Meeting friends in Stuttgart Germany. Plan on traveling to Rhone Valley then Burgundy and on to Paris. We will be six people traveling together over 9 days. We plan on driving until we get to Paris. Need help on itinerary. Can we find a car or van for 6? Should we consider taking the train on any parts of trip? Where are great stop overs? What towns or area should we use as a base to travel? How many days in each area? Any suggestions on accommodations, restaurants, vineyards etc.....

Going much farther south than Lyon makes little sense given your amount of time. You might want to go south via the Jura (see my trip report that begins in Basel) and then go north via Beaune, Dijon, Auxerre and sights in between. The Michelin Green guides for the Jura and for Burgundy might help in getting greater definition of the itinerary.

I forgot one item: whatever car or cars you get, there is a stiff cross-border drop-off charge. You may want to train to
Strasbourg and pick up a car there to avoid these charges. The Basel airport (French side) is another possibility, but there is an airport pick-up fee.

Like Michael said, I would stick to north of Lyon. In addition to the fact that there is a lot to do in Beaujolais, Burgundy, & perhaps the Jura - just the opposite is the case south of Lyon, IMO. Along the Rhone River itself there is a lot of heavy & light industry, nuclear power plants, and some OK but not exciting towns. If you travel about an hour east into the Vercors Alps, it is quite dramatic but I don't think 6 people in a van would be a good way to explore this region. Same with the Ardeche about 1 hr west of the Rhone.

There are several interesting Chateaux in the Beaujolais region
http://www.hotelbasilique.com/chateau.htm
Cormatin is our favorite

and in Burgundy too
http://www.routedesducs.com/

To explore Beaujolais, perhaps this small hotel would be a good choice - we had a fabulous dinner there.
http://www.aubergeduparadis.fr/

In burgundy, I would spend about 3 nights in/near Beaune and three nights farther north near Auxerre or Vezelay.

Don't miss Dijon.

Visit Troyes on the way to Paris.

Stu Dudley

Here are my Burgundy pictures (mainly north of Dijon). You obviously do not need to take a canal boat ride to see the sights that are included in that itinerary.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/mksfca/...7622755059630/