WiFi

[Graye]

Could anyone please tell me whether WiFi coverage is common in France in places like motorway service stations etc?  Is there any way of discovering where these places are if so?

If WiFi is not common, can anyone let me know how long would it be normal to wait for a telephone connection in a rented house?  Or are there internet cafes in most towns?  We are moving from Spain to France for a few months  on our way back to the UK after 5 years here and I have no real idea what to expect on the internet front.  We will be staying just outside of Riberac.

[Cassis]

Never heard of Wifi in service stations.  Most big towns will have at least one Internet cafe or bar.  Also many public libraries have Internet access.

[Ecossais]

Hi Graye,

Here are a couple of links to wi-fi hotpot locators:

http://www.orange-wifi.com/

http://wifi.sfr.fr/fr/couverture/recherche_carte/

http://www.jiwire.com/

The Orange site seems to give the most locations, but it looks like the nearest would be Perigueux.

[tenniswitch]

In my experience (and that of my friends), it can take from a couple of days to a couple of weeks to get internet access via an existing telephone account (FT, Orange).  I don't know how long it would take if you're setting up a new telephone account or if you're using something other than FT and Orange.

[Tresco]

I think I waited 9 days for the internet connection (low speed broadband, as is common in many rural areas).

The phone took one week - there had never been a phone in the house before.