aggiemom

I'm so stuck on this trip. I'm trying to firm up a trip to France for October 15/16-24/25, 2005. My DH and I will be going alone for our 20th anniv. We are 49 and 52, love to walk. Love history, ancient sites, museums, music. Food is not a priority (see below) but some good casual restaurants would be okay.

Here's what we have so far:

Must leave DFW and fly in and out of CDG. Due to commitments we need to be home by Oct. 25 and cannot leave US before Oct 15.

Want to spend 3-4 days in Paris and also take TGV to Provence (heard Avignon was good destination to rent car) and rent car for 4 days or so. Would have to return to Paris to fly home and have to spend the previous night in Paris before morning flight.

So I haven't figured it out but I guess that when we arrive in Paris we need to take TGV immediately to go see Provence first. Paris will be the remaining 3-4 days of the trip. I'm not too worried about hotels in Paris as we may burn some points to stay in a Hilton or Le Meridien. If anyone has other nice suggestions, that'd be okay, too.

Priorities in the Provence area are seeing the countryside, Roman ruins, maybe a seaport (Toulon?), maybe Cote d'Azur somewhere for a night.

We'd like to spend up to 150€ per night for two in Provence area - up to 220€ per night in Paris.

Here's my problem. I'm reading "A Year in Provence" and also have been looking at numerous websites for Provence. It seems so many hotels/inns/chateaux revolve around food! And I'm just not that into it. DH is pretty much a basic meat and potatoes guy, though is much more adventurous.

What type of lodging should I be looking for? Is Provence just wrong for me? I've looked at many of the suggestions on this board and they look beautiful but again, that emphasis on food. I'm a little worried because I stayed in small places in Germany this last May and of course didn't eat much. The owners kept asking me if the food was okay and I felt bad.

I have been to France before but have stayed with friends, no hotels. So food was not an issue.

Any insight? I love France dearly but am I just getting paranoid about this food issue?

Thanks,
mom

PS: We are not dead set on Provence. It just looks so nice (and I've never been) and seems to offer what we want but we are open to everything and I've been considering Burgundy and Brittany also.

Underhill

You don't need to focus on food in Provence--just plan to have most of your meals at cafés or bistros rather than full-fledged restaurants. At our favorite small restaurant in Vieux Nice we regularly have a garlicky salad and pasta, although there are many other options--including pizza. Roasted chicken is often an option, and of course the frites (French fries) are divine. Fish is also excellent. Beef is widely available, but the cuts are different and often less tender than we're used to. However, steak frites is an absolute staple at bistros. Omelettes are always an option and are delicious. Lots of cheeses, too.

Hotels and food don't have to be connected. Our favorite small hotel in Provence is Le Hameau, just beneath St-Paul-de-Vence, and breakfast is the only meal served. So you don't need to worry about the food aspect. For 150€ per night you'll have a good ranges of hotel choices, and you could also think about B&Bs. Look at the Guide de Charmes web site for interesting places:

http://www.guidesdecharme.com/

You can take your pick of Roman ruins: Orange, Arles, Nîmes, the Pont du Gard (a Must See, IMO), St-Rémy, Fréjus, and Nice are only some of the major sites.

Marianna

Underhill, please tell us the name of your favorite small restaurant in Vieux Nice. You never know when we might go back on a trip there! I probably could find it if I did some research here on past posts - ones even on questions I asked - but it is easier to just ask you to give us the name, please.

StuDudley

I think you already have a good plan. Land at CDG, immediatly take the TGV from CDG to Avignon, visit Provence, then take the TGV back to Gare de Lyon in Paris & stay there 3-4 nights - sounds like a perfect plan to me.

For late October, Provence will probably have the best weather of all the most popular destinations (Dordogne, Brittany, Loire, Normandy, Alsace, etc). I would suggest that you spend all 4-5 days you have in Provence in just one hotel or B&B - perhaps in St Remy, or in the Luberon near Gordes. Don't try to see Nice & the Cote also - too much driving and too much transit time. There is plenty to see & do in the area around Avignon to keep you on the go for 4 or even 20 days.

It looks like you have 8 full days. I would spend 4 full days in Paris - at the minimum.

There are very many casual pizza and pasta places in Provence and in Paris also. If you are a meat eater, look for Magret de Canard on the menu - it's duck breast, but many people think it's beef. Like others have said, don't worry about the food.

Stu Dudley

Underhill

The restaurant in Nice is called L'Ecurie; you can find it at 4,rue du Marché--at the far end of Vieux Nice. The pastas are excellent, and the Niçois specialty "farcis," small veggies stuffed with minced meat and rice, are delectable. Pizzas are huge--in France they come for one person but nearly always are plenty for two.

Sit outside so you can watch the passing parade of visitors--all manner of dress, often with accompanying dogs that really do resemble their owners.

aggiemom

Thank you Underhill and Stu. It must have seemed silly, this "food thing," but I don't want to stay in a place that has so much emphasis on food.

Now I'm sure we don't have to take all meals at our hotel but I had assumed that maybe it was the thing to do. So many of the hotel websites had the "prix fixe" thing and I didn't want to feel pressured into it.

Since you both seem to have much experience in Provence, I will probably be picking your brains again!

Merci beaucoup,
mom

StuDudley

>>Since you both seem to have much experience in Provence, I will probably be picking your brains again!<<

Do so soon - in 3 weeks, I'll be back in France for another month long visit. Dordogne this time

Stu Dudley

StCirq

Food will only be a priority if you make it one. I don't see what the issue is here. You can go to France as a gourmand or go as indifferent and I don't think it will have much to do with your appreciation of the place. Besides, Provence isn't any more food-oriented than anywhere else in France, and some would argue it's less so than, say, Alsace or Burgundy or the Dordogne.
You've got a good plan. Go and enjoy! Who knows, maybe your taste buds will be awakened!

Underhill

I'm not sure what you mean by hotels having a prix-fixe thing. Do you mean demi-pension? That's often required in high season in smaller hotels that have restaurants. So just find a different place to stay and you won't have the problem.

Incidentally, you can eat very well in cafeterias attached to large supermarkets. The food is much better than most cafeterias here, and you can just take what appeals to you. There are excellent salads and a choice of several hot dishes, as well as veggies and desserts.

Luisah

No, Provence is not wrong for you. With your inerests in history and ancient sites, P. is an excellent choice. Don't worry at all about food, just book a room in a regular hotel, not a demi-pension. There are many choices available for simple meals throughout France, including shopping at grocery stores for picnic items and bakeries for fresh sandwiches at lunch time.

During a stop in Arles on a river cruise my sister and husband saw the cruise chef buying food at the fabulous Saturday street market. I was in Arles at a different time and loved the market -- bought a slice of pizza for lunch - delicious, and I'm not a pizza lover. There was fresh fruit, a variety of breads and lots more food.

In Arles I also shopped at Monoprix for small items (pasta salad, fruit, cheese and bread) that I kept in the mini bar. There are many cafes in town for salads and sandwiches. I did eat dinner at a couple of small restaurants in the Forum area and the food was simple and good -- very fresh ingredients.

Are you going to Marseille? I loved the Old Port area, had a room overlooking the port and all the activity. Good shopping nearby and lots of restaurants in the pedestrian area that serve simple, inexpensive meals. Menus are posted outside. Portions are not large so a three course prix fixe meal is not too filling. I had grilled salmon, which was excellent and I'm really fussy about fish. I also had wonderful fresh salads at a cafe for lunch and went into a bakery at lunch time and bought a fougasse (warm bread with cheese and olives.

Boats leave from the Old Port for Chateau d'If (I did that and thoroughly enjoyed it) and other islands and the calanques (wish I had taken one of those).

When in Arles don't miss the Antiques museum and the Necropolis and bring a warm jacket or sweater and a scarf or hat. I was there in early Oct. last year and the weather was great most of the time but a wind from hell blew for about three days and it was darned cold, even the natives were wrapped up. Nobody said the word, but I asked the hotel manager if it was the famed Mistral and he nodded his head.

You'll have a wonderful time in this area with your interest in history and ancient sites.

Have you read "The Road from the Past" Traveling through history in France, by historian Ina Caro? It's a fascinating report of a road trip that begins in Provence. From the back cover: "If I were on my way to Provence," said the reviewer for the Denver Post, "Ina Caro's is the book I'd bring.

DanM

We just returned from doing the same type of trip on July 24th. We arrived at CDG (from IAH) on the 14th, TGV to Avignon, spent 7 nights at a wonderful B&B in Maussane, and then 2.5 days in Paris (our second time in Paris this year). From our B&B we could be in Arles in 35 minutes, St. Remy in 15 minutes, Orange in one hour; the heart of the Luberon in one hour, and they tell me the beach is only 1.25 hours away. It was the perfect location as we were able to see so much without spending too much time in the car. We were there with our 6 yr-old and 17 month old and had no problem with finding places to eat.

The B&B website: http://www.mas-des-fontaines.com/

I cannot believe that this Longhorn is helping an Aggie Mom. But hey, we each love France.

aggiemom

Thanks all for calming my food fears. I just realized that while this is my third time in France, it's been more than 25 years and I'd never spent time in a hotel/inn there.

Underhill - yes, I guess I was thinking of demi-pension. Thanks for clarifying.

Luisa - Excellent information. I really enjoy simple and quick food (I'm pretty much a vegetarian) so I'll look for your recommendations. Great book recommendation, too.

Dan - Thank you for giving driving times to cities - that's a big help. Now when I tell my husband (he'll be driving) we can allow enough time and he won't have to drive like Mario Andretti!

PS: Dan, hey, we can't all be lucky enough to be Aggies! (Now, if I had my cheat sheet I'd put in the image of the winking eye smiley face here.)

Merci,
maman

Underhill

Our local football team is called the Aggies.

aggiemom

Underhill - where do you live? I'm here in Texas where the Aggies are from Texas A&M University (where our daughter is a Sophomore.)

mom