There was a NYTimes article and slideshow today about the beauty of nighttime Paris. Man, is it magical, equally in pictures and in person. More so in person, which is incredible in itself. It's only been ten months since I was there last, but thinking about it makes me ache because I miss it and love it so.
We're going to be in London for SEVEN nights in February. So I went a-looking on Mr Google, and found that we could fly from London to Paris for a mere $88 roundtrip! How I do love the easyJet, and all the easyCompanies.
Taking the Eurostar roundtrip would be $158, which sounds like way more. Which it is, but you also have to take into account that flying involves going to airports an hour away and costing at least ten dollars (more in London), and more time, both to actually get there, and to wait around at the airport. The train goes from Waterloo to Gare du Nord, both stations in-city, which is terribly convenient.
Boyfriend has never been out of North America, and he's always wanted to visit London. I'm really excited for him to see it. But I can't help thinking that being there for a week and NOT seeing Paris for a day or two would be just criminal. And also perhaps I'm biased, but there you go. For the record, London was my first favorite, back in 93. It wasn't until 2000, when I stayed in Paris for a month, and it was all clean and sparkly, that I fell in love with the City of Light. (PS, If you go to Paris and don't fall in love with it, then you aren't my friend, because you must be minus a heart.) I always want to show people the things and places I love, and especially when it's something they can love also.
Anyway, these options are very tempting, both of them! Cast your vote: stay in London the whole week? fly to Paris? train to Paris?
WHY is it still four months away??
3 comments:
I would go with the train, and I would definitely not miss Paris. You've got trips to the airport on both sides, twice, which has to come to at least $30, and probably more.
And on vacation time is valuable. Travel can be exhausting. Transfers are stressful. And trains are such an adventure!
Last time I took a cheap train to the coast and made a nighttime winter channel ferry crossing that turned me green (nauseated, but didn't throw up) But who needs that sort of adventure when Eurostar is $158? (are you certain you can't do a little better on the price?)
Even one night in Paris is worth it, but more is more...
Let us know, lucky you!
Definitely go to Paris and take the train. Going to the airport will seem like a break in your vacation while taking the train is part of the fun of the trip.
Hopefully we can still be friends eventhough I didn't fall in love with Paris. If it helps, I plan on really loving it someday. The few times I've been there it has been raining or some other thing. I haven't spent enough time there and I haven't had someone who loves it (like you) to show me the best stuff. Don't get me wrong, I still like it but not IN LOVE.
And by the way, I feel the same way about Florence. If you didn't absolutely love it, something bad must have happened to you there (say you got robbed or couldn't get a hotel or some other horror story).
Take Eurostar, but book early for the best prices. The cheap tickets sell out fast! If you cannot get a rail ticket to Paris for a good price in February, don't even consider flying. Do something special in London instead—or take the train from London Paddington to Bath Spa, or a coach to Oxford, to discover more of beautiful Britain outside the capital, and probably meet some characters on the way (as we always do.)
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