We leave for Paris on Nov 26 and are spending 3 days in Paris. We were scheduled for a tour of Israel for 2 weeks before returning to Paris for 4 nights. The 2 weeks are definitely up in the air because of the war in Israel. We are thinking of a plan B to stay in europe for the 2 weeks and we are open to suggestions as to what may be great places to go at this time of year.
where do we go now????
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A three week trip can be well spent in Europe or even just in France, because time flies faster than you would ever imagine.
Considering the season, I would try to take advantage of the Christmas festivities as much as possible. They have little to do with religion in France in any case -- it's more of a "winter festival." Therefore I would recommend adding Strasbourg and probably a couple of German cities to your plans. If you were able to rent a car and drive around independently, that would be great, but if not, you should start booking train tickets as soon as possible if you want to save money on them -- I'm sure it is already too late for certain dates, depending on when the school holidays start.
I'm pretty much with Kerouac, you need a bunch of cities to stay now that the nights are drawn in and weather is more unpleasant. Paris, Strasbourg, Reims are a good set in france. You could also look at Trier, Luxembourg, Brussels and some of the ancient cities like Brugges as well as German cities for the Christmas fairs.
Alternativley you will find christmas fairs in french provincial cities like Avignon (with the pope's castle) and Nimes, Arles. But these cities are great in the summer for tourists but a bit out-doors for winter.
What do you like to do?
I agree to sticking with cities at this time of year - the countryside won't look like much.
It's hard to know what to reco without knowing where you have been and liked or not - and what you like to do.
I would tend to visit London (which I love), add days to Paris, and pick one or at most two others - based on your interests. (I might rent a car and head for Strasbourg, visiting Dijon or Colmar on the way.
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Nice is great in the winter: lots to do, no need for a car, and all those nice small towns and villages nearby to visit by train and/or bus.
Thank you for all the information. We are now going to Israel but coming back to France for an additional 5 days from Dec 9-14. We are thinking of renting a car and traveling to Beaune. I am concerned about the weather and is Beaune a good destination at that time of year.
I was in Beaune last December, on the 17th. It was fine, but I would have preferred to visit at another time of year. I was happy with a one day visit. I like the Strasbourg area much better.
If you want more temperate weather.
Depending on where you are from, Chamonix could be nice.
OR, Barcelona!
If you ignore the wine and compare Strasbourg to Beaune, then Strasbourg has it every time. Comparing the wines is difficult as more people have heard of Burgundy than Alsace. I actually prefer Alsace wine but hey that is me not you.
This whole renting a car thing that people from outside of Europe do. I know loads of people do it in Europe but given the very low costs and high quality of trains on mainland europe why would you want to get into a little box on wheels in December to drive to little places? It just seems strange to me. Winter is for cities and towns, all the other seasons are for the country.