On Tue, 2 Aug 2011 08:28:16 +0000 (UTC), d
wrote:
takes. Apart from a few visits to central paris I've only ever
taken the car
to france.

Driving in central Paris is fun

Neil

--
Neil Williams, Milton Keynes, UK

Neil Williams wrote:
On Tue, 2 Aug 2011 08:28:16 +0000 (UTC), d
wrote:
takes. Apart from a few visits to central paris I've only ever
taken the car
to france.

Driving in central Paris is fun


I'm definitely not planning on doing that in my own car ... the
Périphérique will be bad enough! ;-)

Anyway, decision made. I booked Eurotunnel.

On Tue, 02 Aug 2011 21:17:54 +0100
Bruce wrote:
Neil Williams wrote:
On Tue, 2 Aug 2011 08:28:16 +0000 (UTC), d
wrote:
takes. Apart from a few visits to central paris I've only ever
taken the car
to france.

Driving in central Paris is fun


I'm definitely not planning on doing that in my own car ... the
Périphérique will be bad enough! ;-)

Anyway, decision made. I booked Eurotunnel.

Having used eurotunnel more times than I can count I find it a mystery why
anyone would still bother with a ferry. Overall the ferry must take at least
2 hours longer to do the crossing if you take into account the longer boarding
time as well as journey time and once you're in france you have to navigate
your way out of Calais instead of being dropped right next to the autoroute as
per eurotunnel.

B2003

d wrote:

On Mon, 01 Aug 2011 21:56:13 +0100
Bruce wrote:
So for my next trip I'll take the car. Drive to Folkestone, then
Eurotunnel, then drive to our destination in Paris which is just off
the Peripherique*. There is a car park on site. One mode all the
way, and there is far less stress driving with people you know and
like rather than sharing up to six modes with strangers. Plus, the
baggage stays in the car from origin to destination.

Boltar won't understand. But that's Boltar. ;-)

Actually as far as taking the car goes I understand perfectly. The older
I get the less I can put up with the delays, bull**** excuses and endless
minor irritations you almost always get with public transport whatever form it
takes.


Agreed. Plus, all these annoying things are many times worse when you
have heavy gear to carry and a fixed deadline to meet.


Apart from a few visits to central paris I've only ever taken the car
to france.


Same here. Apart from the radial routes from Paris, the trains are
generally poor compared to Britain's, so car is the sensible option.

On Wed, 3 Aug 2011 08:25:03 +0000 (UTC), d wrote:
Having used eurotunnel more times than I can count I find it a mystery why
anyone would still bother with a ferry. Overall the ferry must take at least
2 hours longer to do the crossing if you take into account the longer boarding
time as well as journey time

I'm going to be crossing with small children next week. They will have
been in the back of the car for a couple of hours on the way to Dover
and it is another couple of hours on the other side to our destination. A
break in the middle for them to run around is ideal. I'm also not in
a hurry.

and once you're in france you have to navigate
your way out of Calais instead of being dropped right next to the autoroute as
per eurotunnel.

The A/N216 goes right to the ferry port, no navigation required.

In message , d
writes

Having used eurotunnel more times than I can count I find it a mystery why
anyone would still bother with a ferry.

Getting a breath of seriously fresh air on deck makes a good break on
the long car journey and dining on Sea France while watching the sun go
down over the English Channel is a very pleasant experience on the
return trip. Also the ferry is usually significantly cheaper. But it
does take much longer, and there is a risk of cancellation when there is
fog or bad weather, of course.

and once you're in france you have to navigate your way out of Calais
instead of being dropped right next to the autoroute as per eurotunnel.

No, that's not a problem. There's a fast dual carriageway direct from
the port to the E15, which you join more than a mile closer to Paris
than when coming from Coquelles. It's actually a few minutes quicker
than coming from the Eurotunnel exit, although as the ferry takes so
much longer, that's not really an issue.
--
Paul Terry

d wrote:
On Tue, 02 Aug 2011 21:17:54 +0100
Bruce wrote:
Anyway, decision made. I booked Eurotunnel.

Having used eurotunnel more times than I can count I find it a mystery why
anyone would still bother with a ferry. Overall the ferry must take at least
2 hours longer to do the crossing if you take into account the longer boarding
time as well as journey time and once you're in france you have to navigate
your way out of Calais instead of being dropped right next to the autoroute as
per eurotunnel.


I agree Eurotunnel is faster, but the ferry is more enjoyable. I like
the views and the fresh sea air, neither of which Eurotunnel offers.

Until recently, all my cross Channel trips have been for pleasure, so
time has not been of the essence and the ferry trip is part of the
pleasure.

My civil engineering career started in ports and harbours. Most of my
family were involved in maritime-related occupations and I was brought
up in a port city, but I live about as far from the sea as it is
possible to be in Britain. So I almost never turn down the chance for
a trip to the seaside and a ferry trip is something I particularly
enjoy, except of course in bad weather.

This time, though, it's for business and I want to shorten the journey
where possible, so it's Eurotunnel.

In article ,
(Bruce) wrote:

but I live about as far from the sea as it is
possible to be in Britain.

About an hours drive...

--
Paul Cummins - Always a NetHead
Wasting Bandwidth since 1981

On Wed, 3 Aug 2011 10:47:50 +0100
David Walters wrote:
and it is another couple of hours on the other side to our destination. A
break in the middle for them to run around is ideal. I'm also not in
a hurry.

I suspect them running around isn't ideal for the other passengers but thats
another argument.

B2003

In message , at
11:08:00 on Wed, 3 Aug 2011, Paul Cummins
remarked:
but I live about as far from the sea as it is
possible to be in Britain.

About an hours drive...

The closest I can see is Southend (and people will quibble about whether
that's the "sea"). About an hour and 40 minutes. Anywhere on the south
coast is 2hrs+ and Weston Super Mare (also see quibble) is two and a
half.
--
Roland Perry