amusesbouche

Booked a roundtrip ticket to Paris from Apr 30-May 10. Been there a few times, and would love to spend around half the trip doing something else. Problem is there are TOO many options and I'm overwhelmed. Would prefer not to rent a car, but it's still something I'd consider.

Should I...
- ...take the train to London? (Never been.) This is one I'm seriously considering, but will it be too much?
- ...visit a wine region in France? (I love Beaujolais, whites of Alsace, Jura reds, Provence rose, etc.)
- ...explore the nearby surroundings of Paris (Versailles, etc)
- ...hit up Normandy or Brittany? (not interested in war history, but am really into food/drink/arts/etc.)
- or do something else?

Any suggestions? All ideas welcome and appreciated!

AJPeabody

Paris a few days to get over jet lag. then consider:

Chateaux of the Loire with rental car
Or
Alsace area probably with car

Or Day Trips:

Chartres cathedral
Chantilly
Reims (Champagne house)
Giverny (Monet's garden and other museums)
Versailles (And if you already went there, just to hike and visit the Trianons and the Hameau )
Fontainebleau
Vaux le Vicomte

Or, sort of in Paris, ride the boat along the Canal St Martin to Villettes
Or do a chocolate crawl (look up all the fancy chocolate shops and spend $10-20 at each)

greg

Many in this forum can blurt even more list of destinations. However, what is your decision criteria? If you don't have a yardstick, there is no way to decide why you choose one and not the others. If you cannot articulate what you want to accomplish from this trip, how can others help you?

You have listed four different general ideas. If you have difficulty choosing from this list, how would adding more to this help you? Also, you mentioned you have been to Paris a few times, yet you have listed Versailles as a place to go. What other places very close to Paris listed above under day trip ideas you have not done?

>>> Would prefer not to rent a car, but it's still something I'd consider.
The list of destinations to connect determines the mode of transport.

PalenQ

London could easily be a day trip or longer stay - via Eurostar trains (www.eurostar.com) and if you book months early you can get really cheap tickets. And for wine Alsace and Burgundy are just a few hours away by train. The Loire Valley has wineries and vineyards and lots of old chateaus - just an hour by train to Tours - renting a car would be neat but there are also minibus tours that are a good deal. Amsterdam is about a 3.5 hour train trip if you want to stay overnight - not practical as a day trip.

Yes see what appeals to you and we can comment more on that.

Booking train trips well ahead of time can save money - see www.oui.sncf for French trains - www.seat61.com has loads of tips on booking your own trains - general info www.ricksteves.com and BETS-European Rail Experts.

Michael

Consider the Alsace-Lorraine. Strasbourg as a base to visit the wine region of Alsace. Lorraine for Nancy and its Art Nouveau. You probably could do it by public transportation, taking the train to Strasbourg and Nancy, and using bus connections to towns like Hunawihr.

nanabee

>> ...take the train to London? (Never been.) This is one I'm seriously considering, but will it be too much?>>

If you've never been to London and you've been to Paris many times this would be my first choice.

KarenWoo

I agree with nanabee. Since you have been to Paris many times, and you have never been to London, why don't you split up your trip evenly? Maybe 5 nights in London and 5 nights in Paris. The 5 nights in Paris would give you time to visit Versailles and/or perhaps a night or 2 in the Loire Valley.

denisea

There is so much you can do with Paris as a base. We did take the TGV to Strasbourg a few years ago and it would make a great base for a few days to enjoy Alsace.

If you want to do some day trips, I can't recommend Giverny enough. We loved it. (I am STILL trying to get to Vaux le Vicomte).

I also love Reims but not sure if you love Champagne. Even if you don't, the cathedral there is beautiful if you enjoy Champagne, the caves at Ruinart are impressive!

If you are in the Loire, I love Chenonceau.

Take a look at this book for amazing day trips and the history/significance behind the destinations. Paris to the Past by Ina Caro...you can visit all these destinations by train.

amusesbouche

Thanks all, and sorry for the delay in responding! For those of you who had suggestions, they were super helpful in idea generation (which was largely the point of this query to begin with). After some deliberating, I have since ruled out London, Jura, Versailles/Giverny, the French Riviera, Normandy, and Brittany this time around. We'll have 2-5 days for a side trip and I'm currently deliberating between...

- Burgundy, Beaujolais and Lyon (love these wines, and great food even more)
- the Loire Valley (love Chenin, & it looks beautiful too)
- Provence (who doesn't love the idea of Provence?)
- Alsace (allthough for some reason I’m intimidated by it. Perhaps it’s because, knowing myself, I know I’d want to try to eat at all the Michelin restaurants and have the best Riesling and totally overdo my budget and itinerary in far too little time!)

For any of you who've been to these places, were they favorites, or not so much? How much time would you recommend spending there, and what was the best way to get around (especially if you are interested in visiting specific producers)? For some reason we have a huge fear of paperwork/driving/parking in a foreign country where we don't speak the language...

Thanks so very much for your thoughts!

amusesbouche

Adding that Champagne is still on the table, too. (As a wine enthusiast, I probably don't love it quite as much as Beaujolais/Burgundy/Loire, but who doesn't love bubbles?) If I went that direction I'd be more interested in visiting smaller vignerons and cooperatives than the large Champagne houses, in general.

StCirq

I can't see London being "too much." It's a relatively short train ride, with inexpensive fares if you book in advance.

I've been to all the places you mention several times, at least. The Loire Valley doesn't grab me - sure, there are great castles, but I prefer fortified castles to old royalty's pleasure palaces, and the scenery is pretty blah compared to most of France.

Who doesn't love Provence? Well, me for one. It's beautiful, it's got plenty of culture and history, the food is pretty good, but there's a whole lot of old anglophones there, which isn't what I love about France.

Alsace, great choice. Beautiful, great food, close to Paris. Not a place I think of as the locus of Michelin restaurants or opportunities for overspending (maybe because I'm not fond of the wines) but rather beautiful countryside and picture-perfect towns and villages. Well, yes, there are plenty of Michelin restaurants, but they don't normally draw me to engage in excess.

Champagne is also rather ho-hum scenery IMO, and I also don't like champagne, so it's wasted on me.

Burgundy is the one I'm least familiar with, but I do think the wines are spectacular if the scenery isn't as pretty as elsewhere.

Well, you asked for personal opinions.....

PalenQ

Alsace and Burgundy are hard to get around by public transportation but there are always winery tours from hub cities like Beaune and Colmar - two great bases if sans car. Beaune could be a good base if just wanting to hit places on the Route de vins Bourgogne - Burgundy Wine Road as local trains serve many smaller towns.

Take trains from Paris fut book them well in advance for discounted fares - www.oui.sncf for official site though many find www.trainline.eu easier to get to work and exact same fares many have also said. Local trains need not be booked - they don't take seat reservations anyway and flat fare so just buy at stations. www.seat61.com tells all needed about booking discounted tickets - general info trains like 1st v 2nd cl, etc also rickstves.com -&nbspThis website is for sale! -&nbsprickstves Resources and Information. and BETS-European Rail Experts.

Chinon in Loire is IMO the nicest larger town in the Loire Valley but is not the best base for visiting the most popular chateaus - Chenonceaux and Chambord - Amboise would be a great base for them and also has its own grand chateau, imposingly hovering over the Loire, which IMO, is at its most beautiful here. Loire wine towns like Vouvray and Bourgueil are far apart whereas in Alsace and Burgundy they are more concentrated. From Amboise mini-bus tours take you to the most popular chateaus.

KarenWoo

We spent 2 nights in Blois, and it was perfect for visiting Chenonceaux and Chambord. We also spent one night in Chinon, which is beautiful.
​​​​​​​

Lexma90

Of the places you've mentioned, I've been to most of them, and here's my two cents (and why):

- Burgundy, Beaujolais and Lyon (love these wines, and great food even more). Good food, but heavier than is my preference. Lots of vineyards to visit, but IMHO, not much else in the way of museums and the like. But good for a couple of days, if that's your timeframe. Beaune is quite delightful.
- the Loire Valley (love Chenin, & it looks beautiful too). The chateaux are beautiful and fun to visit, but I do not find the Loire area in my top-10 of France for beauty. And, like StCirq, I find the older, more defensive fortified castles more interesting than the palace playgrounds. Though there are a couple of older castles (Fougeres, I believe, is one) in the Loire. Also the restaurants in the caves are fun. And it's a good distance from Paris, and good for a couple of days.
- Provence (who doesn't love the idea of Provence?) Might be more here than you have time for, though you could simply go for several days. Also like StCirq, not my favorite region of France, though it has its own type of beauty, great food and wine, and if you like Roman ruins, you should put this at the top of your list.
- Alsace. Even though my ancestors are from near here (on the German side), it's never appealed to me, partly because the cuisine (again, heavier) does not appeal.