Euro 2016 kicks off in a month’s time and 24 teams will head to France to battle it out to become champions of Europe. With England, Wales, Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland all qualifying, there are high hopes for the Home Nations (and Ireland) to make a major impact on the tournament. We’ve teamed up with the Foreign & Commonwealth Office, who have published a series of guidelines to help travelling supporters stay safe during the tournament as part of their #BeOnTheBall campaign.
Alongside travel advice from the FCO, we’ve selected ten alternative destinations to stay in during the Euros in order to help supporters avoid the high hotel prices and low accommodation availability in the host cities. Each off-the-beaten-track destination is within a two-hour drive of the stadium and offers both cheaper prices and higher availability. Here’s our guide to the best sights and attractions…
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Book to stay in Reims
Notre-Dame de Reims – Photo by Chi King
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The Stade de France will host seven matches during Euro 2016 including the final, and is located just north of Paris in Saint-Denis, where the average match day price for a double hotel room is £226. However, supporters can save up to 194% by staying one hour and thirty minutes north-east in the city of Reims, where the average match day hotel room price is £77.
Reims houses the 13th-century Notre-Dame de Reims, a huge Gothic cathedral where the kings of France were crowned in days of yore and one of the most beautiful buildings of the Middle Ages in Europe. Reims also features handsome pedestrian boulevards, Roman remains and art deco cafés, and is home to everyone’s favourite celebratory tipple, Champagne.
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Book to stay in Aix en Provence
La Poste d’Aix-en-Provence – Photo by decar66
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England’s opening Group B match is against Russia at Stade Vélodrome in Marseille on France’s south coast, where average match day hotel prices are £224. Supporters travelling to France to cheer on Roy’s Boys can save 45% by staying just 45 minutes away in the tranquil hillside town of Aix-en-Provence, where the average match day hotel room price is £155.
Featuring leafy boulevards and public squares lined with noble 17th and 18th-century architecture in keeping with its aristocratic heritage, Aix-en-Provence exudes sophistication. Visitors to the town can expect to find a thriving market, vibrant café life and chic designer shops.
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Book to stay in Dijon
Place François-Rude, Dijon – Photo by dierk Schaefer
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Northern Ireland fans will be heading to Lyon to watch the Green and White Army’s Group C match against Ukraine. But whereas average match day hotel prices in Lyon are £263, there are great deals to be found in Dijon. Although it’s quite a long drive, the average match day hotel room price is £79, and there is much greater hotel availability.
Situated in the east of France, Dijon is home to a number of gastronomic delights, from the world-famous Dijon mustard to snails. The city is also a feast for the eyes, with many elegant medieval and Renaissance buildings including the Musée des Beaux-Arts de Dijon, housed in the Palace of the Dukes of Burgundy. One of the oldest museums in France, it is renowned for the richness and variety of its collection, stretching from Egyptian art to the 20th century.
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Book to stay in Kortrijk, Belgium
Broel Towers, Kortrijk – Photo by Along time ago…
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The Republic of Ireland face Italy on 22 June at Stade Pierre Mauroy in Lille, the city with the highest average match day hotel price of £381. Just 30 minutes away across the French-Belgian border lies the city of Kortrijk, where hotel prices are 301% cheaper, with an average match day price of £95.
Though small, Kortrijk certainly punches above its weight when it comes to sights and things to do. The 14th-century Broel Towers are the city’s major landmark, and its Gothic heritage is also evident in the Grote Markt market square, at the centre of which lies the Belfry, a remnant of the medieval cloth hall. There are plenty of parks and gardens to bask in the summer sun, the highlight being King Albert Park which fringes the crossroads of Kortrijk’s main waterways and spans two hectares.
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Book to stay in La Rochelle
Vieux Port, La Rochelle – Photo by giuliaduepuntozero
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Both Wales and the Republic of Ireland will play group matches in Bordeaux during the tournament, with average match day hotel prices in the wine country reaching £240 during the tournament and limited availability. Holidaymakers can save 173% by opting to stay one hour 45 minutes away in the beautiful maritime town of La Rochelle instead, where average match day prices are £88.
Known as La Ville Blanche (the White City), La Rochelle is located on the Bay of Biscay and has one of the largest marinas in the country. This coastal town is awash with rich architecture, including the standout Vieux Port (Old Harbour), and also boasts a state-of-the-art aquarium, attractive gardens and a natural history museum.
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Book to stay in Chartres
Chartres Cathedral – Photo by The LEAF Project
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Northern Ireland take on Germany at the Parc des Princes on 21 June, and fans travelling to Paris can expect average match day hotel prices of £212. Supporters can save 147% an hour south-west of the French capital by staying in the pretty city of Chartres, where the average match day price is £86.
Chartres is famed for its iconic cathedral featuring two towering spires – one Gothic, the other Romanesque – as well as flying buttresses and elaborate rose windows. Today, it is France’s best-preserved medieval cathedral. Other sights include the Eure River, which divides into three branches and is crossed by several bridges. The steep, narrow streets of the old town contrast with the wide, shady boulevards which separate it from the suburbs.
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Book to stay in Carcassonne
Carcassonne – Photo by Nelson Minar
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Wales have a Group B clash against Russia in Toulouse, where hotel rooms reach an average match day price of £184. Welsh fans can save 122% by staying an hour away in the walled city of Carcassonne, where average match day prices are £83.
Perched on a rocky hilltop, Carcassonne is a medieval citadel famous for its 53 watchtowers and double-walled fortifications, akin to something out of a fairytale. Beneath the city’s fortified castle is the Ville Basse, a mostly modern town that is home to several impressive hotels and religious buildings, as well as Carcassonne’s colourful and lively covered market, featuring stalls that are piled high with the produce of the region.
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Book to stay in Ypres, Belgium
Ypres Cloth Hall – Photo by Bernt Rostad
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There’s an all-British match-up at Stade Bollaert-Delelis in Lens on Thursday 16 June, as England face Wales in Group B. The average match day price for a hotel in the northern French town is £172. Fans of England and Wales can save 89% by staying in the nearby small Belgian city of Ypres.
To experience Ypres is incredibly moving, as some 300,000 Allied soldiers died in the ‘Salient’, a bulge that formed the front line around the town during World War I, and there are many memorials and museums dedicated to the conflict. The city’s medieval Cloth Hall was one of the largest commercial buildings of the Middle Ages, when it served as the main market and warehouse for the city’s prosperous cloth industry. It was immaculately reconstructed following the war, and is one of the most impressive sights in the whole of Belgium.
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Book to stay in Cagnes-sur-Mer
Cagnes-sur-Mer – Photo by Jeremy Couture
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Northern Ireland take on Poland in Nice, located in the Côte d’Azur region of south east France. Average match day hotel prices in this sunny coastal city reach £233, compared to just £117 in the Nice suburb of Cagnes-sur-Mer, which is just a 15-minute drive from the stadium. Although there are less hotels, there is currently greater availability, and a 99% saving in average hotel price.
As well as many woods and parks, places of interest in this small town include the painter Pierre-Auguste Renoir’s estate Les Collettes, which is surrounded by olive trees. Renoir moved to Cagnes-sur-Mer in 1907 in an attempt to improve his arthritis, and remained until his death in 1919. Visitors can also visit a medieval castle and the Cros quarter, which was founded by Italian fishermen in the 19th century.
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Book to stay in Clermont-Ferrand
Place de Jaude, Clermont-Ferrand – Photo by jean-louis Zimmermann
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England face Slovakia in a potentially crucial Group B match at Stade Geoffroy Guichard in Saint-Etienne on Monday 20 June. Fans heading to this city based in eastern central France can expect to pay an average of £164, though just 5% of hotels remain available. Clermont-Ferrand is an underrated gem of a city just one hour 20 minutes away, and with average match day hotel prices of £63, supporters can save 160% compared to Saint-Etienne.
Primarily, Clermont-Ferrand is famous for the Chaîne des Puys, a chain of ancient dormant volcanoes that surround it. The city also boasts a beautiful twin-turreted cathedral, scores of fountains and impressive 18th-century mansions. Clermont-Ferrand’s most famous public space is Place de Jaude, which was originally founded in the Roman times before being abandoned in the Middle Ages. It was later restored to its former glory with the erection of many monuments, including the Opera Theatre and Saint-Pierre-des-Minimes Church.
#BeOnTheBall
In addition to these alternative destinations, the FCO have provided us with some useful travel tips for supporters heading to France, from arranging the right travel insurance to ensuring tickets are purchased from a creditable source:
Source: Foreign & Commonwealth Office
For more information, head to the FCO website or join the conversation on Twitter.
Are you heading to France for the Euros? Let us know where you’re staying in the comments below…
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