First Europe trip - Preparing for Paris
As soon as I received my 3rd payslip in London, the very first thing I did is to apply for schengen visa.
I, along with few others, decided against package tours and wanted to plan and prepare on our own. Needless to say, there are more than a few hiccups along the way and I am going to try and list the lessons learnt/things to remember for future reference 😁.
1. Choosing the embassy: applying for Schengen tourist visa from London gave access to multiple embassies to choose from. French embassy is known to give visa valid for longer duration and hence preferred by many. Some of our friends had to choose Italian embassy and got 45 days Visa and Spain only gives Visa valid for the length of stay. Swiss embassy gives visa for about 3 months. I went for French as I planned for Paris.
If multiple European countries are included in the visit, the embassy of the country where the stay is maximum should be chosen.
2. Documents: list of documents required is given in the website along with the application, however, there are few things to be taken care of.
a. Group application: When traveling with group, all are required to apply together even if they aren't related. In such cases, there is a good possibility that everyone gets same duration which means everyone's duration would be limited by the one with eligibility to least duration.
b. Applicant's name: Every document should have the applicant's name on it. This is not mentioned in the website (or we missed it somehow) and my friend had to go through good deal of trouble because his bus ticket didn't have the passenger's name. He had to pay extra for internet access and got another document from travel agency.
c. Itinerary: I don't remember seeing this in document list, but high level itinerary is required. If more than one European country is included in the plan, travel documents for each country are to be included according to the dates mentioned in the itinerary. If the max stay is not in their country, the embassy mostly will not accept the application.
d. Bank statement: the logo of the bank should be included in the statement along with the name of account holder. I initially got a statement without logo. But, after my friend's processing, I went back to my bank and to get another statement. This time, I told them why I want the statement. They not only prepared the document in required format, but also included a recommendation letter 😄. Tip: always state the purpose and try to go during non-peak hours.
When I went to submit my application, the person who verified my documents is delighted as I was the only applicant he proceeded that day who didn't apply in a group and had only one place in the itinerary. He even remarked how good my documents were and, when I mentioned that I got them reviewed by my friend who applied before, he looked at me like I was an angel appeared to bless him with life full of happiness👼😄. I got the maximum possible duration i.e., until 3 months before my passport expiry (if my passport wasn't expiring in 8 months at that time, I would have gotten longer than 5 months 😌).
3. Journey: we took Thursday and Friday off and booked a flight to Paris on Thursday afternoon as the flight costs are cheaper on working days. Return journey was through bus starting from Paris on Sunday night and reaching London by Monday morning. However, I thought it would have been better if I took Monday and Tuesday off instead, and booked the flight for return as it would be less tiring and would give enough time to relax before resuming to hectic work schedule. I couldn't sleep in the bus as they stopped every couple of hours for border checks and ferry crossing. As fun as ferry ride is ( with the best duty free store 😍 and watching English channel from the deck), struggling to stay awake for 2-3 hours in the middle of night isn't a delightful experience. I would have enjoyed the best, had I took the bus on Saturday morning.
4. Accommodation: Initially thought it would be good to book the accommodation close to city center (normally whatever amount I save in room cost booking further away, would be covered in commute charges😑 not to mention the extra time spent). However, I didn't have to worry about that - everywhere in Europe have well connected transportation with good frequency.
5. Commute within the city: we didn't really plan much about it. However, we found quite a few options - train, tram and bato bus. Train station have various options to get tickets - one time tickets valid for single journey costs around 1.85€ (when 10 or 20 tickets are bought together, the price reduces. Ex: we bought 10 for about 15€). Those tickets could also be used in trams (but we traveled mostly by train). I believe they have daily passes too but we didn't try it. Then there is bato bus which is hop on hop off boat service. It covers 7 major tourist attractions including Eiffel tower, Louvre, Notre Dame, Champs Elysees etc., Only Sacre Coeur is not in the way. One day pass costs 17€ while 2 day pass costs 19€. Better to get to any attraction using train and take bato bus for rest of the day. They run until 9-9:30p.m with a frequency of 20 mins. Especially from Eiffel tower, boat is better option as the stop is right next to it while train station is about 15 min walk away.
Downloading the metro map and saving screenshots of directions always helps in case the mobile data wouldn't work/WiFi not available.
6. High level plan: while it is fun to have an unplanned travel, a little bit of planning might help save some time which could be used to explore a new place.
Few tips for Paris:
- Best time go to Eiffel tower is hour before sunset. That way we can see both day and night view in single visit.
- Plan museum trips based on their opening time rather than closing time as they tend to take longer than intended. Moreover, they might close early on few days which might not get updated in website or we tend to overlook and there could be unexpected blockers on the way which could cut into the precious time (I know how much my beloved sister would agree on this area😈).
- if there is a wishlist (shopping, dining etc.,), a little pre-travel research could help save time as well as money. Ex: pharmacies are best places to buy skin care products in Europe especially Paris. If a famous french dish is not in the menu, it doesn't mean it is not available. I was disappointed that I couldn't find creme brulee and ordered crepes instead. Then I checked with the waiter, upon my friend's suggestion - not only I got the dish I wished for, the waiter was delighted when I asked for it and was happy to cancel my previous order of crepes💃.
- in many European cities, Sundays are holidays for everyone. It could get extremely difficult to find a shop or restaurant even in the most touristy areas. Better to plan sightseeing on Sundays and reserve shopping trips to rest of the days. I still managed to get some macaroons and chocolates in the road between Louvre and institute of music near galleries de la Fayette (BTW Paris is also a great place to buy confectioneries) but the place seemed completely deserted.
- wear comfortable footwear as there is no possibility of avoiding walking. Even if we travel by car, heels are not at all suitable for long queues at ticket counters to Eiffel tower, hours of walking in Louvre or Notre Dame or climbing the long flight of stairs to Sacre Coeur. Also make sure to have enough stamina.
Currency exchange: can't believe I forgot to add this one. I found the best place to exchange was near our home in East ham. Airport exchange charges extremely high commission and better left as last resort. Most places accept cards which is my personal preference to pay. Some even offer option to pay in pounds and Euros. Opting to pay in pounds is beneficial for UK account holders as there won't be transaction fees involved when paid in pounds.
Few simple and important things mostly found in every travel site - get some information about local culture, dos and don'ts and things to be aware of/guarded from.
I, along with few others, decided against package tours and wanted to plan and prepare on our own. Needless to say, there are more than a few hiccups along the way and I am going to try and list the lessons learnt/things to remember for future reference 😁.
1. Choosing the embassy: applying for Schengen tourist visa from London gave access to multiple embassies to choose from. French embassy is known to give visa valid for longer duration and hence preferred by many. Some of our friends had to choose Italian embassy and got 45 days Visa and Spain only gives Visa valid for the length of stay. Swiss embassy gives visa for about 3 months. I went for French as I planned for Paris.
If multiple European countries are included in the visit, the embassy of the country where the stay is maximum should be chosen.
2. Documents: list of documents required is given in the website along with the application, however, there are few things to be taken care of.
a. Group application: When traveling with group, all are required to apply together even if they aren't related. In such cases, there is a good possibility that everyone gets same duration which means everyone's duration would be limited by the one with eligibility to least duration.
b. Applicant's name: Every document should have the applicant's name on it. This is not mentioned in the website (or we missed it somehow) and my friend had to go through good deal of trouble because his bus ticket didn't have the passenger's name. He had to pay extra for internet access and got another document from travel agency.
c. Itinerary: I don't remember seeing this in document list, but high level itinerary is required. If more than one European country is included in the plan, travel documents for each country are to be included according to the dates mentioned in the itinerary. If the max stay is not in their country, the embassy mostly will not accept the application.
d. Bank statement: the logo of the bank should be included in the statement along with the name of account holder. I initially got a statement without logo. But, after my friend's processing, I went back to my bank and to get another statement. This time, I told them why I want the statement. They not only prepared the document in required format, but also included a recommendation letter 😄. Tip: always state the purpose and try to go during non-peak hours.
When I went to submit my application, the person who verified my documents is delighted as I was the only applicant he proceeded that day who didn't apply in a group and had only one place in the itinerary. He even remarked how good my documents were and, when I mentioned that I got them reviewed by my friend who applied before, he looked at me like I was an angel appeared to bless him with life full of happiness👼😄. I got the maximum possible duration i.e., until 3 months before my passport expiry (if my passport wasn't expiring in 8 months at that time, I would have gotten longer than 5 months 😌).
3. Journey: we took Thursday and Friday off and booked a flight to Paris on Thursday afternoon as the flight costs are cheaper on working days. Return journey was through bus starting from Paris on Sunday night and reaching London by Monday morning. However, I thought it would have been better if I took Monday and Tuesday off instead, and booked the flight for return as it would be less tiring and would give enough time to relax before resuming to hectic work schedule. I couldn't sleep in the bus as they stopped every couple of hours for border checks and ferry crossing. As fun as ferry ride is ( with the best duty free store 😍 and watching English channel from the deck), struggling to stay awake for 2-3 hours in the middle of night isn't a delightful experience. I would have enjoyed the best, had I took the bus on Saturday morning.
4. Accommodation: Initially thought it would be good to book the accommodation close to city center (normally whatever amount I save in room cost booking further away, would be covered in commute charges😑 not to mention the extra time spent). However, I didn't have to worry about that - everywhere in Europe have well connected transportation with good frequency.
5. Commute within the city: we didn't really plan much about it. However, we found quite a few options - train, tram and bato bus. Train station have various options to get tickets - one time tickets valid for single journey costs around 1.85€ (when 10 or 20 tickets are bought together, the price reduces. Ex: we bought 10 for about 15€). Those tickets could also be used in trams (but we traveled mostly by train). I believe they have daily passes too but we didn't try it. Then there is bato bus which is hop on hop off boat service. It covers 7 major tourist attractions including Eiffel tower, Louvre, Notre Dame, Champs Elysees etc., Only Sacre Coeur is not in the way. One day pass costs 17€ while 2 day pass costs 19€. Better to get to any attraction using train and take bato bus for rest of the day. They run until 9-9:30p.m with a frequency of 20 mins. Especially from Eiffel tower, boat is better option as the stop is right next to it while train station is about 15 min walk away.
Downloading the metro map and saving screenshots of directions always helps in case the mobile data wouldn't work/WiFi not available.
6. High level plan: while it is fun to have an unplanned travel, a little bit of planning might help save some time which could be used to explore a new place.
Few tips for Paris:
- Best time go to Eiffel tower is hour before sunset. That way we can see both day and night view in single visit.
- Plan museum trips based on their opening time rather than closing time as they tend to take longer than intended. Moreover, they might close early on few days which might not get updated in website or we tend to overlook and there could be unexpected blockers on the way which could cut into the precious time (I know how much my beloved sister would agree on this area😈).
- if there is a wishlist (shopping, dining etc.,), a little pre-travel research could help save time as well as money. Ex: pharmacies are best places to buy skin care products in Europe especially Paris. If a famous french dish is not in the menu, it doesn't mean it is not available. I was disappointed that I couldn't find creme brulee and ordered crepes instead. Then I checked with the waiter, upon my friend's suggestion - not only I got the dish I wished for, the waiter was delighted when I asked for it and was happy to cancel my previous order of crepes💃.
- in many European cities, Sundays are holidays for everyone. It could get extremely difficult to find a shop or restaurant even in the most touristy areas. Better to plan sightseeing on Sundays and reserve shopping trips to rest of the days. I still managed to get some macaroons and chocolates in the road between Louvre and institute of music near galleries de la Fayette (BTW Paris is also a great place to buy confectioneries) but the place seemed completely deserted.
- wear comfortable footwear as there is no possibility of avoiding walking. Even if we travel by car, heels are not at all suitable for long queues at ticket counters to Eiffel tower, hours of walking in Louvre or Notre Dame or climbing the long flight of stairs to Sacre Coeur. Also make sure to have enough stamina.
Currency exchange: can't believe I forgot to add this one. I found the best place to exchange was near our home in East ham. Airport exchange charges extremely high commission and better left as last resort. Most places accept cards which is my personal preference to pay. Some even offer option to pay in pounds and Euros. Opting to pay in pounds is beneficial for UK account holders as there won't be transaction fees involved when paid in pounds.
Few simple and important things mostly found in every travel site - get some information about local culture, dos and don'ts and things to be aware of/guarded from.
Comments
Post a Comment