...to Paris, overabundance of castles. It is also easy to drive since there is really one road that can take you along the river. Not a major highway, and most of the towns along the way are smaller.

super scenic? Not 'wow' , but the occasional field of sunflowers are memorable

A castle that several people here have liked is Les Crayeres, near Reims, in the Champagne area. Quick TGV ride, nice cathedral and champagne tours in area.

Michel_Paris, that one looks nice but is beyond our budget since we will need 2 rooms - have a feeling most of the castles might be! For most of the trip, I am hoping to get something under $200 per room per night. A splurge would be going upto $300 per night for a couple of nights.

The Loire Valley has a host of fortresses, castles and manor houses that provide accommodations. Very few have been turned in to hotels. Generally they are lived in by the family that owns each one and have a limited number of rooms. We stayed in one - the Chateau des Reaux, near Chinon - that had I believe 8 or 9 rooms in the actual fortress (15th century, with walls a couple of feet thick and narrow slits for bowmen) and about 10 more in the converted stables. There are numerous original chateaux, in various degrees of furnishings and some with glorious gardens, as well as a lot of other sights. (There are a few that have been turned into upscale resort/hotels - but they are extremely expensive- while costs for most of them are quite moderate.) You just need to remember that you are staying in someone's house and while the hosts I have met were friendlt and helpful - it is not a real hotel with a professional staff.

For this type of trip you will need to rent a car since both the chateaux and manor houses you would stay in and the ones you would tour are in deep countryside - with very limited access via public transit.

Thanks nytraveler, where would I look for these castles where the owners may be providing accommodation?

Definitely NOT Marseilles, which had its glory days, but they are not in the present. Not as bad as Flint, Michigan, but it's a dying town that probably will never regain its past glory. Very dilapidated buildings, crime (especially theft) - there are better places to spend your vacation.

Bouganvillea's towns and cities are OK - Monte Carlo, Nice, Eze is unforgettable

Well, I wouldn't recommend staying in Marseilles, either, but it's certainly not a "dying town." Quite the opposite; it has experienced something of a renaissance in recent years. It's a far cry more interesting than Monaco, IMO.

To the OP, FrenchMystiqueTours gave you a load of links to châteaux-hotels above. But first you need to figure out where you're going. I think a guidebook is definitely in order; otherwise you're just going to get dozens of recommendations here for places all over France and just be more confused.

Any of the websites I mentioned above can be used to search for château accommodation and I believe they all have English language versions. They are very easy to use as you usually just enter the town/region you are interested in and it provides a list of château in that area. As I also mentioned, and nytraveler reiterated, châteaux are not located in towns or cities and are often somewhat off the beaten path and will therefore require a car to access. I've only stayed at two châteaux (both in the Loire area) so I really don't have any recommendations for châteaux. You'll need to do a bit of homework on that and see if it is worth it to you. However, many châteaux are not really super expensive to stay at and aren't necessarily a luxury expense. Both of the châteaux I stayed at were lived in by the owners and were very reasonably priced. One of them was even owned by an actual count and countess and the castle has been in their family since around the 16th century. Here is the link to that château:

http://www.chateau-de-ternay.com/pages/indexpag.html

The other château was very centrally located in the Loire just a few minutes drive from Amboise and is on a wine estate. Here is the link to that château:

http://www.chateau-de-pintray.com/b&...henonceaux.htm

If you do decide on the Loire you can take a TGV from Paris to Tours and be there in just over 1 hour and then pick up a rental car there. Or you could drive from Paris and be there in 2-1/2 to 3 hours.

The TGV will get you long distances very quickly so even Avignon (in Provence) can be reached in just about 3 hours time from Paris.

I'm from Boston too and it will be warmer in Paris in May than it will be in Boston. As a matter of fact, just about any part of France will be warmer in May than Boston so the weather/temperature should not factor into your decision making. You won't be bundling up in May anywhere in France (except maybe in the mountains).

Posted at the same time as StCirq but she is right on about getting a guide book because you're going to get a million suggestions and end up getting more confused. I think you need to decide what it is you want to do and then ask for recommendations for your specific destinations. I think you've got Paris nailed down and with only 8 full days here I would devote no less than 4 or 5 of them to Paris. Then you could either go somewhere else for 2-3 days or just make day trips from Paris. If your kids want night life they will not get bored with 8 full days in Paris while making day trips to places near Paris. There are literally dozens of day trips you could make from Paris that are within a 1 to 1-1/2 hour train trip from the city.

I stand by what I said about Marseilles.

This is probably a good time to put in a reminder that the most frequent crime against tourists is theft. Not only keep an eye on your stuff but also keep in hand. Paris airports and train stations, like the RER, are some of the most vulnerable places.

The less you take with you, the less you have to worry about.

Not only luggage theft, but also person theft, so wear money belts.

Since your DH gets antsy about renting a car, that's good. There's also a lot of thefts from cars, especially in the south of France.

I didn't mean to put a negative note on your travels, but just to insert a word of warning. Just be alert. Please enjoy your travels in Europe, wherever you ultimately decide to go.

Having been to Paris in May with my daughter it is a great time to be there. I would spend most of my days in Paris there is so much to do and see or just wander the streets.
We took a daytrip to Versailles. A TGV trip to Nice for a few days from Paris would also be great for your young people. So easy to get to Monaco on the local train for the day from Nice.
What ever you decide I am sure the others will be pleased with your choices.

Thanks all, will definitely get a guidebook tomorrow but am leaning towards flying into Nice & out of Paris. Is Nice the best place to stay in or are any other towns on the coast that would be better?

I am still just not quite getting your logistics. It's been pointed out that you really don't have an excessive amount of time, but you're still starting in London, flying to Nice, where a car will be needed. The person who had a "great time there" also had a "lot" of time.
When we took our kids to Europe, we did stay in a castle. I am sure you can google "castle hotels" and find one. Ours was fun, had a GREAT restaurant, and was surprisingly cheap, especially in a day and time I had to do it only with guide books. All that said, "excitement" about a castle can be age sensitive. You know your children, but if they are boys, I think this will be pretty much "lost" on them.
Fly to PARIS and arrange your itinerary from there. You can take the TGV to Provence (IF that has to be on your itinerary) faster than using an airline and all the needed times for check in.
No one has mentioned mountain places because you have so manyother itinerary possibilitis already!!
There is so much that is in or near Paris, be smart and have a truly memorable time, and not a drive by. I really don't mean to be "ugly" but I just think you have a greaet opportunity.
I might add again about Michael Osman. When we took our adult children I wanted Michael to be the guide so I would NOT be. It was the best part of the "tour". We told him some things we wanted to see, but he took it from there, and kept even the son in law I thought would hate it, LOVING every minute.

Nice should be fine unless you want a sandy beach but Nice is a great transportation hub - you do not NEED a car - from Nice you can go many places along the coast or up to the hills by bus, super cheap and convenient. There is a great beach scene and boardwalk in Nice but the beach itself is rocky. For sand you could go to Anitbes or Villefrance. But I suggest staying in Nice and exploring from there depending on your interests.

Gretchen, as I have mentioned above, I am NOT getting a nonstop flight to Paris using FF miles so have to connect through London, whether it be to Paris or Nice. Since the plan was always to do Paris and one more place, I thought it would make sense do an open jaw and to proceed to Nice instead of Paris first & take the nonstop Paris-Boston flight which IS available for the return.
I will definitely look into your suggestion to use Michael Osman as a guide, will work on that aspect as the trip gets closer
Thanks so much for your replies & suggestions. I am now armed with guidebooks which I will look through tonight. Maybe my question should have been - If you could visit one more place besides Paris in France, which one would that be?

FrenchMystiqueTours, thanks for the websites to the chateaus, will check them out.
Suec1, would appreciate getting the names of quad hotels in Barcelona if it's not too much trouble. Thanks.

I thought Barcelona was off the table?! but IMO altho I love both Barcelona and Nice, the Gaudi sights + the beach scene give Barcelona the edge for young adults.

I think that the Hotel Regencia Colon and the Hotel Granvia both have quads and are reasonably priced hotels. You might also search on Tripadvisor and Venere, I think you can enter the option for 4 adults. I stayed with my 2 adult daughters in the Regencia Colon, the room was quite spacious.

Good luck with your travel plans!

Soo0, just extended the trip by a day, we now leave a day earlier, fly into Nice, stay there for 3 days & will still have 6 days in Paris, should have time for a couple of day trips. Finally got DH to sit down yesterday & look at some of the travel guides, he would rather not go to Barcelona but was quite excited about the French Riviera!I have told DS & DD that if they really must visit Barcelona, they can go on their own for a couple of days between the two cities so i guess they will decide that later.
Will buy the tickets this week. Then onto the hotels etc, etc. etc.! Thanks again for all the help.

Congrats on settling on a plan, and extending the visit. If you need help with day trips from Paris throw a shout out.

Thanks!
Suec1, when I extended the trip, I actually thought of maybe doing all 3 & thus the request for Barcelona hotels but when DH & I planned the itinerary we realized it would be too hectic so he put his foot down! I am sure everyone on this forum will agree but I still like to see as much as possible (which is not always a good thing) so I am glad he keeps me in check!
I can definitely use all the help I can get with Paris & Nice hotels & daytrips from Paris. Also considering an apt in Paris for the 5 nights, liked this one the best - http://www.vacationinparis.com/apts/id_164.htm
or maybe http://www.vacationinparis.com/apts/id_172.htm
Would welcome any opinions on the apt, location etc.
Sometimes I think a hotel is better since one can get help from the concierge etc & we do not cook on vacations anyway. Will see what type of rooms I can get for $200/night since my budget is about $400/night for all of us.
FrenchMystiqueTours, which part of Boston are you from?