wufani

I am travelling to Pau end of November into December for business. My husband will meet me there and we will have a week (7 days) to spend travelling. We plan on flying out of Paris and would like to have about 3 days there at the end of our trip. Where should we go from Pau enroute to Paris and what should we do? We are mountain loving people and had hoped to travel to Chamonix but it seems too far away for our time limit. I am open to any suggestions, we are active people so mountain excursions to walking trips in cities are possibilities for us. This will be our first trip out of the states since we got married.

lorettajung

The Pyrenees are right there. Just go up into the mountains. Read up on them. You can go up to the towns of Cauterets or Ax en Thermes and soak in the waters, and you might be able to take hikes -- but weather in very unpredictable up there and you'd need to stick to locals advice and close-in walking paths.

Dukey1

Pau is an easy drive into the mountains as was mentioned above. Pretty scenery, etc. I've done it in the summer and aside from road driving conditions would certainly consider it.

lorettajung

I just realized I misspelled the name of Ax LES Thermes.

If you look at the websites for the major hotels in Cautarets or Ax-les-Thermes they will often spell out the public transportation options if you don't wish to drive.

It is possible to see snow in the high Pyrenees in late November, enough to ski or snowshoe. If you don't want that, there are towns at lower elevations.

pierre_g

If you love moutain i would highly recommend you to go to cirque de Gavarnie, a beautiful moutain place in the Pyrénées.
Near Pau, you have also Basquian country with one of the most beautiful see coast of France.
Visit also Toulouse, a beautiful city in the area. And eat some great south-west foof(maybe the best of France with Lyon's area France.

Pvoyageuse

Ax les Thermes is a 4 hr drive from Pau - not exactly in the neighborhood.

Cathinjoetown

There's snow on the mountains now. By early December, many passes may be closed but there's good access to ski stations. You will need winter clothes, boots, etc. if you want to hike. Ski gear can always been rented, stations may or may not be open.

Pau itself has gorgeous views of the Pyréneés. It also has an excellent tourist office which will have up to the minute information on what is open in the area.

Not sure about access to the cirque de gavarnie. It is serviced by a small train during the season but then requires a walk in. May be too late to do this in Dec. Here's some more info:

http://www.guide2midipyrenees.com/in...ees_South_West
_France

Driving straight from Pau to Paris will take around 10-12 hours, minimum. Spreading it over 4 days you could stop in the Dordogne and/ or Loire Valley, two beautiful areas and more or less on the route.

Or, stay in the area and when ready to go to Paris, take the train or fly. From Toulouse the TGV is 5-6 hours and a flight is around an hour.

Cathinjoetown

http://www.guide2midipyrenees.com/in...th_West_France


Correct url.

Michael

If snows are late, walking to the Cirque de Gavarnie might still be possible in December.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/mksfca/...th/4516412562/

Cathinjoetown

Michael,

Gorgeous photos!