Late October Trip in France

Old Jul 30th, 2015, 09:58 AM
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Late October Trip in France

I will be studying abroad in Orleans,France this year. I would like to take a trip by train somewhere during our first holiday,which begins October 24 and lasts until November 1. I am 25 years old and I will be traveling solo most likely. I'm thinking five days will be enough time for the trip. My question is which town should I visit? I enjoy sitting in cafe's, eating pastries and chocolates, people watching, walking outside, visiting cathedrals and castles, and taking photographs. I want a place that says "Lovely France in the Fall," and free of tourists. Nice weather is a plus. I am also considering renting a car. Thank you kindly for your help!!
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Old Jul 30th, 2015, 10:28 AM
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Not answering your question but I have lived off and on in Orleans for years - anything you may want to know about it let me know. La Source is the pits but Orleans is a nice town.
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Old Jul 30th, 2015, 11:35 AM
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From Orléans there is a direct train connection to Toulouse. Day trips from Toulouse include Carcassonne, Albi, Moissac, Montauban; and of course, there is Toulouse itself.
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Old Jul 30th, 2015, 11:56 AM
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Toulouse sounds good, I really liked it and it will be a good getaway. I guess there are not a lot of good choices right on the same rail line (assuming Paris is out?). Of course there will be lots of tourists in Paris and Toulouse, also, but maybe not so many in Toulouse by then comparatively. And at least it's worth going to for five days, also.
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Old Jul 30th, 2015, 12:17 PM
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You won't be far from Chateau Chambord, where there is an autumn ritual that might interest you.

Chambord was built as a hunting lodge, and there's a lot of forest around it, now with platforms to view the wildlife. In October, guides will take you into the forest at night to hear and maybe see the stags battle and clang their antlers.
They say it's amazing.

You can probably find out about this at the tourist office in Orleans; if not, via the chateau's website. There's a small hotel next to the chateau, the St Michel. Chambord is about 35 miles from Orleans.
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Old Jul 30th, 2015, 12:49 PM
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Chambord outside of tourist season can be hard to get to by public transportation - take train to Blois then shuttle buses from there to the remote castle - this can easily be done on a weekend day - are you into biking - many folks in the Loiret your age bike - there is a dedicated bike path along the Loire as much as possible. You can put bikes on regional trains too - say to Blois then bike to Chambord.

About trains - check www.voyages-sncf.com for fares and schedules - early birds on long-distance trains can nab the limited in number discounted tickets but if you ar 26 or under you may want to by the Cartes Jeunes that gives you 50% off most trains without any formality - just show it at the station - just the savings on trains to Paris if you go several times would more than pay for the year-valid card, which you buy at either of Orleans two stations - the dead-end in-town one Orleans-Ville and the mainline one a few kms north - Les Aubrais-Orelans, which is really the main station in Orleans - many trains Paris to Blois, Tours may not even go into the dead-end Orleans station - a tramway connects the two stations.

The university is mainly stuck out in blah La Source - a 'new town' about 30 years ago with high-rise flats - the closest train station to it is St Cyr-en Val with trains to Orleans and Les Aubrais-Orelans and south to Vierzon (take a train to Chenonceaux, a small town from Vierzon to see Chenonceau Chateau - the consensus best of the Loire castles - easily done by train from St Cyr-en-Val or Orleans.

For lots of goodies on French trains check these sites with good general info: www.seat61.com; www.budgeteuropetravel.com and www.ricksteves.com.

But get that Cartes Jeunes if taking more than a few trains - I think it gives discounts even to places outside of France - there are a few black out periods but relatively few.
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Old Jul 30th, 2015, 06:42 PM
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Thank you all for your responses! I'll make sure to take all of this advice when in France. I will be there for two semesters so I'll have plenty of time. I would really like to buy a bicycle over there if possible. If that falls through then I will just rent one from time to time and ride through the Loire. Also that Cartes Jeunes sounds like a great idea.

PalenQ I will technically be living in Olivet outside of Orleans. Do you have any things you should tell me about Olivet? Thanks!
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Old Jul 31st, 2015, 09:10 AM
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If you do go to Toulouse for 5 days, I would recommend a day trip to Albi by train.
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Old Jul 31st, 2015, 10:00 AM
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Carcassonne is also an easy day trip from Toulouse - an exemplar of a medieval fortified city - all rebuilt from rubble in the 1800s so looks pristine - just like it did in its heydat - about an hour or so by train from Toulouse - you can also rent a bike and cycle along the Canal du Midi towpath that goes thru Toulouse.
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Old Aug 1st, 2015, 08:17 AM
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PalenQ I will technically be living in Olivet outside of Orleans. Do you have any things you should tell me about Olivet?>

Yes been there many times - Olivet (Oh-lee-vey) is an old village now smothered by the Orleans metropolis - a sprawling area with lots of traffic - a nice old town but with obnoxious main road running thru it - but it is probably the nicest place in Orleans to live - teh Loiret River runs thru it and it is a favorite place for locals to come and walk along its banks - stopping at riverside cafes or renting kayaks or canoes or I think there is an excursion boat.

Nice place but really now part of Orleans and way nicer than blah La Source - a tram runs right from Olivet to La Source and Orleans - to both main Orleans train stations - Orleans has some active nightlife for folks your age.

The Loiret River gushes out of the ground in the Parc Floral - a kind of botanical gardens between Olivet and La Source and then runs into the Loire shortly after Olivet.

Not many foreign students study at La Source I think - how did you end up there and I think it is a good choice to be with mainly French not Americans as some programs like those in Aix I understand have it.

Tours is a short train ride from Orleans and it has a large university and many students - an active nightlife and a nice Latin Quarter type ara in its city center - a day out in Tours would be nice but if I were you on weekends I'd head to Paris and stay in one of the many youth hostels/youth hotels there - jsut an hour by train from Orleans.
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Old Aug 3rd, 2015, 01:00 PM
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Thanks for your helpfulness PalenQ. I am glad I will at least be staying in a nice part of Orleans. I don't really drink and party anymore, so I'll probably be very familiar with the Loiret by the end of my studies! I will study there through a partner program with my university in Arkansas,Usa. I will stay with a host mother and I plan to only speak French. Also I would like to stay away from English speakers as much as possible
Funny you mention Paris, did you see my new topic? I decided I'd like to visit Paris during All Saints or Christmas. Who can go wrong with Paris anyway?
Thank you all for your quick advice. I want to enjoy all of your suggestions during my studies in France!
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Old Aug 3rd, 2015, 02:35 PM
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Thanks for the thanks!

Lots of people bike in Orleans - you may want to buy a used bike and then sell it back when finished - a nice bike ride from Olivet to La Source where I presume your studies are? There are also bike paths along the Loire as well as the Loiret.

Orleans ain't the prettiest of towns due to destruction in WW2 by Allied bombings trying to dislodge the Germans in this rail hub and thus militarily important place but it is a very pleasant town - has one of France's greatest cathedrals - a wedding-cake Gothic soaring structure - check it out - other than that no must sights but lively markets and lots of shops.

The Loiret springs to life - literally - in the Parc Floral a few miles upstream from Olivet - a great place to while away a nice autumn afternoon - anyway very close to where you are staying

https://www.google.com/search?q=parc...=1600&bih=1075

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Parc_Floral_de_la_Source

Cheers! I'm sure this will be a lifelong memory to cherish!
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Old Aug 3rd, 2015, 03:01 PM
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Another vote for Toulouse & Albi. Toulouse is tied with Dijon as our second favorite large city in France.

Albi is stunning - but I don't think many people really live in the "old" section. We were there on a glorious Wednesday/Thursday this past June. During the daytime it was quite active with shoppers & tourists. However, there were almost no people at the Les Halles market at 9am when we went there to order a poulet roti, and nobody there when we picked up the poulet at 11am. We could not find any fine dining/white tablecloth restaurants that appealed to us in the old section. There was a Michelin 1 star listed in their 2015 guide - but the restaurant was permanently closed, and our hotel informed us that the chef had "moved on". So we dined at the Restaurant le Pointe on Place du Vigan - a casual tourist-oriented place with outside tables. There were fewer people wandering around than I expected, and after dinner when we wandered around we saw virtually nobody on the streets of the old town. No lights on in the above-streets residences either. I mention this because in late October when the tourists have gone home - it might REALLY be deserted - except during non-shopping hours.

We visited Albi as an overnight while when we stayed in Trebes for 2 weeks - next to Carcassonne. If you are looking for place where where:
"I enjoy sitting in cafe's, eating pastries and chocolates, people watching, walking outside, visiting cathedrals and castles, and taking photographs. I want a place that says "Lovely France in the Fall," and free of tourists. - that is not Carcassonne (except for the "tourist" watching and taking pictures. Maybe so in the bastide part of Carcassonne (where the train station is located) but definitely not in La Cite, IMO.

Stu Dudley
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Old Aug 4th, 2015, 05:35 AM
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Thank you so much Stu!!
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Old Aug 5th, 2015, 05:57 PM
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PalenQ just noticed your other comment. Thank you for getting me more excited about studying in France And I will be staying at the University of Orleans... what I assume is " La Source" haha. And that park is beautiful! I will definitely spend some time there
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Old Aug 6th, 2015, 11:08 AM
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https://www.google.com/search?q=bord...=1600&bih=1075

And the "bords" - sides of the Loiret (which runs thru Olivet) make neat strolling venues - picnic venues - places to relax, etc. Yes out of whole Orleans congolmeration Olivet and envrions is really sweet.
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Old Aug 7th, 2015, 07:55 AM
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Fantastic, thank you!
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