phillyboy

Thanks in large part to the help received from St Cirq and some others a few weeks ago, our September vacation has come into focus. It looks like we will have 16 full days on the ground in France and Spain. We have not booked hotels yet, but wil be looking at that shortly.

I'm looking for any general recommendations of places to stay (see the next paragraph for a bit of what we are looking for), restaurants, and daily activities. We like leisurerly drives through beautiful countryside; visiting traditional towns and villages; the occasional museum; mixing with locals; good local food and wine, and then some more wine. We are busily combing through guide books and the internet to fill in the details, but would appreciate any help that that those more familiar with these areas can offer. Not looking to spend any time in Paris proper this trip. The general outline is:

- Leave on September 9 and fly into CDG and make our way to Sarlat, or somewhere close-by. We will probably take the train to Bordeaux, and either pick-up a car there, or in Perigeaux. We prefer staying in B&B's or small hotels in small towns to lodging in the country, primarliy because we dislike having to drive somewhere for dinner every night. We do like our wine with dinner, and would prefer to drink in comfort somewhere within walking distance of our rooms, rather than abstaining because of the drive back. We want to base in one spot here for about 7 nights.

- Drive to Northern Spain, and base somewhere a small town for about 4 days, where we'd be within easy reach of San Sebastian, La Rioja wine country, and maybe a drive into the Pyrenees. The area appears to be fairly compact, but I realize that short disatnces in this part of the world can sometimes take a long time to cover, so I'm hoping this is practical.

- Head back into France, and spend 4 more days/nights in an area roughly midway between Northern Spain and Paris - maybe someplace like Cognac or La Rochelle. This is the part that we're most sketchy on - we're not very familiar with this area, but it's France right - how bad can it be? We'll continue to research, maybe there's somewhere else on the route back to CDG (where we'll probably spend our last night before flying back) that makes sense - we're open to other suggestions.

Thanks for any help and recommendations you can offer.

phillyboy

Huh???

Christina

Are you staying in Bordeaux at all before picking up the car? I have a hotel there I like.

StCirq

I can help you with La Rochelle and Ile de Ré, but am getting ready to serve dinner to a bunch of neighbors so probably not until late tonight or tomorrow. In the meantime, my last trip report, from my last trip in September 2012, has a bunch of stuff about both locales, plus the Cognac region, and if you are so inclined, click on my name and just ready yourself to scroll through a boatload of posts to get the relevant info (it should be toward the end - we were in La Rochelle and Ile de Ré for a few days toward the end of our trip).

ekscrunchy

Others will know much more, but one recommendation I can offer is Bar Andre for dinner in La Rochelle. I still lust after their mouclade. There may well be more recent, more on point recommendations, but that sticks in my mind after 5 years or so since my visit..we went after a few days in the Cognac area and were so happy that we took the time to meander in La Rochelle.

Look forward to see the recommendations you receive for what sounds like an idylilc sojourn.

Michael

Gites de France has always worked well for us in the countryside. BTW, you could stay in French Basque country and visit San Sebastian on a day trip.

phillyboy

Merci, StCirq - I have read your report,and will go back over it for the La Rochelle portions.

eks - I will make a note of Bar Andre, thanks.

Michael - we may consider the Franch Basque Country, any particular recommendations on towns to be based in? I have long been fascinated by the Basque culture, but it has always seemed to me more closely connected to Spain than to France.

phillyboy

Christina - no plans curretly to stay in Bordeaux, but there's potential for us to stop there on our way back - what's the hotel?

phillyboy

ttt

StCirq

Hi phillyboy.

If you're not planning on staying in Bordeaux, I'd take the train from Paris to Brive instead. Then it's about a 40-minute drive to the Sarlat area.

Assuming you've got 4 days to work with after the Basque region, I'd spend a day driving through the Cognac area on your way to La Rochelle. Cognac itself is worth a stop, as is Saintes - you might want to overnight in one of them, because if you take the scenic route, as we did, through all the vineyards and small towns, you won't make great time. Then three nights in La Rochelle, and definitely go out to Ile de Ré, even spend a night there. I'd drop the car off in La Rochelle and take the train back to Paris (it's a loooooong drive, and you will already have had a good bit of that!).

phillyboy

Hi StCirq,

If I'm reading the public transport maps correctly, it appears that we would take the RER train from CDG to either Gare du Nord or Chatelet Les Halles, transfer to Gare d'Austerlitz(probably by cab), and then a four-hour train to Brive ... is that right? I realize you know this area very well, but is that any easier than training direct from the airport to Bordeaux, just over 4 hours, and then driving to Sarlat, probably another 2 hours?

Helpful info in La Rochelle and environs, thanks again.

StCirq

Probably easier to go from Roissy directly to Bordeaux, yes, then take the TER to Périgueux and pick up the car there. I thought there were at least a few direct trains from CDG to Brive, but am not seeing any. Sorry.

tomboy

StCirq-is that Roissy a TGV? and does it stop at Libourne?

StCirq

tomboy, yes, they all stop at Libourne and are TGVs.

phillyboy

Thanks again. We booked our flights, which ended up outbound on Sept. 10 and returning on the 26th. Got a great fare of $798 per person round trip on Icelandair out of JFK. This means I have to get from the Philadelphia area to JFK, but that price was too good to turn down.

There are similar fares available from Boston and Dulles around that same time, I think I'll post that as a new topic for others to see.

Michael

The Bolt bus takes you to 34th and 8th Ave. where you can catch the A train to get to JFK.

phillyboy

Thanks Michael.

weber6560

In many respects, the Spanish Basque country is rather thinly populated. However, what is there is very, very good. I'd locate in San Sebastian and, contrary to your guidance, I'd stay as close to the Parte Viejo as possible. It is a town that comes to light in the evening, perhaps the main reason I rate it the most livable city in Europe. It is a town built on food and wine. More Michelin stars per capita than Paris. If you want to sit in the middle of the Pais Vasco, try Pamplona but it really sort of run of the mill. However, if you are looking for a fishing village experience, try Leiketio, just west of San Sebastian. Watch the boat come in, pick your fish and eat it. Don't believe all the bad press from the past re Bilbao - it is a great place.