How much should you budget for your French holiday? These are some of the costs you should be prepared for…

Car Hire

Unless you are staying in a rented town house or city centre apartment - in which case you may have travelled by air, coach, ferry or Eurostar - it is more than likely that you will arrive at your rental property in a hire car or your own car.

The appeal of many out-of-town rental properties is their isolation, miles away from anywhere, including a bus stop or railway station. So a car is almost essential, not least of all because of the inevitable extra luggage you have to take for self-catering.

For example, some holiday rental properties still insist that you take your own bed linen and towels. These can take up far too much room in a standard size suitcase stored in the hold of a plane. Being self-catering, you will probably chuck a packet of your favourite breakfast cereal in the boot... again something which you wouldn’t normally consider when travelling on public transport.

However, responding to demand, more and more gites and houses are starting to offer bed linen rental. The charge for this is usually in the region of 7 or 8 euros per set per week. So, if there are four of you, all in single beds for a fortnight, budget for an extra 60 euros or so. If you want to hire towels as well, add on another 15 or 20 euros. But at least you don't have the washing to do when you get home!

Car hire in France is certainly affordable and there is usually a good choice of both local and international firms operating out of most towns and cities - especially where there are airports or ferry ports.  For an example of cost, to hire a small to medium three or five door car for a week at Bordeaux Airport will cost in the region of £115 to £125, whether you are travelling in December or June. Book your car before you leave and you could save up to 40% at the comparison website Car Hire Centre.

Fuel costs

Over recent months fuel has increased dramatically in cost globally, with France being no exception. During September 2006, unleaded petrol was selling at anything between 1.25 and 1.35 euros per litre, with supermarkets being the cheapest and motorway service areas the most expensive. Diesel is still a relative bargain at around 1.12 to 1.18 euros per litre.

Motorways

Many motorways in France are free to use, but péage autoroutes carry a fee. These paid motorways can reduce your journey time considerably. In fine weather, the official speed limit on péage autoroutes is 130 km per hour - a speed which is normally achievable. Toll charges are, however, quite steep and, on a long return journey, can knock a significant hole in the holiday budget. For instance, St Omer (inland from Calais) to Paris - a trip of about 200 km - costs in the region of 19 euros. Bordeaux to Paris (about 580 km) costs around 47 euros. You can always find a route that avoids toll roads if you don't want the extra cost.

Eating and shopping

Once you have arrived at your chosen destination, dining out can be as cheap or as expensive as you want. At lunchtimes, many local restaurants and “routiers” cater for the working, driving and business man and offer a substantial three course meal - sometimes complete with a quarter litre of wine - at an all-inclusive cost. This can vary from about 8 to 12 euros. The only things that don’t vary are quality and value - invariably excellent!

In the evening restaurants offer both à la carte and set menus. Again, three-course meals start at about 12 or 14 euros at the majority - even in the lesser-known back streets of Paris and Lyon.

With French supermarket shopping generally acknowledged to be 10-15% cheaper than in the UK - especially when it comes to fruit, vegetables, cheese and, of course, wine - preparing your own meals can be fun, adventurous, and very cost-effective if you are on a tight budget.

Paying for the utilities

During the summer months, the overwhelming majority of holiday rental properties in France include the use of gas, electricity and water in the weekly rental charge. Those with telephone lines more often than not block all outgoing calls but allow incoming. Internet access will often be restricted to the local cyber café (of which there are many - even in the smaller towns). If internet access is important to you, the properties on Rentals France specify whether broadband internet is available. You may need to make a special prior arrangement with the owner, usually with cash up-front.

During the colder months, many property owners adopt the practice of allocating a certain number of electricity units allowed to be used and they will charge extra if you use more units. So don’t go leaving the water heater on or electric fires pumping out the heat unnecessarily! In the unlikely event that you are responsible for changing a bottle of gas in the cooker or portable heater, this can be done quickly and simply at most garages, supermarkets and even village stores, for around 20 euros.

A good day out…

With its hundreds and hundreds of miles of glorious sandy beaches and thousands of square miles of wonderful countryside, it need not cost a fortune for a memorable day out in France. However, like any country, if you are near to a particular attraction then it would be a shame to miss it. In Normandy, for instance, the Cité de la Mer in Cherbourg offers a fascinating half-day insight into everything to do with the sea at a cost of 14 euros for an adult and 10 euros for the under 18’s.

If you are in Paris, it would be a shame not to go to the top of the Eiffel Tower at a cost of 11 euros per person, or take a two and a half hour sightseeing tour of the city by boat and coach at 34 euros per person. For two adults and two children, don’t expect to get much change out of 150 euros for a day in Disneyland Paris. But if you are travelling back to catch the ferry at Calais, take a short detour to Lille for the bargain of the holiday. Entrance to the splendid Parc Zoologique de Lille - which boasts more than 100 species of exotic animals - is gratuit... free... costs nothing. How’s that for a cheap family day out?