Auvergne by Rail

What's Included

INCLUDED

• Return Eurostar and SNCF from St Pancras or Ebbsfleet to Clermont Ferrand via Paris including transfer in Paris
• Six nights’ accommodation on dinner, bed and breakfast basis at Le Pariou Hotel, Issoire 
• Transfers and full touring itinerary conducted by tour manager
• Tour manager throughout

NOT INCLUDED

• Holiday insurance
• Single room supplement
• Standard Premier/1st Class upgrade on Eurostar/TGV. On the Eurostar this constitutes upgraded seating and light meal with complimentary drink with upgraded seating only on the French railway leg
• Meals other than those stated
• Porterage and gratuities

PLEASE NOTE: As with most trains, passengers are responsible for carrying baggage onto and off the train. Baggage can be stored on overhead shelves or at the entrance to the carriages.Trollies are available at St Pancras and Paris, but bags do need to be carried on to the platform.

Travel Editions recommends a luggage delivery service called thebaggageman, where your suitcase can be picked up from your home before departure and delivered straight to your hotel; therefore removing the worry about carrying your cases onto and off the trains. Please click here for more information and we have arranged a 10% discount exclusive to Travel Editions clients off the thebaggageman service. Tel: 01844 264890

Travel Info

Please hover over the departure dates in the panel on the left of this page for train departure points and timings.

Accommodation

Le Pariou Hotel, Issoire
The three-star Le Pariou Hotel based in the charming town of Issoire offers air-conditioned, comfortable bedrooms with private bath/shower, TV, telephone, minibar and hairdryer. The hotel also has a restaurant "Le Jardin", bar, lounge area, sun terrace, garden and outdoor swimming pool (seasonally heated).

Le Pariou Hotel Website

OUR VIEW ON THE HOTEL
Friendly, family-run hotel which prides itself on its cuisine using locally-sourced ingredients. Issoire is only a short walk away, perfect for a leisurely stroll and pre-dinner aperitif and the ideal base for the sites visited on this tour. 

Pre-tour accommodation is available at the Premier Inn, London Kings Cross St Pancras, about 5 minutes walk from St Pancras International, at an approximate rate of £120 per room. Bookings can be made direct with the hotel on 0871 527 8672 or visit their website. 

Places of Interest

Clermont Ferrand
Clermont Ferrand is an attractive, bustiling commercial centre with thriving restaurants, cafes, bars and shops. It was originally two distinct cities: Clermont and Montferrand, which were united in 1630. In the Clermont section of the city sights include the Place St Pierre with its daily food market, Fontaine d’Amboise, which leads via the pedestrianised Rue du Port to the Romanesque church of Notre Dame-du-Port and the Gothic Cathedral dating from the 13th Century. The Montferrand part is typified by ancient Rue Kleber, lined with fine houses, known as “hotels particuliers” built by prosperous merchants from the 13th to 17th Centuries.

Orcival, St Nectaire and Besse-en-Chandesse
The tiny town of Orcival is dominated by its superb basilica, dating from the beginning of the 12th Century, which many say is the best Romanesque church in the region. Another village noted for its Romanesque church, St Nectaire is one of the most beautiful with soaring, elegant proportions and vividly carved stonework. Internally, the treasury includes a gold bust of St Baudime and a wooden Notre-Damede- Mont-Cornadore, both marvels of 12th Century workmanship. With its old houses and fortifications, Besse is a picturesque and charming small town set in beautiful surroundings. Sights here include the 12th Century church, quaint Rue de la Boucherie, lined with black houses made of lava stone including the 15th Century Queen Margot’s House that now houses a small ski museum and 16th Century town gate.

Puy-en-Velay, Brioude and Issoire
Located in the bowl of a volcanic cone, the extraordinary town of Puy-en-Velay teeters on a series of rock outcrops and giant basalt pillars. The town appears to have three peaks, each topped with a landmark church or statue. Seen from a distance, the ensemble is one of the most dramatic sights in France. Le Puy became a pilgrimage centre after its Bishop returned from a pilgrimage to Santiago in 962 and built the perilously positioned Chapelle St-Michel d’Aiguilhe. Pilgrims assembled at the Notre Dame Cathedral, famed for its black Madonna and “fever stone” before heading for Santiago. Other highlights include the colossal red statue of Notre Dame de France, built on the pinnacle of the Rocher Corneille in 1860 and cast from 213 cannons captured at Sebastopol during the Crimean War, and the Crozatier lace museum. A small bustling town situated on a terrace overlooking the lush Allier plain, Brioude is famed for its church, the Basilique St-Julien, the largest Romanesque church in the Auvergne, dating from 1060. An important aeronautical centre and a mecca for glider pilots thanks to strong local air currents, the town of Issoire also boasts an outstanding 12th Century abbey church, St-Austremoine, notable for the Bosch-like fresco of “The Last Judgement” with sinners being cast into the mouth of a dragon. 

Vichy and Thiers
Most famous as the head of the French state during Nazi occupation in WWII, Vichy was chosen thanks to its 500 hotels which could be requisitioned for government offices - the current Aletti Palace Hotel, for example, housed the War Ministry. These were in existence thanks to its reputation as a spa resort and its superb turn of the century spa buildings and parks are now protected as an integral part of France’s architectural heritage. Highlights include the Parc des Sources, Grand Casino, Covered Arcades, several grand hotels, the elaborate chalets and villas of the Avenue Etats-Unisand the Parcs d’Allier. Famed as a centre for the manufacture of cutlery, the well-preserved medieval town of Thiers is dramatically sited on a ravine over a sharp bend in the river Durolle. 

More Info

PASSPORTS
Valid passport required by all, except:

(a) EU nationals holding valid national identification cards;

(b) Holders of national identification cards issued to nationals of Andorra, Liechtenstein, Monaco, San Marino and Switzerland.

VISAS
Are not required by EU citizens. All other nationalities should enquire at the French consulate (PO Box 57, 6A Cromwell Place, London SW7 2EW

Tel: (020) 7838 2000/1. Information Service: Tel: (0891) 887 733. Fax: (020) 7838 2046. Opening hours: 0900-1130 (and 1600-1630 for visa collection only) Monday to Friday (except French and British national holidays).

TRAIN
As with most trains, passengers are responsible for carrying baggage onto and off the train. Baggage can be stored on overhead shelves or at the entrance to the carriages. Trollies are available at St Pancras and Lille, but bags do need to be carried on to the platform.  Porters are sometimes but not always available at St Pancras.  The Eurostar and French trains are very long (18 carriages in the case of Eurostar and nearly 400 metres long) so there can be quite lengthy walks from the station entrance to your seat.  On all legs of the journey you have reserved seat and carriage numbers which are shown clearly on your ticket.

LUGGAGE TO YOUR HOTEL
Travel Editions recommends a luggage delivery service called thebaggageman, where your suitcase can be picked up from your home before departure and delivered straight to your hotel; therefore removing the worry about carrying your cases onto and off the trains. Please click here for more information and we have arranged a 10% discount exclusive to Travel Editions clients off the thebaggageman service. Tel: 01844 264890

HEALTH & INSURANCE – EHIC CARD
Please note that EHIC (European Health Insurance Card) only allows access to the same state-provided healthcare as a resident of the EU country they are temporarily visiting. It is NOT an alternative to travel insurance and will not provide the same level of cover as a travel insurance policy. The EHIC will not cover any private medical healthcare or the cost of things such as repatriation to the UK or lost or stolen property. It is also important to note that each country’s healthcare system is slightly different, so the EHIC might not cover everything that would be generally free on the NHS. On the EHIC application website,  there is a section called Access to Healthcare Abroad which clarifies all the conditions and inclusions. We strongly recommend that you take out an appropriate travel insurance policy when you travel abroad.

Book with Confidence

• Low Deposit

  Travel Editions requires a minimum deposit of 20% or the full booking value, whichever is less, with the final balance not due until 56 days before departure.

• Cancellation Policy

  We don't charge a cancellation fee, here is a summary of travel editions charges.

  Up to 56 days before tour starts: Forfeit 100% of deposit.

  At 55 days before tour starts: Forfeit 45% of booking price.

  At 28 days before tour starts: Forfeit 60% of booking price.

  At 14 days before tour starts: Forfeit 100% of booking price.