Dorgogne vs Avignon on the way to Nice
 

Hello,

This is my first forum post. My wife and I will be in Paris for a week in September on business, then will leave Paris on Saturday morning to spend another week in France. We would like to finish with 4-5 days in Nice (depart the following Sunday), and are debating between 3 days in Sarlat in the Dordogne, or ~2 days in Avignon- or possibly 2-3 days in Dijon/Burgundy- between our stays in Paris and Nice.

While all sound wonderful it seems problematic traveling to Sarlat from Paris (we would probably rent a car near Sarlat, perhaps Brive or Souillac?) and then getting to Nice from Sarlat. Is there any convenient travel to Nice from Sarlat/Brive/Souillac without driving? It seems like a long drive.

Thank you for any suggestions.

You're talking about a lot of small roads in terms of the Dordogne region -- delightful but not always the best thing to do if you are on a tight schedule.

In any case, you should find September a really delightful month to visit, no matter where you decide to go in France.

<i> Is there any convenient travel to Nice from Sarlat/Brive/Souillac without driving? </i>

No. It might be better to consider Burgundy and the Provence.

We've been going to France in Sept. for many years and I agree that it is a good month. With the time frame you have I'd take a train to Avignon, pick up a car, visit the towns close by, then drive to Nice(2-1/2 to 3 hr drive) and drop the car there----all very easy.

We loved Sarlat & The Dordogne but we had more time. On our 2nd trip to Paris we did the train to Avignon as I said above and even though we don't speak the language it was easy and we returned to the South many times after.

I agree with the others. Save the Dordogne for your next trip.

There are only 2 trains from Paris to Brive per day on a Saturday, while there are 8 trains to the Avignon TGV station and another 2 to the Avignon Center station. So getting to Avignon vs Brive will consume less time. Then there is a 1 1/2 drive from Brive to Sarlat, whereas about a 20-30 min drive from the Avignon TGV station to St Remy and even shorter into Avignon itself.

It's about a 8 1/2 to 9 hr drive from Sarlat to Nice - so you'll loose an entire day.

Stu Dudley

Thanks everyone for your helpful suggestions. You've confirmed my hesitation regarding Dordogne. We'll save it for another trip, and now just have to decide between 3 days in Avignon/Provence, or in Dijon/Burgundy, before continuing on to Nice. Either way we plan to rent a car to be able to tour around from whichever we decide.

No. The Dordogne makes little sense in your plans and it's impossible to get to Nice from there easily. Save it for another trip when you have at least a week to spend there.

>> now just have to decide between 3 days in Avignon/Provence, or in Dijon/Burgundy, before continuing on to Nice.<<

We've vacationed for 4 weeks in the Burgundy/Beaujolais area and 18 weeks in Provence. We're returning for week 19 & 20 in Provence this coming June. That might tell you which area we prefer. Not nearly as many "cute little villages" in Burgundy as in Provence, and I think the variety of "things to do" is greater in Provence (although Dijon is our second favorite city in France). More chateaux in Burgundy, however.

Also, the drive from Dijon to Nice is a long 7 to 7 1/2 hrs, while the drive from St Remy/Avignon to Nice is 2 3/4 hrs. The TGV to Avignon from Paris is 2 3/4 hrs and to Dijon is 1 3/4 hrs. You could take a train from Dijon to Nice - but that's a "middle of the day" 7 hr train ride too (with 1 train change). So, Dijon instead of Provence will wipe-out most of an entire vacation-day for you.

BTW, the drive from Avignon to Nice is actually scenic - especially around the turnoff to St Tropez near the Maures Mountains. The drive down the Rhone past Lyon (rush hour traffic?), some ugly commerce, & a nuclear power plant or two is not scenic. The sun will be in your face while you drive also.

Stu Dudley

Almost forgot. Since you are new to Fodors and perhaps haven't done much "searching" - I have a 27 page itinerary for Provence & Cote d'Azur that I've sent to over 3,000 people on Fodors. If you would like a copy, e-mail me at [email protected] & I'll attach a copy to the reply e-mail.

Stu Dudley