SOME NUMBERS:
600,000: The number of international visitors expected in France for the tournament 9,000: The number of South Africans who attended the last RWC, in Japan in 2019
15,000: The number of South Africans expected to go to France for this year's tournament
51: The number of days over which the tournament will take place, between September 8 and October 28
20: The number of participating teams
10: The number of Air France flights per week between Johannesburg and Paris that will be available during the tournament. The airline is increasing its usual frequency of seven flights per week to 10 to accommodate increased demand
200: The number of years since rugby was “born”. As legend has it, a pupil named William Web Ellis cradled the ball in his arms and ran with it during an 1823 football match at Rugby School in England
10 HOST CITIES
The action will take place across the country, with 10 host cities and nine stadiums — Paris/Saint-Denis are counted as separate cities but with one stadium. The other cities are Bordeaux, Lille, Lyon, Marseille, Nantes, Nice, Saint-Etienne and Toulouse. Most are set to host four or five matches, except for Marseilles, which will host six. Paris/St Denis, home to France’s national stadium, the Stade de France, will host 10, including the opening match and the final.
WHERE THE BOKKE WILL BE:
The team will be based at the Grand Hotel des Sablettes Plage in the port city of Toulon, which overlooks the Mediterranean Sea. They have two matches in nearby Marseille, against Scotland on September 10 and Tonga on October 1. They play Romania in Bordeaux on September 17 and face Ireland in Paris on September 23. The quarterfinals will be played in Paris on the weekend of October 14/15.
HOME ADVANTAGE: THE STADE DE FRANCE
France’s national stadium, the venue for the opener and final and several games in between, is in St Denis, a commune 10km north of Paris and part of the Greater Paris Métropole. It can be reached by the Paris Métro system through line 13, referred to as “Saint-Denis — Porte de Paris”.
The stadium was built in 1998 for the Fifa World Cup and the first match played there was football: France v Spain, six months before the cup kicked off. France won, with local football legend Zinedine Zidane scoring the first goal in the stadium. France went on that year to win the World Cup.
As for its rugby history, France also won the first rugby match played there in February 1998, against England. The Bokke have also enjoyed some victories at this stadium, most notably in the RWC quarterfinal in 1999 (they were knocked out by Australia in the semifinal in Cardiff, Wales) and taking the championship here in 2007. South Africa beat England in both matches.
If you happen to find yourself inside the stadium, take a moment to marvel at its roof, a feat of engineering designed to shield every single one of the 80,698 seats from rain without covering or obstructing any part of the field. It also has a retractable stand that when pulled back uncovers an athletics track.
It’s one of only two stadiums in the world that has hosted a football world cup and a rugby world cup — the other is the Nissan Stadium in Yokohama, Japan. It is also used as a concert venue and has hosted superstars such as Beyoncé, Black Eyed Peas, Coldplay, Jay-Z and Lady Gaga.
SOMETHING ELSE TO SEE IN SAINT-DENIS
Usually among the top attractions in Paris, the medieval Notre Dame cathedral (built between 1163 and 1345) remains closed to visitors after a devastating fire in 2019. You can still — and should — admire it from the outside, but you can go inside Paris’s other cathedral, which is just 1.7km from the Stade de France and bears just as much historical significance and beauty.
The Basilique Cathédrale Saint-Denis, named for Paris’s patron saint, was built a little earlier than Notre Dame, starting in 1137. Because its choir was the first to incorporate the major elements of Gothic architecture, it is considered the birthplace of the style. It houses several statues and the tombs of roughly 70 French monarchs, including Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette, both beheaded during the French Revolution. It also has its own versions of the incredible stained-glass rose windows so cherished at Notre Dame.
• Tickets are €9.50 (about R190) and the audioguide is €3 (R60). Under 18s enter free. Book in advance here.
CAN YOU STILL GET RWC TICKETS?
The place to buy official tickets is https://tickets.rugbyworldcup.com/en. While the opening match and final are sold out, as are many other games, there were some available at the time of writing either through the official website or through the official reselling platform (links via the official website). Resale tickets could pop up at any time so if there's a particular game you're hoping for, keep checking.
Your other option is to buy a hospitality package, though these require deep pockets. South Africa v Scotland in a suite at Marseille’s Stade Vélodrome, with food, champagne, parking and a rugby expert to talk you through it, will set you back €1,200 (R23,955). And if you fancy the final, you can lock in gold category tickets, plus a prematch experience with live music, DJs, “sumptuous” food, champagne, beer and wine, for €4,000 (about R80,000).
Even without tickets, Hélène Bezuidenhoudt, director of Atout France, which promotes the country as a tourist destination, says thousands are expected to head to France simply for the electric atmosphere. There will also be free-to-enter Rugby Villages in all of the host cities, where up to 40,000 people will be able to get together to enjoy the vibe with live coverage of the games and other rugby-related events. Find out more here.
VISAS
South African passport holders need a Schengen visa for France, with applications handled by Capago International, which has offices in Johannesburg, Cape Town, Durban and Gqeberha. To experience the cup, though, if you aren't already sorted you need to act yesterday: appointments are filling fast and your application needs to be submitted at least two weeks before your date of travel. You can expedite the process by selecting the platinum service or the new call-out service, where Capago staff will come to you to collect your forms and biometric data. The visa costs €80 (R1,600); the premium service costs an extra R720; and the call-out option is from €170 (about R3,400).
WHEN IN PARIS: Don’t miss ...
THE EIFFEL TOWER
With almost 6-million visitors every year, this is one of the most-visited pay-to-enter monuments in the world. If you’re on a tight budget, the gardens around it and the esplanade are fully accessible without a ticket, so you can admire it from the ground for free. If you want to set foot on the tower itself, you will need tickets. And you could save yourself hours in queuing times by booking ahead. You can choose between the stairs, the lift or a mix of both. Note that the tower has 1,665 steps from the ground to the top, but you can only climb 674 of them, up to the second floor. The only way to reach the top is in the lift. There is a Champagne bar at the top and, if you really want to splash out, there is a one Michelin-starred restaurant, the Jules Verne, on the second floor.
• Adult ticket (over age 24) with lift access to the top is €28.30 (R570). If you only want to ride to the second floor it’s €18.10 (R365). Stairs only to the second floor is €11.30 (R230). See toureiffel.paris/en.
THE LOUVRE
The largest art museum in the world, the Louvre has a staggering collection of artworks and artefacts representing 11,000 years of civilisation and culture. It is also the world’s most visited museum, attracting 10.2-million people a year — some estimate that 80% of those go just to see one painting, Leonardo da Vinci’s Mona Lisa.
Whatever you wish to see, you would be wise to make use of the pre-ordering system, whereby you can book not only a date but also a time slot to enter. For tickets at the door, prepare to stand in a long queue — note, though, that while most visitors queue at the famous glass pyramid entrance, there is another entrance via the Carrousel du Louvre shopping centre, which guarantees a shorter wait. The museum is open daily (closed on Tuesdays) from 9am to 6pm and the crowds lessen significantly in the late afternoons and evenings. Your best bet for the most space is to go late on a Friday, when the museum stays open until 9.45pm.
• Tickets at the door are €15 (R300); booked online they are €17 (R342). Children under 18 enter free.
MONTMARTRE
This famous neighbourhood is one of the city’s oldest, with a history dating back to Roman times, though it’s best known as an artistic enclave in the late 19th and early 20th centuries when it was a gathering place for myriad artists, including Pablo Picasso, Vincent van Gogh and Amedeo Modigliani.
In the northern part of the city, situated on a hill about 130m high, it’s known for its village charm and a bohemian vibe unlike any other part of Paris, with cobbled streets, outdoor markets, vintage shops, cafés and artists painting in the open air. The white Sacré-Cœur Basilica that crowns its highest point is worth a look and offers panoramic views over the city. The legendary cabaret club Moulin Rouge is also here.
TIPS FROM AN INSIDER
Bezuidenhoudt offers three of her favourite ways to enjoy Paris, beyond the major sights.
1. The “other” tower: At a height of 200m, the Paris Montparnasse Observatory is way less busy than the other one, with spectacular views over the city and its monuments that may just have an edge — since you'll get the Eiffel Tower in your pictures too. The €21 (R423) ticket gets you a Paris time-travel virtual reality experience, a “flight” over Paris on a giant screen and a 360° view of the city from the 56th-floor open-air terrace. For €28 (R565) you can go back for the night view too. See tourmontparnasse56.com.
2. A different cruise: Explore the city from the water with a cruise from the Musée d’Orsay to the Parc de la Villette on the River Seine and the Canal Saint Martin, with locks and even a 1.5km tunnel. Adults pay €23 (R462). Find it at parisjetaime.com.
3. Park appreciation: With more than400 parks and gardens, Paris is the most wooded capital in Europe so do take some time to explore its green side. Some of Bezuidenhoudt's favourites are the Jardin du Luxembourg, the Jardin du Musée Rodin and the Coulée verte René-Dumont, a 4.7km elevated, linear park built on top of an obsolete railway infrastructure.
WHEN IN MARSEILLES: Don’t miss ...
While the participating teams will be scattered across nine cities, South Africans are encouraged to head to Provence in the south, where the Bokke will be based. Here, the main city Marseille is the oldest in France and often referred to as the gateway to the French Riviera.
THE NOTRE DAME DE LA GARDE
A symbol of Marseille, this 19th-century Catholic church is situated on a hill overlooking the city. Built between 1853 and 1864, it is known for its striking neo-Byzantine architecture, adorned with intricate mosaics and a golden statue of the Virgin Mary. Naturally, a visit will also give you panoramic views over all of Marseille and the sea. If it's a leg day for you, you can walk it. If not, buses depart every 20 minutes or so from the Vieux Port and take you right to the church’s doors. It is free to visit. See marseille-tourisme.com. See here.
THE PARC NATIONAL DES CALANQUES
Spanning 20km of coastline between Marseille and Cassis, the Calanques National Park is the only park in Europe to encompass land, sea and peri-urban areas. “Calanque” means rocky inlet, and the park has several, along with turquoise waters, pebble and fine sandy beaches, dizzying cliffs, which can be enjoyed from a hiking trail, kayaking, swimming or simply lazing on the shores. Alas, La Gineste, a rugged yet breathtaking road from Marseille to Cassis across the park, is closed for maintenance, but many of the calanques remain accessible by bus or car. It is also possible to visit by boat from Marseille's Old Port — several companies offer boat trips.
CHEAP CRUISE TIP
There are myriad cruises and boat rides available that will cost a good few euros, but you can also cross the Old Port of Marseille aboard the public Ferry Boat, which connects the town hall (Quai du Port) to the Place aux Huiles. The 283m crossing allows you to go from one side of the port to the other in less than five minutes, while enjoying a nice trip at sea for just €0,50 (R10).
THE VALLON DES AUFFES
A 15-minute bus ride from the Vieux-Port, this small, picturesque fishing port oozes old-world charm with colourful fishing huts and boats, lively seafood restaurants and magical views of the sea. There is no beach but you can jump into the sea by heading under the viaduct — just beware of the boats.
