France Most Expensive Holiday Destination (1 Viewer)

[Braunston]

Hi, Just looking on Yahoo and apparently in a recent survey they have found France to be the most expensive holiday destination.

From our last visit I'm not surprised especially if you want to eat or drink out, which is what most people do when they are on holiday, still a great place.

I wonder how the French themselves find the pricing as it seems a lot of them eat out, have the prices risen for them or have their wages kept pace.

Link Removed

 

[madbluemad]

Its all a bit strange given that France is one of those countries that are suffering the most from the global economic decline.

Another strange thing is that GB wasn't PM over there, I wonder how that works ???
Jim

 

[sue1959]

Here in S Ireland A basic starter is c €5.95. A basic main coursec €15.00 and desert c€5.95. So €26.90 for just a basic meal. Steak is around €18.00 a meal (Westport anyway). So that's roughly £22.50 for 1 person. Not cheap.
On sundays you do get Sunday lunch specials usually €15-20.00 for 3 courses.

As for global economic decline. I work in a gift shop and we've seen as many French people! Bus loads of them, Campervans of them even. and they all seem to have money to spend.

This years been a boom year for MH on the roads here, in Mayo anyway. I always see a few on my way home from work and sometimes in convoys of 5 or 6. Wish I could join them!

^{_{Subscribers  do not see these advertisements}}

 

[Braunston]

Hi,

A lot of European countries don't appear to have the level of competition that we have in the UK that drives or holds the prices down, whether in the overall scheme of things that is a good or bad thing I don't know, but it certainly does make eating and drinking out a lot cheaper in the UK than most of the other European countries we have visited by a large margin.

 

[kenspain]

Were i live in Spain you can go out to lunch have a 4 coarse meal for 8/ 9 euros every day of the week

 

[sue1959]

Me and the Hubby went out to our local restaurant had a 3 course meal each, a beer, 1 glass house wine and got €15.00 change out of €100.00. Yes €85.00. Luckily it was a voucher some one had got us for our 50 + 60 birthdays last year!

^{_{Subscribers  do not see these advertisements}}

 

[neilmac]

Were i live in Spain you can go out to lunch have a 4 coarse meal for 8/ 9 euros every day of the week

And, thats including wine :thumb: if its the same as here

 

[vwalan]

i still say uk is a very inexpensive country to live in. its never been better for the people .the standard of living is very high . quality of life is great. dont knock uk its in a verry good position . only the big money people are suffering. there are loads of jobs and work to go around .may not be every where but people have always had to move to work.i say visit other countries ,uk has never been better in my life time. there really is no credit crunch only the rich are suffering and they try to blame the less fortunate. make the right choice its their for you.
cheers alan.

 

[Carol]

I have to say before last year we used to grumble now and then about the cost of living in the UK, but after last years trip to Greece / Italy and France, we have said we will not moan about the cost of living in the UK.
The most expensive we found was Greece.
Then Italy where if you did not find the markets the fresh food in the supermarkets often looked to be past its sell by date.
Then France came next, but the quality of food there was always very good.
This was for our self catering as with our motorhomes I guess is what the majority of us do.
Value of food in UK is excellent.

^{_{Subscribers  do not see these advertisements}}

 

[Wintonian]

Ahem. These surveys are brilliant, aren't they?

"The research looked at the cost of various items including a coffee, a beer, a meal, accommodation and car hire in 30 different destinations."

It doesn't go into detail about the totality of item prices checked, and neither does it say which parts of the countries the survey included. Paris and the Cote d'Azur will be much more expensive than the rural areas of France, so location is very important.

And the 30 countries in the survey did not include ..... the UK!!!

Anywhere in Brittany you will be able to get an excellent 4 course meal including all the wine or cider you want for about €11 - currently about £9. I am not sure how that could be achieved in the UK. It would be a challenge to get fish and chips, a Coke and a coffee for that.

A very large bowl of moules with a huge portion of the best chips in the world will set you back €9 or €10 even in seaside resorts or the marina-front restaurants in Vannes in Morbihan.

Having lived in France now for just over 2 years we have seen the differences. Some things are more expensive than in the UK and some things are cheaper. People tend to be paid rather less than people in the UK and are taxed more heavily. But spending patterns differ a lot. The French don't spend so much on going out. You will not find the bars full all night as you do in Britain. So less is spent on higher priced drinks in bars. Wine, beer and cider is much cheaper to drink at home. And good quality wine is inexpensive.

Of course, tax receipts are actually used to benefit the people. Roads are maintained along with public parks and gardens. Verges are trimmed regularly and free parking is provided everywhere (except in major towns and cities, of course). There are fewer overpaid "jobsworths" hanging around telling you what to do, so big savings are made there (round here I have never clapped eyes on anyone enforcing the parking rules at paid parking spots). The health service is expensive but of excellent quality, making the UK look like the third world.

It is hard to see how they do it, but the population seems generally content so I don't think that the French consider themselves badly off. We don't find the cost of living much different to the UK, having adjusted our lifestyle. That, I think, is the key.

 

[vwalan]

but it changed 18 months ago with the falling of the pound .untill then it was touich and go . but now if you are payed in pounds or visit with pounds its expensive. as for meals even in cornwall there are places offering inexpensive meals. what is expensive is beer wine cigs and fuel in uk .i dont think uk is worse off in other things and our health service works fine.or i find it does. there are thing i dont like happening in uk but i still say its a very nice place to live . only the winter is too cold .and france certainly is no better especially brittany .years ago i thought i would like to live in france but i,m glad now i didnt move. uk is great in summer and visit other places in winter .i have the best of both worlds.

 

[ronald4874]

France Prices

Just returned from Spain and France after 10 weeks and found Spain prices are creeping up and France moreso. If you wish to eat out in France the bill boards are happy to declare a meal for E25 a lot more than we find in our holiday town of Poole. We are able to eat out at a Toby eating house for just £5 for a very large carvery, or for coffee and a muffin for £1.20 at a large eating place. Try that in Spain & France-- not on. In each case the places are very busy so Spain & France need to take heed.

^{_{Subscribers  do not see these advertisements}}

 

[themountaintiger]

I came back last Saturday from 2 weeks motorhoming in the French Aires. My first buying a drink experience was at a bar at Fort Mahon Plage in the Frenchie Guiness branded bar. I ordered a pint of Guiness and a bottle of Desperados. Now the thing is I hadnt any idea of pricing within France. the last time i went was about 12 years ago, so the prices I thought I would be charged would be around £3.50 for the guiness and £2.75 for the bottle, so lets say around £7. I was surprised to hear that it was 11 Euros. In fact I thought the price was including an automatic 2 Euro tip or something. the next bar I ordered two large beers cost of 10 euros so i soon learnt that the first bar hadnt made a mistake.

By the time I got to Honfleur I realised that these prices were the norm, and lookng at meal prices, plat de jour was averaging out at 15 euros. I did have a mid day meal and drink which cost 40 Euros with the tip (for the two of us). I wouldnt have spent so much in this country, but I was on holiday, hey! ho!.

Wintonian is right
"The French don't spend so much on going out. You will not find the bars full all night as you do in Britain. So less is spent on higher priced drinks in bars. Wine, beer and cider is much cheaper to drink at home. And good quality wine is inexpensive."

When we went out to the bar's especially during the week, they were empty or had just one or two people within them. I dont think the French choose not to spend so much going out, I think its more of a case of cant afford to go out!!

We ended up buying cheap (but good quality) wine from a supermarket (but 13 Euro's for 10 litres) and staying around the motorhome..

I did enjoy my French Aire experience, i enjoyed the driving, the daytime tourist stuff and canoeing/cycling. I hadnt expected though to be staying in most evenings drinking wine, not so much due to the expense, but more to do with being in an empty bar. Perhaps campsite 'bars' would have had more atmosphere...

I will go back to France, but will know what to expect. Next trip, ill be going to campsites near the tourist resorts in Spain, look for the happy hours and the karaoke, bingo, quiz pubs!! (each to their own!!)

 

[motorvating]

i still say uk is a very inexpensive country to live in. its never been better for the people .the standard of living is very high . quality of life is great. dont knock uk its in a verry good position . only the big money people are suffering. there are loads of jobs and work to go around .may not be every where but people have always had to move to work.i say visit other countries ,uk has never been better in my life time. there really is no credit crunch only the rich are suffering and they try to blame the less fortunate. make the right choice its their for you.
cheers alan.

Sorry mate got my union hat on again

The standard of living is very high
The average wage in this country is £24,000 and when you consider how expensive things are, and the price of property, we see that the standard of living is low compared to other western countries.

Quality opf life is high
a recent survey by the UN showed that the quality of life in the UK was equivalent to a third world country for most of the UK population.

there are loads of jobs
Last week the con/lib party told us there was 3/4 of a million jobs vacant, but their was 3 million claiming job seekers allowance, and 5 million other unemployed such as incapacity allowance. This means in reality we have 8 million unemployed chasing 3/.4 million jobs.

No credit crunch
What planet are yoyu living on

 

[vwalan]

forget the surveys get out there and look for your self .as for us being in a third world country wake up we are far from it .ask a few of the funsters that visit other countries. as for jobs alot have been taken by foreign workers that want to work. all i can say is i have 2 bys that are never out of work and most of my friends around here would say the same . we dont need unions they are a thing of the past ,wha we need is for people to wake up and work. as i notice just about all of us here seem to do ok. also as i drive around i think uk is quite well off. its the doom and gloom folk that upset this country. also if folk didnt borrow we wouldnt need so many financial institutions making a fortune . industry started to die here in the 1920,s got better in the 50,s but never moved on .because of bad management and unions. you may keep your union hat on but lift up the visor and change it for a clear one. then look for the way forward .we cant go back. only the people can make change the govt just make themselves rich. there is a fortune out there to be made ,there always as been always will be you just have to find it.

^{_{Subscribers  do not see these advertisements}}

 

[Wintonian]

there is a fortune out there to be made ,there always as been always will be you just have to find it.

I am afraid that this is possibly what lies behind the ills of the UK. People seeking to make a fortune. Anyone who gets rich must do so at the expense of someone else.

The massive profits made by so called "investment bankers" can only be made because someone else makes a loss. Nobody can just fabricate money.

I recognise that profit is important, but moderation is important, too. There is a culture of greed that has taken over in the UK. Fairly dim-witted footballers are paid vast amounts of money to amuse the masses. Their WAGS are paid enormous sums by the rags that are read by the wives and girlfriends of the masses. Everybody is encouraged to drive the latest motor car by the clever ruse of using a highly visible age indicator in vehicle registration plates. The slightest scratch on a car's body is the subject of an insurance claim (it wouldn't do to turn up at the whippet fanciers club in a scratched car) thereby raising the cost of insurance.

Greed even contributes to crime because the have-nots turn to burglary and theft as the only perceived way of getting rich.

I am pleased to note that crime is extremely low in Brittany (and the weather is quite a lot better than the UK, BTW, especially in the Morbihan - hearsay from the many Brits who live in the cheaper parts of Finisterre and Cote d'Armor should not be taken as indicative of the whole of Brittany) and car crime almost non-existent outside the cities. People are generally content and drive around happily in old cars - even the wealthy farmers - it being considered rather vulgar to display wealth.

For those who prefer the "loadsamoney, look at my wad" culture, the Costa del whatever will always be the choice.

 

[vwalan]

hi dave . i live just across the waterin cornwall crime is low here .as is brittany .think thats down to population numbers . i have spent many trips in brittany and thats were i would probably have bought a place. many of my friends live there. unfortunately every where you can tell the age of a car with the numbers.. when i say fortune i meant good life. lets be real .most families have at least 1 car . people on here have a m, home as well ,many several cars.or m,bikes ,trikes. alot go on holiday abroad. some for extended periods . not all have officially retired. the ones that travel to third world countries know that uk is far from third world .in fact we live like kings compared to a third world country.
whats required is to stop borrowing . if you havent got a pound in your pocket you cant spend a pound. the choice is our own. i learnt years ago borrow 300pound pay back 400. save 250 buy the item cash. thats 150 saving on the borrowed money. cash still talks . dont borrow save money .its simple ,and remember investments go up and down. its not the right place to give lectures on finance but all i say is think for your self dont be led by the sheep. dave you can think thats why you are in brittany ,i hope you have a grand time .may bump in to you one day. one of my favourite places iskerfissien up nearplouscat.nice harbour to fish from and carpark to camp .used to go there every month a few years ago . get a 50 quid 5day crossing lovelly. cheers alan.

 

[sedge]

When reading something that says the average UK wage is now whatever (£24k apparently) why is it that my whole life I have always thought, and still do -

'Oh - I wonder exactly when I/my husband will get an increase to the average salary?'

^{_{Subscribers  do not see these advertisements}}

 

[frogijock]

Most French people eat out at lunch time as that is when you get the best deal on meals also if eating out do not buy your wine by the bottle ask for a pichet (caraffe) of wine, this is usually just as good as a bottle costing three times as much.
Buy your beer and wine from Lidle around 30 cents large can, wine South African/Chilean at e1.99 a bottle :thumb:

 

[barryd]

I have to say Im with Wintoian on this one. France is the cheapest country for us. Wintonian is dead right, the UK is full of people who are obsessed with materialistic possessions and keeping up with the Joneses. Who needs a 60" Plasma TV or the latest BMW 5 Series? Well clearly most people in the UK you would think! Our old tele in the back lounge blew up last year and I got a perfectly good replacment 24" or whatever it was in nearly new condition. Guess how much? £2.50 of Ebay. The reason for selling it? Wasnt a plasma and looked old and dated. It still plays the same crap that your 60" plasma does though!

The French arent like that. They are more concerned with lifestyle, enjoying themselves without spending money. You just have to note their obsesion with Le Camping Car to see that. I subscribe to that. When we were in France for 8 weeks in April and May we bought booze at the supermarket (cheaper than here), diesel is still considerably cheaper that UK and although food shopping is a little more (I dont see why a cooked chicken can sometimes be 15Euros but there you go) and as we hardly eat out its cheap. Of course the main saving is camping costs. Aires are mainly free so our average cost per night is usually between £2-3. Try beating that in England.

2 months away and including diesel, petrol for the bike, ferries etc etc was less than £2K. We spend more at home than that.

 

[nevcat]

France used to be a lovely cheap place to eat out and shop, we used to bring back things like coffee, olives, wine, chocolate because they were cheaper there than in England.....not any more. My mum lives in France and she says the when the currency changed to euros, a lot of prices got rounded up, then of course the exchange from sterling to euros is rubbish at the moment.
Its a shame because France has wonderful places to holiday. We wont be going this year though, off to Eastern Europe, out of the euro zone and hoping for cheaper food, drink and campsites!

^{_{Subscribers  do not see these advertisements}}

 

[Braunston]

Hi,

I though Aires were provided by the villages to try and encourage people to come to the village and spend money to keep the economy going, surely if we on route go to the supermarket and buy food cheap and wine and beer then turn up at the village Aire and use it for free aren't we missing the point ?? surely we should be going to the local bar/cafe/restaurant and spending some money in the village, when you then add that cost to the ?free Aire you may find its not so cheap after all, very few things are free in this world that goes for the UK and France.

 

[neilmac]

Hi,

I though Aires were provided by the villages to try and encourage people to come to the village and spend money to keep the economy going, surely if we on route go to the supermarket and buy food cheap and wine and beer then turn up at the village Aire and use it for free aren't we missing the point ?? surely we should be going to the local bar/cafe/restaurant and spending some money in the village, when you then add that cost to the ?free Aire you may find its not so cheap after all, very few things are free in this world that goes for the UK and France.

Hi,

Basically I think you're right about the use of free aires, support should be shown to village in return for the parking facility. We will always spend a bit locally in this instance.

Where aires charge for parking (especially the more expensive ones) we feel less inclined to do so, although we'll still often have a couple of beers at the local bar, or maybe buy provisions at the local supermarket.

 

[Braunston]

Hi, Neil

I'm sure you do, but I'm equally sure there are hundreds who don't and who just think the Aires are free so it doesnt matter, and as i say very few things are free and the people of those villages where Aires have been provided have been paid for out of there own money with the hope and aspirations that it will entice people there to help with there economy, which is great but needs to be at the forefront of our mind when using them that if we don't spend money in the villages then the Aires will start to become less and less or they will start to make higher charges or remove some of the facilities.

Taking the above into account together with the price of eating out in France those free Aires start to become relatively expensive, e.g. free aire £0 + 2 plate du jours at €8.50 = 17€ + 4 drinks 2 beers 1 large 1 small €8.50 2 coffee €6 total €31.50 - UK CL £10 with electric, 2 for £10 meals £10 4 drinks 2 beers 1 large 1 small £5 2 coffee £3.50 total £28.50 ,

I really do like France and have a ferry booked for later in the year but lets not kid ourselves its Expensive.

Hi,

Basically I think you're right about the use of free aires, support should be shown to village in return for the parking facility. We will always spend a bit locally in this instance.

Where aires charge for parking (especially the more expensive ones) we feel less inclined to do so, although we'll still often have a couple of beers at the local bar, or maybe buy provisions at the local supermarket.

^{_{Subscribers  do not see these advertisements}}

 

[barryd]

Even if you dont go out drinking and your keeping the costs down you still end up spending money. You have to buy diesel, we always use the local shops for bread and other foods as its nicer but rarely go out and drink in the bars. Its just silly money. The amount I drink would singly handedly bring France out of recession in 6 months if I drank in the bars every night. Perhaps if they matched UK prices for a pint then I would go more (assuming they knew what a pint was). Nearly ten quid for a beer thats less than a pint and a tiny glass of wine. Its ok for the French they can make a glass of Leffe or Stella last 2 hours but I cant. I love the markets though and often look them up on the net while away and get to as many as possible. Best one we have seen so far was in Cahors. Actually come to think of it we did spend a fortune but it reminded me of food when I was a kid. The strawberries actually tasted like Strawberries you used to get years ago and the cheeses and meats! Lurvely. Only had a couple of meals out though and to be honest they werent that great. Had a lunch in Honfleur that was so bad I sent it back!

 

[Wintonian]

Those of you who have quoted prices for meals in France are not finding the right places to eat. The cognocenti have their lunches where the French workers have theirs! There are so many of the "formule" restaurants on the routes and in villages and towns that they are easy to find. The workers are from all types of work and the car park will be full of vans, trucks as well as luxury saloons and 4x4s. Everyone eats at these restaurants. The atmosphere is usually great, too. Not to be confused with a UK transport caff!

Typically you will find a 4 course meal for about 11 Euros - and that includes all the wine and cider that you can drink. And the food is usually of very good quality. I know that many Brits turn their noses up at French food because it is not heavy on sausages, battered cod, hamburgers etc. With an open mind and a decent palate the French meals, though different (of course), are most enjoyable.

I am a member of a group of British bikers who all live in Brittany (some live in the UK) and we regularly meet to have lunch in such places. None of us is well off, so we like to find a bargain. These restaurants are just that!

If anyone is travelling between Pontivy and Vannes this year, they should make sure they stop off at a fantastic restaurant on the main road to Vannes. But they should also make sure that they have a good appetite. The buffet alone is enough for most people to make a full meal of, and that will be followed by a main course, then cheese and a desert. carafes of wine (your choice) and/or cider are on the table, too.

You can't miss it: the restaurant has a tall post with an artic tractor unit mounted on top advertising its presence! It is called Le Manegwen and is located near Locqueltas. Even better is the fact that Locqueltas village has a very nice little aire on the entrance to - and within walking distance of - the village. Fresh water, grey and black water emptying and electric hook-up if you wish. The electricity is all you will pay for when you ask for a key at the Mairie or the Bar-Tabac.

By the way, Barry, I make a 25cl bottle of Leffe 9% last an hour at home. I always drink it from the Leffe stemmed glass. That way one can appreciate the aroma - like drinking wine - rather than just guzzling it down (which is what I used to do with pints of watery british beer). A dozen bottles of the 9% Leffe is much cheaper than buying beer in a bar. But if you do what the locals do, and order a glass of Kir, you will pay very little for the drink.

 

[neilmac]

That's really interesting Wintonian :thumb:

If you order 'Kir' what do you get? ie what is it?

^{_{Subscribers  do not see these advertisements}}

 

[vwalan]

kir is white wine and cassis a blackcurrant liquor. or just have red wine and water or lemonade.
if in spain wine and gaseosa.
france can be good for plate dejour . take what you get .
look for the les routierre restaurants.
but if you wanta real nice beer you need adelscot.
its beer brewed with whiskey in it. mmmmmm

 

[violet]

T
Typically you will find a 4 course meal for about 11 Euros - and that includes all the wine and cider that you can drink. And the food is usually of very good quality.

Glad to hear these meals are good in Brittany as it's a while since we've found an 'ouvriers' menu that we thought was particularly good quality. We eat out less and less in France and it's not because of price but quality. Yes there are some very good places, but without prior knowledge or a trusted recommendation you can end up eating poor food. We also feel that quality in the shops has decreased. There is nowhere we know that sells the range and quality we get here from Waitrose. The last chicken I bought in France was over €15 and didn't taste anything special. Hypermarket/supermarket food is expensive and if you don't watch the prices going through at the checkout you'll likely be overcharged. Carrefour, which has actually shown a recent improvement in range is currently doing '3 for 2' offers but two of these we bought simply didn't get charged as such at the checkout. We are not the only ones to say this.
We are having a short break in the UK and today ate at a good restaurant in Norwich city centre. Fair enough we had a promotion code, but paid £38 for 4 adults to eat an excellent 3 course meal and share a bottle of decent wine.
We love France, we spend a lot of our time there. We love the UK and spend a lot of our time there. Both countries have good and less good aspects. We wouldn't run Britain down as in our experience it is a really good place to live,
Violet

 

[ips]

We go to nice quite often and have eaten in lots of good restaurants incl some in monte carlo. Never found it particularily expensive compared to places like the lakes however quality no better than some uk eateries. As is always the case it depends were and when you go and you can spend a lot or a little with no guarantee of it being bad or good. we have eaten out so often over the years we are now bored with it and prefer to spend £15 on 2 fillet steaks from local farm shop and make it at home or in van, never had a better meal out than anything mrs ips can make and thats not said for brownie points.

^{_{Subscribers  do not see these advertisements}}