I would check the rates from Nice as well.
We took the TGV to Avignon, spend the night within the walls and took a taxi the next day back to the station to pick up the rental car. Dropped it the day before in Nice and flew out of Nice. LOVED that portion of the trip.

I'm not sure what I'd do if returning to CDG. I'd probably book an early train to Paris and then a late afternoon or evening flight out of CDG. Staying near the airport wouldn't appeal to me. Now that I think about it, my preference would be to have one last night in Paris and then take a taxi or Uber to the airport for my flight. If I'm that close to Paris, I'd want to spend the night IN Paris, not near CDG. Two weeks ago I had a quick overnight in Paris (thanks to Delta) and opted out of their finding me a CDG hotel and went to my favorite hotel in Paris. Only a few hours to enjoy being in Paris, but it was a pure delight!

Edited to add: I would choose late September or early October.

Last summer we stayed at the Sheraton, located in Terminal 2, the night before our flight. Very convenient! For me, one factor would be your flight's departure time. If in the morning (and especially during the week), would want to be near or at the airport.

We also live an Calif (San Francisco) and usually fly round trip to France twice a year. We've been doing this since 1999. When flying to France, we usually fly to CDG and then take a TGV to Avignon, Bordeaux, Reims, or Strasbourg from CDG if the TGV schedule is convenient (and we are not starting our trip in/near Paris). If we start our trip in Nice - we fly there. We try to avoid 2 airplane trips on arrival day if we can. We have flown to Bordeaux twice, and about 2 times to Toulouse (of the 40 or so trips we've taken to France). United has 1 non-stop from SFO to CDG every day in the afternoon, and Air France has 2 non-stop flights in the afternoon. This means we can leisurely get to SFO around noon, check in, and then have a gourmet lunch at Mustards Grill at SFO, and have several glasses of wine before taking off.

After 20 years of flying home from France, we decided several years ago to never take 2 flights to get home. It makes for a very long day. We love returning to Paris for a one-nighter before heading home. We especially like returning from Provence where the TGV ends up at the Gare de Lyon in Paris & we can have our last French dinner at the eye-popping Train Bleu at the Gare https://www.le-train-bleu.com/en/ There is a United flight that departs at 9:15 or so, and an Air France about 1 hr later, and another Air France at 3:55. We usually depart France on a Sunday when traffic is light. It is interesting to drive through Paris on a taxi about 6am and watch what happens early morning in the City of Lights. We have never spent the last night at an airport hotel (except when our flight home was cancelled & they put us up at an airport hotel).


Attached is my 35 page Cote d'Azur & Provence itinerary.

Stu Dudley

The train from Nice or CDG goes qute slow once it passes Aix or Marseille. So we fry from SFO to Frankfurt to NCE if we take United. If we take AF and they are not on one of their many strikes - we fly to CDG & then fly to NCE (but not from Orly).

We love Nice. It's kinda home for us

Cities with a population greater than 10,000 but less than 85,000
1. Sarlat
2. Colmar
3. Beaune
4. Figeac
5. Auxerre
6. Chambery
7. Vannes
8. Annecy
9. Troyes
10. Albi

Troyes & Auxerre are close to Paris

Stu Dudley

Thanks StuDudley I recall reading that you liked Aix but I believe I also read it wasn't really for you because it was too big. I think I have narrowed down my decision to live for a month in Nice or Aix (not sightsee). We want a walkable small lively city that offers cafe life, museums, art, gardens, cute cobblestone streets with shops, a market, some entertainment. Clearly Nice offers much more than Aix, but I am getting the impression that Aix feels more storybook French. Do I have that wrong?

PS. Oh, and we need to be able to get to Catania easily at the end of our month.

Sorry to hijack your thread dac

Nice is neither cold nor unfriendly--it's a fine city to visit, with much to do, and a lot of it free.

>> I recall reading that you liked Aix but I believe I also read it wasn't really for you because it was too big <<

Aix is on our list of "top 5" large cities (> 85,000) in France. That's why it is not on the list above. Aix is our favorite city in Provence - and my wife's second favorite shopping city in France. Only drawback is that it is not in the best location to visit the sites most people want to visit while in Provence. We love Aix - and it is really not that big (compared to Lyon, Marseille, or Toulouse, etc).

Stu Dudley

I agree!

Us too. We always return to Nice. Next time 10 nights in 2021 with no itinerary.

Stu Dudley

Okay, back to reading about Nice. And Aix and Verona lol Slowly narrowing it down.

@ lrice: If you haven't seen it, you might find some useful information in my trip report:
A stellar month in southeastern France
And when you're ready to ask specific questions, I would encourage you to start your own thread.

@ lrice: I'm glad you're finding some value in my trip report! Thanks for letting me know and for your kind words.

Note that Paris hotel prices skyrocket in September and October because of all the trade and fashion shows. Book well ahead.

I would go to Provence first and save Paris for the end of your trip.....this avoids a night at the airport.