ljforday

please help.

we have 4 days to explore the french countryside.
we will have a car and will be leaving from paris, but dont want to be spending all our time driving.
we would like to enjoy quaint little towns, lovely authentic markets and some yummy food.
my partner and i [we are marrying in italy, before this leg of the trip] are not really into wine, so that is not important to us.

any advice would be greatly appreciated

lynette

timsmom

Giverny is beautiful - especially Monet's home and gardens. Great small restaurants nearby.

annieladd

Thought this area looked lovely, from nytimes.com

http://tinyurl.com/2cax57

ljforday

thanks tim and ann.
will look into these 2 areas as soon as i can.
and thanks for such speedy assistance
regards
lynete

HappyTrvlr

Look at Auxerre, Joigny, Chablis in the northern part of Burgundy. There are many quaint villages in this area which is not a long drive from Paris.

Padraig

I don't think Giverny is particularly beautiful other than Monet's garden, and some of the nearby places are far from appealing: who would fancy part of a honeymoon in Mantes-la-Jolie? There are some nice villages too: the lower Seine is a bit of a mixed bag.

The piece on Le Perche shows promise, and it is a gateway to some nice parts of rural Normandy (Falaise is not far away, and worth a visit). Normandy is cheese and cider country, and you could have great fun doing a cheese tour (easy on the cider if you're driving: it's potent stuff).

ira

Hi L,

Take the train to Dijon - 1 night.

Pick up car, visit Autun, Vezelay.

Stop at Auxerre - 1 night.

See Chateau Tanlay and Abbe de Fontenay.

Drive to Beaune - 1 night. (drop car)

Train back to Paris.

Plot your route at www.viamichelin.com and www.mappy.com.

Enjoy your visit to Burgundy.

ira

PS,

If you will be in France after mid June, you could take the TGVEst to Strasbourg (2:30 hr) and tour Alsace and Germany.

Rastaguytoday

ira,

Also in June is a big horse race in Chantilly (think James Bond)(or the Big Bopper, if you're that old), a nice town and the races are great. Le Grand Prix du Jockey Club is a nice race I attened. Lots of Aga Khan horses entered. The races are almost 2 miles long. There are only about 4-5 racing days a year, so the race is special.

NanBug

Yes -- Burgundy! Can't go wrong, IMO.

Sue4

I'm in agreement about Burgundy - many beautiful villages, chateaux, abbeys (Cluny, for one). I spent 12 days driving around Burgundy 2 years ago (in October) and would love to do it again.

I was very interested in annieladd's article about Le Perche, especially as I had decided to go thru that area driving from Normandy (Bayeux area) to Chartres. I'll have one day and night there, staying at the Moulin de Villeray. I'm especially looking forward to that after reading the article. I'll be there in beginning of May.

ljforday

thanks happytraveller and padraig and rastaguytoday.

i think it going to be burgundy.

and will look up all your wonderful advice on the internet ira

so generous all of you.

regards
lynette

ljforday

ooops forgot to thank nanbug and sue4
ta

mlaffitte

To the north of Paris, you could visit Chantilly as suggested, and also check out Auvers sur Oise, the town where Van Gogh spent his last weeks (and is buried)... and the nearby town of Conflans St Honorine at the confluence of the Seine and Oise rivers, where there is a large community of people living on barges.

Another lovely area to explore by car is the Vallee de Chevreuse, southwest of Paris.

kerouac

Senlis, Chantilly, Avallon, Moret-sur-Loing... there is no lack of towns not too far from Paris. Etretat on the Norman coast is also delightful.

ljforday

oh dear im still wondering if burgundy is where we should be going.
we're not big on wine.
is that ok in this region.
what think you out there, and ira??

ira

Hi Lj,

>oh dear im still wondering if burgundy is where we should be going.
we're not big on wine...<

Other than yourself, has anyone mentioned wine?

If you will visit Dijon, this apt has gotten very good reviews:
http://www.myhomeindijon.com/

Enjoy your visit.


Try a little wine now and then.

jody

You might check out the NYX Spring Travel section from last week's paper. They had an amazing article on Le Perche, less than 2 hours from Paris and beautiful and almost unknown. It is part of the Parc Naturel and so growth is controlled and it remains a land of farms, chateaus and artisans. Since reading the article we've added 3 days to our Fall paris trip to explore the area.
some of the towns to explore and market ..Berlleme, Remalard, Mortagne0au0Perche, Moutiers-le-Perche, alencon.

Some of the hotels I've looked at

http://www.chateau-saintpaterne.com and http://www.domainedevilleray.com

Khori

Ira,

What is the TGVEst? Iam assuming it's a train.Is there a website for schedules?

ljforday

thanks jody and ira.

but oh dear, was just speaking to someone who have just returned from living over there.
they suggested we catch the tgv to burgundy, then drive around the dordogne region for four days and catch the train back from burgundy.
what think you out there??
they also commented on the nightmare drive-trying to get out of paris with a rental
thanks in advance for any help
lynette