cdubose

Hi, this will be my first time in Europe. I will be traveling with my 17 year old daughter. We will be staying at a friends place in Nanterre. We will be there end of April through the beginning of May. We will be there for a week. We want to do a 1 day trip to Belgium. I wanted to know is it best to travel there on a week day or on the weekend? Also my daughter is learning to be a photographer and so I thought it would be nice to visit Provins and Toyes. The other days we would hang in Paris checking out the sights and just kinda playing it by ear. Our transportation will be the train. Any ideas that will help this trip to be memorable for both of us? Thanks!

bardo1

Obviously, you'll want to take the RER into Paris.

Any chance you can drive your friends car to Provins and Troyes? ...Or have them drive you? It makes for a much easier trip.

Where in Belgium are you planning to go? I don't think weekday or weekend makes much difference but I would definitely get an early train so that you arrive at your destination before 10am?

PalenQ

It is easy to get to Provins by train in case you do not have the possibility to drive - just take the RER to Gare de l'Est and hop frequent trains to Provins or Troyes. Now I agree with bardo1 that if you can drive without renting a car you could easily see both those towns easier than by train.

griz_fan

Not sure on your flight arrangements, but maybe look at flying open-jaw? Basically, land in Paris and depart from Brussels. My daughter and I did that a couple of years ago and it worked great. In fact, the cost of departing from Brussels was a lot lower and more than covered the one-way train ticket. That might save you some travel time.

lavandula

If you are planning a trip to Brussels, try to stay there over a weekend because the employees of the European Institutions are not there over the weekend, and hotels are emptier and cheaper. I also like the idea that gris_fan puts forward of leaving via Brussels. The airport is close to the city and unless you have a really early flight you shouldn't have to stay at an airport hotel.

Lavandula

danlev

Depends on your interests, but you might consider going further than Brussels, to Ghent (30 min from Brussels) or Bruges (one hr from Brussels). Both are beautiful towns. Ghent is more vibrant, with lots of university students and cultural life. Bruges is simply heartbreakingly beautiful, and I would think very photo-friendly.