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Tag: France

Discover France’s Hidden Waterways with Backwaters Tours

Imagine a relaxing cruise along the rivers, canals and backwaters of France. Now imagine the same peaceful and slow experience but without the “chug, chug, chug” of the traditional diesel engine.

In June 2018, Backwaters Tours introduced a new electric-hybrid boat, the ‘Natalia’, on to the rivers and canals near Auxerre, Sens and Fontainebleau.

The boat forms the focal point of a ‘cruise-tour’ option, with couples, solo travellers or groups booking on one of Backwaters Tours own tours, or on a tour operated by other leading tour operators (including Titan Travel and Saga). Accommodation is in a well-appointed hotel that acts as a base for the duration of the tour. Each morning the coach takes the group to join the boat in a different location. A morning’s cruise includes lunch brought in from a local boulangerie or other local supplier. In the afternoon the group travels by coach to visit a local chateau or historic town. The relaxing ‘slow’ pace of the holiday means the hotel and boat are never more than 45 minutes away from each other.

For more information, and to find out about forthcoming tours, including a trip along the Canal Saint-Martin in Paris, go to www.backwaters.tours

At the start of August, Stuart Render experienced a few days on board ‘Natalia’ in the company of a delightful group from Titan Travel. Here are some of the photos from the cruise.

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French trade workshop success

A move by the French region of Seine-et-Marne near Paris to engage more productively with UK group travel professionals has been hailed a success.

A two-day trade workshop held at the Phoenix Artist Club in Covent Garden in central London on 14 and 15 June gave coach operators, tour wholesalers and group travel organisers the opportunity to spend up to an hour with representatives from the Seine-et-Marne region.

Severine Camblong, media and communications manager with Seine-et-Marne Tourism, who led the initiative, says: “We were really pleased to be able to come to London to meet coach operators, tour wholesalers and group travel organisers. The longer one-to-one meetings gave us all more time to discuss group packages. I would like to thank all the coach tourism professionals who took the time to meet with us, and look forward to welcoming them and their groups to Seine-et-Marne soon.”

Mandy Keating, product development manager with Market Harborough-based Diamond Holidays, was one of the UK group travel professionals to attend. Commenting on the workshop she says: “It was great to have time to talk about an area of France that I’m not very familiar with, and beneficial to have a whole hour of one-to-one to really get to know and understand what Seine-et-Marne has to offer. I’ve come away from the workshop with ideas for new tours and new experiences to add to our existing tours.”

The trade workshop is the latest initiative from Seine-et-Marne to encourage more UK group and tour planners to take a closer look at the region that sits just to the east of Paris.
In May the tourist office re-launched its one-stop-booking service that makes it easier for the UK market to find out more information and book tour packages.

Group-friendly attractions include the three chateaux of Fontainebleau, Vaux le Vicomte and Champs-sur-Marne, the medieval walled town of Provins, and the historic town of Meaux.

Tour planners wanting more information should email Marjorie Sebille at sebille@tourisme77.fr, or go to www.visit.pariswhatelse.fr

The Phoenix Artist Club, located under the Phoenix Theatre in Charing Cross Road in Covent Garden in central London offers tour planners an unusual venue for pre-West End show meals. For more information, go to www.phoenixartistclub.com

Seine et Marne workshop - 14 June 2016
Seine-et-Marne tourism visited London on 14/15 June to meet with UK tour planners. The workshop was held at the Phoenix Artist Club in Charing Cross Road. Mandy Keating (right) from Diamond Holidays, is seen here with Florian Chenet from Meaux Tourism, and Severine Camblong, from Seine-et-Marne Tourism

CPT scores in French minimum wages dispute

UK-based coach operators travelling in France stand to benefit from a major concession to new French rules on minimum wages and conditions thanks to the role played by the Confederation of Passenger Transport UK’s director of policy development, Steven Salmon.

At a high level meeting in Brussels on 9 June, the French Government conceded that “closed door” tours from the UK (and other countries) with non-French customers should be considered as transit operations, and should therefore be exempt from the requirement to match French wages and conditions. This applies whether the tour simply goes from England to France and back, or visits France as part of a longer itinerary including over-night stays.

Steven Salmon says: “The rules originally proposed by the French Government would have placed considerable financial and administrative burdens on CPT coach operator members running tours and short trips to France. The French government representatives accepted that there is no French customer for this work so there is no basis under the Posting of Workers Directive for controls on the pay and conditions of workers carrying it out.

“This issue has been a major cloud hanging over our coach operator members for the last couple of months. This concession will be a huge relief and will enable them to maintain their competitiveness and keep tour prices down for passengers.”

CPT’s chief executive Simon Posner paid tribute to the role Steven Salmon played in securing this major win.
“The key role Steven has played cannot be over emphasised and I know will be warmly welcomed by CPT’s coaching members,” he says. “This success comes close on the heels of France backing down from its unwelcome new interpretation of the EU rules on breaks when two drivers are working together, which was secured by CPT, IRU and other trade bodies working collaboratively to score a major goal for UK coach operators. Once again, the prominent role of CPT in the industry’s relations with the European institutions has paid off, ensuring that our members are able to operate successfully on the Continent.”

Seine-et-Marne targets UK tour planners

The French region of Seine-et-Marne to the east of Paris is launching a new campaign to attract more groups from the UK.

The campaign is being run under the ‘Paris What Else’ branding, highlighting the close proximity of the area to the French capital, and encouraging tour planners to look at the region’s attractions when refreshing a Paris-based itinerary.

The Seine-et-Marne tourist office is also relaunching its central information and booking service to make it easier for coach tour operators and group travel organisers to understand what the region has to offer groups.

Commenting on the launch of the campaign, Florence Bruaux, head of tourism at Seine-et-Marne Tourisme, says: “Our region is already well known in the UK because it is home to Disneyland Paris. But there is much more to discover, including the Châteaux of Fontainebleau, Vaux le Vicomte and Champs-sur-Marne, the medieval walled town of Provins and the Museum of the Great War in Meaux.

“Under our marketing brand of ‘Paris What Else’ we want to highlight the possibilities for groups to combine a visit to Paris with visits to our wonderful attractions. The region also has a number of quality, group-friendly hotels that give tour planners the option to stay in one of our charming towns, and then travel into Paris.

“Our central information and booking service means that coach tour operators and group travel organisers can contact us for information about places to visit, and where to stay. We will then make all the arrangements. We want to encourage more UK groups to visit us, so we’re making it as easy as possible for this to happen.”

As part of the campaign, the tourist office is holding a trade workshop in central London on 14 and 15 June. For more information on the workshop email stuart@stuartrendertourism.co.uk.

To contact the central information and booking service email Marjorie Sebille at sebille@tourisme77.fr or go to www.visit.pariswhatelse.fr

www.Paris-whatelse.com is a brand of Tourism 77, the official tourism booking agency for the Eastern Paris region. With its head office in the historic city of Fontainebleau it has specialised in creating packages for groups for the past 25 years and packages for individuals since 2003. The new website provides unique tour packages dedicated to Paris and the Champagne-Ardenne region for groups, couples, families, corporate groups and individuals.

Florence Bruaux, head of tourism at Seine-et-Marne Tourism. The tourist organisation has launched a new campaign to encourage UK groups to visit the region
Florence Bruaux, head of tourism at Seine-et-Marne Tourism. The tourist organisation has launched a new campaign to encourage UK groups to visit the region

 

 

 

 

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