Meeting Your Trip in NIMES

This page offers help (concrete or informational) on reaching your trip. Topics include...

1. Where you Join Your Trip (see immediately below)
2. Our “Access Packages,” designed to help you to do so.
3. Suggestions on how to time your trip to the trip, whether you are having us arrange your travel, or doing it yourself.
4. Service information regarding train travel to your trip start location.
5. Suggested pre-trip visits, especially when these are not geographically obvious, but are rendered economical and convenient by direct rail connections.
6. Hopefully helpful hints for those setting up their own travel to the trip.

If you wish to arrange some or all of your travel through us, please tell us what by means of this response questionnaire, designed to collect all the information we need to be able to book your travel.

1. WHERE and WHEN Do You Join Your Trip?

Our trip assembles at our usual Nimes hotel, close to the train station, on Sunday morning between 9 & 10a. We will send you the precise address with your final itinerary.

If you wish to take the first Sunday morning train from Paris or Nice (see service information, below), we will wait for you. But, if you have flown from North America, be aware of the challenges involved in getting up at 5a when your biological clock is telling you it is 11p....

If you wish to make your own way to the trip (in other words, not to set up your travel arrangements through us), a couple of hints on getting to Nimes are offered at the bottom of this page.


2. Our ACCESS PACKAGES
as of April 10, 2008

Nimes is too remote to be reachable by 10a from anywhere but neighboring towns, so you must travel on Saturday to reach the trip (flying on Friday night if you are taking off from North America). The Nimes “Access Packages” all include a bed of one sort or another on Saturday night.

Base (Starting) Access Package Price: 89€.
“Ride the Bike Train Discount” Package: 56€.
15€ additional on September 20 (“Feria” — a big town festival)
If you are a North American traveller, the $ price (US or Canadian) on your price chart applies until 35 days prior to trip departure. Otherwise euro prices are transcribed to your invoice in its currency, converted at the exchange rate of the day on which the package is requested (rounded to the nearest whole dollar). Current “mid-market” rates can be consulted from the site we use for conversion. We use the mid-market rate on the day of conversion, and add 2% to cover currency broker exchange commissions (our conversion rates are thus as good as, or better than, any you could obtain, including via your credit card, unless you are a professional currency trader).

Availability is usually pretty good until about 2 months before the trip (1 month before if you are coming from elsewhere than Charles de Gaulle airport). Within that period, prices start to climb (and / or choice of train becomes more restrictive) as the cheaper fare codes sell out. The next higher fare code increases the cost of the package by 29€ (15€ from Nice or Barcelona).

Included:

• Train tickets to Nimes from Paris, Paris’ Charles de Gaulle Airport, Geneva, Nice or Barcelona (2nd class); or a Saturday overnight train from Paris (couchette included).
  Tickets are not refundable or exchangeable once ordered. Changeable tickets are available at an additional cost, and are suggested if you are attempting a tight plane-train connection.
• Seat reservations on trains which require them.
• A schedule / itinerary, highlighting any connections.
• Our “Route Sheet to the Trip,” helping you through your journey.
• A Saturday hotel night in Nimes, based on shared occupancy, including breakfast.
  Singles willing to share are guaranteed the share price until 35 days pre-trip, even if we do not wind up finding you a roommate).
  Our usual Nimes hotels are simple ones, well-located and a short walk from the train station. But the accent should be on “simple and convenient.” One of our favorite riders cheerfully described one of them as a “vomitorium” (in fairness to the hotel, he had not stayed there: he just dropped off his bike before catching a train). If this concept depresses you, we offer a fancier place in the town center as an alternative. We frankly don’t think the shift is worth the effort, but you might....
  Hotel is not included for passengers on the overnight train, where a berth on the train is included, instead.
  

Options Offered at an Extra Cost (subject to availability)
Prices are in addition to the “Base” Access Package Price. For a general discussion of train upgrades, see here. Topics include the relative comfort of first versus second class, and different types of accommodation available on overnight trains.

• Tickets from London. Add 69€ if you are also purchasing tickets back to London, 99€ if not, or if you prefer a changeable return (in 1st cl., add 99€ or 145€; 1st class tickets include meal service). A Paris stop-over is available for 15€ additional.
  
• Tickets from Madrid. +79€ 2nd cl. daylight train, 89€ via Friday overnight train (reach Nimes early on Saturday afternoon).
  
• Exchangeable / refundable tickets.
  These tickets are exchangeable, on a space-available basis, at any time until the train’s departure. They may even be exchanged up to one hour after the train’s departure, but only at the station where you were supposed to board. Cost of the exchange is 5€. They are refundable less 20% before the train’s departure, 50% refundable afterwards (the physical ticket must be returned to the issuing office to obtain a refund).
  From Paris or CdG airport: 42€. From Geneva or Barcelona, 21€. From Nice, 14€. From all other points within France: 45€ maximum.
  
• First class train tickets, in lieu of 2nd class. 25€ discount rate from all points (18€ from Nice).
  Tickets are not refundable or exchangeable once ordered. Changeable tickets are available at an additional cost, and are suggested if you are attempting a tight plane-train connection (see previous point).
  
• Overnight train upgrade (from included couchette): 39€ to “Comfort couchette.”
  
• Nicer hotel in Nimes. A 3-star we like in the city center, in case you are on your honeymoon or something. +92€ single, +45€ / person double or twin.
  Unless you have a lot more money than we do, you aren’t going to want to even think about this one on the Feria dates (see heading). Toss in another 75€ single, another 40€ / person in a double or twin....
  
• Private single room in Nimes: +22€ at our regular hotel, +92€ at the fancy one.
  Add 10€ to these prices for May 31 or September 20.
  
• Paris airport train tickets, from Charles de Gaulle or Orly to Paris center. Follow this link for details.
  

Alternate Arrangements, in lieu of our usual packages (subject to availability)
Prices are complete (in other words, they are not in addition to the “Base” Access Package Price)

• Hotel in Nimes (additional nights, or without rail tickets): 39€ shared occupancy, 64€ single, including breakfast. Shared occupancy rate guaranteed to singles (on the pre-trip Saturday night only) until 35 days prior to departure.
  +15€ / person double or twin, 25€ single, for trips starting June 1 or September 21.
  

3. TIMING Your Trip

If we may influence your thinking on the topic of timing... Nimes is interesting. And you will not have time to see it on Sunday morning (when the trip assembles). If you have the flexibility to do so, try to schedule your arrival in time to walk around the old town, and especially to admire the remarkable Roman arena, just a couple of blocks from the hotel.

Like airplanes, trains to Nimes require reservations. You must not only tell us by which gateway you wish to arrive, but at what time of day you wish to travel. Allow ample time to connect from a flight: the railroad is not responsible for (chronically) late planes. Moreover, it can take intercontinental travellers up to 90 minutes to clear customs, immigration and baggage claim upon arrival. If you are attempting a tight connection, we suggest modifiable tickets, even though these carry an extra cost.


4. Service Information
Schedules are approximate – exact timetables can be consulted at http://www.raileurope.com/us/rail/fares_schedules/index.htm.
Best trains are mentioned. Others are slower or have multiple connections.

• From Paris, Gare de Lyon. Travel time is 3 hours, service is circa 7:30a, 11:30a, then every 2 hours.
  Two bike trains are currently scheduled. The first is at 10a via Avignon. Trip time is 4 hours, but there is a tight connection in Avignon, something of an adventure with the bikes (next connecting train 2 hours later if you miss the first one). The second is at 1p via Dijon, trip time 5 hours. You must be willing to take either to benefit from the discount fare, but can tell us which you prefer.
• From Paris’ Charles de Gaulle Airport. Travel time is 3 1/2 hours. Direct trains operate at 7:30a, 9:30a, 1p, 4p and 6p.
• From Geneva. Travel time is 3 - 4 hrs. A direct train runs at 12:30p.
  Connecting services run at 8a and 1p. Slower connecting services (5 hours) run at 9a and 2p and 4p.
• From Barcelona. One fast service daily, at 8:45a, arrive 2:15p, via Montpellier.
  Slower services, ± 7 hours available at 11a (via Cerbère, no reservations required) and 3p (two connections required).
• From Nice. Travel time 4 hours, a single connection is required, generally in Marseille.
  Fast services operate at 9a and 4:30p, with one connection. Slower services, taking over 5 hours, run throughout the day. The first Sunday morning service (and the only one that gets you to the trip start) is at 6a, via Avignon.
• From London. 9a or 2p, with a connection in Lille. 7+ hours on the clock face, but which includes a 1-hour time change (actual journey time is 6+ hours).
  It may not sound like it, but this is considerably faster than flying, unless you happen to live on a runway....
  Frequent alternate service via Paris, with a roughly equivalent overall travel time. But a station change in Paris is required, from the Gare du Nord to the Gare de Lyon.

5. Suggested PRE-TRIP VISITS

The Swiss Alps, the Basque Country (Biarritz and / or San Sebastian), Madrid and / or Barcelona....


6. Hints on TRAVELLING INDEPENDENTLY to the Trip
Guests subscribing to an “Access Package” need not read this section.

See also “Timing Your Trip” and “Service Information,” above, as either of these may additionally help.

We gladly provide travel consulting (schedule or routing information) concerning pre-trip individual travel. In particular, we have invested a great deal to become railway experts. Our service fees are reasonable: a 20€ charge for all but the most complex projects – or the most simple (for instance, only a 10€ charge applies if the service is limited to the preparation of a routine rail ticket). You will generally find them well-justified by the time they will save you in research, standing on line, overpaying for your tickets, or all three.

But, for some, this type of research is fun. So, here are some hints, intended to start off hardened “do-it-yourselfers.”

Trains. Schedules for all routes can be consulted on this web site:
http://www.raileurope.com/us/rail/fares_schedules/index.htm

Nimes is served by TGV (high-speed train) from northern France, including direct service from Paris’ Charles de Gaulle Airport. Main line trains also run from elsewhere in France, Switzerland (one daily TGV), northeastern Spain, and northern Italy. Overnight sleeper trains come from France’s west coast, the Basque Country, Italy, western Germany, Madrid (with a morning connection at the French border) and Paris (though few people use the overnight train from Paris, as the TGV takes only three hours for this trip).

Planes. Nimes has a tiny airport, traditionally offering mosquito planes from Paris (the airline has changed three times in as many years, and the route is not served at this writing). Nearby Montpellier and Marseille both have more service. Montpellier offers many direct Air France flights from Paris. Marseille has some flights from other European capitals.

Ryanair serves Nimes from London Luton, from Charleroi (south of Brussels) and from Liverpool, but none of the flights are currently daily, and they don't fly on Saturdays. Other Ryanair airports within two hours by train are Montpellier, Carcassone and Perpignan.

Train frequencies and travel times from regional airports on to Nimes are as follows. Montpellier: hourly, 30-min. trip. Marseille: every 2 hrs.; 1 hr. trip. Carcassone or Perpignan: irregular, but every 2 hrs. on average; trip time 2 hrs.


If you wish to arrange some or all of your travel through us, please tell us what by means of this response questionnaire, designed to collect all the information we need to be able to book your travel.