How to visit France with no exchanges

[dcbrown]

OK...so we want to go to France and DVC has no exchanges through RCL or Buena Vista.....why, I don't know that's a question for another thread. Anyway....for those of you that have visited DLP, would that be a decent base for travelling a good part of the country....my daughter is a budding fashion designer and as a graduation gift she wants nothing more than to visit Paris...Versailles,Giverny,Mont St.Michel and Montmartre. We could do an Adventure for a fortune in points (NOT) and doing a DLP reservation requires buying the length of stay pass up front.... So what are your thoughts all of you experts...thanks in advance for your help

 

[awatt]

Paris, DLP, Versaillea and Montmartre are all easily doable with Paris as a home base. Montmatre is actually a Paris neighborhood. DLP and Versailles by train. The train system is phenomenal and so easy. Giverny is a 3 hour ride from Paris I believe, not sure if train goes there.

I would rent out your points then use the cash for a stay in Paris. If you can throw in a day or two on the Riviera, I would highly recommend it

 

[Pakey]

We stayed in Paris but then stayed our last 2 nights at DLRP at the Disneyland Hotel.

 

[dcbrown]

Thanks awatt....I did think of that....have rented points recently rather quickly and easily.......still it is pretty pricey to stay in France...we have priced it out already and using my points is the least expensive option right now.

 

[Dean]

OK...so we want to go to France and DVC has no exchanges through RCL or Buena Vista.....why, I don't know that's a question for another thread. Anyway....for those of you that have visited DLP, would that be a decent base for travelling a good part of the country....my daughter is a budding fashion designer and as a graduation gift she wants nothing more than to visit Paris...Versailles,Giverny,Mont St.Michel and Montmartre. We could do an Adventure for a fortune in points (NOT) and doing a DLP reservation requires buying the length of stay pass up front.... So what are your thoughts all of you experts...thanks in advance for your help

RCI has about 6 resorts in the Paris area, none appear to be all that good from what I can see. II has more but still not great resorts. What II does have is the Marriott by DLP. One might look for a private exchange to this resort and use it as a base of operations as well. Marriott reward points also work well. My daughter stayed 7 nights at the Marriott Champs Elysee and enjoyed it though she wasn't that thrilled with Paris in general.

 

[TheRustyScupper]

1) W have done DLP several times.
2) I had a plant I ran in France.
3) To answer you question
. . . DLP is a bad place to use a base, as country -wide transport is tough
. . . Paris is a good place to use as a base

 

[dcbrown]

Hey Dean....when I pulled up the RCI choices on the DVC sight there were no choices for France.......where did you see these resorts? Thanks for the response!

 

[dcbrown]

1) W have done DLP several times.
2) I had a plant I ran in France.
3) To answer you question
. . . DLP is a bad place to use a base, as country -wide transport is tough
. . . Paris is a good place to use as a base

Thanks for your input....much appreciated! Is 15 minutes from the MOUSE near Celebration?

 

[Dean]

Hey Dean....when I pulled up the RCI choices on the DVC sight there were no choices for France.......where did you see these resorts? Thanks for the response!

RCI in general at rci.com. DVC has a much scaled down version of the RCI offerings which is one of the limitations of the system, IMO.

 

[dcbrown]

Thanks again Dean....I will check it out!

 

[Dean]

Thanks again Dean....I will check it out!

Places like Paris, London, Sydney, Rome, etc tend to be great values using hotel type rewards programs for those that have them. In many cases it's about the only way to get real value out of such programs.

 

[jade1]

Interested as well-just back last week but on biz. Would like to go back for vacation.

And if I only had time:

 

[dcbrown]

Jade1.....Oh My.....what a response and what a business trip for you.......thoroughly enjoyed these "Delicious" pictures....where did you stay and indulge in such delightful delicacies?

 

[dvc_john]

I stayed at the Marriott timeshare near DLP once (2br unit), and enjoyed it alot. I got it at a very reasonable cash rate, but it was off season (March). It's a short bus ride to DLP, and the buses are free. But you need a schedule because they aren't very frequent, especially in the middle of the day. The train into Paris at DLP is very convenient.

 

[ClarabelleCow]

Just remember this is by no means an inexpensive trip. US dollar is very low compared to the Euro - I think last I checked it was $1.00=1.30 euro. So your $100.00us hotel room will cost 130, just something to remember We thought about doing something like this, maybe look into cruises that hit many of the stops that start or end in Paris and get there early or stay a few days.

 

[Brandis]

I like Ibis hotels to stay in European cities. They are clean, pretty nice and have decent breakfast, their rates are OK.

There is one just one train stop from Disneyland Paris at Val d'Europe. Plus there are several in Paris itself.

There is no train station in Giverny, but nearby, in Vernon, from there you can either walk (7km, about 1h), take a taxi or there is a shuttle bus in summer.

Here is a description how to get there:

http://giverny.org/transpor/

 

[cloudnut220]

I'm actually leaving for Paris next Thursday. When we were planning, I quickly became frustrated with the DVC trade in options at DLP (and my guide sure did hear about it!). The booking windows are weird (they run November-April, which was really bad for trying to book a trip in early April), and the points values are VERY high. So instead, we're renting an apartment for a week in Central Paris. It's 2 bedrooms, 2 baths, kitchen--and the best part--800 euros for the week. DH and I are staying on a few days after the couple we're traveling with is leaving, and were moving to a hotel where 3 nights is going to cost us nearly 500 euros. So yeah, that apartment is really a good deal!

We have trips planned from central Paris to DLP, Champagne region, Mont St. Michel/Brittany coast, Versailles. We're able to hire private guides for several of the day trips because we saved so much on the hotel. We rented on Homeaway.com. I highly suggest you check it out!

 

[OrangeCountyCommuter]

Please don't do this! Rent your points and get a hotel in Paris. There are some reasonable accomondations, try looking on Trip Advisor, Rick Steves etc... Rescale your hotel options.... (I can stay for four or five nights for 500 Euros LOL!) You don't have to stay at an American "luxury" hotel to have a good time. You can also rent an apartment VactioninParis.com and RentParis.com are two I have used and they often have specials.

DLP is an hour or so from Paris, you will be missing some of the best part of being there by not being "in" the city. DLP is only a good location for going to Disneyland IMHO.

 

[jade1]

Jade1.....Oh My.....what a response and what a business trip for you.......thoroughly enjoyed these "Delicious" pictures....where did you stay and indulge in such delightful delicacies?

Thanks-actually stayed about 1/2 hour south of Lyon-the locals knew where to have dinner, although it took about 3 hours every night. Had a layover in Paris, so not much time there-but that's where I would want to go back to.

 

[akl-fan]

Also remember that if you use your points at DLP that use have to purchase a theme park ticket for every day that you stay. This would be very expensive if you plan to tour France and not go into the parks.

I take about 35 minutes by train to get into the centre of Paris. I agree with a PP that it would be far better to rent out your points and pay for accommodation in Paris.