the sales in France began last Wednesday, and I think they will last until mid February, similar as in Spain (although here we already have the spring clothes in the shops, it´s a bit creepy :) ) Some of the shops announced sales until the very end of February.

The Hotel du Lys is a good budget option, but one must be aware that it is a two-star place, so you might see cracks in the ceiling :) But it has a lot of good points : location, price, staff ...

Hope South America is great !

Covadonga Bilbao - Spain