frrodriguez78

I'm planning a tour of France and Italy, an 11-day stay at Paris included. However, I need recommendations as to other french tourist cities/places. I was thinking of Strasbourg and Nice in the french riviera, but I would like suggestions from people who know France. This would be my first visit to this country. Help appreciated.

frrodriguez78

I forgot to mention that I will definitely be visiting the Loire Valley.

murphy89

If your going to the Loire don't miss Amboise - its lovely! Great chateux nearby Chennonceau (go early).

If you are interested my pictures from France (Loire Valley/Brittany) are posted here:

The link to Murphy’s Great Adventure Part I http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34823999

The link to Murphy’s Trip Photos: France http://www.fodors.com/forums/threads...p;tid=34828804

hope you find some ideas. I know lots of Fodorites love the area around Nice, so hopefully they will chime in too!

Cheers,

Murphy

Underhill

Nice is a great place to spend a few days, but before we make other recommendations we need to know about how much time you will have for exploring outside of Paris. There are many wonderful places to visit.

kerouac

Just for reference, here is the list of the most visited tourist sites in France not located in the Paris metropolitan area :
1. Puy de Dôme
2. Mont Saint Michel
3. Reims cathedral
4. Chartres cathedral
5. Pont du Gard
6. Sarlat

ira

Hi fr,

How many days will you have?
When are you going?

frrodriguez78

hello. thank you for replying. I just expanded my vacation, so I will have two weeks to explore outside Paris. Currently, The Loire Valley will take 3 days, and I have 11 days open.

Michel_Paris

I liked Lyon for 4-5 days, Rheims as a day trip. Loire (in a car) is good because you can do the main sites, but also ramble off into smaller villages

BTilke

I would give the Loire Valley an extra day if possible.

Other suggestions:

Bourges (in summer, they do a fabulous self-guided multimedia illuminated walking tour through the old town).
Avignon
Lyon (see the article on Lyon in the NYT)
Dijon
Montpellier

Nice didn't impress me that much. I'm glad I saw it, but it will never be one of my favorite spots in France. However, if makes a good stopover if you plan to take a train from France to Italy.

I don't think 3 days in Paris is enough for a first visit, I would give it at least 5. With 9 days remaining, I'd do 3 or 4 in the LV (if that's where you want to go) and only one other spot. And do you plan to drive to take the train?

frrodriguez78

I'll be spending 30 days in France. Two weeks have been programmed for Paris and Ile de France. 3-4 days for the Loire. Initially, I had thought about travelling through Provence down to Nice for the remaining days. But, Nice doesn't strike me as a particularly culture city. As it is now, I can't decide where to spend the rest of the time. I'm thinking of adding Mont Saint Michel to the itinerary, and I'll probably invest a couple of days on that trip. But, still 10 days left for other sights...

frrodriguez78

so, I guess I should clarify what I want for the remaining stay in France. I want to visit one or two provinces with cities wealthy in history and culture (plenty of renaissance, medieval architecture, good cuisine, nice assortment of cafes and night life, plenty to see and learn about). I would like to spend at least 5 days in one of these cities and not be bored after a couple of days. Your suggestions are most welcome.

JeffreyJ

Arles and Avignon. Plenty of history and interesting architecture in each.

frrodriguez78

bump

kerouac

The area of Rocamadour (without forgetting the Gouffre de Padirac). Stay in the small town of Gramat and see real France.

Underhill

Nice is actually a city with many cultural offerings, such as the Matisse Museum and the Chagall Museum--not to mention the Beaux Arts Museum, some fine churches, Roman ruins, the cemetery where are buried Matisse and Dufy, art galleries...that's just to get started with.

Near Nice is Vence, with the Matisse Chapelle de la Rosaraie, Antibes and Vallauris with Picasso museums, Mougin with many good art galleries...what more could you ask?

frrodriguez78

well, I'm more interested in experiencing a city with a rich history, numerous ancient (medieval, rennaissance) architectural sites, good cuisine, nice cafes, and a characteristically "french" atmosphere. Museums in this city won't be on the priority list, since they would take considerable time from my short stay there, and I would have, at this point, spent considerable time in museums in Paris.

klondike

I think Nice is quite a cultured city, but I consider it more mediterannean than classic French...it's just a bigger city than I personally like.

Based on what you've said...I would consider driving the Loire to see a few chateaux (doing a topic search here on Fodors will give you all kinds of info) heading west to Saumur/Anger area then turning north-west towards the Normandy/Brittany area to include Mont St. Michel.

If you are driving all the way, I'd swing deeper into Brittany before seeing Mont St. Michel and then get a taste of Normandy on the return drive to Paris.

If you're planning on ditching the car and training back to Paris, however, you would have to decide either on Normandy or Brittany IMO. Just making a straight run from Saumur to Mont St. Michel you sort run along the line of Brittany and La Mayenne getting a "mongrel" effect and not experiencing the pure essence of either Brittany or Normandy, which are very distinct from one another.

Just one of your options...good luck!

frrodriguez78

klondike, thanks for your advice. Mont Saint Michel and Ile de France are included in my itinerary. I'll travel from Paris to MS Michel and spend a night there. Then I'll take the train to Paris and head to Ile de France where I'll dedicate three days visiting the Chateaux near Tours and contemplating the countryside. What comes next is what I haven't decided yet. It's either Avignon, Dijon, or Strasbourg...six days. They're all quite touristy cities with medieval and renaissance architecture, nice city squares, cafes, etc., etc. Strasbourg seem the less "french" as there is a heavy german influence in its culture, but it's also the largest of the three. I'm really having a hard time deciding...

klondike

Geez, I see the delema...did you say what time of year this is taking place?

cocofromdijon

Hi, another vote for Dijon , you won't be disappointed.
Have you seen my photos? http://tinyurl.com/okerl

bienvenue en France!
coco