France Trip Itinerary Questions
May 13th, 2005, 07:18 PM
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France Trip Itinerary Questions
I’m planning a July trip for myself, my husband and 25 year old daughter. She will have just spent 1 month studying in Paris. We have been to Paris before.
We will spend the first 4 nights in Paris. I already have reservations at Hotel Muguet. We want to spend 1 day visiting Giverny.
My thoughts are to spend 2 nights in the Loire area (Amboise?); 3 nights in the Dordogne/Sarlat area, 5 nights in Provence, 2 nights in Beaune; then back to Paris for 1 night before catching our morning flight home. We plan to rent a car for areas outside of Paris.
My questions are:
1. Doing the trip clockwise or counter clockwise makes a difference on where we are on Bastille Day. Would it be better to be in the Sarlat area or Provence? What will be closed and what special activities will be going on in those areas?
2. Should we spend all 5 nights in the same town in Provence or divide our time between 2 areas. I’m debating between St. Remy and Arles as our main headquarters.
3. Should we spend a night in Carcassonne between the Dordogne and Provence to break up the drive?
4. Which towns would be best to rent a car as we don’t want to drive in Paris? I am thinking of Orleans and Dijon; but any comments would be appreciate.
Thank you for any advice. I've enjoyed reading all the comments on this sight!
We will spend the first 4 nights in Paris. I already have reservations at Hotel Muguet. We want to spend 1 day visiting Giverny.
My thoughts are to spend 2 nights in the Loire area (Amboise?); 3 nights in the Dordogne/Sarlat area, 5 nights in Provence, 2 nights in Beaune; then back to Paris for 1 night before catching our morning flight home. We plan to rent a car for areas outside of Paris.
My questions are:
1. Doing the trip clockwise or counter clockwise makes a difference on where we are on Bastille Day. Would it be better to be in the Sarlat area or Provence? What will be closed and what special activities will be going on in those areas?
2. Should we spend all 5 nights in the same town in Provence or divide our time between 2 areas. I’m debating between St. Remy and Arles as our main headquarters.
3. Should we spend a night in Carcassonne between the Dordogne and Provence to break up the drive?
4. Which towns would be best to rent a car as we don’t want to drive in Paris? I am thinking of Orleans and Dijon; but any comments would be appreciate.
Thank you for any advice. I've enjoyed reading all the comments on this sight!
May 14th, 2005, 07:00 AM
#3
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This is not our first trip to France, but will be our first trip to southern France. We were in the Loire Valley region once before but without a car. This will be our 4th time in Paris. Previous trips have included Normandy, Mont St Michel, Alsace and Champagne regions.
May 14th, 2005, 07:20 AM
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Since you're heading to the Loire from Paris, I'd take the TGV to Tours and pick up your car there.
Bastille Day in the Dordogne will involve lots of little celebrations in towns and villages - usually a parade during the day with local dignitaries followed by some sort of feast and dancing starting around 9 pm, followed by fireworks at midnight. I imagine it's the same in Provence.
Personally, I hate the straight-through drive on the autoroute from the Dordogne to Provence, so if it were me, I'd opt to break up the trip with an overnight in Carcassonne or somewhere nearby.
Bastille Day in the Dordogne will involve lots of little celebrations in towns and villages - usually a parade during the day with local dignitaries followed by some sort of feast and dancing starting around 9 pm, followed by fireworks at midnight. I imagine it's the same in Provence.
Personally, I hate the straight-through drive on the autoroute from the Dordogne to Provence, so if it were me, I'd opt to break up the trip with an overnight in Carcassonne or somewhere nearby.
May 14th, 2005, 08:43 AM
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This looks like quite a bit of ground to cover given the time that you have. I would suggest www.mappy.com for route planning and approximate driving times, realizing that these estimates can be pretty far off. Finding the hotel is another time factor and there is the related question of whether you are willing to leave your luggage unattended in the car, or whether you first go to the hotel to drop it off when arriving at a destination.
I'd be inclined to skip the Loire on this trip, if only two days were available, and perhaps take the TGV to Angouleme and start ftom there,
spending thr first night in the vicinity of Brantome.
Our favorite stopping point between the Dordogne and Provence is Albi, and our preferred hotel is the Hostelerie San Antoine, which has ample parking and a good restaurant.
As posted by Stu Dudley, among others, there is a 6:30 am train from Dijon direct to CDG, which makes a lot of sense if you are in that part of the country at the end of the trip.
I'd be inclined to skip the Loire on this trip, if only two days were available, and perhaps take the TGV to Angouleme and start ftom there,
spending thr first night in the vicinity of Brantome.
Our favorite stopping point between the Dordogne and Provence is Albi, and our preferred hotel is the Hostelerie San Antoine, which has ample parking and a good restaurant.
As posted by Stu Dudley, among others, there is a 6:30 am train from Dijon direct to CDG, which makes a lot of sense if you are in that part of the country at the end of the trip.
May 14th, 2005, 02:11 PM
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Thank you for the suggestions. I've checked out mappy.com and they list direct driving times between places we would stop at 3 to 4 hours which seems managable. I realize we may want to wander a bit at times instead of going direct. How off do these times tend to be?
May 14th, 2005, 05:20 PM
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Time estimates for the autoroutes are generally going to be more reliable than those for the secondary roads, where traffic conditions can vary greatly. I've learned to be very conservative in planning how far to travel in a day.
May 15th, 2005, 11:19 AM
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It sounds like we just did a similar version of your trip in reverse. It's true that it's hard to rely on via.michein for times--partly because of road construction and partly because of holiday traffic. Road construction in Alaska means you may be driving on 20 miles of gravel with flag men and pilot cars. In France it means they detour you off and away for miles down some secondary road to the next freeway entrance. The benefit is you may see some beautiful little villages you wouldn't have seen from the autoroute.
Re: Carcassone. I loved the hilly area around there and the occasional pine trees. If you stay, I recommend La Maison sur Colline a b&b about 2 km from the walled city. If you are used to luxury, and think of a b&b as too plebian, ask for the blue room--it's huge.
Re: Carcassone. I loved the hilly area around there and the occasional pine trees. If you stay, I recommend La Maison sur Colline a b&b about 2 km from the walled city. If you are used to luxury, and think of a b&b as too plebian, ask for the blue room--it's huge.
May 17th, 2005, 07:35 PM
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We actually like B&B's alot. So thank you for the sugestion. We have altered a plans just a bit and do plan to spend 1 night in Carcassonne. My husband is a history buff and wants to visit the walled city.
May 18th, 2005, 01:58 AM
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This posting raises a question that has been on my mind some little time. I had planned to break my Dordogne-Provence itinerary with a few nights in the Gorges-du-Tarn (Florac, St Enimie, St Chely?), but so many people recommend Carcassonne that I'm wondering if I should reconsider. My reason for initially opting not to do Carcassonne was that I'm "all castled out" from previous trips to Europe and am looking for other attractions next time. What does everyone think?
May 18th, 2005, 10:18 PM
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I'm interested in responses to twoflowers question as well. I had also considered stopping at Albi instead of Carcassonne after reading some of the comments at this sight.
We have altered our plans a bit to reduce the driving. We will now take the TGV straight to Avignon, leaving Beaune for another trip. This will allow more time for the other areas.
I have learned that one always must trust that there will be another trip- just too many lovely places to visit!
We have altered our plans a bit to reduce the driving. We will now take the TGV straight to Avignon, leaving Beaune for another trip. This will allow more time for the other areas.
I have learned that one always must trust that there will be another trip- just too many lovely places to visit!
May 19th, 2005, 06:55 AM
#13
Diane,
My husband and I were in France last July, and stayed in Albi instead of Carcassonne for one night. We were very happy with our decision, and found the Toulouse-Lautrec Museum and a visit to the Cathedral well worth our time. We did stop in Carcassonne, though, on our way to the coast, and it was so overwhelmingly crowded that we left as soon as we could. I have a high tolerance for crowds, too, and this was beyond anything enjoyable. I think that if you want to see the town in July, it's almost essential to visit it in the evening during the summer, when the crowds are gone, or skip it entirely. I still am glad that we stayed in Albi, however, because it is a "real" and attractive town, with sights well worth visiting. Do I regret missing most of Carcassonne? Not at all -- we had spent 5 days in the Dordogne and found that we enjoyed seeing the living walled towns and the many castles, and didn't feel the need for the tourist version. I do think Carcassonne is a great experience when you can wonder around without crowds, but during the day in July, that's impossible.
I'm glad you reduced your stops; I was getting exhausted reading it. If you can put another day or two in the Dordogne, too, you might find it worthwhile. I loved that area, and would return in a heartbeat. That region is so saturated in history, that your husband won't want to leave. It is also beautiful and lush. I much preferred this area over the Loire area.
Enjoy your trip, whatever you do, It sounds like you will hav a great time together.
My husband and I were in France last July, and stayed in Albi instead of Carcassonne for one night. We were very happy with our decision, and found the Toulouse-Lautrec Museum and a visit to the Cathedral well worth our time. We did stop in Carcassonne, though, on our way to the coast, and it was so overwhelmingly crowded that we left as soon as we could. I have a high tolerance for crowds, too, and this was beyond anything enjoyable. I think that if you want to see the town in July, it's almost essential to visit it in the evening during the summer, when the crowds are gone, or skip it entirely. I still am glad that we stayed in Albi, however, because it is a "real" and attractive town, with sights well worth visiting. Do I regret missing most of Carcassonne? Not at all -- we had spent 5 days in the Dordogne and found that we enjoyed seeing the living walled towns and the many castles, and didn't feel the need for the tourist version. I do think Carcassonne is a great experience when you can wonder around without crowds, but during the day in July, that's impossible.
I'm glad you reduced your stops; I was getting exhausted reading it. If you can put another day or two in the Dordogne, too, you might find it worthwhile. I loved that area, and would return in a heartbeat. That region is so saturated in history, that your husband won't want to leave. It is also beautiful and lush. I much preferred this area over the Loire area.
Enjoy your trip, whatever you do, It sounds like you will hav a great time together.
