Good places to go in the South of France with teenage girls for 4-5 days
May 7th, 2014, 03:05 PM
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Good places to go in the South of France with teenage girls for 4-5 days
We are traveling to France in August 2014. Would like good thoughts on places to see in the South of France that would appeal to 4 teenage girls. Some sightseeing, relaxing, shopping, eating, culture, charm! Not too much driving…..and we will have to get back to Paris at the end of the stay. It would be nice to see some famous landmarks, but also would be nice to see some off the beaten path places.
May 7th, 2014, 04:52 PM
#4
Also, what are their interests? Teens in August in the South of France . . . well, to me knowing it will be super warm, I'd be wanting to spend half the time on the beach 1/4 of the time exploring/shopping and 1/4 time visiting museums/landmarks. Evenings, I'd want to stroll about, listen to music, and have a meal.
But that would have been me in my teenage years. Actually, pretty much the same mix these days!
Cannes might make a fun base or Juan les Pins/Antibes, or even Ste. Maxime. Rent a car, take a day trip to St. Tropez . . . go early enough and go to one of the cool private beaches like Tahiti Beach.
But that would have been me in my teenage years. Actually, pretty much the same mix these days!
Cannes might make a fun base or Juan les Pins/Antibes, or even Ste. Maxime. Rent a car, take a day trip to St. Tropez . . . go early enough and go to one of the cool private beaches like Tahiti Beach.
May 7th, 2014, 08:17 PM
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I'm thinking Nice (all right: Menton's dowdy; Monte's brass; Nice is rowdy; Cannes is class, and all), but still, teens will enjoy seeing and being seen in Nice more than just about anywhere in the south of France, and the strolling/beaching/shopping/eating scene just fits teens pretty sharp. Daytrips (Monte/Cannes etc.) abound.
If they are more reflective and want more atmosphere than 'scene', then Arles.
If they are more reflective and want more atmosphere than 'scene', then Arles.
May 8th, 2014, 06:48 AM
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4 girls…..age 14, 16, 16 and 21 actually…..and yes, Nice sounds good, but I personally would love to see Avignon, or Aix too…..I do like the people watching, beach, shopping, strolling, eating scene, but it would be nice to do something historic or cultural too….is it best to fly into Nice? My 21 year old will be spending a fall semester in Paris and will be studying Art HIstory.
May 8th, 2014, 10:30 AM
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It's really crowded along the coast in August in France. I didn't see how long you plan to be there, but I would think you could split your stay between Nice and Avignon area. They do have some quasi-beach in Nice if they insist on it, it's not sandy at all like you may expect, it has small rocks on it. So you can't really lie out on it, you have to have a chair. There are some private beach clubs there where you could go and pay a small fee and get something better.
Why don't you spend some time in Nice, without a car. It has some good art museums and you can do day trips from there easily if you want. Then you could take a train to Aix or Avignon area and stay around there with a car, if you want, for a few days, to see more countryside. I wouldn't spend any time at all in the popular beach towns like Cannes, etc. It is crowded, expensive, hot, and why waste your time in France trying to do a beach vacation. I would have hated that when I was a teen, anyway, some kids don't liek hanging out endlessly on beaches.
Why don't you spend some time in Nice, without a car. It has some good art museums and you can do day trips from there easily if you want. Then you could take a train to Aix or Avignon area and stay around there with a car, if you want, for a few days, to see more countryside. I wouldn't spend any time at all in the popular beach towns like Cannes, etc. It is crowded, expensive, hot, and why waste your time in France trying to do a beach vacation. I would have hated that when I was a teen, anyway, some kids don't liek hanging out endlessly on beaches.
May 8th, 2014, 12:51 PM
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You could swing a day or so to Aix or Avignon. If you really want to get as much of an eyeful as possible it could be well worth it, if you time everything tightly.
It's 3 hours by train Nice-Aix, but less than two by car. If you rented a car and did a one-way rental you could decide how to allot time to get a flavor of Aix, maybe Les Baux, St. Remy, even Arles or the Camargue (it's a fairly compact area). It's a further hour from Aix to Avignon, where you could leave the car.
Many people scoff about trying to pack a lot into 5 days, and feel you are "just scratching the surface" with 5 days even in just one city, but there are many different ways to travel, many different purposes, different people appreciate different styles of travel, and next time when you go back you can enjoy things you got a good impression of in more depth. There's nothing wrong with a trip that's about getting varied impressions and building up a personal sense of geography and a feel for what the big Smörgåsbord offers.
It's 3 hours by train Nice-Aix, but less than two by car. If you rented a car and did a one-way rental you could decide how to allot time to get a flavor of Aix, maybe Les Baux, St. Remy, even Arles or the Camargue (it's a fairly compact area). It's a further hour from Aix to Avignon, where you could leave the car.
Many people scoff about trying to pack a lot into 5 days, and feel you are "just scratching the surface" with 5 days even in just one city, but there are many different ways to travel, many different purposes, different people appreciate different styles of travel, and next time when you go back you can enjoy things you got a good impression of in more depth. There's nothing wrong with a trip that's about getting varied impressions and building up a personal sense of geography and a feel for what the big Smörgåsbord offers.
