Archive for the 'France' Category
Air France and KLM join rush to charge for second bag overseas
October 21, 2009 6:33pm
Want to check a second bag to Europe on Air France or KLM? Hand over $50, s’il vous plait.
These European airlines, both owned by Air France-KLM Group, are the latest to charge for what used to be free on overseas flights. In recent months, British Airways, American Airlines and United Airlines have all announced fees for coach fliers to check a second bag between the U.S. and Europe. Although at least one carrier, Air New Zealand, still gives second bags a free ride, the list is dwindling.
In the case of Air France and KLM, the $50 second-bag fee will apply to tickets issued Nov. 1 or later. If you’re flying after Nov. 1 but buy your ticket before that date, you’ll still get two bags for free, an Air France-KLM spokeswoman explained. Like other airlines, they will exempt high-mileage frequent fliers, customers flying in first and business class and some others from the fee. For details, see the airlines’ joint news release.
A free hotel night in Paris from Marriott
October 16, 2009 6:19am
Ah France. One hardly needs a reason or an excuse to go to Paris, but any and all incentives are welcome, no? Marriott speaks to the romantic traveler in me with its free-night offer on weekend bookings. Stay two consecutive weekend nights at one of its participating hotels in France and get the third night free.
Deal: Marriott’s “Free Hotel Room Nights for Weekends in Paris, France” is good at a variety of hotels including the Renaissance Paris Arc de Triomphe Hotel, Renaissance Paris Hotel Le Parc Trocadero, Courtyard Paris Neuilly and the Courtyard Paris Defense West-Colombes with rates starting at $78 per night. Make sure the B4F appears in the “Corporate/Promotional” code box when making your online reservation, or ask for the promo code B4F when you call in your reservation.
When: Valid through March 7
Contact: Marriott, (800) 228-9290
– Jen Leo, Los Angeles Times Travel & Deal blogger
Photo: The Eiffel Tower. Credit: Lionel Bonaventure / AFP/Getty Images
The ultimate shoe store opens at Galeries Lafayette in Paris
October 7, 2009 5:58am
As enlightened souls —or is that soles?—surely know, it’s all about shoes.
So we’ve just got to take note when what’s billed as the the world’s largest footwear emporium opens at the venerable Galeries Lafayette department store on the tres chic Boulevard Haussmann in the 9th arrondissement of Paris.
The 34,500-square-foot shoe Parnassus opened in July. Reached by a gold and white staircase worthy of Ginger Rogers and Fred Astaire, it has chocolate-brown leather sofas for the trying-on ritual, 150 brands of shoes and 12,000 pairs altogether.
‘Julie & Julia’ foodie tour of France
October 6, 2009 5:56am
Have you seen the movie “Julie & Julia,” directed by Nora Ephron? Read the book?
Much of the film takes off from “My Life in France,” describing Julia Child’s post-World War II encounters with French cooking and eating. The renowned chef was working on the memoir when she died in 2004, leaving it to be finished by Alex Prud’homme.
Now true believers in the “French Chef” can follow her tracks through the land of tripe and escargot on a tour devised by New York-based Tour de Forks, which specializes in culinary excursions around the world, from New Orleans to Australia.
Venetian painters at the Louvre Museum in Paris
October 4, 2009 5:56am
Kill two birds with one stone: Visit the Louvre Museum in the City of Light to see a big new exhibition about La Serenissima.
“Titian, Tintoretto, Veronese: Rivals in Renaissance Venice” (open through Jan. 4 in the Hall of Napoleon) examines three great 16th-century Italian artists who made their homes in the Lagoon City:
Titian learned from Venetian masters such as Bellini and Giorgione. Tintoretto, a Venice homeboy, was always at odds with Titian, his senior by about 30 years. The divine Veronese crossed hairs with the Inquisition over his placement of dogs and dwarfs in religious pictures such as “Feast in the House of Levi.”
Masterpieces on display include Titian’s lackadaisical nude “Danae” from the Capodimonte Museum in Naples, a Tintoretto self-portrait from the Philadelphia Museum of Art and the striking “Temptation of St. Anthony” by Veronese from the Caen Museum of Beaux-Arts.
— Susan Spano, Los Angeles Times staff writer
Photo: “Venus with a Mirror” by Paolo Veronese. Credit: Courtesy of Museum of Fine Arts, Boston
Air France auctioning off seats on its first A380 flights
October 1, 2009 10:52am
If you’re determined to be the first to fly on Air France’s cool new Airbus A380, the world’s biggest passenger plane, here’s your big chance: You can bid for a seat.
Starting today, the French airline began auctioning off seats on the jet’s two inaugural flights from Paris to New York on Nov. 20 and from New York to Paris on Nov. 21. The auction, on eBay, goes through Oct. 21. Air France said the opening bid “in most cases” will be $380 for Voyageur (economy) class and $1,380 in Affaires (business) class, but that it may change during the auction. (The auction includes a return ticket on a regular Air France flight.) Proceeds go to charities in France, India and South Africa.
Is this trip worth it? It’s up to you how much you want to pay, but I can say that riding this super-wide-bodied jet is an amazing experience. On a short demonstration flight out of LAX two years ago, I was impressed by how quiet it is, despite its size and power.
Star Tours reboot coming to Disneyland and Disney World in 2011
September 12, 2009 12:01pm
The 1980s-era Star Tours attractions at Disneyland in California and Disney’s Hollywood Studios in Florida will get a complete overhaul by 2011, Disney announced today.
In the new 3-D version of the venerable simulator ride, visitors board a Starspeeder and join a high-speed pod race through the desert canyons of Tatooine in a scene from the “Star Wars” movie series.
Air France to auction off seats on its first A380 flights between Paris and New York
September 8, 2009 1:41pm
Air France plans to auction 380 seats on two inaugural flights of the Airbus A380 from Paris to New York on Nov. 20 and from New York to Paris on Nov. 21.
The auction will take place on the airline’s website in October, on a date yet to be announced. Winners will travel outbound on an A380 and return on another commercial flight. Proceeds from the auction will be donated to three Air France Foundation charities working on children’s issues in France, South Africa and India.
Air France A380s begin regular commercial operation on the Paris-New York route on Nov. 23. Routes to open later include Paris-Dubai and Paris-Tokyo.
Choice Hotels: Three-night stay earns a free night later
September 8, 2009 5:52am
In these times teeming with travel bargains, there are a lot of “free night” deals out there — you may have seen a few here on this blog. Getting a last night free, after a certain number of paid nights, can be a good deal, but Choice Hotels’ new fall promotion offers the same idea with an interesting twist.
Deal: Stay three consecutive nights at any Choice Hotels property (over 5,500 to choose from), and you’ll earn points redeemable for one free night applicable for a future stay at any one of 1,500-plus select properties. Most of these redemption-friendly properties are within the U.S., Canada and Mexico, but there are some in some fun, far-flung places. You must be a member of the Choice Privileges reward program to take advantage of this offer, but signing up online is easy and free.
Budget-to-midrange brands under the Choice umbrella include Cambria Suites, Comfort Inn, Comfort Suites, Quality Inn, Sleep Inn, Clarion, MainStay Suites, Suburban Extended Stay Hotel, Econo Lodge, and Rodeway Inn hotels. Your free stay can be chosen from hotels in the 8,000-point reward-level group. See a full list here.
Boring, say you? Though a number of the select redemption locations at this point level are not in hot tourist sites, some are, and others make useful resting points on road trips. Read the rest of this entry »
Under the Blue Flag: Clean beaches in 39 countries around the world
September 3, 2009 5:55am
Look for the blue flag before you take the plunge. That’s the sign that the beach or marina you’re visiting meets environmental standards established and monitored annually by the International Blue Flag Program, headquartered in Copenhagen.
The program, which originated in France in 1985, administers spot checks of candidate sites, ascertaining water quality and the absence of hazardous waste. A jury composed of environmentalists from groups such as the United Nations World Tourism Organization and the European Union for Coastal Conservation then makes the final selections.
The U.S. doesn’t participate in the program, but lots of other places do. This year more than 3,300 beaches and marinas in 39 countries have won blue flags, including Gdansk Marina in Poland, Bikini Beach in Cape Town, South Africa, and Sperlonga in Italy. A complete list is available at www.blueflag.org.
—Susan Spano, Los Angeles Times staff writer
Photo: Sperlonga, an Italian Blue Flag beach near Rome. Credit: Susan Spano/Los Angeles Times
