A new route to the French Alps – via le Petit Prince and the Magic Kingdom.   I’m sure it’s not new, but it’s new to me and I’m quite excited about it.

Rather late in the day,  via facebook, my daughter found a host in a French ski resort for half term week.  Great!  The task of getting her there (and back) fell to me.

Websites advertising ‘cheap half term ski flights’ gave me several options over the weekends of Feb 13/14 and 20/21 …. from £529.  I searched for flights to less obvious ski gateway airports with easy onward connections to the Alps, and found Paris.

It works like this: fly to CdG from Heathrow with BA (about £100 return).   It has to be an early flight, but not ungodly, since the train from the airport to Disney takes 9 minutes and the double decker ouigo TGV from there to Lyon St Exupéry, as the airport is now known having rebranded itself in honour of the noble aviator and author, leaves at midday.  The journey takes just under two hours and cost 15 euros.  I was so pleased with this price, I paid a supplement of 2 euros to give my daughter use of an electric socket.  She can consider it an advance Christmas present, or a belated one.

The return journey was a bit more expensive – 30 euros from Lyon to Disney – so I withheld the plug supplement in this instance.  She will just have to make sure she charges her phone before leaving.  Or read Le Petit Prince.   It’s just the book for a two hour train journey.