Marseille-Hire a taxi-driver at Marseille port for one day???

[qiaochan8]

We are going to be in Marseille in June 2011 through Carnival Mag.

 

However, it will almost be the last day of the trip, not sure if kids will still like to go for a tour anymore. So a tour booked in advance is not feasible to me.

 

 

We plan to hire a taxi driver at the Marseille port to drive us to Avignon and a quick tour around Luberon villages for total 8 hours.

 

 

We don't necessarily need a guide, a driver who speaks English is good enough.

 

Is it easy to find a taxi driver at the Marseille port?

How much is the cost in general for a group of 4 people for 8 hours?

Does my plan sound feasible?

 

 

Thank you very much

[Hlitner]

Wow. A taxi for the day? Keep in mind that French taxis do not work cheap. Not sure of the exact cost in Marseille (it would be negotiable) but you better be prepared with about 400 Euros. You also need to know that taxis are not always easy to find in Marselle. On our last visit (this past May) 4 of us wanted to grab a taxi from the train station back to the ship only to find that there were no taxis at the train station (we finally walked over to the old port and caught the shuttle back to the port). As an alternative you could simply take the train between Marseille and Avignon (check the schedules on the Raileurope site) keeping in mind that there are two kinds of trains on this route, the regional trains (TER) and the high speed TGV. The regional trains run right to Avignon Central which is a short walk (across the street) to the walled old city of Avignon whereas the TGV trains go to a special TGV station that is a couple of miles from the old town (they do run a local shuttle bus into town). The regional trains do not require reservations but you would need to reserve seats for the TGV.

 

Hank

[qiaochan8]

Thanks a lot, Hlitner.

 

I can either take the train to Avignon on my own or take Carnival's tour to Gordes/Roussillon. Ideally, I want to see all of them. And that is why I first thought to hire a taxi driver and let the driver show me all these places quickly.

 

If I have to pick one of these two destinations, which one I should pick, Avignon or Gordes/Roussillon? I never been to France and really wish sometime I can have two weeks and drive by all these places.

[Hlitner]

Thanks a lot, Hlitner.

 

I can either take the train to Avignon on my own or take Carnival's tour to Gordes/Roussillon. Ideally, I want to see all of them. And that is why I first thought to hire a taxi driver and let the driver show me all these places quickly.

 

If I have to pick one of these two destinations, which one I should pick, Avignon or Gordes/Roussillon? I never been to France and really wish sometime I can have two weeks and drive by all these places.

 

Trust me that even in two weeks you would hardly scratch the surface of this region of France. As Avignon vs the excursion it is one of those personal choices where you will be right either way. Keep in mind that these are two totally different options. Visiting Avignon means you will spend your day in a large walled old town area which has everything from the old Papal Palace to a modern congested shopping area. Your excursion option, on the other hand, gives you a more rural view of Provence with time in Gordes...which is a small village when compared to the large city of Avignon. So, do you want to spend your time in a fascinatiing city or out in the countryside?

 

We really cannot help with this decision. In fact, your queston made me recall our first visit to this region (over twenty years ago) where we spent 4 nights inside the walls of Avignon and loved every moment. But on our most recent visit we spent two weeks in the village of St Remy (about 15 miles outside Avignon) and never even visited Avignon. Both trips were great.

 

Hank

[CruisingGoddess]

We used SSK Dreamliner tour Marseille and Aix-en-Provence. I was pretty happy with them because you can let them know what you want to see and they'll figure out the best routes to take. Or if you want to let them handle everything, they can do that too. You can read the full review, including all the places we went, on my blog:

 

http://moonprincess.com/travel/category/cruises/europe-2009/