IzabellaBella

I can't decide. Do you think more of our time should be spent in Provence as shown in #2? If we really want to spend more time in Paris, we simply will not take the Day trip to Brugge or Colmar in #2.

Itinerary #1
July 12: Arrive in Paris
July 13: Paris
July 14: Versailles
July 15: Paris
July 16: Loire Valley
July 17: Colmar or Brugge Day trip*
July 18: Paris
July 19: Leave Paris for Avignon, rent car, drive to bed and breakfast
July 20: Provence
July 21: Provence
July 22: Drive to Nice
July 23: Nice
July 24: Nice
July 25: Nice
July 26: Leave for US

Itinerary # 2
July 12: Arrive in Paris
July 13: Paris
July 14: Versailles
July 15: Paris
July 16: Loire Valley
July 17: Colmar or Brugge Day trip*
July 18: Leave Paris for Avignon, rent car, drive to bed and breakfast
July 19: Provence
July 20: Provence
July 21: Provence
July 22: Drive to Nice
July 23: Nice
July 24: Nice
July 25: Nice
July 26: Leave for US

*May substitute for something else.

Robert2533

It's strictly up to you, as we have no idea what your priorities are. Personally, I would be setting aside at least 7 days in Paris.

StCirq

I wouldn't be chopping up that time in Paris with all those day trips. And I assume you mean you're going to take the train to Avignon and pick up the car there...not drive from Paris.

IzabellaBella

Robert2533, why do you say so many days in Paris? I know ther eis plenty to do there, however we are not much of museum goers. We will probably go to Louvre and that's it in terms of a Museum. We are more interested in the parks,bike rides, markets, food, cooking classes, simply walking the street and palaces/chateaus.

Yes, we will take a train to Avignon and rent a car there.

KTtravel

Where are you flying from? If you are arriving in Paris after a long international flight, your first day or two will be spent in "recovery mode."

I, too, would recommend more time in Paris.

StCirq

I don't see what not being into museums has to do with how much time you allocate to Paris.

Sassafrass

Maybe just me, but I would probably not do either Bruges or Colmar as a day trip from Paris.

Bruges is about 2 & 1/2 hours each way by train, so 5 hours minimum, plus the time from (and return to) your hotel to Gare du Nord. I would do it - this way. Generally I would rather do day trips than one night stays, but this would be an exception. I would go to Bruges on the 17th, spend the night, and go to Avignon on the 18th. Yes, it would be more travel on the 18th. I haven't looked at the route, but you are not going to do much in Paris that day anyway, and plan to check into your B&B near/in Avignon on arrival. You are going to do the travel anyway, so rather than a rushed day in Bruges and a late dinner back in Paris, put the travel all together so you can enjoy Bruges all lit up in the evening and have dinner in the beautiful plaza. Bruges is tiny; getting to/from a hotel there is easy. You can check in and practically walk right out the door into the center of Bruges. Check to see when they have fireworks and music at night.

Colmar is even longer, just under 3 hours by direct train and 3 & 1/2 with a transfer, so 6 to 7 hours round trip, plus the time to get from (and return to) your hotel to Gare de l'Est. I haven't looked to see what the logistics would be if you spent the night in Colmar and went to Bruges from there.

bilboburgler

I assume you have a very strong connection with Nice, but if not I struggle to see why you would make the 1000km Loire a day trip but a minor city 3 days. Certainly more time in Paris makes sense.

ssander

I also recommend more time in Paris...unless you've been there before.

<i>We are more interested in the parks,bike rides, markets, food, cooking classes, simply walking the street and palaces/chateaus.</i>

I don't know about cooking classes, but for everything else, Paris is packed with opportunities -- even chateaux within a hour or so.

Also, the day trips to Bruges or Colmar is questionable. If I were going to spend 5 hours on a train for a day trip, I'd go to London...again, unless you've been there before. Ultimately, that's just a matter of taste.

SS

annealex

After an international flight from Atlanta we did fine in Paris and were ready to go. Not a lot of jet leg for us. (It's the coming back that is hurting us.) 4-5 days is great and Versailles is worth the time!

Given your interest in parks, bikes, walks, I would add more to Provence. Once you arrive it's so beautiful and requires some leisure. Nice is fine, but I'd limit to 3 days with your time frame.
Try to get at least 4 days in one B&B in Provence IMO. We loved the perched villages in the Luberon.

Christina

Some people just aren't interested in big cities, you obviously have no interest in Paris itself, it's your choice. I do think museums has something to do with how long you stay in big cities as that is often what people spend several days doing. Of course there are other things to do, but it sounds like you like small towns better than big cities as you want to go to Colmar and Brugges. You don't say why. I can understand Brugges better as it is another country and it is charming. But of course Paris also has beautiful areas, if you think it doesn't.

I don't think your itineraries are very different at all, but I'd go with 2 because I'd spend more than 2 days in Provence. I would drop the day trips to Colmar or Brugges, they are too far away. If I had to do one day trip, to be honest, I'd do Brugges over any of those others. I'm not a big Loire fan, for one thing, but I don't really think seeing it on a day trip is the best way to go, anyway. If you want to see a smaller town, there are plenty closer to Paris, like Rouen or Chantilly or Auvers-sur-Oise, etc.

mamcalice

I'm not sure how one day in the Loire Valley would work. It is along way to go for a day as are Colmar and Brugges. I am speaking as someone who has been to Paris 8 times and is spending 2 weeks in Paris this fall. I have been to all of your destinations more than once and would not choose any of them over Paris. But that is me. No one can tell you what is best but can only tell you what we would do.

I would cut out the Colmar or Brugges trip and spend that day in Paris. Otherwise, I suggest you and your family do a little more research to see what you prefer. Have fun.

AlessandraZoe

Somehow my sister manages to visit Paris once a year for the past twenty years without stepping one foot in a museum. So...

Another vote to drop Colmar and Brugges, and I think just one daytrip to the Loire does not make sense either. The fact is that with either itinerary, you are wasting most of your time (and money!) in transit, no matter what transportation method you use.

I totally agree with Christina that there are so many SHORT daytrips from Paris that DO make sense, and I think you should research those and decide if those shorter trips appeal to you.

The official Fodor's website on just four of those is here
http://www.fodors.com/news/best-day-...aris-6327.html

Here is a Lonely Planet contribution
https://www.lonelyplanet.com/thorntr...s-out-of-paris

There are also a lot of threads on this forum about the topic, too.

I have no problem with your stretch of time in Provence--I have no idea what you want to do there--and while Nice itself isn't fantastic, it's a great base from which to explore some good hikes.

Enjoy your planning,
AZ

StuDudley

I'll just second most of the other suggestions. Drop Brugge, Colmar, and the Loire if you're only doing it as a day-trip from Paris. You'll see plenty of chateau stuff in Versailles, and on a day-trip to the Loire you won't be able to see more than 1 or 2 chateaux anyway.

I would do 6 nights in Paris with only a day-trip to Versailles, 4 nights in Provence, and 4 nights in Nice & surrounds. On July 22 you can leave Provence early in the morning if you've seen enough of Provence - or late in the day if you haven't. If you leave Provence early, you could stop in Aix, explore their very nice Tuesday morning markets (2), have lunch on the Cours Mirabeau, and then head to Nice.

There is a LOT more stuff to do on the Cote d'Azur in addition to Nice. The Nice hinterland is fabulous. We've spent 16 weeks on the Cote - and are going back for 2 more weeks in less than 3 weeks from today.

We fly from the US west coast (been doing so 2-3 times a year since '99 & once a year before that since '78) and we're pretty much knocked/zoned out for about the first 2-3 days. However, Paris is a good place to recover, because it's easy to find a cafe for a coffee jolt or head back to the hotel/apt for a "rest-up". If you were in Provence & driving to destinations, for example, it would be more difficult to do this re-fueling (plus driving has a tendency to make us tired).

Stu Dudley

StuDudley

Day trips from Paris.

I can't recall how many days we've spent in Paris since '78 when we started to go to Europe yearly. In 2008 we went to Paris for 3 weeks. I had about 5-7 day-trips planned to elsewhere. We did zero of them - except Versailles. Once we were in Paris for about 5 days, we never had any desire to get on a train for a couple of hours & go elsewhere. We've visited Paris for around 4 weeks since 2008 - and still no day-trips. This year, we'll be in Nice for 2 weeks & Provence for 2 weeks for our June trip. We're taking the TGV from Avignon to Disneyland and visiting all the chateaux & a few villages in that area for 3 days before our flight home.

Stu Dudley

AlessandraZoe

IzabellaBella--Please let me emphasize what Stu is saying. I'd say most of us view Stu as one of the ultimate experts on the South of France. If HE is saying that you can occupy your time well in Paris, that statement actually means something (as opposed to the often "hot air" of the forum).

And unlike so many others, Stu never has a ruler in hand with which to rap your knuckles.

Again, I wish you happy planning. That is said from a firm advocate of the cliche that all trips have three components: the anticipation; the doing; the remembering.

May you have all three.
AZ

HappyTrvlr

Colmar disappointed us. If heading to Alsace, visit Strasbourg instead. We always try to spend at least a week in Paris.

IzabellaBella

We are flying from Chicago. Last year we arrived in Rome at 8am, hopped on a train right away to Florence to start. We were ready to go by Noonish and were full of energy. Maybe becuase our flight from Chicago was at 6pm and we slept through the night. With that said, I am not worried about the jetlag.

I like the suggestion of staying 1 night in Brugge if we do decide to go. The reason I do not want to commit to a night in Brugge is because when in Paris, we may not even want to leave for day trips, except Versailles. When in Florence for 1 week, we had 3 day trips planned and only managed to do 1 because we loved Florence and the close outer villages so much that we did not want to waste time travelling. I presume we may feel the same when in Paris.

We are staying in Nice because we are using it as a base to visit other places. We also have a B&B there. We will return our car in Nice and train to other villages.

In Provence, we are not planning anything. We will just take each day at a leisurely pace.

In regards to Colmar, I don;t think we will do this. I feel that the Provence region will give us a lot of the same Colmar would in terms of that small village experience and and wine.

StCirq

<< I feel that the Provence region will give us a lot of the same Colmar would in terms of that small village experience and and wine.>>

Well, it absolutely will NOT, except in the most general of senses. The two regions could not possibly be more different (and isn't that one of the most wonderful things about visiting France? That you can travel 50 kms and the entire culture and landscape and politics and architecture and food and wine and music and traditions and EVERYTHING changes??

I do agree that ditching Colmar is a great idea, but do not think for a minute that Provence is anything at ALL like Colmar.

StuDudley

I agree with St Cirq - Alsace, Dordogne, Provence, Brittany, Gers, Nord, Auvergne, Loire valley, Pays Basque - even the Pyrenees & Alps are all quite different in "looks & feel". What's why we spend two months in France every year, experiencing new locations (and returning to old/familiar ones).

Stu Dudley