMBER
ski apartments
beside the slopes in the Alps for 4 people = €99
!!
In the alpine
resort of Superdevoluy, with its 100 kilometres of slopes, these
two-room flats sleep 4 people comfortably. Right
on the slopes and only minutes from the shops and cafés
you won't find a better deal this winter. The residence even has
a covered heated pool for relaxation after a day on the pistes.
SuperD enjoys a lot of sunshine and as a lot of the skiing is done
above 2000 metres there's nearly always plenty of snow.
Access is from Grenoble or Lyon airport.
Our deal is
for the simple rental of a 2-room (25-30m²) flat
for 7 nights, 2nd to 9th January 2010.
Conditions:
1. you must book on-line using our on-line booking engine.
2. you must book before midnight 30th November 2009 (as long as
stocks permit)
Extras, such as car hire, ski passes etc can be booked at the
same time on our booking engine.
To book, go to www.francealacarte.com/ski_superd.htm and look
for the reservation box on the left marked 'apartment for 4'. Scroll
down to the date 'from January 2, 2010' and click on BOOK NOW
Hurry hurry hurry: this sort of offer won't be repeated!
June 2009
SKI - 2009-2010 SEASON
ON-LINE BOOKING
We have completely re-thought our ski programmes for the coming
season. As well as ready-made short packages based in hotels we
are offering 'Pick'n'Mix' do-it-yourself packages where you choose
the accommodation you want, in the resort of your choice ... and
the optional extras to go with it.
This means that you can book the accommodation alone if you like
.. or use our extensive choice of 'extras' - ski hire, ski pass,
car hire etc - to make up a real package.
How
does it work? Go to the resort
page of your choice where you
will see little rectangles on the left with ON-LINE BOOKING in
red. These give the available dates and prices for different sizes
of accommodation. Click on the BOOK NOW link and you'll be taken
to a page where the accommodation is described in detail, the prices
of the optional extras are displayed, and an interactive google
map gives the precise location of the residence.
If
you're happy with the details just select a date and click on
the BOOK NOW button.
Here you're asked for a few details (name, email, telephone and
that's it) before receiving an email with a confirmation link
which you must click to get to the payment page (security!).
Then you
go to the bank and finish the process. Compared to the majority
of on-line booking engines we feel we have reduced the form-filling
and administrative jungle to an absolute minimum.
A quicker way is to go directly to the SEARCH
page where you choose
your resort and dates straight off... but you have to know a bit
about the resorts (like, just where is Peyragudes?). There are
maps at the bottom of this page to guide you.
This
on-line booking engine gives you the chance - now, in the months
of June
and July - to reserve your holiday in top resorts
like the Three Valleys or Val d'Isère even in the very high
season of February 2010.
Customers wishing hotel accommodation or group bookings can, of
course, reserve by email as in the past. [We now do schools' group
packages at half-term 2010!]
If you have any technical difficulties with the booking engine
(bugs, lost emails etc) then contact me at simon@francealacarte.com
If you can't find the date or apartment you want then contact
my colleague Sylvie at sylvie@francealacarte.com
Bonnes vacances!
Simon
March
2009
FRANCE A LA CARTE NEWS UPDATE
SKI - the best season for years - snow-wise - continues onward
into March and April. Most of the resorts hope to stay open until
Easter, closing around the 19th April. Our best deals for the end
of the season.
SUMMER - New
products this year include two resorts in Normandy - Mont St
Michel and Houlgate - and a couple of nice golf-oriented
residences in Brittany, Cap Fréhel and Cancale.
Further south we have a residence right on a golf course only
10 kms from Biarritz at Bassussarry, a new product at Mimizan Plage
and a wonderful 19th century colonial-style residence at La Tranche-sur-Mer,
just north of La Rochelle.
All our seaside offers can be found here ..; we are adding more
every day. This year you can book just the accommodation on its
own. We can add on hire car or transfers if you so wish.
RAFTING & CANYONING - the season begins in early April so it's time to prepare your
trip. An excellent activity for school,
stag or company groups ... we can look after all the logistics.
Our two main sites are in the Basque Country and Languedoc
COOKING
COURSES - in response to popular demand we have created
a 4 day/3 night short course at our Quercy chateau which better
fits a 'weekend' time-frame (arrival Thursday, departure Sunday).
The details are here.
FRANCE
A LA CARTE NEWS - Jan 2009
SKI HOLIDAYS in FEBRUARY
This year is an exceptional year for snowfall in both Pyrenees
and Alps. This means that most resorts are now already fully
booked for the very high season - French School Holidays - 14th
- 28th February. The two weeks on either side of these periods
are also much in demand.
What this means in practical terms is that if you really want
to book in that period you must conform to what is on offer: Saturday
to Saturday booking, 7 nights minimum. You are wasting your time
looking for 4 nights Tuesday to Friday.
However, we do have space in most resorts for the whole of the
month of March and even into April. Although this week will be
mild there will be a lot of snow at high altitude and the medium-range
forecast is for cold snowy weather to persist in February. This
means that skiing conditions will remain good for the rest of the
season. The financial crisis (and the drop in value of Sterling)
means that suppliers and agents like ourselves are keen to keep
prices to an absolute minimum: our BEST DEALS page gives you an
idea of what sort of packages are on offer outside of the school
holiday period.
Fed up hearing about winter sports? Then take a look at our SELF-DRIVE
TOURS which work on the same principle as most of our other breaks:
you fly (or TGV) into France, pick up a hire car at airport or
station and have a carefree few days exploring parts of France
you don't know. We provide the itinerary and book all accommodation
in advance.
Prefer a more sedentary approach? Then have a look at our SEASIDE pages and choose a spot on the coast for the summer. We're in the
process of updating the details and prices but you can be sure
that prices won't change much given the present economic situation.
NEW
LOOK ... NEW PRODUCTS May 2008
Not only are we updating our website at the moment
but we're also branching out into new fields: GOLF, SPA and THASSOTHERAPY.
You can see the 'new look' of the site - a sort of 'web 2.0' look
- on the seaside, golf/spa and thalassotherapy pages.
The entire site should take on this new look by the end of June:
next up will be Cuisine & Wine followed by ski, other sports
and finally the home page. Your comments on these changes are,
as always, very welcome.
We have bracketed GOLF and SPA together as it's often the case
that one person in a couple will want to play golf while the other
prefers relaxing in a luxury spa. For example, in the Bordeaux
area, we have unearthed a 4 star hotel in the Margaux
vineyards with beautiful spa facilities and surrounded by a
testing 18-hole golf course. Also in the Bordeaux area is a 4*L
hotel offering not just spa, luxury surroundings and cuisine but
also a unique wine-based treatment "vinotherapy". It's
located on the Smith-Lafitte wine estate.
Thalassotherapy is really just spa treatment using the natural
properties of seawater. The best place for this is the Basque country
and we have three top hotels at Biarritz and St Jean-de-Luz. Daily
flights from Stansted and Dublin to Biarritz airport (20 minutes
from the venues) make these short packages especially attractive.
As
usual, all our short breaks include a hire car (unlimited mileage,
CDW)
waiting at the regional airport of your choice, green fees/a
selection of spa treatments, and half-board or at least a dinner
on the arrival evening. All you have to do is find your own flight.
We have located each spa, golf or thalasso product in relation
to an airport with daily links to the UK & Ireland: you should
never have more than 90 minutes driving time, often much less.
The SNOW has arrived!
After last year's disappointing ski season due to lower-than-usual
snowfall, piste-watchers have been nervously awaiting the first
signs of a good season 2007-2008.
And they have been rewarded with some very cold weather and snowfalls
as low as 800 metres in both Alps and Pyrenees. In fact, it's been
so cold compared with previous years that the Pyrenean resorts
have already announced their opening for the 1st December!
The local papers have been full of snow reports and forecasts
of better-than-ever skiing conditions this year ... prompting French
skiers to start booking their holidays in earnest.
Luckily FRANCE A LA CARTE has still got a lot of space in most
of the popular Pyrenean resorts: especially Font Romeu, St Lary,
Bagneres/La Mongie, Andorra and La Molina. Don't forget that out
of French School holidays (9 Feb - 2 March) we can usually offer
short three night (long weekend) breaks. And for the most part
our resorts in the Pyrenees are based in traditional mountain villages
- not purpose-built concrete ski-centres.
In
the Alps we are concentrating on ease-of-access: Chamrousse,
Superdevoluy
and les Deux Alpes are all within 90 minutes of Grenoble
with its airlinks to most UK and Irish cities while Flybe and Jet2's
flights into Chambéry have opened up the Three Valleys and
Valfréjus.
As always, our packages include accommodation (hotel or self-catering),
ski pass, hire car or transfer from airport. On-line ski and equipment
hire (at 20% discount) is available on our site. We can also advise
on ski lessons.
For all bookings please contact Sylvie on +33 561 120 794 (10am
- 6pm, Mon-Fri) or sylvie@francealacarte.com
FRANCE A LA CARTE NEWS 17/10/2007
What
is an "Incoming agent" ?
France à la
carte is officially
an 'incoming' or 'inbound' travel agent. A lot of people are confused
about this and ask exactly what it is that we do ... and what we
are allowed to do.
Most travel agents are 'outbound'; that is, they send their customers
out of the country on holidays overseas.
An 'inbound' or 'incoming' agent, on the other hand, welcomes customers from
abroad, providing them with services in the country where they're based. Traditionally,
incoming agents have worked in the background, providing services to 'outbound'
agents on a purely wholesale basis. When your local High street travel agent
sells you a package in the Maldives or Bermudas, he's usually relying on an
incoming agent over there on the islands. The outbound agent arranges flights
and payment; the incoming agent provides accommodation, activities and transfers
on site.
As far as long-haul destinations are concerned, this schema still
works. But the arrival of low-cost short-haul airlines means that
the old order has imploded: the customer can now find, book and
pay for his own flight. She can now organise her own holiday without
the outbound agent ... even to the point of hiring cars, booking
hotels and arranging activities abroad. Does this mean that the
incoming agent is as obsolete as the out-going one? We don't think
so for a number of reasons: firstly we live and work here, therefore
we know more about what to see, what hotels to avoid, which ski
resorts are good etc. Secondly, we have built a relationship with
our suppliers (car hire, transfers, hotels, activities) which means
getting a better price than you would get. The result is that we
can create and market packages as cheap as (or cheaper) than you
could create ... sparing you the time and guaranteeing you quality
accommodation and service.
Officially,
France à la carte is an 'agence réceptive',
with a State travel agent licence and compulsory insurance and
bonding. France has about the toughest licencing requirements of
any country in Europe, guaranteeing customers of the financial
soundness and seriousness of licence-holders. As an 'agence
réceptive' we may not sell airline tickets but may
book, sell or organise any tourism-related product once the customer
is in France.
New ski resorts
We've added two new resorts to our comprehensive list of Pyrenean ski resorts:
the oldest resort in the Pyrenees "La Molina" on
the Catalonian side of the Cerdagne plateau in the E Pyrenees and Ordino
in the Vallnord ski area in Andorra.
La Molina is not only a beautiful site with good skiing but its also easily
accessible from Girona and Barcelona airports - both of which have air links
with most UK and Irish destinations. In Ordino we are offering 4 night breaks
- even in high season - which is unusual enough to be noteworthy.
FRANCE A LA CARTE NEWS -
1/10/07
Our professional clients - Tour Operators and Travel Agents -
sometimes write to us asking if we can do this or that booking
for them. Here's a summary of exactly what we can do:
GROUPS (more than 6 pax):
* we can book transfers, transport, hotel rooms and entrance to museums etc
* we can organize circuits, tours and day excursions
* we can provide English, German or Spanish-speaking guides ... and with a
bit of notice most other languages
* we can create itineraries to your specifications, book the transport, guide
and accommodation and take care of your group as soon as they touch down in
France.
* we cannot book international or internal flights
INDIVIDUALS
* we can book rooms for your clients in hotels where we have FIT rates
* we cannot really help with hotel bookings where we have no rates: it's always
cheaper for you to contact the hotel directly.
* we can book rental cars or private transfers for your customers
* we can organize tailor-made escorted tours for 2 to 6 individuals
CORPORATE and INCENTIVE packages
* we can organize corporate breaks (of any length) including accommodation,
seminar facilities, sporting/cultural activities and transfers
* we cannot book international or internal flights
If you are looking for IDEAS then a quick trawl through our site
should be your first step: it may be that our stock theme packages
for the UK market could inspire you (ski, white water, wine, golf,
surf, spa, paragliding, aerospace visits, mountain hiking, prehistoric
cave paintings and so on).
Once you have an idea then throw it at us with your numbers, dates
and budget and we'll come up with an attractive package.
Don't hesitate to ask our advice or pose even the most naive of
questions: we're here to help you!
RUGBY
- Sept 2007
We're awash with rugby in France at the moment ... but no one
can say that it's going particularly well for Northern Hemisphere
sides just now, except perhaps for France. But - especially for
our Irish compatriots - there's a chance of revenge (on a smaller
scale) when Leinster take on Stade Toulouse in Toulouse in November.
The match is at 9pm on Sunday 18th November so we've created little
two and three star programmes starting at just 135 euros per person
for the weekend:
arrive Saturday 17th (Dublin - Carcassonne with Ryanair or Gatwick-Toulouse
with easyJet)
time to visit Carcassonne and Toulouse and a good night in one of the Irish
Pubs in the city
overnight in centrally located two or three star hotel
Sunday: great day for street markets in Toulouse: whether it's flea markets
or wild mushrooms or foie gras that you're after, you'll find it.
The match is at the Stade's HQ in Ernest-Wallon: easy walking
distance from town centre.
What better place to celebrate a fine win but at Leinsterman Trevor Brennan's
bar De Danu?
Overnight in hotel
Monday: return flight.
Package
includes: two overnights in double/twin room in 2 or 3* hotel
with breakfast
plus a central-stand match ticket. France à la
carte's guide to pubs and restaurants in Toulouse.
Transfers (or hire car from airport) not included. The shuttle
service from Toulouse airport costs 5 euros and runs every 20 minutes.
We can hire you a car from Carcassonne airport (90 kms - 1 hour
drive).
Enquire
about these packages
SKI
Due to popular demand we are adding a package in ANDORRA.
It may not be pretty; it may be far from the airport but there
is nearly always SNOW! more details here.
SKI SEASON 2007-2008
ALPS: new resorts:
- Tignes - high altitude
resort in the Val d'Isère. 3* hotel from 575 eur per person for 7 nights
- Les Houches - in the Chamonix
valley up against Mont Blanc. from 330 eur pp for 7 nights, self-catering
- La Tania - another "3 valleys" resort
(to add to Val Thorens and Les Menuires) from 300 eur, 7 nights s/c
- les Orcieres - a family resort in the Ecrins massif ... with family-sized
apartments: 8 person duplex, 7 nights from 285 eur pp
- Serre Chevalier - 4th largest
ski area in France. Beautiful family-sized chalets (up to 9 berths) starting
at 260 eur pp for 7 nights
- Isola 2000 - although we've
programmed this lovely resort for years we are now offering large wooden
chalets which many of you have asked for. The advantage of Isola is easy
access from
Nice airport which has many easyjet/aerlingus/jet2/ba connections with UK
and Ireland (North and South).
All of these packages (except Tignes) include hire car waiting
for you at the airport of your choice (unlimited mileage inc),
ski pass for 6 days as well as the accommodation.
With Jet2.com flying into Chambéry this winter (from North of England
and N Ireland) a whole new range of resorts (the 3 valleys, Valfréjus,
Tignes,) opens up. Otherwise the Ryanair and easyJet flights into Grenoble
will satisfy most people (easy access to Chamrousse, 2 Alpes, Superdevoluy
and Les Orcières).
PYRENEES: new resorts:
- Cauterets - old spa town in the
central Pyrenees: a Ski'n'Spa centre - long weekend in 3* hotel from 395 eur
pp or 7 nights self-catering from 465 eur pp
- Peyragudes - high-tech resort where
they filmed a James Bond movie (resembles Afghani mountains apparently): ski-to-your-door
residence accommodation for 7 nights from 335 eur pp.
- Les Angles - new hotel package from
350 eur pp for 3 nights including dinner on arrival evening
As well as increased self-catering capacity in St Lary and Font
Romeu and a new hotel in Ax-les-Thermes.
Access to the Pyrenean resorts is really quick and easy with flights
arriving in Biarritz, Pau, Toulouse, Carcassonne, Perpignan and
Gerona from London, Dublin, Shannon, Liverpool, Manchester, Belfast
and Leeds. As in the Alps we have a hire car waiting for you at
the airport of your choice, pre-equipped with snow-chains and a
ski pass for every member of your group.
Finally, a number of our packages are already available for instant
on-line booking ... which gives you 5% OFF the regular price.
All our ski packages are visible here -
including our New Year Eve Specials.
For booking or enquiries please contact Sylvie on +33 561 120
794 or sylvie@francealacarte.com
à vos
skiis!
FRANCE A LA CARTE NEWS September 5th
An INDIAN SUMMER has been forecast for south-west France ... which
comes as a welcome surprise after the disappointing weather in
July and August.
FRANCE A LA CARTE has a number of short break ideas with which
to enjoy the warm days of September and October:
RAFTING: the rivers are full of white water this
year and we have attractive long weekend programmes in three sites:
the Languedoc (arrival Carcassonne or Toulouse), Central Pyrenees
(arrival Pau) and the Basque Country (arrival Biarritz).
SPA:
Our classic Spa weekend is at Bagnères-de-Bigorre
in the central Pyrenees: a lovely little spa town with ornate baths,
a casino and a lovely hotel with excellent food.
We are creating another one in Biarritz - watering hole to crowned heads since
the 1890's - which will be a top-of -the-range luxury affair with 4* hotel
and treatment: watch the Biarritz page.
WINING & DINING: The 'vendanges' or grape
harvests are in full swing in most of France's vineyards. What
better moment to enjoy a short eating and drinking break in deepest
rural France!
CHATEAU in the QUERCY: a long weekend of good food, charming surroundings and
visits to the vineyards of the Cahors AOC.
ABBEY-HOTEL in the Montagne Noire: between Carcassonne and Albi, on the fringes
of the Cabardès AOC and Gaillac AOC wine regions, our long weekend in
the Midi lets you discover the mediaeval jewels of Carcassonne, Albi and Sorèze
as well as the art of Toulouse-Lautrec and Goya.
There's also surfing, golfing and seaside breaks on offer over
the next couple of months. After that it's ski ... or black truffles!
à très bientôt
FRANCE
A LA CARTE NEWS 17th August 2007
Sneak Ski Preview
Before we officially launch our ski programme for winter 2007/8
we thought we'd give our faithful customers a peak at the new offers
and a chance for some early booking.
NEW! ISOLA 2000 -
Big luxury chalets for families and groups of 8 to 12 people.
The resort in the Southern Alps only 90 minutes from Nice (easyJet, BA, Aer
Lingus). These chalets are very well placed near the lifts and the village.
NEW! SERRE CHEVALIER -
More chalets in one of the 12 villages that make up this the 4th
largest ski area in France. Smaller and more suitable for a family
(5 places). Access from Grenoble airport (easyJet, Ryanair, BA).
THE THREE VALLEYS -
we now have packages in 3 of the resorts in the "3 Valleys" area: Val Thorens,
Les Menuires and, new this season, LA TANIA. 600 kms of pistes!
Access from Grenoble or - even better - Chambéry (Flybe
and Jet2.com - from Belfast! and M'Chester, Leeds etc))
ON-LINE BOOKING is available for a few of our
products... and you get 5% off if you do so!
Of course there's lots more - new products in the Pyrenees (nice
hotel in Les Angles, new (better) hotel in Ax-les-Thermes and ski'n'spa
in Cauterets.
Finally, after one of the wettest and coldest summers for some
years, the experts are beginning to talk of a very snowy winter!
Whatever happened to global warming?
FRANCE A LA CARTE NEWS 2nd may 2007
* New summer rentals in the Basque country near Biarritz
* Another rafting base - near Lourdes - added to our whitewater selection
* Luxury gîtes in the Tarn
BASQUE COUNTRY RENTALS - 4* residence in the
hills of the Basque Country: 2, 3 and 4-room apartments in a luxury
holiday complex set back from the bustle and traffic of the coast. learn more
RAFTING in Argeles-Gazost/Cauterets - yet another
rafting base, this time on the fast-flowing Gave de Pau which brings
down volumes of clear water from the melting snows on the Pyrenean
peaks. Hostel accommodation on site or bijou hotel up in Cauterets.
learn more
LUXURY GITES near LAVAUR in the Tarn. 3 beautiful
old stone houses refurbished with care and taste in the sunflower
fields just near Lavaur. Perfect for visiting Albi, Cordes and
the Gaillac vineyards in style. 2 twelve metre pools, secluded
location, large estate ... and direct email access to the owner
who speaks English! more
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