FAQ

Here are some frequently asked questions. And some others we've maybe not been asked but can imagine the answer being helpful!

Can you source general assistance also?

Yes, sometimes groups might need just a friendly face to greet them or show them onto a coach or train platform. This is especially the case when people within a group arrive at different times at airports or for coordinating people attending events. We have staff that can do this. Rates depend on length of time needed & volume of pax.

Why use the Real France DMC for booking group TGV train tickets?

We regularly book large groups onto the French TGV trains and can help ensure we get everyone onto the same carriage (or for approximately every group of 50 max per carriage). If you were tempted to try and arrange this yourself, bear in mind that the booking procedure can be complicated and differs depending on size of group. Don’t forget that for groups, you’ll need a baggage solution. The French trains are not capable of taking lots of luggage for large groups. We can help you find the best overall solution for your group that minimizes logistical headaches whilst making the most sense for the budgets and the comfort of the travelers.

Why shouldn't we just book entrance tickets ourselves?

For entrance tickets our clients tend to fall into one of 3 categories:

- Those who simply want the minimum of hassle and to use us for all their tour elements

- Those who want to keep control of as much as possible in house.

- Those who have already got experience in booking group entrances for places such as Versailles, Louvre and Quai d’Orsay and who understand just how much of a headache it can be to manage the timed booking slots for groups.

For a very small booking fee per person we can take this workload off your shoulders and organize all your time slot entrances so that there is minimum risk of disruption to your itinerary. If you are using us for your tour guiding needs, we strongly recommend you also use us for any entrances included whilst with the guide. That way, we can ensure the guide has all our booking details and it simply helps ensure all goes smoothly in front of the guests, as the staff know many of our guides.

What are your payment conditions?

As with any DMC in France or anywhere, the payment conditions can depend on how long we’ve worked together and on the level of risk of what’s needed, alongside demand and supply considerations also. We will outline the payment conditions for your request when we confirm all the needs and this will be clear on the invoice. Generally speaking we favor keeping things as simple and fair as possible. Sometimes we get many requests from the trade who want to get the best ideas and costs to base an itinerary on. Sometimes these confirm and sometimes they don’t. That’s the nature of the business. There are occasionally cases with new clients when we will ask for a fee up front before even quoting. This would be in cases with long and tailor made itineraries where lots of work is needed at the quote stage. In those cases we can often agree to deduct that from the final invoice if the group/s confirm.

Cancellation conditions depend mainly on whether accommodation is included or not in your booking with us and sometimes on the time of year also. You can check this with us at any point during the quote process and this will be made clear in the final confirmation when we invoice you. Payments can be made by bank transfer or via an online card payment system that links with your invoice and customer account with us.

How can we know you're legitimate and trustworthy?

Whilst it’s never been easier to set up businesses and websites, it’s also easier than ever for you to double check credentials and be reassured. With a simple search you can check that a DMC agency in France is registered and more importantly you can check that they are registered with French travel agency status. In France tour guiding and the organizing of tours are each highly regulated. For example, in order to combine elements together and sell them (transport, guiding, tours, accommodation, entrance tickets) you need to be registered as a travel agency. To do that you need to have a financial guarantee agreement in place with a recognized partner (typically a bank or insurance company). They run thorough checks on the business and its owner and analyze the yearly accounts before agreeing on yearly premiums in line with the turnover and business model of each subscriber. In return this financial guarantee acts as a form of bonding. Put simply, it means that if the agency went out of business then the money already spent by clients is protected. You can check the status of any registered DMC in France on the Atout France directory, for example you can see our entry here. Another criteria for French DMC’s is to have sufficient professional liability insurance for their activities.

It’s always wise to ask for a copy of liability insurance, especially if there are coaches or forms of transport involved. Nobody ever wants any surprises and in the extremely rare case of any accident, you’ll be able to show your own insurers that you were not negligent by not double checking the credentials of your French DMC. In fact, this is another benefit of a DMC to centralize your logistical needs as by trying to coordinate directly with smaller local suppliers, keeping track of credentials and insurance cover becomes more challenging.

Will you be at "such and such" tradeshow?

We try and attend B2B workshops if relevant and not too far away, as these can be valuable networking events for specific niche areas. But for the large trade shows we try and avoid the overheads involved in taking out stand space. If you don’t see us listed as an exhibitor then we might be there as a visitor, so do let us know if you’re attending one soon in case we can meet. Generally speaking, however, although we love the relationships that can be formed at these events, we keep our spending to a minimum so that we can afford to offer our services at the best possible rates. Thankfully with, zoom, skype and what’s app we can also get facetime when needed to help build trust and get to know new partners. So if you’re a visual person, let us know and we can have an online chat.

Can you help with groups attending sporting events in France?

Yes, we find actually that our leisure DMC expertise is in fact very well suited to help requests for large sporting events. Our focus on creativity and our logistics expertise and local network means that running assistance/reps, coaches, accommodation and meals is relatively straight forward for us and we can offer experiences that can be more memorable. From stadium coach services, meet and greet staff, to privatized restaurants, wine tasting events and chartered river ship galas, we can arrange any element you may need when bringing a sports group to France. Our network covers all of France and so feel free to get in touch whether your event is in Lyon, St Etienne, Paris, Toulouse, Marseille, Bordeaux or anywhere else.

Do you offer emergency support?

Yes, upon booking you will receive contact details to use in case of emergency support. For all our bookings you will be given a cell number for one of our team at our regional Lyon DMC head office. Whoever has this cell number will have full details of any trip that is ongoing or imminently upcoming and will be able to help with any operational issues that can arise. If you have booked any guiding/tour element with us then you will also be given the cell number of the guide in advance. This can be useful to pass onto travelers (if delayed getting to meeting point or for any reassurance once here).