Getting to Nantes cheap?

[lulu_bucket]

Need to get to Nantes 22nd September cheap? Can fly but no flights back on 23rd or could do tunnel to calais but how do we get from calais to nantes? HELP - lots of ways please. St Malo is the nearest port if we ferry it. Thanks

[Buenchico]

(2-part post):

I've got a 'pet hate' about AB's Travel section. It's all those people who tell us where they want to get to but forget to say where they're starting from ;-)

When you say that there are outbound flights on the 22nd, but none back on the 23rd, you might be referring to either East Midlands airport or Bournemouth airport (which means that you could be almost anywhere in the UK).

In the absence of any other information, I'll assume that you're within reach of London. In which case, your statement that there are no return flights on 23rd isn't strictly true. There are certainly no cheap flights but Ryanair has a flight to Stansted and BA has two flights to Gatwick.

However, the cheapest way to do things might be as follows:

Fly out from Stansted by whatever route you were originally considering. (Ryanair have a flight at 1730. It arrives at 1950. The fare is nominally �0.01. With taxes and charges it comes to �25.21)
http://www.ryanair.com/site/EN/

On Sunday, take the 0849 train from Nantes to St Pierre des Corps. It arrives at 1033 and connects with the 1041 shuttle service to Tours (arrives 1046). The fare is �19.00. Details are here:
http://www.sncf.co.uk/

[Buenchico]

Get a bite to eat in Tours, then catch the 1215 shuttle bus, from the front of the station, to Tours airport. The fare is �5 (about �3.50).
Catch the 1345 flight to Stansted, arriving at 1405. The nominal fare is �89.99. With taxes and charges, that comes to �115.04 (about �80).

That gives you a total return price, ex Stansted, of around �110.

Those times are fine if
(a) you can travel from Stansted ; and
(b) you're only travelling to, say, drop your kids off with their grandparents and then return straight home (i.e. you don't get any time to enjoy Nantes).

If you can't travel from Stansted or you need to be in Nantes for longer (e.g. to attend a wedding), please post again with further information.

Chris

[Buenchico]

PS: if your suggestion of using the tunnel refers to Eurostar services, there would be no point in getting off at Calais because you need to travel via Paris to get to Nantes. Through travel, from Waterloo to Nantes, can be booked on the SNCF link, above. For example, leaving Waterloo at 0709, you can be in Nantes at 1410. The fare is �84.50 (single). Later trains are available. There's a choice of return trains on Sunday, priced at either �89.50 or �99.50.

Note:
(i) like airline prices, Eurostar fares rise nearer to the date of travel and as the cheaper tickets are sold ; and
(ii) trains from Paris to Nantes leave from Montparnasse station. You'd have to take the Metro (or a taxi) to get there from Gare du Nord.

If your reference to the tunnel means that you're thinking of taking the car, you can plan your route across France with the ViaMichelin route planner:
http://www.viamichelin.com/viamichelin/int/tpl /hme/MaHomePage.htm

Chris

[Buenchico]

Oops!

Sorry about my poor addition. (Never trust someone with a degree in mathematics to add up!). I forgot to include the rail fare in my calculation, above. The total return fare, from Stansted to Nantes, should have been given as just under �130, not �110.

Chris