Trip report: France and Luxembourg - March-April 2023

[flyingsal]

First trip report, hope you find it useful.

This trip was supposed to be to the UK, Easter 2020. COVID meant much postponing, rescheduling, more postponing, and eventually a complete rethink of the whole trip. We eventually decided on France and Luxembourg with stopovers in Singapore, March-April 2023. Family of 4: me, Mr flyingsal, Master 13 and Miss 9. This was our first trip overseas since 2018.

We flew Singapore Airlines, with Virgin domestic connections, economy all the way. HBA-MEL, MEL-SIN, SIN-CDG, and return CDG-SIN, SIN-MEL, MEL-HBA. There were no significant delays on any leg, meals were good. All flights were very crowded

 

[flyingsal]

Singapore:

Stayed for one night at the Crown Plaza Changi Airport. We had planned to get the train into the city the next day, but everyone was lazy, so we took in Jewel at the airport and hung around the hotel pool. We had a late check out which was terrific, the kids enjoyed the pool, and we got stretch out on the lounge chairs.

 

[flyingsal]

The flight to Paris left at 00.15, I’m really not sure why I thought this was a good idea… got in lots of Marvel movies, did not sleep much at all.

 

[flyingsal]

Paris (3 nights):

We stayed 3 nights at Ibis Paris Gare De L Est, 2 rooms. Really close to the station. It was hard to find the hotel because there are several Ibis hotels very close together and also because jetlag. It was nice, very small rooms, quiet and comfortable beds, and the breakfast was really, really great.

We walked our jetlag off (and straightened out our cramped old backs) for the first two days. Sadly, I am now of an age where cankles after long distance plane flights is a thing. Flight socks have now been added to my packing list.

Our aim for these 3 nights was to get over jetlag and relax, so we didn’t try to do too much. Day 1 was a walk to Montmartre, up to Sacre Coer, we got the Funiculaire to the top. We then walked down the hill and around Montmartre, where we’d stayed on our last trip. Next day we walked through the Latin Quarter, past Shakespeare & Co bookshop, and through Jardin du Luxembourg, stopping to say hi to the ponies.

We went to the Louvre, and discovered that both kids dislike religious art as much as I do. (“Too much Jesus art” became a refrain in galleries after that.) They did like the architecture itself though.

We walked from the Louvre to the Arc de Triomphe. The Paris Marathon was on that day, and a lot of streets were blocked to traffic – and so we were lucky enough to walk smack up the middle of the Champs Elysée Avenue. By the time we got near the Arc de Triomphe, the temporary fences were being removed. We were pretty lucky in that it wasn’t too busy so we went slow up the steps and stopped regularly to wheeze. (Definitely not match-fit.) When we got down, we saw several marathon runners being literally carried down the metro steps by their teams because they couldn’t move any more.

 

[flyingsal]

Versailles (1 night)

We stayed at the Royal Hotel Versailles in a family room. It was nice, very centrally located and fine for a night. We got the train to/from Paris-Versailles.

We’d been to Versailles before, but wanted to see more of the gardens. The Palace was shut on the day we went, and this meant crowds in the garden were minimal. We had a great time exploring the formal gardens and more informal grounds. The next day, we explored the Potager du Roi (King’s Vegetable Garden) which was terrific. One of the lovely volunteers gave a brief talk (in English) when he passed us by. If you want inspiration for your veggie patch, definitely worth a visit. The houses and business that line the boundary have such a great view of this space.

 

[flyingsal]

Nancy (3 nights)

From Paris we got the train to Nancy, a 1hr 45 min trip. We didn’t hire a car at all, and used public transport throughout. We bought all our tickets in advance, relying mostly on the Man in Seat 61 for advice. Most of the tickets were issued by email instantly, but booking through Ouigo trains only arrived 4 days before travel.

We stayed at the Novotel Suites Nancy Centre in a superior suite.

Nancy was really attractive, famous for Art Nouveau architecture and Place Stanislas, a UNESCO world heritage site.



The standout attraction was the Musee des beaux arts. Aside from the usual artworks, it includes graphic arts, a glass collection in the basement (which is itself worth a visit for the architecture), a collection by Lorraine designer Jean Prouve which I found fascinating because I love furniture, and a contemporary art installation – Infinity Mirror Room Fireflies on Water. The last one is a small room with lights, mirrors and water, really beautiful. The kids wandered in, then the museum attendant literally pushed me in after – no kids without parental supervision, which is understandable. It was amazingly beautiful.


The Parc de la Pepiniere was beautiful, with loads of colour. It is a short walk form Place Stanislas and if you have small kids, they’ll enjoy the animals and playground.

Lots of bee and insect hotels walking along the canal, on private and public land, something we saw repeated throughout our trip.

 

[flyingsal]

Strasbourg (3 nights)

We travelled from Nancy to Strasbourg on Good Friday, only an hour by train.

We had 3 nights at Le Kleber Hotel Apartment. This apartment was across the road from the hotel. We had a full kitchen but opted to take breakfast at the hotel. Very cramped breakfast room, but good breakfast. The apartment was two-bedroom, very comfortable, and just above a tram stop. We made use of the kitchen for dinner. Great views over the square. Would definitely recommend staying there. Only issue we couldn’t connect to the wifi in the apartment, though we had no problems in the hotel. The picture shows the view from the lounge window.


We were here over Easter and it was more crowded than Paris. While we looked inside the Strasbourg Cathedral, we did not stay long, or go to the top, the number of people was just overwhelming.



The area around the Cathedral is amazingly beautiful but we enjoyed Petit France, the timbered buildings along the canal most of all.





We tried to visit the Voodoo Museum, but sadly, it was closed for Easter. We took a tram across the German border (just because it was so close, and so the kids could say they’d been to Germany) and had a great walk along the river.

I had no idea how big Easter is in France. Many of the shop windows had lovely displays. Despite the constant reminders that it was Easter, we ALL forgot about Easter eggs and were only reminded several days later. Parenting fail. (But we made up for it with a trip to a posh chocolate shop in Luxembourg.)

 

[flyingsal]

Luxembourg (4 nights)

We left Strasbourg on Easter Monday, a public holiday in France and Luxembourg. We got the train to Metz (50mins), then another to Luxembourg (nearly 2 hours).

We stayed in a family room at the Novotel Suites, across the road from parklands and the Modern Museum of Art. It was a short tram ride from the station.

Loved Luxembourg and would go back again. Really interesting mix of old and new architecture, and with a sunken old town is beautiful and geographically spectacular, with steep cliffs and wild parkland. It looks like a crater left from a meteor. You can walk down to the bottom or take a great glass elevator. There is also a funicular that takes you up again to the train station.







Standout attractions: the Old Town, a UNESCO world heritage site, and Vianden Castle. The Castle was a day trip by train and bus through lovely countryside. The castle was modified many, many times, left in ruins, and rebuilt from the 1970s.


Luxembourg was the first country in the world to make all public transport in the country free – bus, trams and trains. There are really good networks of walking and bike trails across the country, with many public transport connections. Bikes can be brought on trains. Would bring my hiking boots if I was to come again in warmer weather and explore.





The best (and most expensive) meal of the trip we had was at a Spanish restaurant, El Barrio. Despite the cost, we went back again during our stay it was so good.

 

[flyingsal]

Paris (4 nights):

The train to Paris was direct, and about 2 and a half hours. We stayed in Montmartre at ApartHotel Adagio. It had 1 bedroom and 2 single sofa beds and a full kitchen. Downstairs in the lobby was a great range of kids and adult books, jigsaws and board games. Miss 9, who only speaks a few works of French, gamely borrowed a few kids graphic novels in French and had fun trying to work out what was going on. They also had a wall of shelving with cooking appliances like rice cookers, omelette makers, benchtop grills, etc) that you could borrow and use in your room for a night or the duration of your stay. Such a great idea. We had a nice view of Sacre Coer from the apartment.

We went to the Eiffel Tower and walked down. In retrospect, not a great thing to do with my fear of heights but it looked enclosed enough at the top of the stairs…

Miss 9 decided to be brave and tried snails. Or one snail. It took a while, and she ate it all, but decided that while it wasn’t terrible, she really didn’t need anymore.



We visited both sites of the Bibliotheque Nationale, had a nice cruise down the river.



We went to Musee d’Orsay and headed straight to the Van Gogh rooms and got our fill. Disappointingly, many were on loan, but what we saw was terrific. We only stayed briefly; the crowds were just unsafe. I honestly don’t see how allowing that many people in was legal, if there had been a fire, people would have just been crushed.

We ate at Le Train Bleu in Paris, the food was great, the architecture even better. The kids were not keen until they got there, and then were blown away by both. I had wine but apparently the hot chocolate is 11/10.







The Georges Melies exhibition at the Cinematheque Francaise was excellent and I really recommend it. Melies was a French magician and early filmmaker – if you have kids, you may know the illustrated book The Adventures of Hugo Cabret, and the film Hugo (2011) based on the book. Both feature in the exhibition, and it includes an automaton from the film. If you are a fan of Melies, the book or the movie, or film history, put it on your must-see list of attractions. As a bonus, because the museum is out of the way, and not on the top 10 must-see list of tourist attractions, there were no crowds.

 

[flyingsal]

Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport – 1 night:

We stayed at the Ibis Styles, in 2 standard rooms. This was mid-trip decision to cut our 5 nights in Montmarte to 4 and book an airport hotel for the last night. When I booked the flights, the Paris to Singapore flight was a night one. Later on, Singapore Airlines changed this to a day flight. Even though this was way before we did the hotel bookings, we still had ‘night flight’ in our heads. Halfway through the trip we realised we would be battling peak hour traffic to get to the airport for our noon flight. It was a fun choice, the hotel was decorated in a Star Wars theme, from wall art, to tips in Darth Vader’s helmet, and Han and Leia on the bathroom doors. Rooms were small, but fine for 1 night. It was a good decision, we were much more relaxed about getting to the airport on time, something that stresses all of us.


Mr flyingsal clicked over to Gold status, which we didn’t know until we checked in at the airport. When we checked in, we could barely hear any of the conversation from the noise, so missed most details, but we followed directions and presented at the Star Alliance Lounge. Once there, they explained and told us entry was only Mr+1guest, and we said, no worries and turned to go. They then changed their minds and let us all in – nice and unexpected.

 

[flyingsal]

Singapore (2 nights):

We arrived in Singapore in the morning, and after much stuffing around with train tickets (involving wrong information from 3 airport and train staff, and a trip to an ATM because ‘cash-only’), we checked into our hotel. We stayed in an interconnecting family room at the Hotel Royal at Queens. The hotel was nice and close to 2 MRT stations. Breakfast and dinner were average, but there was a great vegetarian restaurant upstairs that we loved. (Even meat loving Master 13).

It was hot, we were tired, the kids loved the rooftop pool, we relaxed. We did go to the Cloud Forest & Flower Dome at Gardens by the Bay and enjoyed it a lot. Orchids, boababs, cacti, tulips, it was a fantastic explosion of colour. The Avatar experience was really good too.












The flights home were uneventful. In typical Hobart style, on the MEL-HBA leg we met someone we used to work with. Hobart is small, and I think I’ve only been to the airport once since moving here without running into someone I know.

 

[RB]

Really enjoying your report and love the fantastic photos

 

[flyingsal]

Planning for COVID and other travel disruptions:

All of us – with the exception of Miss 9 – had flu shots the week before we went. Miss 9 was too young to have one at the chemist (in Tasmania you have to be 10+) and flu shots weren't yet available in GP clinics.

Mr flyingsal wasn’t eligible for a COVID booster (he’d had within COVID 3 months) but I had one just before we went. Because of Australia’s ridiculous stance on children and COVID, no booster for them.

We left Hobart on a Wednesday. We skipped school and work on Monday and Tuesday to minimise getting sick before leaving. Everyone was super-diligent about mask wearing the week before we went.

We masked with N95s on planes, public transport, indoors (museums etc). We also masked when very crowded outdoors – this was mostly while waiting in lines for entry to museums. Mask wearing varied, lots more in Singapore than France and Luxembourg. Reasonable numbers wearing on public transport, more so in cities than on longer distance trains.

We took our sporks and often grabbed sandwiches or salads (and treats!) from mini supermarkets or bakeries which we ate in a park or outside the railway station on travel days.



When we ate at cafes and restaurants, we ate early (less people) and chose places with outdoor eating, or sat near windows and doors. There were one or two places with air purifiers.

We booked the majority of our accommodation through booking.com and made a point of picking places with good cancellation policies, and pay-on-arrival.

We were lucky we weren’t caught up in the general strike action in France. On our first few days in Paris, we saw the remnants of the garbage workers strikes – most had been cleared, but there were still spots being worked on. There were protests in Nancy while we were there - which we saw while watching the local news. We’d been in the same place the previous day and had seen lots of uniformed police & army types – and assumed it was some military event or conference. They were actually there to break up protests – in this case a protest with fires on the front steps of local public buildings. We were worried about one day where mass train strikes were planned because we had a long train trip that day and looked out bus alternatives. Luckily, our route was not impacted. While the protests were on the news regularly, we didn’t feel unsafe anywhere.

We actually had more disruption during the planning stages. Most train tickets only went on sale 3 months before the day of travel. There was lots of track work around Easter and that meant we had to completely re-plan our itinerary - otherwise we would have had to make an overnight detour into/out of Germany at vast expense.

We managed to go the whole trip without any sickness or travel disruption - very, very happy about that.

 

[flyingsal]

Last of all - what we took:

We generally only travel with carry-on bags, with 3-5 changes of clothes. We generally book accommodation with a washing machine or within walking distance of a laundromat. This trip, we each took:

• puffer jacket
• raincoat
• x1/2 jumpers (the kids had 2 because like all kids, they are somewhat grubby)
• x2 merino thermals
• x3-5 short/long sleeve t-shirts
• 3 bottoms (jeans, trackpants etc)
• PJs
• bathers
• x8 socks & underwear
• 2 pairs shoes.

Miss 9 took her favourite beanie, and we both took scarves.

Toiletries were mini travel-size, mostly solids.

Prescription medicines, over-the-counter medicines, mini first aid kit, masks, sanitiser, tissues etc.

Tech: 3 mobile phones, charger & cord, universal adapter, and an old digital camera and charger for Miss 9.

I took my Macpac UTSIFOY 25L backpack and a small sling bag with passports, tickets, masks & first aid kit. This was the first time I'd used the UTSIFOY for anything longer than a weekend, and it was pretty good. And I checked, and yes, it did fit Under The Seat In Front Of You.

Mr flyingsal had our I-can’t-believe-it’s-still-going-strong Packlite Tramps travel pack. I've had this for at least 20 years, maybe closer to 30. I've no idea how big it is, at a guess around 35-40L. On our return trip, we expanded the zips, stuffed it with souvenirs and checked it.

Master 13 had an old Kathmandu Cubic 32L backpack. (No longer available.)

Miss 9 took her schoolbag, a Caribee Triple Peak 26L backpack. She also had a small shoulder purse for her camera, book, beanie and sunnies.

We got the packing about right. I forgot to pack nail clippers (again, I always forget them), and we didn’t take enough regular shaped band-aids. I wish we took gloves – for a few days in Nancy and Luxembourg the wind was just bitter. We did look for gloves while there, but shops were in the process of swapping over to spring clothes, so none to be had. Flight socks for me are now on my permanent packing list. We could have taken less tops for the kids, maybe 1 thermal, 2 t-shirts and 1 long sleeve tee - they just don't seem to get as cold as us.

Off to update my master packing list for the next trip... New Zealand.

 

[flyingsal]

Really enjoying your report and love the fantastic photos

Thanks RB

 

[VPS]

Thanks for an interesting TR and some great photos. I've been to many of those places you visited and you showed me some places I didn't even know about

 

[MattA]

We ate at Le Train Bleu in Paris, the food was great, the architecture even better. The kids were not keen until they got there, and then were blown away by both. I had wine but apparently the hot chocolate is 11/10.

Thanks for the TR. enjoyed it.

Your visit to Le Train Bleu was much more successful than this earlier Trip Report…

 

[Pushka]

Great report. And first time I've seen a packing list. Hmmm. Food for thought.

 

[flyingsal]

Great report. And first time I've seen a packing list. Hmmm. Food for thought.

I have a reputation as being a tad obsessive about packing lists. Purely justified!

 

[RooFlyer]

Very entertaining and informative report - thanks!