Hello,

Vimal from India. I will be travelling to France next year March / April for 3 weeks (22 days in total, excluding 1 day for to and fro flight journey) with my mother. I think i am planning to early. But have to keep all things set. The VISA slots are a hectic to schedule. Keeping it short, below is my plan.

Arrive to Nice
4 Nights in Nice (plan to explore small towns around)
3 Nights in Avignon.
3 Nights in Chamonix
1 Night in Lyon (Just for the food and some strolling in old lyon)
3 Nights in Colmar.
4 Nights in Paris

I have 4 days more. Where should i plan to ? I though of doing Normandy, where i want visit D days beaches and Mont Saint-Michel. If i do this, where should i stay at, i mean where should i keep my base to explore these places.
Thanks in Advance for any ideas shared.

Bayeux is a good place to base a visit, if for nothing else than to see the myth of the first Normandy invasion (1066 and all that). Reasonably well placed. Rouen is not really as good but not bad and with a very attractive cathedral if you like that sort of thing.

If you end up with free days, Paris will absorb them all.

Hi, sudovim, I'd add 2 days to Lyon and 2 to Paris. From Avignon, a day trip to Arles. Looking forward to hearing about your trip!

Vimal, it’s never too early to plan a long vacation where there are several loose ends to be tied up. A couple of questions and comments.

You proposed itinerary covers several cities spread across France, from Nice in the south to Lyon in the center, then the east/north east, tthen Paris. And maybe the north west if you go to Normandy. All in March, which can be rainy, with shorter days compared to summer. How do you plan on getting from one place to the other, train? While trains in Europe are fast and convenient, remember you’ll spend almost half a day each time you move base.

How old is your mother, will she be able to take this rather hectic pace? My siblings and I took a long vacation with with our mother every year, 3-4 weeks, but we usually kept it to 2-3 bases, especially in later years as my mother slowed down as she aged. She preferred to spend a week to 10 days in one place, some days she’d stay at our Airbnb and relax with a book. A reverse of the days in the sixties when my parents toured Europe with us kids, we’d be left home with our B&B landlady while they went sightseeing 😉

IMO Nice, Avignon, Lyon and Paris, with a side trip to Bayeux for the DDay beaches would give you a good taste of France. You’re doing well to start in the south and work your way north, for better weather there by March end.

I know Schengen visa requirements are rather strict and you need to submit a detailed itinerary with hotel reservations, etc. Suggest you talk it over with your mom and work out a plan which won’t rush you off your feet.

Come back with your revised plans, Fodorites are always happy to share their experiences and suggestions.

There is so much to see and do in Paris that I would add 3 or 4 nights to Paris. One of those extra days could be a day trip to Versailles. There are so many awesome and interesting museums, the Paris opera house, etc. to keep you busy. An evening boat tour on the Seine. And set aside time for wandering and exploring the beautiful neighborhoods of Paris. You won’t regret it. Paris is not a city for rushing, take your time and savor this beautiful and atmospheric city.

Why Chamonix at that time of year? With only 1 day in Lyon, half of which will be a travel day, you won't get much food. Use the Chamonix days there. Also keep in mind that moving from one place to another takes the greater part of a day so mentally subtract one day from each new place. At least you are not counting arrival and departure days, as some poor planners forget to do. Use the unassigned days for travel and for more Paris time. You won't regret it.

For Mont-Saint-Michel, is bayeux a right base ? I have seen day trips packages costing the same from paris too.

While in Avignon for 3 days, i plan to do a day trip to Arles and Aix-en-provence. Paris, i wanted to keep 4 days, so that i can just walk around the streets and do some shopping. kind of chill and experience.

Thanks for the feedback. My mother is in her mid 50's, she is energectic. And yes, plan to travel between cities by trains and bus. The way it is planned, i wont be on train or bus for more than 200 mins. But yes, will try to revise the base.
Wanted to know, for Dday beaches, what would be the perfect base for day trips ? including Mont Saint Michel ?

Thanks for the feedback. So chamonix is not ideal to visit in March end ?

MSM Mont-St-Michel is a couple of hours drive from Bayeux. The place can get mobbed with tourist coaches and the best time to visit it is early or end of day (to avoid the tourists, the views will be there all the time). https://en.normandie-tourisme.fr/unm...-saint-michel/ gives you all the details you need. There are buses that drive down the causeway but you have to walk a bit at each end. The buses run from 7am until midnight (according to the website).

I do doubt the website a bit, anyone who thinks "Granville is the Monaco of the north", has been smoking wacky baccy.

Are you going to try to ski in March? Why is Chamonix on your list?

No, just visiting the french alps. No plans for ski.

It's good to get a head start on planning! This trip has a bit too much jumping around for me though - it might be nicer to use more spots as bases for day trips, so you're able to soak in the atmosphere and get to know the towns a bit better. I also think 4 nights in Paris isn't quite enough - add as much as you can to the back end of your trip. I'd probably do something like this:
4 nights in Nice

4 nights Avignon – and consider day trips to Arles/Aix-en-Provence

3 nights Colmar – and visit other surrounding villages as well, like Riquewihr, Kayserburg, Ribeauville, etc. Could also base yourself in Strasbourg if you want to be in a bigger town (but still very cute and Alsatian)

5 nights Paris

If you realllly want to do Lyon, then I'd probably cut a night or two from Nice or Avignon and allow for at least two nights in Lyon.

Hello, I would agree with others to skip Chamonix. In March, it belongs to skiers.
also, 1 day in Lyon just for food and old Town is bit odd. You will find both in other places.
Even if you skip Lyon, 4 regions in 3 weeks (cote Azur, Provence, Alsace and Paris) is still ambitious.
Maybe you should tell us more what you expect from your visit, what are your areas of interest, like food, culture, nature... so that we can give valuable advice.
Weather in March is generally cold and wet, especially in North. It is then probably better to stick to cities or indoor visits in these parts of France.
Long distance and urban transport are very good. But if you want explore nearby villages (like in Provence Cτte d'Azur or Alsace), it might be more difficult to find public transportation. You would need to rent a car or hire a taxi if money is not a problem.

For Alsace, you could base in Colmar or Strasbourg and just visit the villages on or close to the train line.

Correct. For example, Obernai is easy to reach from Strasbourg.
But I think it would be a pity not to visit Ribeauville/Riquewihr/Kayserberg, easy to combine with own or private transport but quite a challenge with local buses.
Same issue in Provence. Famous sites or villages like Senanque, Gordes, Roussillon, Ste Sixte, St Remy.. are virtually impossible to visit by public transport, especially with a very limited time

In Alsace it does depend if you are going to taste wine. If so then don't hire a car and drive. French blood alcohol limits are relatively low.

I would do this:

Arrive Nice
3 Nights in Nice [For The Riviera] (plan to explore small towns around)
4 Nights in Avignon [For Provence]
1 Night in Lyon [For Lyon]
3 Nights in Dijon [For Burgundy]
3 Nights in Colmar [For Alsace]
3 Nights in Bayeux [For Normandy and Mont St. Michel]
5 Nights in Paris [For Paris and Versailles].