Expert: Linda Scardina - 6/2/2004

Question
Hi! We (11 and 13 year-old girls and my wife and I) are going to travel in France in the Orange, Nimes, Anduze areas mid-July, and would very much appreciate any input - must-sees, cautions, tips on getting around by trains / car rental (we tentatively plan on training from Paris to Orange or Nimes, renting a car and then driving to Anduze),  how much French I should try to master. Also, I'm bringing a US digital camera with battery charger, and I'm not sure what I'll need to be able to plug it into French power outlets. Any information would be most welcome! Thanks! --Lorin

Answer
Hi Lorin,
Sorry for the delay, my DSL has been out for about 18 hours.

Here's some more facts you need to know before renting a car:          
Local taxes can run up to 25 percent of the rental price.           
Parking in larger towns runs about $20 a day.           
CDW insurance runs about $100/wk.            
Gas runs about $5.00 per gallon.
Tolls are charged on super highways.
The car insurance included with all car rentals runs with a very high deductible, often equal to the value of the car.

As far as your battery charger most Deluxe, 1st class and superior tourist class hotels have an outlet that you can plug into.  Check your charger, most of the modern units work both on 220Volts and 110 Volts.  If this is the case and you want to play it safe you can buy a European Plug adapter at a travel store, you do not need a transformer.  If your charger works only on 110 volts(not likely) you will have to buy a travel transformer to step the voltage down from 220V to 110V.  The British plug is quite different than the European plug as it looks like a large crows foot and will not work in France to be sure to get a European plug adapter.

As far as speaking French you can get buy with a few phrases like "Where is the bathroom" but usually can get along without it.  You might want to pick up a French menu reader, they are available in book stores in the travel section. If you get away from tourist areas and go to small local restaurants and shops you may find that no one speaks English.

The French rail system is very comprehensive and you might try that instead of a car.
Here is the web site that explains the TGV the French High speed train.
http://mercurio.iet.unipi.it/tgv/tgvindex.html

This is the web site for French National Rail where there are time tables and a wealth of info.
http://www.sncf.com/indexe.htm

You can buy rail passes or just tickets, depending how long you are staying, at this web site which also has a lot of info. http://www.raileurope.com/us/index.htm

For Orange this web site has more information that I can write:
http://www.tripadvisor.com/Tourism-g187251-Orange
The two top sites are the Triumphal Arch and the Roman Theatre.

In Nimes the big thing to see is the Roman aena which is still in use for bull fights also the Pont du Gard a combination bridge and aquaduct built by the Romans is a must see.

Here is a good web site for Provence you may find useful:
http://www.provenceweb.fr/e/provpil.htm
This is a link to the France Guide which as a lot to offer.
http://us.franceguide.com/home_nopop.asp

Bonjour, Linda