France is an easy country to travel in, but a few local habits surprise visitors and cost time or money when ignored.
Trains and long distances
The TGV network links the major cities at speeds that make domestic flights pointless: Paris to Lyon in two hours, Marseille in three, Bordeaux in two hours five. Tickets are far cheaper booked weeks ahead, with price gaps of up to four to one. Regional trains are slower, charge a fixed fare and need no reservation.
Driving, tolls and fuel
Motorways are tolled at roughly 9 euros per 100 kilometres. The free national road network is slower but often more enjoyable. Limits are 130 kilometres per hour on motorways and 80 on most secondary roads, and speed cameras are numerous and signposted. City-centre parking is paid almost everywhere, generally nine to seven, Monday to Saturday.
Opening hours to plan around
Many restaurants serve only from noon to two and from half past seven to ten. Outside those windows you will find all-day brasseries in large cities and little elsewhere. Village shops often close between twelve and three, and on Sunday afternoons. National museums usually close on Tuesdays, those run by the city of Paris on Mondays.
Money and tipping
Cards are accepted almost everywhere, including for small amounts, and contactless is standard. Service is included in listed prices, so tipping is not required. Leaving one or two euros after a good meal, or rounding up, is appreciated without being expected.
Health and safety
Pharmacies, marked by a green cross, give first-line advice and post the duty rota on the door. The European emergency number is 112. Normal precautions are enough: watch for pickpockets on the Paris metro and at busy sites, and never leave anything visible in a parked car.
Language
English is widely spoken in hotels and tourist areas, much less so in villages and small shops. A few courtesies change the welcome completely: saying bonjour on entering a shop is not optional but a social convention, and skipping it reads as rudeness rather than shyness.
Public holidays and strikes
France observes eleven public holidays, several of them clustered in May. When one falls on a Tuesday or Thursday, many businesses bridge the gap and close for the intervening day as well, which can catch visitors out. Industrial action affecting trains or air travel is usually announced several days ahead and rarely stops the network completely, but checking the operator site the evening before a long journey is a sensible habit rather than a precaution against chaos.
France is straightforward to travel once you respect its timetable and its forms of address.