LGarabito

My husband and I will be in Paris in July 2013...we will have an extra 5 days/4nights to add to our trip and my husband and i cannot decide what to do! I have always wanted to visit London, never been...I know it's a short train ride from Paris too. However, my husband prefers the French Riviera (also never been). He said he would like to spend time near the coast and getting some sun. Obviously, London doesnt offer that so he's not crazy about the idea. What are your thoughts? What would you recommend? Im dying to see London but the lack of sun and high prices are not helping me convince my husband. The French Riviera does sound appealing to me, but i honestly dont know where to start! What town do we stay at? Hotel? What is there to do besides catching some rays?

Would love some feedback and suggestions Thanks in advance!

nytraveler

If it were me I would do London - prefer it to the Riviera in high summer. Like the Riviera in late May/early June.

However, there are a ton of things to do on the riviera besides sun (I avoid all sun). We like to stay in Nice - a big town with a lot to see and do - and you can easily tour from there to the various towns along the cost, to the quaint towns and gorges in the mountains above the coast and to several really interesting museums. Have a look at the Michelin green guide and it will give you - and rate - a bunch of options.

BigRuss

London. If all he wants to do is flop, do it elsewhere. American, Caribbean, Mexican and Greek beaches are all better for just plotzing by the water than the French Riviera. There are other places in France you can visit that are interesting: Bordeaux, Loire Valley, Normandy . . .

And tell him that the French Riviera can be scary because 80%+ of the unattractive women go topless, which is about 2-3x the rate of the good-looking ones. That'll get him to change his mind.

DAX

Either place will be fun. If you can convince your husband to go to museums instead of the beach, then London is perfect because the museums are free! London has plenty of pubs, bars and great restaurants to boot.
If it were my choice however it would be the French Riviera, the only downside, in July you have to avoid driving to St Tropez, but you can always arrive by boat if you want to experience the best sun bathing beach town life.. That said, there are plenty of other coastal places to enjoy the sun in Provence.

kerouac

London must be done sooner or later -- that's obvious. Yes, it can be super expensive without considerable advance planning.

But the French coast should be seen as well -- note that I did not write "riviera" because that is not necessarily the best place to go for sea and sun. Places like Biarritz or La Rochelle on the Atlantic coast can be fantastic as well. However, it is true that they will all be completely overloaded with tourists in July, whereas London will still be suffering from "post Olympic depression" which might make costs more reasonable.

Luckily, you still have tons of time to keep planning.