15 days honeymoon - December - France . Where 2 go ?
May 18th, 2012, 01:38 AM
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15 days honeymoon - December - France . Where 2 go ?
Hello ,
Its the most special trip of my life , to the extent im scared i want it so perfect !
Yes its the honeymoon. My fiance and I intend to travel from Mumbai on
Dec 21st - to Jan 4th .
A fortnight in france we would like to see christmas celebration and new years as well.
We are going to brave the cold ... we love anything scenic , quaint and romantic , would love to try all the best of food. I'm a vegetarian though. And yes we're not on a luxurious trip but we arnt on a tight budget either, middle of the road. We not interested much in group tours type of stuff. But would love to see indoor attractions ( since its cold outside ) but yet we are both big fans of walking ... and I'm a big fan of lights , so the more festive it is , the better .
From the little research Ive been doing . Here's my plan ( not much though) . Feel free to edit .
Reach paris on 21st , and head to Strasbourg (train) . we would love to see the xmas market around there . Should be there till 25th . We leave on christmas day
( hope all trains are functional ? ) ( are 3 days too much for Strasbourg )
Ok 25th dec , where shall we head next ? Whats best to see in the coutryside in december . lyon, djion , bordeaux ( i could do with some caneles)
And on 31st we intend to head back to paris , bring in the new year , watch the fireworks . enjoy the city and around before heading back to India.
So I need help I've got 6 days to see other places in france. We shall be using the train throughout.
Any place high on charm and great wine and food should do
weather ... cant be choosy on that..
If anyone has any input no matter how small , it will help me make this trip more special . Thank you for the help . Cheers.
Its the most special trip of my life , to the extent im scared i want it so perfect !
Yes its the honeymoon. My fiance and I intend to travel from Mumbai on
Dec 21st - to Jan 4th .
A fortnight in france we would like to see christmas celebration and new years as well.
We are going to brave the cold ... we love anything scenic , quaint and romantic , would love to try all the best of food. I'm a vegetarian though. And yes we're not on a luxurious trip but we arnt on a tight budget either, middle of the road. We not interested much in group tours type of stuff. But would love to see indoor attractions ( since its cold outside ) but yet we are both big fans of walking ... and I'm a big fan of lights , so the more festive it is , the better .
From the little research Ive been doing . Here's my plan ( not much though) . Feel free to edit .
Reach paris on 21st , and head to Strasbourg (train) . we would love to see the xmas market around there . Should be there till 25th . We leave on christmas day
( hope all trains are functional ? ) ( are 3 days too much for Strasbourg )
Ok 25th dec , where shall we head next ? Whats best to see in the coutryside in december . lyon, djion , bordeaux ( i could do with some caneles)
And on 31st we intend to head back to paris , bring in the new year , watch the fireworks . enjoy the city and around before heading back to India.
So I need help I've got 6 days to see other places in france. We shall be using the train throughout.
Any place high on charm and great wine and food should do
weather ... cant be choosy on that..If anyone has any input no matter how small , it will help me make this trip more special . Thank you for the help . Cheers.
May 18th, 2012, 01:45 AM
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First of all congrats!!!
Just want to say that I would not put pressure on yourself to creat the 'perfect' trip - no trip is perfect. Approach this as an adventure and if things dont go exactly as you envisioned enjoy the moment anyways!
3 days is definitely not too long in Strasbourg. The markets there close mid-day on 24 Dec and 25 Dec will be very quiet. I would plan to take the train on the afternoon of the 24 (I am not sure what the trains are like on 25 Dec so hopefully someone in France can advise).
The countryside wont be at its best in Dec and Bordeaux is way on the other side of the country (and not that scenic to be honest).
I would plan to spend a week in Paris and maybe add a few days in Dijon in Burgundy. I havent been to Lyon, so maybe that is a good option as well.
We spent the week of New Years in Paris in 2009/2010 so I will post the link to our trip report and pics.
Happy Planning!
Just want to say that I would not put pressure on yourself to creat the 'perfect' trip - no trip is perfect. Approach this as an adventure and if things dont go exactly as you envisioned enjoy the moment anyways!
3 days is definitely not too long in Strasbourg. The markets there close mid-day on 24 Dec and 25 Dec will be very quiet. I would plan to take the train on the afternoon of the 24 (I am not sure what the trains are like on 25 Dec so hopefully someone in France can advise).
The countryside wont be at its best in Dec and Bordeaux is way on the other side of the country (and not that scenic to be honest).
I would plan to spend a week in Paris and maybe add a few days in Dijon in Burgundy. I havent been to Lyon, so maybe that is a good option as well.
We spent the week of New Years in Paris in 2009/2010 so I will post the link to our trip report and pics.
Happy Planning!
May 18th, 2012, 01:48 AM
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May 18th, 2012, 06:08 AM
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Congratulations!
First thing to do is dump Bordeaux from your list. If you must have caneles, you can find them in Paris. Three days is perfect for Strasbourg (if you can take a half-day trip to Colmar, so much the better). I would then split the remaining time between Lyon and Dijon, giving Lyon more days than Dijon (it's the second-largest city in France and will likely have lots of seasonal festivities). Train service will be somewhat limited on the two actual holidays, but you can investigate that at www.sncf.com or www.-tgv-europe.com.
Be sure to visit the official websites for each city, and check out www.whatsonwhen.com for events.
First thing to do is dump Bordeaux from your list. If you must have caneles, you can find them in Paris. Three days is perfect for Strasbourg (if you can take a half-day trip to Colmar, so much the better). I would then split the remaining time between Lyon and Dijon, giving Lyon more days than Dijon (it's the second-largest city in France and will likely have lots of seasonal festivities). Train service will be somewhat limited on the two actual holidays, but you can investigate that at www.sncf.com or www.-tgv-europe.com.
Be sure to visit the official websites for each city, and check out www.whatsonwhen.com for events.
May 18th, 2012, 09:13 AM
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You need to be flexible with your plan because of the weather. Have a long list of indoor things to do/see and then take advanatage of better outdoor weather - you will probably get some days in the 40s with sunshine - to do outdoor things. Realize that gardens will be dead and countryside brown and crunchy - so definitely focus on cities or towns.
May 18th, 2012, 11:14 AM
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Apparently my fiance feels it isn't air to be so close to italy and not stop there. he's a foodie !!
So now we're goona start in FLORENCE -> VENICE -> STRASBOURG-> end in PARIS
Now im going to research xmas in florence and venice , then def see Strasbourg and colmar though we might just get there just post xmas. then end the year with the bubbly in new years
this seems like a taste of both the places....
@Stcirq , thanks for the links , and yes ill find caneles in paris ... among other divine sweets
nytraveler : lets hope for the best weather .... it can make all the difference
So now we're goona start in FLORENCE -> VENICE -> STRASBOURG-> end in PARIS
Now im going to research xmas in florence and venice , then def see Strasbourg and colmar though we might just get there just post xmas. then end the year with the bubbly in new years
this seems like a taste of both the places....
@Stcirq , thanks for the links , and yes ill find caneles in paris ... among other divine sweets
nytraveler : lets hope for the best weather .... it can make all the difference
May 18th, 2012, 11:39 AM
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There are a surprising number of bad caneles in Paris. I've had good ones from Fauchon.
Since your fiance is a foodie, I have 2 trip reports dedicated to food in Paris:
http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...rip-report.cfm
http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...ims-report.cfm
Keep in mind that a lot of restaurants will be closed over the Christmas/New Years period.
Congrats and enjoy!
Since your fiance is a foodie, I have 2 trip reports dedicated to food in Paris:
http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...rip-report.cfm
http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...ims-report.cfm
Keep in mind that a lot of restaurants will be closed over the Christmas/New Years period.
Congrats and enjoy!
