Possible Holiday - if I can get the wife to agree

HogHog

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I'm thinking that in July 2013 I might try and get a week in a villa in France. Me and my son would ride our bikes there, and my wife and daughter fly to the nearest airport. So wherever the villa is will need to be Taxi distance (30 to 45 minutes) from an airport. And shops/restaurants etc would need to be nearby.

Once there, then the girls can come out for short runs as Pillion.

Just spent an hour on internet, but everywhere I find that looks good is an hour or two away from civilisation.

Anyone else done this sort of thing.?
 
Nice is nice. Nice has airport.
Annecy is very beautiful town, fly in to Geneva airport.
Dordogne is great place, fly into Limoges or Bordeaux.
 
Won't narrow it down as the point of the thread is to see if others have done this type of holiday. Just mentioned it to her and she suggested Germany as an option also.

So the question is - have you flown part of your group to a location and ridden there to meet them, and if so, where, and how was it for you. France/Germany look like the areas of interest at the moment. Flights are usually the problem for us as you need to fly Inverness to London, then onwards from there.
 
HogHog said:
Won't narrow it down as the point of the thread is to see if others have done this type of holiday. Just mentioned it to her and she suggested Germany as an option also.

So the question is - have you flown part of your group to a location and ridden there to meet them, and if so, where, and how was it for you. France/Germany look like the areas of interest at the moment. Flights are usually the problem for us as you need to fly Inverness to London, then onwards from there.
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Your best bet is to narrow down flight options - seems Flybe & Easyjet serve Inverness and it will probably be cheaper for flights if you stick to a single operator and you will want to make sure the flyers don't have to spend several hours hanging around for a connection.

Once you have worked out possible flight connections you should have a shortlist.

Do not discount hiring a car in France/Germany. This can often work out cheaper & much more convenient than using taxi transfers, especially as it makes cheaper properties in more remote locations accessible.

For my 2p, Easyjet will fly them to LGW and then on to Lyon or Grenoble which opens up a wide range of interesting areas of France to explore. Flybe give other options not only via LGW but Manchester as well.

The website www.kayak.co.uk will help you plan flights, giving details of connections.
 
wessie said:
Your best bet is to narrow down flight options - seems Flybe & Easyjet serve Inverness and it will probably be cheaper for flights if you stick to a single operator and you will want to make sure the flyers don't have to spend several hours hanging around for a connection.

Once you have worked out possible flight connections you should have a shortlist.

Do not discount hiring a car in France/Germany. This can often work out cheaper & much more convenient than using taxi transfers, especially as it makes cheaper properties in more remote locations accessible.

For my 2p, Easyjet will fly them to LGW and then on to Lyon or Grenoble which opens up a wide range of interesting areas of France to explore. Flybe give other options not only via LGW but Manchester as well.

The website www.kayak.co.uk will help you plan flights, giving details of connections.
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Thanks for that informative response. Hiring a car is a no-no for them......trust me....!!!

Will follow up your leads. Cheers.
 
Can't quite tick all the boxes but have done variations on this a couple of times in Provence staying at http://www.ourplaceinprovence.co.uk. This is a great villa with pool and really good value (no, I'm not connected). Aups is a very nice little town (bars, boulangerie, shops, market, restaurants) near the Gorge Verdon and the route there can take in Millau. The villa is within walking distance of the town, although it's about a mile along a fairy busy road. However, in my experience, it's hard to find a villa anywhere with space around it and pool within sensible walking distance of anything.

Only trouble is, it's 60 miles from Nice airport. When the owners aren't there, there's a French bloke who looks after things (can't remember his name but he's a biker)...they might be able to help. Invite a friend with a car..there's plenty of space.
http://goo.gl/maps/iCFVQ
HogHog said:
I'm thinking that in July 2013 I might try and get a week in a villa in France. Me and my son would ride our bikes there, and my wife and daughter fly to the nearest airport. So wherever the villa is will need to be Taxi distance (30 to 45 minutes) from an airport. And shops/restaurants etc would need to be nearby.

Once there, then the girls can come out for short runs as Pillion.

Just spent an hour on internet, but everywhere I find that looks good is an hour or two away from civilisation.

Anyone else done this sort of thing.?
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This has worked quite well for us, swimbo dislikes big miles on the back, so I wobbled off on my bike traveling through France, Germany, Austria and then dropped into Italy having enjoyed some fantastic alpine passes en route, I arrived at a friends apartment in Monselice ( approx 25 miles south of Venice) which we borrowed for a week or so, swimbo flew into Venice airport and then got a train from the airport to meet me, she brought her helmet etc with her so we were able to use the bike to tour together. We may well do something similar to Portugal in the near future.
 
I take it that a daily commute to and from the nearest supermarket on a bike is not an option for wife and daughter.

My advice? Forget it.

Sorry to be blunt, but short of staying in a town (i.e. not a villa), do you imagine that there will be public transport available? Granted, we live in an under-populated part of France and access to shops, bars, restaurants, etc., without hopping in a car, was one of the essential criteria we used to weigh up whether we could stand a move from London to rural France ... but we live in a town (albeit a sleepy one). :thumb

On the other hand, why not book a gîte holiday on the Mediterranean coast? May not have a private pool, but could have access to an (almost) private beach and local shops. Try Gîtes de France.
 
Den does this sort of thing often......

He rides off, the lovely Louise gets on a plane a few days later and joins him somewhere........do a search in the RR section and you'll find a good few ripping yarns from him about it :thumb2

Sounds like a cracking way of attaining a decent compromise to me......if your other half doesn't enjoy the long slog riding bit :beerjug:
 
Fanum said:
Den does this sort of thing often......

He rides off, the lovely Louise gets on a plane a few days later and joins him somewhere........do a search in the RR section and you'll find a good few ripping yarns from him about it :thumb2

Sounds like a cracking way of attaining a decent compromise to me......if your other half doesn't enjoy the long slog riding bit :beerjug:
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Pardon me for saying so, but does Den have kids (even grown up ones)? There is a subtle difference between shopping for two using one bike for transport to and from self-catering accommodation, and shopping for a family of four, using two bikes. I know it ought to be a simple matter of multiples but, I suspect, it isn't. Suddenly, cans of beer, loo rolls and bottled water (or any other bulky goods) have a habit of becoming a tiresome logistical problem. It's all very well if your wife and daughter have nerves of steel and don't need to 'hang on' on the back. I have, on occasion, found myself, as pillion, clutching a bag of shopping or a case of beer for a short spin into town. But, if not, unless you plan to stay in catered accommodation or eat out every night (within walking distance), a self-catered family holiday for four, using two bikes for transport sounds like a recipe for disaster ... :hide
 
mrsroynie said:
Pardon me for saying so, but does Den have kids (even grown up ones)? There is a subtle difference between shopping for two using one bike for transport to and from self-catering accommodation, and shopping for a family of four, using two bikes. I know it ought to be a simple matter of multiples but, I suspect, it isn't. Suddenly, cans of beer, loo rolls and bottled water (or any other bulky goods) have a habit of becoming a tiresome logistical problem. It's all very well if your wife and daughter have nerves of steel and don't need to 'hang on' on the back. I have, on occasion, found myself, as pillion, clutching a bag of shopping or a case of beer for a short spin into town. But, if not, unless you plan to stay in catered accommodation or eat out every night (within walking distance), a self-catered family holiday for four, using two bikes for transport sounds like a recipe for disaster ... :hide
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We don't know from the OP what age his kids are, but going by the fact that his son is willing and able to ride down with him on his own bike, It's fair to assume they are 'of age'


Therefore, while the wimmin sun their booties next to a pool or plaster gunk on their bikini lines or whatever guurls like to do on holiday, the men can go and be cavemen and ride out to do the hunter gatherer thing at the local Lidl's :augie

Then the whole family can meet up in the evening, the lumpy jumper types can sit proudly knowing there are no errant panty spiders and that their tans are real, and the men can gnaw into raw garlic and chilli salami and wink at eachother (in a manly way, obviously) about how cool they are to have gone out to provide sustenance for the wimminfolk, whilst regaling them with heroic tales of derring do and overtaking Madame Le Grenouille in her deux chevaux on their way back to the cave



Sounds perfick to me :thumb2
 
Wife and daughter quite happy to ride for 60 miles in a day, sightseeing and shopping. They wouldn't consider longer really, and obviously need transport from the airport with their 150kg each of hair dryers, makeup bags, clothes, shoes etc. ;)

Youngest son will be 19, has been riding since he was 7, and since he passed his test May 2011 has put over 8000 miles on his bike.

As stated previously, looking for tips i.e. airports/Villas/areas you have experience of to make planning easier.

Will be following up in the good advice posted so far.
 
Right, here's a question and suggestion or two for you.

Are you limited to airports served by direct connections from Jockland? For example would your trouble and strife be willing to go Jockland, Heathrow, London City airport and then to Avignon in Provence? If so, you and your son would get a good ride down, there are lots of houses to rent, a good taxi service and excellent weather. Of course there are other options, I am simply familiar with Avignon, City airport and Provence.

Are you stuck with your wife going by air? If not, then maybe have a look at towns and cities served by France's excellent TGV train system. OK it may well mean your wife getting to London St Pancras (not too difficult) and then maybe changing in Lille or Paris North stations for her onwards connection but it's not too bad a task. My parents, both in their 80's manage, OK. If she is prepared to give it a go, then your life may be easier, not least as train stations (unlike airports) are most often in the middle of towns and cities. Download the TGV map to see what might suit you.

Have you looked at the Gite de France website? You use the word 'villa' which summons up all sorts of images of marble, infinity pools, manicured hedges and lawns with neatly ordered Cyprus trees. If that is what you want, then your choice of villa may be huge (anywhere near enough along the Med coast) but the cost high, further reduced by the 40 minutes distance rule. For instance, Monaco would work but might stretch your budget, maybe not? If you might consider a Gite (many are very nice) and are prepared to look at the train option, then your quest may be easier. For instance, we hire a Gite for the week of Le Mans. It is about 40 minutes from Le Mans centre. Le Mans is well served by the TGV from Paris and has a small provincial airport, too. The Gite itself is fine but very rural, I am simply giving you the example as to what might be possible and / or work for you.

I think you need to get busy on the Internet, Googling away with inventive search options. For sure, what you want to do is possible. France is a first world country and we are all (near enough) in the 21st century. A decent map, your PC, the power of the Internet and your imagination all harnessed together...... you have 11 months to do it..... And it's dark for six of those where you live.
 
PS just seen your answer about wife and daughter being happy to ride out 60 miles a day for jaunts etc. The Gite / TGV idea may well have wheels on it..... Don't rule out Wessie's idea of them hiring a car when they get to an airport or train station, either..... Unless they cannot drive or are not happy to drive on the wrong side of the road, that is.
 
Fly into Girona and stay in or around Cadeques - I've done this with the Lovely Amamda and it worked well, you'll also get to ride over the Pyrenees twice :-)

Yeah, I know it's not France but its very close and very beautiful in its own right.

Andres
 
Or.....if it had to be France, you could do worse than fly to Carcassone and stay in and around there, we stayed in a Gite in St Hilaire 30 min ride south from there .

You then have an easy ride East to the coast or south into Cathar country and the beginning of the Pyrenees

Andres
 
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Depends how far YOU and your son want to ride on the bikes. Don't be put off by the Cote d'Azur, Nice is a great airport to get in and out of and it's easy to get to lovely countryside very quickly as most of the tourists stay within a couple of kms of the overcrowded coast in the summer. Also benfits from direct Easyjet flights from Edinburgh. Some of the smaller villages inland are beautiful and accessible too. Our place is 45 minutes from the airport and it's like living in another world compared with the coast.
Plenty villas for rent round here in the summer, most of which have pools.

Rob
 
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