PalenQ

early April - have you been to the Keukenhof - with car you can cover more towns more easily and you are moving around a lot - schlepping all your stuff with you from train to hotel, etc. I am of course a train schill as many have accused me of but here a car I think will be more free wheeling - especially if you want to visit places like Keukenhof and Kinderdijk, etc.

But yes trains are great and go everywhere all the time.

Cheers!

PalenQ

Actually if you base in a few of those places trains are a great way to go - easy to day trip by rail - changing my opinion - just thought relocating so much takes so much of the day and most of those places are within an hour or so by train - Gouda or Delft are nice smaller but not small towns to base in if not liking too much large cities like R'dam and Antwerp.

StCirq

I have to research the train routes and talk to our friends. Hadn't really thought about renting a car, but it might be the better plan. The hardest part is getting from the Dordogne to Amsterdam. After that, it's easy whether we rent a car or take trains, which I'm partial to.

PalenQ

After that, it's easy whether we rent a car or take trains, which I'm partial to.>

Yes either way you have great transit - one of the densest rail networks in the world and relatively easy driving, especially if you stick to back roads.

pftg

Thanks PalenQ

StCirq you're inspiring me to stay longer in Belgium. I'd love your hotel recs! Thank you. I haven't done as much research yet so anything is helpful. Would they happen to have uber weaving within the Belgian towns?

I had dinner with my mom and we were dreaming of meeting in Paris. How cool is that Apparently she has unfinished business in Lourdes. Do you know the most efficient logistics to get there from Paris and then to Nice? Should we fly? Marseille is also in the running if you've toured both and can compare?

PalenQ

You can take StCirq's recommendations to the bank - one of Fodor's top experts, especially on the Dordogne area where she/he now lives - your mum is just coming to Paris to leave for Nice or will you spend time in gay Paree together - otherwise no need for her to bop up to Paris at all - just meet in say some train station where you are heading. Lourdes to Paris is a long haul - consider flying from Toulouse or any airport nearby.

Have you considered the Avignon/Arles area - the heart of tourist Provence - so so much to see and do in a compact area - car would be nice but local transit will get you around also. this would be my recommendation and if time then it's a short TGV ride to Nice and the fantastic Cote d'Azur.

I would hesitate to recommend Marseilles for first time travelers who have not seen say the Avignon area or Nice - there are direct trains Paris to Nice in about 5.5 hours and you see the landscape of France in between - rather nice at times - there is also an overnight Paris-Nice train - save daytime travel time and also the cost of a hotel night.

StCirq

pftg, I'll get the hotel recs to you soon. We are without electricity here in the Périgord at the moment, so I have to go into town to get online, and the hotel info is back at home.

I can't answer the Uber question, but I'm sure google could help you out. The train network really is fabulous, though, and cheap.

You can get to Lourdes from Paris by train (familiarize yourself with www.capitainetrain.com), or I imagine you can fly. From Lourdes you can fly to Toulouse and then take a train or fly to Nice. I'm sure there are trains to Marseille from Toulouse also - don't know about flights.

I haven't been to Lourdes, but have done some driving through the Pyrénées around Pau, and it's certainly a beautiful part of France. I've been to Nice, but the Côte d'Azur isn't really my cup of tea. Marseille I love, but I agree it might be a bit of stimulation overkill for a first trip to France. It's got a fascinating old historical center, but I think what most people come away with is a sense of gritty port town (though it was named European Cultural Center of the Year in 2013).

PalenQ

there are or at least were the last I looked overnight trains between Lourdes and Paris.

joannyc

You can fly ORY > LDE and LDE > ORY > NCE for $241 USD on HOP with a 1 hour layover in ORY.

PalenQ

anyone looking for a neat unique day trip from Amsterdam could take the train to Gouda - a lovely old city and rent a bike at the train station or nearby and do an easy flat ride to Kinderdijk - the awesome collection of huge windmills set in a nice rural setting to make a day with seeing a neat old historic city - doing like the Dutch and renting a bike and seeing this awesome site:

https://www.google.com/search?q=kind...w=1920&bih=955

and with bike you can ride thru them on bike paths!

pftg

Thank you so much!

StCirq no rush with the hotel recs StCirq whenever you have free time is great. You've already given me a lot of very useful advice. Hope you get electricity soon! I can only fantasize what it's like living in the Perigord .

joannyc I think that puts us back to Paris from Lourdes to get to Nice? Is there really no direct train route from Lourdes to Nice? What is HOP?
PalenQ I considered Avignon but I don't think we'll have enough time. So many places to see. I love your recs keep them coming.

StCirq

Hi, pftg

No, there is no direct train that I'm aware of from Lourdes to Nice. One general issue you might keep in mind is that the train system in France is based on Paris being the major hub, so there are north>south/south>north trains galore, but many, many fewer running east>west/west>east. You can get many places using regional trains, but they usually involve connections and are slooooowwww.

HOP is a low-cost short-run airline run by Air France.

Here are the hotels/apartments we have booked so far :

Amsterdam: The Dutch Stork
Den Bosch: Apartment Gufo
Antwerpen: Luxury Villas Red Lion

Hotels/apartments are considerably more expensive in the Netherlands than we are used to in France, so it took lots of research to find places we thought were affordable.

joannyc

A very unfavorable option is the bus (Eurolines.fr) from Tarbes (near Lourdes) to Nice. It is cheap at 35 euros but really a very long duration! Leaves at 17:45 and arrives in Nice at 08:00!

I'd rather fly back to ORY with an hour layover there, it is a much faster option.

PalenQ

Paris to Lourdes by direct day train = 6 hours with 3 TGVs a day or most days going direct to Lourdes. Seems to be no overnight train as I though - at least not direct so a hassle.

StCirq

Well, if it's 6 hours from Paris, then it seems it is actually better to travel west to east from Lourdes to Nice. About half the trains on any day require 2 connections, and the other half, just one. But it's only about 7 hours no matter which you choose, so going back to Paris and then to Nice from there would eat up even more time. At least, that's what I'm seeing.

PalenQ

But it's only about 7 hours no matter which you choose,>

I see none less than 9 hours on www.bahn.de and most require at least two changes of train - a few one. A long long slog - go to Toulouse and fly IMO.

StCirq

You're right. I was confusing it with another poster who wanted to get from Carcassonne to Hendaye on a Sunday. 9 hours 16 minutes is the best I see. Still, probably better than taking a train back to Paris and then a train to Nice.

There must be flights. Loads of people go to Lourdes. I'm not up on the cheapo European airlines, and I don't know anything about Lourdes, but I'm guessing there's a way to do this.

PalenQ

Still, probably better than taking a train back to Paris and then a train to Nice.>

Definitely especially since you have to change stations in Paris and it would take much longer than 9 hours and be more expensive too - flying makes the most sense here.

joannyc

Yes, there are flights as I mentioned in a previous post. The trip can be done in 3hr 40min for as little as $164 USD on a random Sunday in March that I picked.

https://www.google.com/flights/#sear...o+nice+flights

joannyc

There are also non-stop flights from Toulouse to Nice taking a bit over one hour for as low as 64 (euros or USD, I don't recall which it was).

But you would have to get to Toulouse airport from Lourdes.