Французские каникулы french holidays

Not being a fan of frying at 45 degrees on the beaches of Turkey, Egypt and other countries, I decided to combine business with pleasure and spend my summer vacation in France, namely in Paris. View the city, surroundings. For a long time I climbed on the Internet in search of a travel agency that could be entrusted with such a responsible event. Finally the choice is made: DSBW, the host is Lot & Visite. Making a tour, choosing excursions, submitting documents, obtaining a visa, everything went without a hitch. And so, on June 30.2010, at 9.20, we are sitting in the cabin of an Air France airline. 4 hours of flight passed unnoticed. Got the luggage quickly. Paris met us with great sunny weather, which lasted almost all 8 days of our stay. It rained a couple of times, but they quickly passed, and the sun appeared. The temperature fluctuated from 25 to 30 degrees. At the Charles de Gaulle airport, our group was met by a representative of Lot & Visite, put into a minibus and taken to the hotels. We chose the hotel in the 9th district - Apollo Opera 3 *. The owner of the hotel is Russian, her name is Victoria. Met, gave the keys to the room, the safe. TV remote. We settled in room 51 with a balcony. On the fifth floor. Windows to the street. A room with two beds and a third folding one, 12 meters. A tiny entrance hall with an open closet and a bathroom with a toilet. Air conditioner. TV. Phone. Mini bar. That's actually all. But I already knew that it would be so, so there were no problems. A nice surprise was the full bathroom. Many of the hotel rooms only had showers. The elevator in the hotel is small. Three people or two people and a suitcase. Dining room on the -1 floor. Tables 6-7. Breakfast - ham, cheese, jam, croissants, rolls, coffee, tea, milk, yogurt, juice. In many reviews of the hotel, tourists complain that it is noisy at night. It's true, sometimes motorcyclists drive along the street at night and can wake you up. So, a room with windows facing the courtyard can be quieter. There is a MONOPRIX supermarket on the street next to the hotel. Open until 22.00. On the ground floor - clothes and stuff, in the basement products. If you are tired of eating in a cafe, you can buy something in a supermarket. The proximity of the hotel to the cabaret Moulin Rouge did not bother at all. Metro three minutes walk. Station "Blanche". I must say that early arrival in Paris - at 13.10 we were already at the hotel, gave us an extra full day to get to know the city. DSBW has three departure times - at 09.20, 16.10 and 19.30. And if those who fly at 16.10 still have time to take a walk in the evening, those departing at 19.30 arrive late. Having put our things down, we decided to walk to the Opera, where in the mornings tourist groups gather for various excursions. Even at home, according to the photos on the Google map, I had already passed this route and, walking around the city, I had the feeling that I had already been here. Everything was so recognizable. It takes 20-25 minutes to get to the Opera House from the hotel. Approximately in the middle of the way to the Opera, opposite the Ste-Trinite church, we went to have lunch at the Royal Trinite cafe. There were a lot of people, the French like to sit in cafes with beer, coffee, cola or plain water. Water in their cafe is paid, if you buy a bottle of mineral water, if you just ask for water, they bring you tap water in a decanter for free. Their tap water is drinkable. We were seated at a table and, having learned that we had brought a menu in Russian from Russia. Many cafes and restaurants in Paris have menus in Russian. Communicated with the waiters in English. In general, there is no communication problem in Paris. If you do not speak French, then even a basic knowledge of English will not leave you hungry or lost. They will understand you, they will willingly switch to English, they will prompt you, show you on their fingers, etc. In all shops, cafes and even small shops, sellers speak English. After lunch, we walked along the Champs Elysees, went to the tower and boarded a boat. Boat tickets are taken for 1 or 2 days. It has 8 stops and after getting off at one of them, having walked around the neighborhood, you can again sit on the same one and go further. And so the whole day. The number of landings is not limited. The next day the program of excursions began. The set is probably standard for a tourist. Overview of the city, Montmartre, Fontainebleau, Versailles, Louvre, Loire castles, for a day in Bruges, Disneyland. I will not describe all the excursions. It is too long. But everything went at a high level. Buses are air conditioned and very comfortable. The person responsible for sending the group on this or that excursion is Andrey. Exactly at the appointed time, he appeared at the Opera with a Lot & Visite sign, the group gathered, checked by family name, got on the bus and set off. You could also buy additional excursions from him, if this was not done right away. The guides at Lot & Visite are all professionals. Live in Paris from 10 to 30!! ! years. Many thanks to Edgar - review, Oksana - Montmartre, Irina - Fontainebleau and Versailles, Alexander - Louvre, Philip - Bruges and the Loire Valley. The departure was organized by Andrei himself. Exactly at 12.00 we left the hotel, got on the bus and went to the airport. Goodbye Paris.