May 19, 2003 -- France loves you -- and wants you to come back.
The recent political disagreements between the US and France have led US tourists to think they're not welcome in France, according to a new survey from the French travel office.
But most French people don't hold any grudges against individual Americans, as Frommer's travelers have found. (www.frommers.com/cgi-bin/WebX?13@@.eeab839) To spur US tourists to rediscover France, a wide range of travel providers over there are casting discounts across the sea, from airfare to hotels and restaurants.
We cherry-picked the best deals for budget travelers off of a long, long list. For more details and more deals -- especially if you like to stay at super-expensive, five-star hotels -- head to www.franceguide.com.
Frugal Flights to France
To enjoy the friendly French, you've got to get there first. Several airlines have sales going on for travel before June 18, but summer fares are the usual exorbitant mess. Independent travelers' best bet is to check the usual comparative sites ? Expedia (www.expedia.com), Orbitz (www.orbitz.com), Travelocity (www.travelocity.com), Qixo (www.qixo.com) and Sidestep (www.sidestep.com).
True last-minute travelers can grab an outrageous deal from Air Tahiti Nui: airfare plus three nights hotel for $449/person from Los Angeles, departing May 27 and returning May 31. Call 800-332-5332 and ask for offer ATN527.
If you're willing to take an all-inclusive package, you can save dough by turning to one of several discount consolidators. Go-Today.com (www.gotoday.com/FR_FGAA.ASP) is offering a six-night Paris package during July and August starting at $799 from New York and Boston (or $1,019 from LA and San Francisco). New York travelers with flexible dates can even squeeze the price down to $699 with another Go-Today deal, flying out of Newark Airport on Air India. (www.gotoday.com/FR_FGPY.ASP).
New Frontiers' (www.newfrontiers.com) Paris Impulse package offers a flight, seven nights hotel accommodation and daily breakfasts for just a little more than you'd pay for the flight alone. Prices for July-August departures include $825 from New York, $938 from Chicago, or $1084 from San Francisco or LA.
Rail Europe is also running several discounts right now that we've mentioned in previous columns. Eurostar tickets to London are on sale, as are Thalys tickets to Belgium, Geneva and Cologne, trains to Milan, Florence, Venice and Rome, and railpasses.
Heureux Hotels
It's easier to grab a cheap stay in Paris during midsummer than it is to find a flight, thanks to several deals good through December 15.
The 100 discount hotels in the Abotel chain (www.abotelparis.com/parisen.html) are offering a 25% discount to all Americans. Basic tourist hotels, but clean and newly renovated, the two- and three-star Abotels offer base rates as low as 74€, so this deal could have you sleeping in Paris for a mere 55.50€. Call the hotel to book and mention the "Bonjour Paris" discount.
The nine hotels in the similarly-priced Relais de Paris chain (www.lesrelaisdeparis.fr/GB/Home2.asp?Site=fr) are offering a 10% discount, plus an "American-style breakfast" instead of the usual coffee and croissant in the morning, for those who mention "Bonjour Paris."
If you'd prefer to pretend you're a Parisian, the Citadines chain of apartment-hotels (www.citadines.net) offers 10% discounts if you mention the "French tourism campaign Bonjour." We found rates as low as 76€/night, before the discount, for Citadines hotels in July.
The four-star Victoria Palace Hotel (www.ila-chateau.com/victoria) is offering the three nights of July 4, 5, and 6 for a total of 460€ -- at only 153€/night, that's almost half-off regular rates. The hotel also offers a touching sentiment on its Web site: "Regardless of the tensions among the upper echelons of government on either side of the Atlantic, the Frenchman on the street will not turn his back on two centuries of friendship with the people of the United States of America." Bravo!
Brilliant Bistros
Paris is a place to get stuffed. Forget the Eiffel Tower -- you can just go to Paris for a week, eat the entire time, and be satisfied. We've got a long list of Paris restaurants on Frommers.com (www.frommers.com/destinations/paris/62_inddin.html), but two are offering special deals for Americans visiting the City of Light.
La Relais de Montmartre (https://mmmm.free.fr/scripts/script_detail_resto.php?id=1238), in Amelie's neighborhood, will kick in a free Kier aperitif for Americans who quote "Bonjour Paris."
With all of these savings, this summer may just be the right time to patch up differences and become friends with France again.