To help stranded passengers get to their destinations Eurostar is organising extra trains and running as many services as possible. Between Monday and Sunday this week, Eurostar will run at least 28 additional trains. Over the next seven days, nearly four hundred trains will run between the UK and the continent.

Since flights were grounded last Thursday as a result of the ash cloud caused by an erupting Icelandic volcano, Eurostar has put on 33 additional trains and has carried 165,000 passengers – 50,000 more than were scheduled to travel during this period.

Over the last four days, passengers have been connecting with Eurostar services from destinations across Europe with customers connecting from Germany, Spain, Italy and even as far as Greece.

Given the high level of demand, seats on Eurostar are selling quickly and customers are advised to go to www.eurostar.com to check availability and make their booking.

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Describing some of the many `things to do` in Paris cannot be undertaken without first mentioning the Eiffel Tower. Standing at 1,063 feet at its spire, the Tower dominates the Parisian skyline. Constructed on the Champ de Mars between 1887 and 1889, the Eiffel Tower has been visited by more than 200 million people since it first opened and remains a main attraction for tourists today. The Tower boasts two restaurants, Altitude 95 and Jules Verne, lift access and, at night, lights up majestically across the Seine.

The Cathédrale de Notre-Dame is another popular landmark in Paris, with visitors attracted to its imposing gothic architecture and the 387 spiral steps that lead to its summit  at which point, tired tourists are rewarded with a splendid view across Paris and the Seine in particular.

The Musée National du Louvre is also well worth visiting for its Greek, Roman and Egyptian antiquities and early European sculptures. Of course, the main draw for the majority of visitors is without doubt Leonardo da Vinci`s Mona Lisa, which is enshrined behind a bullet-proof casing. Picasso lovers will also be able to visit the Musée National Picasso, which represents the great artist`s entire life`s work.

Other than sight-seeing, tourists love to wine and dine in Paris. The Gaya Rive Gauche is an essential destination for the palate, whilst the L`Atelier de Joël Robuchon is ideal for couples or parties of one in search of culinary mastery served up in a rather unique environment.

When night falls and eyelids grow heavy, where better to lay one`s head than at the Ritz? Expensive though it may be, it is well worth a stay even if just for one night! The Hôtel Bristol is another top hotel and is renowned for its restaurant. Visitors are also advised to check out the glorious Hôtel de Crillon, although there are many less expensive hotels in Paris that offer fantastic value for money.
There are two large commercial airports in Paris, the Orly and the Roissy-Charles de Gaulle. Popular flight routes to Paris from Great Britain include all major airports, such as Heathrow, Gatwick, Manchester, Leeds, Edinburgh and Belfast. Flights from Birmingham to Paris are also provided by operators such as British Airways, Air France and Flybe, which usually offers fantastic deals throughout the year

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Between April 24th and 26th, a wide array of cinemas across the country will show off the very best in international short films – all of which are less than three minutes in length.

Around 50 films are due to be screened as part of the showcase and all are in the running to pick up one of four prizes, the winners of which are decided by the festival’s jury.

Movies due to be screened at this year’s show include Apres la pluie, Careful With That Axe, Fond de Cour – Escalier B, L’interpretation des Reves ou les Aventures du Robot Bleu and La Main des Maitres.

Filmmakers from an array of countries, including New Zealand, France, Canada, Iran, Spain, the UK, Denmark, Israel, Mexico, Hungary and Romania will be showing off their work at the events.

Cities participating in the screenings of the films include Paris, Lyons, Reims, Verdelot, Caen, Montpellier and Cherbourg.

In the French capital, the screenings will take place at Forum des Halles, which is within easy reach of the wide array of hotels in Paris. Tickets are currently available and are priced from 5 EUR.

Given the popularity of the event visitors are advised to secure their hotels rooms as early as possible. LateRooms.com offers more than 350 Paris hotels ranging from luxury hotels to budget hotels. During the festival LateRooms.com is offering up to 70% discount for hotels across France.

The 4 star Hotel Le Pera is offering double rooms for two adults from 168 GBP per night. This hotel is Located in the center of the famous Opera area near la Madeleine and has a very good customer rating of 75%.

Others looking for alternatives can go for Emeraude Hotel Helios Opera. This hotel is offering delightful double rooms from 126 GBP per night.

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Over 15 years of service, Eurostar has been playing an active role in creating many Anglo-French relationships. It is now offering a high-speed dating service, by invitation only, to students of the University of the Arts London (Europe’s largest university for art, design, fashion, communication and the performing arts). With a bit of luck, the students will get the chance to meet their special one as the train whizzes through the countryside at 186mph, taking them the heart of the city known as the most romantic in the world – Paris!

Eurostar has laid on extra Love Trains to meet the high level of demand. This has been made possible thanks to the completion of the Channel Tunnel repairs earlier this week. Eurostar will restore its full, faster and more frequent service on Monday 23 February.

Eurostar’s Communications Director, Simon Montague, said: “Passion for a beloved one or a fervour for sport is without doubt inspiring people to travel on Eurostar. We are also looking forward to high-speed dating on board our trains! We hope that the event will be a success and it will be interesting to see whether it could be a model which could be developed for other speed dating events on selected Eurostar trains in the future”.

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Passenger numbers broke the nine million barrier for the first time with 9.1 million travellers carried – an increase of 10.3% from 8.26 million in the previous year.

Ticket sales also reached a record level of £664 million, rising by 10.9% from £599 million in 2007. Shorter journey times to Paris and Brussels and the excellent connections offered by St Pancras International are attracting increasing numbers of passengers to switch to high-speed rail.

The results would have been significantly stronger but for the closure of part of the Channel Tunnel following a fire on board a Eurotunnel freight shuttle on 11 September 2008, which continues to cause reductions in services and longer journey times.

The nature of the Eurostar service, in which travellers book up to four months in advance, means sales were significantly affected by the Channel Tunnel incident from September onwards, whereas the subsequent economic downturn had little impact on the year as a whole.

Eurostar continues to achieve high levels of punctuality that outstrip the airline competition, with 92.4% of trains arriving on time or early during 2008.  In contrast, the latest available UK arrival/departure punctuality figure for airlines competing on Eurostar’s routes is just 65.4% (Jan – Nov 2008, data from Civil Aviation Authority).

Richard Brown, Chief Executive, Eurostar, said: “An increase of nearly a million extra passengers using High Speed 1 during its first year of operations, even with the impact of the tunnel fire, demonstrates beyond doubt that people prefer high-speed rail to short-haul air. They are switching because rail journeys are faster, more punctual, more convenient, and have less environmental impact.

“Whilst reduced tunnel access will affect the first quarter of 2009, we expect to return to a full timetable in the early spring with journey times restored to 1h 51 to Brussels and 2h 15 to Paris once Eurotunnel completes repairs to the Channel Tunnel.

“The uncertainties of the current economic climate reinforce the importance of good value fares and Eurostar’s UK lead-in fare remains at £59 return for the sixth year in a row.

“The short-term outlook for 2009 is challenging, but the long-term prospects for Eurostar and high-speed rail are very good. High Speed 1 is fully connected into Europe’s fast expanding high-speed network and we expect to see continuing growth in the number of travellers making longer connecting journeys from towns and cities across the UK to Belgium and France, as well as to destinations in the Netherlands and Germany.”

www.eurostar.com

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Hotels Hotels Hotels is an online hotel reservations website that offers thousands of hotels across France. We work in conjunction with the best hotel suppliers in order to provide our customers with the best selection of hotels and accommodation.

Whether you’re looking for a family holiday or a city break, our simple and secure booking process will help you find what you want. Hotels can be found within a specified price range, rating and, by using the onsite map, proximity to major attractions. And with immediate confirmation of your booking it really couldn’t be easier.

Paris continues to be our top year round destination, and it’s easy to see why. We have hundreds of hotels across the city ranging from the budget hostels to 5 star luxury hotels. Whatever your needs you can be sure to find cheap hotels in Paris with Hotels Hotels Hotels.

In addition to Paris, we have many other thousands of hotels in France at popular destinations including Nice, Marseille, Bordeaux, Cannes, Calais and much, much more with prices you’ll find hard to resist.

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The world is a very wonderful place to travel and see different parts of the world. Each and every part of the world has something new and something diverse to offer to a traveller and this is the reason why travelling is so popular in the world today. Travelling is one of the oldest forms of recreation and relaxation known to man and there is nothing better than a well planned trip to soothe the mind and to rejuvenate the body. The world has a lot to offer in terms of natural wonders and also man made wonders. Each and every continent in the world has something different and every continent is worth a visit during an individual’s lifetime.

Europe – a paradise for travellers

The continent of Europe is a veritable paradise for tourists with the variety of tourist attractions that are found in this continent. The continent of Europe is made up of a lot of small countries and all these countries have a lot of culture and a lot of places which are worthy of a visit. The west of Europe is quite well explored and thronged by tourists but the central and eastern part of Europe is relatively unknown to tourists. Countries such as Hungary, Bulgaria, Serbia, Montenegro, and Croatia among others are relatively unexplored. These countries have a huge lot to offer to a tourist in terms of natural wonders and man made monuments.

Montenegro

The country of Montenegro is truly an unexplored paradise. This country has a huge lot to offer to a tourist. The country of Montenegro is situated in the Balkans and shares its borders with Serbia, Kosovo, Albania, Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina. This country is situated on the Adriatic coast and thus has some of the best beaches in the world. There is a good mix of adventure travel and leisure travel in Montenegro. The country has a lot of natural wonders which are very conducive for various adventure sports and the beaches and the cities are really worth a visit and many of them are really well preserved.

Places of interest in Montenegro

The Boka Kotorska is one of the most beautiful bays in the continent of Europe and some very picturesque towns are situated around this bay. Towns like Perast and the town of Kotor which is a UNESCO world heritage site is found in this area. The Tara canyon is the deepest canyon in the world and is a hot favourite with tourists. One of the most popular adventure sport’s in this canyon is rafting down the Tara River. The Ostrog monastery is one of the oldest monasteries in Europe and is situated on a near vertical cliff. The capital city of Podgorica is also a place which should not be missed by a tourist and the city center is a very beautiful place.

Culture in Montenegro

The culture in Montenegro is quite conducive to tourism and most people are friendly and helpful. Food in Montenegro is a diverse mix of all Balkan cultures and a lot of restaurants serve continental food. Special dishes which are unique to Montenegro are also served in most restaurants and eating out is not very expensive in Montenegro and there are restaurants which cater to all budgets.

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The Enlightened Traveller walks the 252 kilometres of The Stevenson Trail once every year and participated in the Trail’s 130^th anniversary celebrations in April 2008. Here are some considerations on a classic French trek from Le Puy to St Jean du Gard,

The overnight stay in Le Puy was not great, despite having booked into a 2-star national chain for that supposed extra bit of ‘reassurance.’ Like so many of the region’s hotels, it had seen better days and was suffering from underinvestment. The welcome was poor to put it mildly, but was at least consistent with the failure to communicate by email – and I work for a tour operator prepared to give them business for nothing!

The room wasn’t ready until 16.00 hrs; the reversible heating system only worked one way, the radiators were cold at 16.30 and breakfast was an after-thought. I wouldn’t be arranging my picnic lunch here, then. Was this symptomatic of Le Puy? I recalled having had my head bitten off the last time I was in town (when walking The Regordane) as a result of asking for a second blanket for my bed; and was shocked to find myself forced to use the table as a plate for my croissant and jam the next morning. Thankfully, I took the opportunity to check out some alternative accommodation that was above average, and here lies the first reason for booking through a specialized and responsible tour operator – we stay in the same places we send our customers to and continually check out alternatives for their benefit. Nothing is left to chance in order that holidays run smoothly and comfortably.

The tried-and-tested taxi and baggage service the next day was first class. Stevenson started his seminal trek from Le Monastier and our belief in offering authentic experiences rules out making customers walk from Le Puy. Le Monastier’s polychrome abbey is one of Velay’s finest Roman works of art and its contiguous chateau-cum-museum a delight to behold. It houses a permanent Stevenson exhibition that my early start obliged me to forgo – I was in no mood to hang around for the June opening.

The walk to Le Bouchet is challenging, but immensely rewarding. First come the red soils of the volcanic uplands, followed quickly by a sharp rocky incline down to the Upper Loire Valley. Some of our customers actually opt to do the middle section only of Stevenson’s Trail, thus missing out on the memorable descent to Goudet that definitely qualifies it as part of our ‘Best of’ tour.

Stevenson sketched the ruins of the chateau de Beaufort at Goudet; you will delight in snapping it from multiple angles as you commence your climb to your night’s stop-over. Once again, I had chosen to risk-take in order to experience something new; but I hadn’t expected to find a brand new gite d’etape minus bed sheets and bathroom towels. Was I really going to add such items to my barely-sufficient 15- kilogramme luggage allowance? Another night, another lesson learnt.

The next day’s highlights include the splendid Arquejols viaduct which, like its counterpart at Mirandol to the south, was not around in Stevenson’s time. Built in 1908, the line was closed for economic reasons over a decade ago. Thus this wonder of industrial architecture remains eerily silent and sadly ignorant of the access requirements to France’s interior of the modern-day, back-to-nature, hiking fraternity. Lozère, the department that boasts the highest average altitude and the lowest population in France, fears a similar fate awaits its one remaining railway line, Le Cévenol, which would spell the death of the remaining family-run hotels, hard pressed to make ends meet as a result of the region’s glorious isolation. Whilst Stevenson was quick to laud the “sancta Solitudo” of French country life, the heavy toll dealt by WW1 (visible on the many cenotaphs in villages en route) and the subsequent rural exodus, sees the remaining locals worried sick about losing their main life-line to modern France due to narrow economic rationality.

Stevenson had other concerns to contend with as he trekked, like his own personal health problems, a departed lover and The French Wars of Religion. My preoccupations were much more profane: ensuring there had been no alterations to the route since my colleagues last walked it; taking photos for our website; and the gentle nursing of a nascent blister using a Compeed compound apparently not available in North America.

Stevenson slept out rough for the first time, and in inclement weather, at a place called Fouzillac, just north of Cheylard L’Eveque. Like our customers before me, I fared rather better, and chose to check out some alternative accommodation in Chaudeyrac. The day’s walking hadn’t been that good and rain had somewhat dampened my enthusiasm. The advertised one-and-a-half kilometre detour seemed more like four, but it was worth it: a warm welcome, great food and all mod cons. Other hoteliers could learn a few things from this proprietor, who has heavily invested in his business and, besides running the hotel, sells cepes mushrooms worldwide, raises wild boars and still has time to moan at his teenage daughter’s reluctance to do her half-an-hour’s homework in the evening – unfortunately in earshot of everyone in the hotel but, as a father of two small but headstrong girls, it was rather like relating to my own future.

In The Cevennes Journal, Robert Louis Stevenson wrote: “Why any one should desire to visit either Luc or Cheylard is more than my much-inventing spirit can suppose.” One hundred and thirty years later, and with even less of Luc castle remaining, I have to agree with him. The February snow storms had taken a heavy toll on some of the Gardille forest’s pine trees, many of which lay savagely snapped in two under the sheer weight of the deluge. Yet, as with life in general, perhaps it’s the dull forestry trails that make us appreciate more the splendour of walking the crest of the hill. And many are determined to walk the walk, come what may.

As a Presbytarian married to a French Catholic, I decided to give the trappist monastery at Notre-Dames-des-Neiges a wide berth, fearing imminent conversion, stomach upset (they brew some renowned liquor) and foot swelling from the extra distance. I settled for the night in my comfortable hotel in La Bastide and looked forward to better things. I was not disappointed. Whilst the next day’s walking to Le Bleymard had its high spots, it was the following day, and the day after that, Day Seven, that will live long in the memory.

The six-hundred-metre climb up Mont Lozere is challenging to say the least, but it wasn’t enough to make me camp out on the north side and light up a cigarette as Stevenson had done one late September evening. At a watering hole by the ski centre, I met a modern-day shepherd, whose job it was to rent out donkeys to inexperienced and unsuspecting tourists. He was awaiting a visit from some Spanish journalists and delighted in telling me that following week he was expecting the English Press – although he couldn’t remember the name of their paper. Donkeys were great companions, apparently, and quite cheap to run as well; but woe betide he who tries to dominate them. You have to negotiate, he said. Not having the time to explore the niceties of donkey diplomacy, I bade him farewell and continued on my way.

Snow still covered parts of Le Pic de Finiels which, at 1699 ms, is the highest point of the trail and of Lozere itself. The general appearance of the summit, in all its lunar splendour, is a field day for 1969 space conspiracy theorists that would have even the most ardent of NASA spokespersons running for cover.

The warmth of the Catholic welcome in Le Bleymard was in stark contrast to the ‘salutations Cévenoles’ proffered in Protestant Le Pont de Montvert – and they don’t put the draught lager on until June; so when the TV imploded in the packed Bar du Commerce at half time during the Barça – Man Utd Champions’ League semi-final, there seemed nothing much else to do than retire and administer more Compeed.

I met my second brace of French geography and history teachers early the next day. Critical of President Sarkozy’s recent flirtations with the Jet Set (as if that had altered their opinions of him!) they failed to see how fortunate they were at being sponsored by the Private Sector to walk for four days in a lunar orbit around Florac. Yet the fact they were camping seemed to suggest the subsidy was insufficient to combat the rising costs of living within the Euro-zone.

The southward climb up and out of Le Pont de Montvert, and onto the Cham de l’Hermet, was scenic indeed; and the walk along the ‘ligne des crêtes’ that afternoon was a real joy that I must repeat. The trail winds its way westwards, slipping over the ridge from the north face to south side, as you enjoy the delightful juxtaposition of sunkissed and broomy Mediterranean flora one moment, followed by lush, alpine vegetation the next. As we approached the final leg of Day Seven, the smart teachers disappeared down the GR 68 to Florac, whilst I was duty bound to see it through on the newly-elongated GR 70. I had a bad feeling about it and the experience confirmed my fears. It’s one thing being true to history, but when the tourist board re-writes the ending, which should have been a big finish, maybe it’s justified to take the shorter, and more scenic, conclusion to a memorable day.

After Florac, the remainder of the trail is a little disappointing – too much emphasis is placed on forestry trails and insufficient attention to more interesting alternatives – after all, unlike some genuine historic trails, such as the nearby Regordane, in most cases we do not really know which path Stevenson took.

Perhaps I was just getting a bit weary by the end, as the full trek definitely justifies more than the nine days I gave it. Cassagnas, a Camisard stronghold, deserved more time, and I thoroughly enjoyed my night in an unclassified inn at Saint-Germain-de-Calberte, where the Catholic landlord’s son welcomed me with a handshake that would have made the most ardent of Huguenots feel at home. Sadly, the bathrooms failed to live up to the same billing.

The Signal Saint-Pierre and its ‘table d’orientation’ offers a superb view back up the Vallée Française along which one has trekked; and when I finally reached the Col de Saint-Pierre, with just the steep and challenging descent into St Jean du Gard ahead (a fine finale) I was looking forward to dipping my feet in the Gardon River, to eating a simple pizza as opposed to ‘produits du terroir’, and to showing my girls photos of where dad had been for the last ten days.

Visit The Enlightened Traveller’s Best of the Stevenson Trail.

© The Enlightened Traveller 2008

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