Kinry and Associates - French Property
The closest city, and train station, to Autignac is Beziers. When you arrive in Beziers, you will need to rent a car to drive
to Autignac. The Hertz agency is located about 2 blocks from the gare (station) in Beziers. Europcar, (http://www.
europcar.com/), has a desk in the station. Recommended is ADA car rental, http://www.ada-sa.fr/, across the street from
the gare. The Beziers office of ADA, (facsimile 011 33 4 67 11 02 85), is operated by Nicolas Panis, who lives in the
village of St. Genies de Fontedit, right next door to Autignac.
1. The Paris route.
The most direct route to Beziers is to fly to Paris, and take the train, (about 3.5 hours), to Beziers. Or, you could rent a car
in Paris and drive the more westerly A62/61 via Toulouse, the central A75 from Paris, or the more easterly A9 by way of
Lyon.
(Hint: Paris is a major destination. So, there are a large number of flights to and from Paris, which makes the fares
competitive among the airlines, and scheduling a little easier.)
If you are taking the train from CDG to Beziers, from Terminal 1 (international flights) of Charles de Gaulle airport, take
the free bus shuttle to the TGV station in Terminal 2 and take the TGV to Beziers.
(Hint: Direct TGV trains to Beziers are not that frequent, and it may be necessary to transfer to a regional line at
Montpellier St. Roch. Check the train schedules at http://scnf.com or http://bahn.hafas.de/bin/query.exe/en.
(Hint: Reservations, ($11.00 per reservation per person), are required for TGV trains. You can make the reservation
through Eurail (http://www.raileurope.com/us/index.htm, or call 1.877.257.2887, before leaving home.)
(Hint: Eurail passes are highly recommended. For example, the one way cost of a first class TGV ticket from CDG to
Beziers is $257.00 per person. A 3 day France Eurail first class pass is $238.00 per person. There are discounts available
if you are a senior, a student, or traveling in a group. You can purchase a Eurail pass through Eurail. If you purchase a
pass through Rick Steves, (http://www.ricksteves.com/rail/rail_menu.htm), you will receive travel advice, as well as a
discount on purchases through his travel store, http://travelstore.ricksteves.com/. Eurail passes need to be purchased
before you leave the States.)
(Hint: First class rail travel is not that much more expensive than second class. With first class, you may be fortunate
enough to have your own compartment. On the other hand, second class passengers arrive at the same time as first class
passengers.)
(Hint: If you are traveling on a Eurail pass, you need to validate the pass at the train station before boarding the train. You
can validate the pass at the CDG Terminal 2 train station at the Accueil kiosk on the main floor of the station.)
An alternative to taking the train from CDG to Beziers is to spend a few days in Paris and take the train from the Gare de
Lyon in Paris. You can take Le Bus (the Air France bus shuttle) from CDG Terminal 1 which goes directly to the Gare de
Lyon. The fare is Ⓤ12 per person. There are several hotels, and restaurants, around the Gare de Lyon which are quite
economical. Recommended is the Hotel Lyon Bastille, http://www.bastille-paris-hotel.com/English/Frameset.html, a 3 star
hotel located one block from the Gare de Lyon.
2. The Brussels route.
If you have been to Paris before, and want to see a bit more of what Europe has to offer, fly into Brussels, Belgium and
take the Ryan Air (http://www.ryanair.com/site/EN/) flight from Charles le Roi to Carcassonne, (about 1 hour). Spend the
night in Carcassonne and take the train (about 45 minutes) from Carcassonne to Beziers.
(Hint: Ryan Air flights are extremely economical. The round trip airfare from Brussels to Carcassonne is less than Ⓤ50
per person. Ryan Air is like Southwest Airlines. No meals or snacks are served, and everything is extra)
(Hint: From Brussels, Bruges is a 45 minute train ride away. Paris is an hour away by train. Amsterdam is a 3 hour train
ride.)
International flights to Brussels arrive at National Airport, just north of the city. There is a train station located in the
terminal. The train station is downstairs, and to the right after you leave customs and immigration. Purchase a ticket to the
Gare Zuid, also called the Gare du Midi. The fare is Ⓤ9.5 per person. When you arrive at the Gare Zuid, take the 45
minute bus shuttle, (Ⓤ10.5 per person, one way), to Charles le Roi.
(Hint: The Charles le Roi airport is very small. Although there is a restaurant and newspaper/snack stand in the airport,
depending upon when you arrive in Brussels and the time that the Ryan Air flight departs, you may want to spend some
time in the Gare Zuid, which has several stores and restaurants. Verify the frequency of the shuttle at the information
kiosk in the train station.)
When you arrive at the airport in Carcassonne, you can take the bus shuttle (Ⓤ5.5 per person) to the train station in
Carcassonne. If you are traveling in a group of 2 or more, a taxi is an economical alternative.
(Hint: Since the Ryan Air afternoon flight arrives in Carcassonne at approximately 1700 hrs (5:00 PM), if you take the
train directly to Beziers, you may not arrive in Beziers until well after 1800 hrs, (6:00 PM), after the car rental offices have
closed. We suggest that you spend the night in Carcassonne and take the train the following day to Beziers. We
recommend the Hotel Montmorency, (http://lemontmorency.com/carcassonne/hotel.html), which is located just under the
ramparts of the castle. The rooms are very charming. The rates are reasonable and include breakfast. The location of the
Hotel Montmorency means that you can have dinner in one of the many restaurants located in the castle. The castle also
has a different “feel” at night, after the last of the tour buses has loaded up and left. After dinner, you should walk down
the hill from the castle, towards the “new town” and view the castle at night from the bridge crossing the river. The next
morning, you can walk (about 20 minutes) from the Hotel Montmorency to the train station, or take a taxi.)
(Hint: If you have a Eurail pass, you may not want to use one of your “days” on the train trip from Carcassonne to
Beziers. The point to point train fare is only Ⓤ21.60 per person, one way, and no reservations are needed.)
(Hint: Trains between Carcassonne and Beziers are quite frequent during the day. Check the train schedules are http://scnf.
com/ or http://bahn.hafas.de/bin/query.exe/en.)
3. Other routes.
Alternate routes to Beziers are many. You can fly to Barcelona and take the train (about 3 hours) to Beziers. British
Airways and Air France fly to Montpellier and Marseilles, where you can rent a car/take a train to Beziers. You could fly
to Nice and take the train (about 3 hours, unless you catch a TGV), to Beziers.
(Hint: There are several American, and other foreign airlines, e.g., British Airways, that fly to Nice. The airfares to Nice are
only slightly higher than the airfares to Paris.)
4. “Open Jaw” travel.
Instead of flying into and out of the same city, consider flying into one city and back to the states from another. For
instance, you can fly into Paris, and back to the States from Barcelona; or into Brussels and out of Paris. It costs slightly
more, but you can add another destination to your itinerary.
to Autignac. The Hertz agency is located about 2 blocks from the gare (station) in Beziers. Europcar, (http://www.
europcar.com/), has a desk in the station. Recommended is ADA car rental, http://www.ada-sa.fr/, across the street from
the gare. The Beziers office of ADA, (facsimile 011 33 4 67 11 02 85), is operated by Nicolas Panis, who lives in the
village of St. Genies de Fontedit, right next door to Autignac.
1. The Paris route.
The most direct route to Beziers is to fly to Paris, and take the train, (about 3.5 hours), to Beziers. Or, you could rent a car
in Paris and drive the more westerly A62/61 via Toulouse, the central A75 from Paris, or the more easterly A9 by way of
Lyon.
(Hint: Paris is a major destination. So, there are a large number of flights to and from Paris, which makes the fares
competitive among the airlines, and scheduling a little easier.)
If you are taking the train from CDG to Beziers, from Terminal 1 (international flights) of Charles de Gaulle airport, take
the free bus shuttle to the TGV station in Terminal 2 and take the TGV to Beziers.
(Hint: Direct TGV trains to Beziers are not that frequent, and it may be necessary to transfer to a regional line at
Montpellier St. Roch. Check the train schedules at http://scnf.com or http://bahn.hafas.de/bin/query.exe/en.
(Hint: Reservations, ($11.00 per reservation per person), are required for TGV trains. You can make the reservation
through Eurail (http://www.raileurope.com/us/index.htm, or call 1.877.257.2887, before leaving home.)
(Hint: Eurail passes are highly recommended. For example, the one way cost of a first class TGV ticket from CDG to
Beziers is $257.00 per person. A 3 day France Eurail first class pass is $238.00 per person. There are discounts available
if you are a senior, a student, or traveling in a group. You can purchase a Eurail pass through Eurail. If you purchase a
pass through Rick Steves, (http://www.ricksteves.com/rail/rail_menu.htm), you will receive travel advice, as well as a
discount on purchases through his travel store, http://travelstore.ricksteves.com/. Eurail passes need to be purchased
before you leave the States.)
(Hint: First class rail travel is not that much more expensive than second class. With first class, you may be fortunate
enough to have your own compartment. On the other hand, second class passengers arrive at the same time as first class
passengers.)
(Hint: If you are traveling on a Eurail pass, you need to validate the pass at the train station before boarding the train. You
can validate the pass at the CDG Terminal 2 train station at the Accueil kiosk on the main floor of the station.)
An alternative to taking the train from CDG to Beziers is to spend a few days in Paris and take the train from the Gare de
Lyon in Paris. You can take Le Bus (the Air France bus shuttle) from CDG Terminal 1 which goes directly to the Gare de
Lyon. The fare is Ⓤ12 per person. There are several hotels, and restaurants, around the Gare de Lyon which are quite
economical. Recommended is the Hotel Lyon Bastille, http://www.bastille-paris-hotel.com/English/Frameset.html, a 3 star
hotel located one block from the Gare de Lyon.
2. The Brussels route.
If you have been to Paris before, and want to see a bit more of what Europe has to offer, fly into Brussels, Belgium and
take the Ryan Air (http://www.ryanair.com/site/EN/) flight from Charles le Roi to Carcassonne, (about 1 hour). Spend the
night in Carcassonne and take the train (about 45 minutes) from Carcassonne to Beziers.
(Hint: Ryan Air flights are extremely economical. The round trip airfare from Brussels to Carcassonne is less than Ⓤ50
per person. Ryan Air is like Southwest Airlines. No meals or snacks are served, and everything is extra)
(Hint: From Brussels, Bruges is a 45 minute train ride away. Paris is an hour away by train. Amsterdam is a 3 hour train
ride.)
International flights to Brussels arrive at National Airport, just north of the city. There is a train station located in the
terminal. The train station is downstairs, and to the right after you leave customs and immigration. Purchase a ticket to the
Gare Zuid, also called the Gare du Midi. The fare is Ⓤ9.5 per person. When you arrive at the Gare Zuid, take the 45
minute bus shuttle, (Ⓤ10.5 per person, one way), to Charles le Roi.
(Hint: The Charles le Roi airport is very small. Although there is a restaurant and newspaper/snack stand in the airport,
depending upon when you arrive in Brussels and the time that the Ryan Air flight departs, you may want to spend some
time in the Gare Zuid, which has several stores and restaurants. Verify the frequency of the shuttle at the information
kiosk in the train station.)
When you arrive at the airport in Carcassonne, you can take the bus shuttle (Ⓤ5.5 per person) to the train station in
Carcassonne. If you are traveling in a group of 2 or more, a taxi is an economical alternative.
(Hint: Since the Ryan Air afternoon flight arrives in Carcassonne at approximately 1700 hrs (5:00 PM), if you take the
train directly to Beziers, you may not arrive in Beziers until well after 1800 hrs, (6:00 PM), after the car rental offices have
closed. We suggest that you spend the night in Carcassonne and take the train the following day to Beziers. We
recommend the Hotel Montmorency, (http://lemontmorency.com/carcassonne/hotel.html), which is located just under the
ramparts of the castle. The rooms are very charming. The rates are reasonable and include breakfast. The location of the
Hotel Montmorency means that you can have dinner in one of the many restaurants located in the castle. The castle also
has a different “feel” at night, after the last of the tour buses has loaded up and left. After dinner, you should walk down
the hill from the castle, towards the “new town” and view the castle at night from the bridge crossing the river. The next
morning, you can walk (about 20 minutes) from the Hotel Montmorency to the train station, or take a taxi.)
(Hint: If you have a Eurail pass, you may not want to use one of your “days” on the train trip from Carcassonne to
Beziers. The point to point train fare is only Ⓤ21.60 per person, one way, and no reservations are needed.)
(Hint: Trains between Carcassonne and Beziers are quite frequent during the day. Check the train schedules are http://scnf.
com/ or http://bahn.hafas.de/bin/query.exe/en.)
3. Other routes.
Alternate routes to Beziers are many. You can fly to Barcelona and take the train (about 3 hours) to Beziers. British
Airways and Air France fly to Montpellier and Marseilles, where you can rent a car/take a train to Beziers. You could fly
to Nice and take the train (about 3 hours, unless you catch a TGV), to Beziers.
(Hint: There are several American, and other foreign airlines, e.g., British Airways, that fly to Nice. The airfares to Nice are
only slightly higher than the airfares to Paris.)
4. “Open Jaw” travel.
Instead of flying into and out of the same city, consider flying into one city and back to the states from another. For
instance, you can fly into Paris, and back to the States from Barcelona; or into Brussels and out of Paris. It costs slightly
more, but you can add another destination to your itinerary.
GETTING TO AUTIGNAC
Montpellier
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