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Day: 17 July 2023

SNCF to hike up prices for Avantage travel card users

by: Stephanie Horsman
17/07/2023
sncf avantage

Users of the Avantage travel card, a system that guarantees reduced and capped rates for passengers, will notice a considerable price increase from August.  

Inflation strikes again, this time affecting rail travellers. SNCF, the French state-owned rail service, has announced that the Avantage card will soon cost passengers more, blaming operational prices increases for the hike.  

MILLIONS AFFECTED 

The card is used regularly by some 4.5 million people across France, and for €49 per year, allows Avantage-carrying passengers rate reductions of up to 30%.  

Under the current system, journey costs are also capped for regular adult passengers aged 28 to 59, so long as part of train ride takes place during a weekend.  

Currently, the rates sit at €39 for trips less than 90 minutes, which account for roughly 25% of all journeys made, €59 for voyages between 90 minutes and three hours, which are about 50% of trips, and €79 for anything longer, rounding out the last 25%.  

SIGNIFCANT INCREASE 

This will change after 29th August, when each category will see a €10 hike across the board, thus making the tickets €49, €69 and €89 for the same durations. 

The cost of the actual card will not go up, said SNCF in a statement sent to AFP.  

The two-year-old programme was not affected by the previous SCNF rate hike in January, which saw an increase in main line tickets go up by a not inconsiderable 5%. At the time, the Advantage card was given a “tariff shield” against inflation-induced increases.  

 

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Photo by Monaco Life

SBM poised to buy luxury hotel complex in Courchevel

by: Elsa Carpenter
17/07/2023
sbm courchevel

Monaco’s luxury hospitality giant Monte-Carlo SBM has revealed its plans to acquire a hotel in the high-end skiing destination of Courchevel. The deal is likely to be completed before the end of the year. 

The desire to expand its dominance in luxury hospitality beyond the borders of Monaco has long been on the table at Monte-Carlo Société des Bains de Mer (SBM). Now that lofty goal looks set to become a reality, and the group has set its sights on a hotel complex in the famous Courchevel resort. 

It was announced on Thursday 13th July that SBM’s Luxembourg subsidiary, Monte-Carlo SBM International SARL, had signed an agreement committing to the acquisition of the Palace des Neiges hotel establishment in Courchevel 1850.  

Once a done deal, the five-star Palace des Neiges, found in the heart of the Jardin Alpin sector of the resort, will undergo on a massive renovation project to bring it into line with SBM’s award-winning collection of hotels in the Principality, which includes the likes of the Hôtel de Paris and the Hôtel Hermitage. 

“This acquisition is the translation of our desire to deploy new sources of growth beyond the Principality of Monaco, while retaining what makes up the DNA of our group,” says Président Délégué of SBM Stéphane Valeri. “In addition to reaching a new target clientele, the future operation will allow our group to be able to develop its seasonality and give new opportunities to our employees throughout the year. It is a matter of writing a new page in the history of our company, in a high place of international luxury.” 

According to a press statement, the sale will hopefully be concluded by the end of 2023. The financial details of the deal have not yet been publicly disclosed, but more information is expected to be released after the conclusion of the summer season. 

 

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Photo source: Palace des Neiges