Categories: Family Travel, Travel with Mobility Issues
Mother-Daughter Celebrating a 75th Birthday in France
Who Was Traveling?
Vanessa Christman
Liz VandeWeg, 75: Vanessa’s mom, trip honoree
Jamie Poirier, 42: Vanessa’s best friend of almost 20 years
Did You Have Favorite Restaurants?
Le Petit Honfleur, Blois:
– Notes: Multi-course seafood-only dinner tasting menu we didn’t realize we booked but were so grateful we did. The wine pairings were the best we’ve ever had and it was packed with locals who were very kind to us. We stayed for four hours and talked to other guests in the street after the meal
Le Carré d’Alethius, Charmes-sur-Rhône:
– Notes: Our first ever Michelin-starred multi-course dining experience, which was fancy but approachable and comfortable. The serving staff was polite and professional and the sommelier was a genius. I will dream about the cheeseboard.
Fontevraud le Restaurant, Fontevraud-l’Abbaye:
– Notes: Another multi-course-themed lunch dining experience I didn’t realize I booked but was glad I did!
The theme was a little out there (inspired by the expensive tastes of the historic hermit who lived in the hills and came down during full moons to steal only the best items from the Abbey gardens/cellars? I think?) but each course was unbelievably good.
Also:
– Les Planches Sainte-Maxime, Sainte-Maxime
– Bar des Arcades, Tournus
– Benoit, Paris (just Jamie)
– Café Renoir, Musée du Montmartre (just Vanessa)
What Were You Favorite Foods on this Trip?
Jamie and I are foodies, open to trying anything with the caveat that Jamie is a Pescatarian. My mom is extremely picky at home but transformed into a vacation gourmand thanks to the multi-course tasting experiences, wine pairings, and encouraging servers.
We had lots of seafood thanks to booking multi-course prix fixe menus (sometimes accidentally), and we all loved it. My mom even ate octopus which I still can’t believe.
The cheese was mind-blowingly good, making me furious we don’t have the same quality at home.
The wine pairings made the meals come alive and we especially liked the wines from Condrieu AOC, reds from Gigondas, and whites/sparkling from Loire Valley.
– Thoughts on restaurants in France: there are so many to choose from, especially in touristy areas.
Researching to ensure positive reviews came from French people paid off for us, as we found restaurants frequented by French people and the quality was high!
– We found service to be polite and professional in higher-end places and they were especially happy when we asked questions or provided compliments.
– In less touristy areas like Tournus, servers and owners were friendly and spent time chatting with us. One server in Paris was excited to chat about popular cigarette types and wrote down recommendations for us (we don’t smoke, we were just curious from people-watching).
– Our only negative experiences were expected but we tried them anyway due to curiosity: French “tacos” at O’Tacos and a weird but huge Chinese food buffet in Blois (it wasn’t all bad at the buffet but it was definitely a strange experience).
How Did You Get Around?
We mostly drove, and ended up driving over 2,000 miles which would probably be a lot for most people, but as Californians it didn’t seem bad at all as we broke it into chunks.
We loved the French toll road system. My mom especially appreciated all of the aires/rest stops for her (many) bathroom breaks.
We didn’t run into problems driving, though we were amused by the number of roundabouts and made a game of counting and betting on how many we’d encounter on each drive.
The lanes disappearing after large toll booths for merging was a bit crazy, but California traffic prepares us for almost anything.
A man in Tournus stopped us after we parked in front of his house, we thought he was mad at us for parking there but he was pointing out water leaking from our car and warning us to be careful to make sure it wasn’t a leak. We were really touched by his concern.
We did take a day trip via rail into Paris in back from Orleans.
What Did You Learn About France on this Trip?
– If you’re thoughtful and polite, people will show you the same respect.
– I think people were extra patient and thoughtful with us because of my mother and her walking/mobility challenges (and I felt the same way when I traveled to France with my younger children too).
– I now understand why the French revere their chefs so much. We ate like queens and the service was wonderful.
– Research pays off, especially in avoiding tourist traps.
– Even with extensive planning, things will always be challenging for people with limited mobility (though this isn’t reserved to just France). I would do some things differently in the future if traveling with my mom.
– Driving opens up many opportunities to learn about the countryside. We found areas we’d love to explore further.
– My mom and Jamie were nervous about stereotypes of rude servers and general perceptions of coldness amongst the French, but abandoned that idea almost immediately after encountering polite, kind, and helpful people everywhere (I also made them listen to podcast episodes about etiquette).
Did You Make Any Mistakes on this Trip?
Yes! I sure did:
– As much as it pains me to admit, I think that when traveling with someone with limited mobility, it’s safer and smarter to go with known hotel chains that clearly state they have rooms for disabled persons and elevators.
– For AirBnBs and smaller hotels/destinations, I wish I had not taken room descriptions and pictures at face value and would have called or written to request more pictures and describe my mom’s limitations.
– It wasn’t a deal-breaker, we made it work, but perhaps the staff could have done more to assist if they had known in advance about my mom’s specific limitations (like getting a special chair for the shower/bath).
Is There Something You Wouldn’t Recommend?
– While we loved exploring Martigues, especially from the water, we booked a boat and a skipper leaving from there for a day trip along the coast. It was windy on the open Mediterranean that day, making the choppy ride downright painful and it felt straight up dangerous sometimes. The Skipper mentioned the wind in messages beforehand but should have been clearer or just canceled. I’m glad my mom didn’t join us as she could have been seriously injured.
– One of the main reasons for going to the Loire Valley is because my mom is obsessed with Eleanor of Aquitaine, but she was a little disappointed by Fontevraud Abbey. Of course, I predicted this because I had listened to the podcast but she still wanted to go.
– This is my second time in the Loire Valley, and I think I’m all Chateau’d out, and am looking forward to seeing a different region, though I may go back someday just to stay at La Rabouillere again.
What Tips Can You Share with Other Visitors?
– Extensive research pays off, especially when selecting restaurants and avoiding tourist traps. I prioritized sorting reviews by French language first, so I saw the local perspective represented most of all.
– I always look for smaller or mid-sized towns with a tourism infrastructure, but ones that seem to cater to mostly French tourists. You get a more authentic experience but there are still lots of restaurants and activities to choose from.
– Even though I know better, I’m still always surprised by the limited hours of even major stores like hypermarkets.
– Don’t take room descriptions at face value if you’re traveling with someone with mobility challenges. Call or email and ask questions. Beware of hidden steps and stairs.
– Be careful of boat trips too, lol.
– Once we said we were from California, French people all wanted to talk to us about how they want to visit California and it was really fun. We must have invited like 20 people to come visit us.
– I tend to favor authentic and down-to-earth restaurants, but I’m so glad I tried a Michelin-starred restaurant. It was a true experience, as much an art exhibit as it was a dining experience.
– Southern Burgundy and the Rhône River Valley were standouts for us for the natural beauty.
Overall Was this Trip Restful or Stressful?
– Oh we did too much. But I wouldn’t do it any other way because my mom’s health is precarious and she may not be able to travel for very much longer. I am glad I built in some rest days for her as it allowed Jamie and I to go off on our own and explore (but I think the Paris day trip was too much).
– It wasn’t restful but it wasn’t stressful either. It was tiring, but we were satisfied we were able to see essentially everything we set out to see.
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Episode Page TranscriptCategories: Family Travel, Travel with Mobility Issues