I am trying to surprise my wife for her 50th birthday for a trip to Paris and another destination either within France or possibly Italy.As she normally plans all of our vacations, I want to make this really special for her. After spending 5 days in Paris, I am looking for another destination within France, that is easy to get to, either by train or air, for another 5 days of sightseeing and relaxation.

I don't want to say money is no object, but any recommendations of hotels/recommendations in the neighborhood of $400-$500 would be very much appreciated.

What time of year and what are your wife's interests?

The trip will be in the summer of 2008, early july and she likes gardening, shopping, sunning.

Does that help?

Have you been to London Rome or Venice?

We have visited London, Rome and Venice already.

Could we do 3 days in Nice or somewhere close to Nice and do day trips and 3 days in Provence area and possibly shorten Paris to 4 days?

Also I do a lot of driving for my business, and am not looking to drive long distances on vacation.

Hi C,

Take the TGVest to Strasbourg (about 2:30 hr), rent a car and visit Alsace and the Black Forest. No long distances.

You can drop the car in Strasbourg and fly home from Paris or Stuttgart.

I think the idea of going to Provence and the Cote d'Azur is a good one. Easy to take the TGV to Avignon, poke around Provence for a bit, then fly out of Nice. Beautiful villages -- from Avignon all the way to Nice -- relaxing and a different experience from another large city.

Amsterdam, Brussels or Munich are also good considerations and you can fly open-jaw to save backtracking.

agree with PP. Nice and /or Provence
combined with Paris has always been my favorite combo.

Fellow fodorites.

Where would you recommend we stay in or near to Provence or Nice? Hotels no more than $400 per night.

Hotel l'Europe in Avignon and La Colombe D'Or in St Paul de Vence (just north of Nice) are both wonderful.

I would stay near the coast - there is so much to see around Nice and being by the sea is wonderful that time of the year.
You may wish to look at Antibes , a lovely town with a very nice beach.

Since your wife likes sunning, I too recommend the Cote d'Azur. And I think I would stick to 5 and 5. That way, not too much rushing about, lots of time for absorbing the surroundings, and luxuriating in your very nice hotel.

I am so sorry that I can't recommend a $400 to $500 a night hotel. I really am. :'(

But I must say you are a fantastic husband to plan this for your wife. Blessings to you and may your trip be a dream come true.

I would chose Provence or Languedoc over Nice as a base. Why? The beaches in the south of France are not that wonderful. I would TGV into Avignon and then rent a car . (For something very different gooogle Chateau Quarante. I stayed there..it is a great place base for day trips. In fact, if you dont wish to drive, the host does sightseeing and he is very charming. His wife does a great cooking course which is an alternative.) If you do go to Avignon and rent a car, look up Stu Dudley's itineraries. There is a wealth of info from this generous poster.