Manchester Travel Forum

I've posted this same question on the Paris forum, to cover all bases!
Okay locals, what's the best way to get from Paris to Manchester and back to Paris again? I've got a friend in Manchester and seeing that I'm coming all the way from Australia, to go to Paris, I'm wanting to drop into Manchester during the same trip. Thanks gang:)

Two lowcost carriers, flybe (www.flybe.com) and Jet2 (www.jet2.com), fly between Manchester and Paris Charles de Gaulle.

will only be low cost if booked early though

another option train from manchester - sheffield- londonn - eurostar- paris - return
that may prove more expensive though

OR - you could take Eurostar through the Chunnel to St Pancras Station, London. www.eurostar.com

Then Two options - Bus from Victoria to Manchester
www.nationalexpress.com

or Train from Euston Station, London to Manchester
www.nationalrail.com

If booked well in advance cheapest tickets usually on offer for Eurostar and Rail journeys.
National Express coaches have Special Offers from time to time .

If you are suitably far in advance, I would recommend flying with FlyBe (www.FlyBe.com) direct - this is now your only cheap option from Paris Charles de Gaulle to the North West of England. You may wish to look at Air France and British Airways but these are unlikely to be cheap and I haven't checked their current routing. I can confirm, however, that Jet2 do not appear to fly to Manchester from Paris CdG any more and Ryan Air do not appear to fly from Paris to Liverpool, having just checked both those airline websites.

Another option would be EuroStar but it would be lengthy and quite likely costly.

You can get cheap Eurostar tickets if you book far enough in advance for the right train times (29.50GBP one-way). www.eurostar.com I think their booking 'window' is around 120 days in advance, so if you are not coming within the next few weeks it will be worth a look.

Everything depends on when you are intending to visit, really. Check out airfares and Eurostar fares (remembering to factor in transport to/from the airports and onward travel from St. Pancras) and decide which is best budget and time-wise.

www.nationalexpress.com and www.megabus.com are the coach carriers from London (Victoria coach station) to Manchester.

www.nationalrail.co.uk will give you times and fares for train travel from London to Manchester.

Wow, thanks gang! I'd only heard of Ryan Air, so the other one sounds good to try. Thanks too, for the Eurostar info, I thought that might have been the 'long way' around. I'm planning on coming over in October, so I might be able to get me a decent deal. Appreciate all your replies and you all got a 'helpful' vote:)

Thanks, Katerina.

One thing you might want to consider is where in the Greater Manchester area your friend actually lives, and if s/he plans to meet you the airport might be more convenient than a bus or rail station in Central Manchester.
Talk to your friend and if itss an address in the douth of Manchester, Wilmslow or Stockport might be a better place to leave the train.

Good Luck with your plans.