stiggs

Hello - I am planning a 12 day trip which will begin in Paris and end in Barcelona. I am wondering whether I should simply split my time equally between the 2 cities, or if I would have time to include additional stops, i.e. Dordogne, Nice, or somewhere else. My kids (ages 16 and 12) seem to think that we will have lots of time to cover additional locations, but I am inclined to spend less time jumping between hotels. Any recommendations would be most appreciated!

Also, thoughts on whether train/air is preferred way to get from Paris to Barcelona?

Thank you.

Michael

Your children may be interested in the Dordogne for its castles and caves. You would take the train to Brive-la-Gaillarde or Bordeaux and pick up a car (you'll need a car to drive around the Dordogne). Sarlat would be a good base. To the north is Lascaux II, and to the west (roughly) are towns like Domme, Beynac (and its chateau), La Roque-Gageac, and chateaux like Castelnaud (museum and demonstrations of medieval warfare).

Getting to Barcelona may require several train changes from either Brive or Bordeaux.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/mksfca...7649/show?rb=1

annhig

Hi Stiggs,

presumably you have flights into Paris and out of Barcelona?

and when you say a 12 day trip, does that count arrival and departure days? [it can be helpful to think in terms of nights, not days, when you are trip planning]

if you have 12 actual days on the ground, then possibly you could fit in one extra place, but it depends what your plans for Paris and Barcelona are. if your days there are already pretty full, then squeeing in, say, the Dordogne, could b quite difficult. And wherever you are going needs to a place that it's easy to get to from Paris with good connections with Barcelona.

You could do the Dordogne, though a car is almost essential there and I'm not sure you would be able to squeeze in enough days to make it worthwhile. Another option would be Toulouse - train to Toulouse, pick up a car at the station, tour the area, [Carcassonne etc] then return the car at, say, Perpignan, and get the train to Barcelona.

it's tempting to think that you could drive say, from Toulouse through the Pyrenees to Barcelona but apart from anything else, you might incur a heavy "one way rental" charge.

and to make the most of it might take longer than you want to spend en route.

kja

Personally, I think it would make most sense to split your time between Paris and Barcelona, but perhaps with a day trip (or even two, if that's what best suits your family's interests) from each. And you have LOTS for day-trip options from each of these cities! YMMV.

Loacker

You can take the TGV from Paris to Barcelona. It's a 6-hour ride. Can be bought for 60€ if purchased in advance. I prefer this to flying as you arrive right in the center.