help needed for spain and france
 

I am dreaming of a 2 week trip this late September or early October with the following cities in mind: Paris, Brittany, San Sebatian and Barcelona.

I have been to Paris and Barcelona before. Love it there and this time wanting to check out the coast and food scene in Brittany and San Sebatian.

I am in an early stage of planning. Would love to hear from you Fodorites if a trip like this is doable, any suggested itinerary, start point, end point, etc... I would love to have warm weather at the coast but also wanting to check out fall scene in Paris... so which time is best? Sep 15-20 or Oct 7-21?

I don't think you need even hesitate between Sep 15-20 or Oct 7-21 for Paris. By October, the days are shorter and much much cooler whereas there is often a warm period in September. 15th and 16th September corresponds to European heritage weekend where historical monuments you can't visit the rest of the time are open free to the public. Check out the Galerie des Glaces in the Banque de France on rue Radziwill, for example. Definitely worth a visit. It will obviously be warmer in San Sebastian and Barcelona in October. Brittany will be cooler, deserted and lovely if you go there after Paris. The north coast is my favourite. You could aim at Saint Malo & Dinard and visit the Mont Saint Michel without too many people.

Are you driving from Paris-Brittany-San Sebastian-Barcelona?

Brittany is a large area and is not as well served by public transportation as other areas of France. We rented a car for
our time there, an unusual move for us. If I were you, I would consider combining one of the southern areas of France if you also want to visit Spain. Save Brittainy for another trip. Another idea is to limit yourself to France and skip Spain. The economic situation in Spain is a deterrent to
travelling there, in my opinion.

Pat

economic situation in Spain is a deterrent to
travelling there, in my opinion.

____

This makes no sense whatsoever. The Spanish are not savages who have been reduced to striking down tourists for their fanny packs. It is a silly and uneducated attitude.

I was also quite confused by that comment. Would love to know more specifica about this statement. I travel, primarily solo, to Spain twice a year and have never had an issue with safety.

To the original post, with 2 weeks I think you'll be stretched to visit 3 goegraphies and 4 will be very rushed. Especially when you could easily spend a week each in Barcelona, Paris and the Basque Country.

"The economic situation in Spain is a deterrent to
travelling there".
@wanttogo. I live in Spain and am puzzled by your comment. Can you elaborate?

OP don't worry about "The economic situation in Spain is a deterrent to travelling there, in my opinion." Just travel.

My concerns would be
1) go in Septemeber as October will be too cool in Brittany
2) hire a car for Brittany but you can take a train from Paris to a local station.
3) How are you getting to Barcelona. skyscanner (google it) should give yo an idea for ingternal flights else www.sncf.fr will show you the trains.

If you mean San Seba(s)tian in Northern Spain i'd drive to let me have a look at the Picos d'Europa and the old churches there (plus enough original cross to make a wardrobe)

It also means you can drop through Navarre and Rioja for the odd wine

Aduchamp1,

I found your remarks about my comment offensive. I am neither silly nor uneducated and neither are my opinions. I don't mind that other folks disagree with my opinion, but your answer was uncalled for.

I suggest that the discussion about crime in Spain be dropped so that SCgirl can get some advice on her itinerary and logistics.

Pat

Pat - since no-one else mentioned anything about the economic situation in spain being a deterrent to travel there, I'm sure they'll all be happy to drop the subject.

SCgirl, i think that you are trying to cram too much into your trip and the part that doesn't really fit is Brittany.

if you drop that part, you could spend say, 5 days in Paris, then get the train to San Sebastian, and spend the rest of your time in Spain.

Wanttogo

Let's not drop the conversation. You added uneducated remarks about someone else's trip which could unnecessaily change her plans. There is no reason to scare someone for some unfounded reason.

At the very least explain your position, so SCgirl can make an educated decision.

We have been traveling to Spain for over 40 years and started when Franco was in power. We have family in Galicia and have seen remarkable changes there. This is is a dire and tumultuous time for the Spanish people and they do need unexplained fear from others.

I think most people who travel often would be a bit puzzled by such dire predictions of unrest during the current economic situation, especially in Spain.

Now if we were talking about attending a football match, say Euro 2012, then there could be cause for concern...

On Jun 5, 12 at 4:08pm I asked, "@wanttogo. I live in Spain and am puzzled by your comment. Can you elaborate?"
Since wanttogo has returned to this thread but has not provided any elaboration, I am going to assume that there is no elaboration available.

Thanks for all your response.

I have just visited Madrid, Andalusia and Barcelona this past April and have found Spanish cities very charming, people are friendly, and generally safe. It was my most enjoyable European trip so far so I would love to come back and check out the other part of Spain, particularly San Sebatian (since I'm a big foodie) and revisit Barcelona.

I have been to Southern France and love it as well.

For this trip I would love to add Brittany as a drive from Paris since I heard so much about the coast and their seafood.

I know it is rush to plan to cover 4 cities in about 16 days duration. But I would like to see as much as possible before planning for parenthood in the next 2 yrs...

What do you think is best way to get from Brittany to Spain? flying or driving?

My concern is you're not covering 4 cities - you're essentially trying to cover 4 regions that are quite a distance from each other in 16 days. It can be done but will be quite rushed as your plan doesn't seem to factor in travel time between the locations which can take 1/2 to 1 full day each by the time you consider travel and check in/out of hotels.

Looking at the map, I realized that Basque region is closer to southern France.
I am toying with wanttogo's idea of visiting Southern France instead of Paris and Brittany now...

First,, if you have nothing booked for Paris yet I would start buckling down, sept and october are actually very busy for hotels and apartment rentals.. its trade show and fashion season, many places will be booked already.

Secondly,, I thought the US was having some economic problems,, could be wrong,, but thats what our papers say,, is it still safe to visit there?? ( duh)

I will be in Spain this summer for first time, looking forward to it!

SCgirl10218:

I am not an expert on southern France but I think that it is a better fit with your other plans for this trip. We just returned from a 19 day trip to France that included Paris,
Normandy and Brittany. I enjoyed our time in Brittany but I don't think it is geographically a fit for you. By the way,
there is train service directly from certain cities in Brittany to CDG airport. We were able to return our rented auto to Europcar at the rr station in Rennes and take a train
to the airport-the ride is about 3 hours. As far as being a foodie in Brittany, I would research for the names of restaurants in Brittainy before you go. I know from Stu Dudley's reports that there are many in Brittany but they are not immediately obvious. I got a little tired of gallettes (buckwheat crepes). we missed oyster season but had a couple
meals featuring galettes with fresh scallops-very good. We
limited our touring to the English Channel Coast areas and Dinan, a beautiful small city on a river.

Pat

You can check Vueling, Ryanair, and Easyjet to see where there may be easy flights. This may help you plan an easier trip.

Also remember there are usually huge fees for renting a car in one country and dropping off in another. Huge meaning hundreds of dollars.

Thanks everyone! I have finalized our plan to spend 5 nights in Paris, 4 nights in San Sebatian and 4 nights in Barcelona.

That sounds fabulous. For a future trip, I predict you will fly into Barcelona, rent a car, and spend about three weeks exploring more of Basque country...both in France and Spain.

well done, SCgirl.

it sounds like a great mix and I'm sure you'll have a terrific time. there are some threads about san sebastian and the food there that you might find useful!

All about going for the world famous pintxos in food crazy San Sebastián, suggested routes etc.: http://www.todopintxos.com/home/home.php?lang=en

"Is San Sebastián the best place to eat in Europe?": http://www.guardian.co.uk/lifeandsty...rink.shopping2