Vichy's gare SNCF is about a ten-minute walk from the centre, on the eastern edge of the city centre at the end of rue de Paris. The
gare routière
sits on the corner of rue Doumier and rue Jardet, by the central place
Charles-de-Gaulle, and there is a public transport information line
(tel 04.70.30.17.30). The building that used to house the wartime Vichy
government at 19 rue du Parc is now home to the tourist office (April-Sept Mon-Sat 9am-7pm, Sun 9.30am-12.30pm & 3-7pm; rest of year Mon-Sat 9am-noon & 1.30-6pm; tel 04.70.98.71.94,
www.ville-vichy.fr ).
There are so many hotels
that finding a place to stay is not difficult. There are several around
the station, but more pleasant are the friendly, grand neo-Baroque Midland
, 4 rue de l'Intendance, in a quiet street off rue de Paris (tel
04.70.97.48.48, fax 04.70.31.31.89; €34-46; closed mid-Oct to
mid-April; good restaurant with menus from €12.96), and the Hôtel Londres
, 7 bd de Russie, behind the casino (tel 04.70.98.28.27, fax
04.70.98.29.37; under €24; closed mid-Oct to March), which was the
secret meeting place for Jean Moulin and fellow Resistance fighters in
1941. There's a municipal campsite , La Graviere , at the Centre Omnisports (tel 04.70.59.21.00; closed Oct-Feb).
For eating
, apart from the hotel-restaurants listed above, the simplest solution
is to head for the area around the junction of rue Clemenceau and rue
de Paris, where there are several brasseries and cafés. For something
rather more elegant, the beautiful 1920s-style Brasserie du Casino
, 4 rue du Casino (tel 04.70.98.23.06; closed Wed & Sun evening
& mid-Oct to mid-Nov; €12.95-22.10), is an interesting experience:
dressing smartly is advisable, and you should book ahead if you're
there during the opera season.
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