London/Paris/South of France trip 2026

Smidgey86

I'm planning a getaway in 2026 with my wife and 6-year old starting with an overnight sightseeing stay in London followed by a visit to Disneyland Paris and on to the South of France.

Does anyone have any tips or advice on how to do this in a frugal way without flying?

gwynlas

The most frugal way would be using coach but  it is tiring so you would be better off using Eurostar and TGV.

You can book accommodation outside of Disney

However whilst your child might enjoy Disneyland they are probably a bit young to get much out of sightseeing in London or the south of France,

An alternative would be to drive and camp/

Tucosalamanca

Ferry booked far in advance, diesel car, avoid autoroutes, municipal camping.
The holiday could be done on a shoestring budget and could be hugely enjoyable (assuming that you don't mind camping).

I would avoid Disneyland in July/August. It's crowded, hot, inevitably with lots of standing around and not really practical to bring a day's picnic with you.

With admission around 100euros per person per day (1 day/2 parcs), meals at 20-30euros (or more), 5euro drinks or 15min queue for water fountain, costs will spiral quickly. Disneyland/frugal don't really go together.

Any particular reason for South of France? 
It's quite a trek from Paris and you would be passing so many good things along the way.
Only worth doing if your heart's set on the French Med, imo.

DE_612183

Interrail - you can buy I think it's 4 days travel in a calendar month and the outbound uk & inbound are included - which is great 

martindow

Seat 61 is the place to go for international rail travel.  This page has advice on Eurostar and internal French rail journeys. 

https://www.seat61.com/train-travel-in-france.htm

If you book well in advance there are some bargain fares, but we are getting close to July and August which will be a busy time in any case so bargains may be thin on the ground.

Albermarle

I do not think the word 'frugal' and London & most nice parts of France sit together very well.

Pre Covid, I stayed in a Northern French seaside town and was astonished by the prices, even just for a couple of beers.

sheramber

bus from London to Paris and from Paris to south of France would be cheapest but two long  journey  may not be agreeable with a child.

How frugal do you want to be?

Nebulous2

How much time do you have? Sometimes less is more in terms of what you can pack in, especially with children. 

The South of France is my favourite holiday spot, I'm off there soon, but its a challenge to get there and I'm trying to train myself to go slowly and enjoy the ride, rather than try to get there as quickly as possible. 

I used to drive overnight to France, after a days work on the Friday, to get a full two weeks there. My family coped with it reasonably well on the way away - the excitement of a holiday - but hated it on the way back. 

Spendless

We used to holiday in France a lot when our kids were young. We either did the Paris area OR a different part of  France (usually Brittany) just due to the distances involved. We used to drive and stay in static caravans on campsites. 

With a 6yo and the issues with school fines there's no avoiding July/August unless you are happy to take a shorter break and limit where you go. We liked going away  May half term for this reason, as it seemed to be mostly England and Wales that were off then so less queues everywhere. 

RAS

I'd also wait a couple of years to do Disney or London. I was that age when I first went to London, have other memories going back well before that but recall virtually nothing about London. Aged 8+ it was great.

French schools tend to have 7 weeks off from the first Sunday in July. If your child's school goes back later, the first week in September could be a good time.

Would also agree with concerns about the long journeys. Consider Normandy, Brittany or the Loire. To be frank, just about anywhere outside the major cities offers cheap municipal campsites which may have a cafe/restaurant for ice creams and frites, maybe a sandy river beach or one within walking distance and some play equipment. Or a real beach and pines. Expect to pay 15-25 Euros per night without electricity.

There are loads of small towns with delightful alleyways, parapets and squares between the boulangerie and cafe bar. 

If you are not used to camping take a tent in which you can almost stand up, which has some sort of porch area where you can cook safely without setting the bedding on fire, and set up camp chairs if it rains whilst you work your way through the rose.

Aim for the menu or plat du jour, which is often at lunch-time. If you are budgeting consider eating out alternate days and on the other day putting together mezze plates from the hypermarche supplemented by local produce if available. Or get frites, cook fried eggs and add salad. If you are buying wine from the VRAC, go for a baguette and strong cheese or charcuterie.

And get EHICs as well as insurance.

Indout96

Are you driving ? if so you can save a fortune staying out of the main tourist traps and still see everything.
Try Frejus / St Raphael area in south of France, far cheaper hotels and decent camping if you want that but within easy strike of all major areas. have a look on Expedia to get a rough price for hotels