Please help us plan our first trip to France.
 

Hello. My husband and I are in our mid 30's and are going to France in October 2006 for 2 to 3 weeks (probably closer to 3). I want to get the most out of our vacations so I plan early.

We have a plan of getting an apartment in Paris for a week and seeing as much of Paris as possible. We also have a day trip planned for Versailles.We know about museum passes and carte orange for getting around and can't wait.

Our problem is where to go for the rest of the time. We would like to travel mostly by train.

We want to go see Chambord and Chenonceau.(Should we pick different Castles in the Loire?) We also want a day at Mont St.Michel...(I have dreamed about it for 10 years now) and thought it would be nice to tour Vimy (as we are Canadian) and the D-Day beaches. Maybe a day in a nothern town. (Mu husband loves OLD places and I like fishing villages...any advice?)

After that we thought about a day in Monaco (to say we have been) and a day near a beach/fishing village on the Riviera.

We thought of Grenoble for a view of the Mountains and Strasbourg for a feel of that region and a day at Disneyland Paris as we have always wanted to go...

Either than that, we are at a lost. In which order would you do this trip? Would you pick different places in these regions? and why? Are we taking on too much?

We don't drink wine so should we still see the Wine region? What about Dijon? We don't really care for big cities except for aris as we have lots planned to do but we won't shy away from a big city if there is something special to see...

I know it is a lot to ask...We have read some guide books but thought you guys would have the inside scoop...Thanks for any and all responses...Samantha

Hi P,

You are off to a good start: A week in Paris, 3-4 days in Normandy, 3-4 days in the Loire.

>We would like to travel mostly by train. <

That's going to put a crimp in visiting small towns.

>We don't drink wine so should we still see the Wine region?<

The Chateaux on the Loire are worth seeing in their own right.

>... we thought about a day in Monaco (to say we have been)

Not recommended

>and a day near a beach/fishing village on the Riviera.<

In Oct?

For your 3rd week, without a car, how about

Paris to Bordeaux 4 days
See Bordeaux, daytrip to St. Emilion, the ocean at Arcachon, Sarlat-le-Caneda by train.

Paris to Dijon 2 days, daytrip to Beaune.

Strasbourg is about 3 hr from Dijon.

Train schedules are at
http://reiseauskunft.bahn.de/bin/query.exe/en

You should be able to buy most of your tickets at http://www.voyages-sncf.com.

Hope this helps.

((I))

You might reconsider a train-only agenda. Large cities, such as Strasbourg and Dijon, can be conveniently visited by train, but other sites will be awkward or even impossible. For example, I don't remember a train station near Chambord (although I seem to recall one near Chenonceau), and there is probably a large consensus on this forum that Normandy is best explored by car.

Driving in France is neither challenging nor stressfull, particularly if you are from the US, since continental Europeans drive on the right side of the road. Ideally, you can rent a car outside of Paris to avoid the hectic traffic. I suggest somewhere other than the airport (CDG), however, or you will have to pay a hefty surcharge that applies for every day you have the car.

Autumn is the perfect time to visit the vineyards of Burgundy or Alsace. The region between Dijon and Beaune is beautiful (it is the red, yellow and orange vine leaves, not the grapes, that provide the color). Wine growing areas are best explored by car. Trains will not get you into the vineyards.

What I am hearing you say is that you have always dreamed of visiting Mont St. Michel and thus you should. I also hear you say you want to see other areas of Normandy/Brittany such as D-Day beaches and a fishing village such as Honfleur. And you might like to see the Loire.

These areas are difficult to see without a car and you should consider renting one. Train travel can be expensive. For example TGV fare between Paris and Rennes, one way, is approximately 60-80 euros. Additionally, it takes more time.

Loire is not that far from Normandy and again, a car would be very convenient to seeing Chateau. Training is possible, we have done it, but it takes careful planning because sometimes they run infrequently to smaller towns such as Chenonceau. If you train, check into taking a mini bus tour of the Chateau but you must sign up in advance or risk no space available.

I always like to look at Rick Steves DVDs to get an idea of what an area has to offer. I check them out at the Library or purchase them.

If I had 3 weeks to visit France in October, I would:

Spend a week in Paris, perhaps in the middle or end of the trip.
Spend a week in the Loire and Normandy.
Spend a week in Provence.

I wouldn't go to Monaco or, in October, to the Riviera.

Those of us on this board will give you a lot of opinions, all based on our favorite parts of France. It would be great for you to do more research to find out what interests you and then come back with questions. You've got lots of time to plan.

We don't have a problem renting a car for certain areas but would prfer to take a train to a place in the region then get a car for that region.

We are not sunworshipers so we don't care that we could not swin on the riviera but we thought we could still see it...

Without doing any specfici research, I"d say on the face of it you'd hve a hard time getting to all those places in 3 weeks by train. You've got:

1 week Paris
Loire Valley
Normandy (Haute and Basse)
Northern town (?)
Monaco
Grenoble
Strasbourg
Dijon, possibly

It's a bit "all over the map." (Do you have a good,detailed map of France that clearly schows scale and distances?)

First, either forget Monaco or plan to spend 3 days or so in the area and give up Strasbourg and Grenoble.

I think you need to head southeast or southwest from Paris for the last two weeks, not both, whether you drive (which I recommend) or take the train. Workable trips might include:

1 week Paris
3 days Loire
4 days Normandy (incl. le Mont-St-Michel)
1 week Riviera

1 week Paris
3 days Loire
4 days Normandy
4 days Alsace
3 days Burgundy

Thanks for the advice of the Mini-bus tour of the Loire. Sounds good.

We are also considering staying one night ON Mt. St. Michel...Good idea?

>TGV fare between Paris and Rennes, one way, is approximately 60-80 euros. <

You can get PREMs fares for 35E 2cl and 50E 1 cl each way.

I've been researching the Cote d'Azur for this spring and I'm finding more and more to do--none of it laying on the beach. We will be based in Nice. It's a good transportation center, both buses and trains. In fact, we will be flying home from Nice airport.

Save Provence for some time when you have a car.

Why do you want to go to Dijon so much? I'd forget that whole part of the itinerary, which is out of the way and you are limited.

Paris and Normandy you really want, that's fine. Then go south to Provence and Riviera. YOu can't see all of France in this time, so I'd drop the Alps and Grenoble, also.

Don't really want to go to Dijon..Just asking if it was a place I should consider...

The only definates are:

-1 week in Paris with day trip to Versailles

-1 day and night at Mont St. Michel

-A visit to at least one castle in the Loire (prefer 2 castles)

-1 day at Disneyland Paris (I know it's way commercial but we really want to see it.

-D-day beaches for a day (Looking for a Canadian connection.

The rest is up for grabs.

I like the pictures I saw of Grenoble...I like the cable car ride and the view of the Mountains.

My husband likes really old places and I like fishing towns. We don't have to go to the Riviera but thought it might be nice to see for a day...

What we really want is some insight. Reading the tour books, all the places sound amazing. We are just looking at this trip as a way to get our feet wet and see a little bit of each region. We know we won't get an in-depth look at everything but want this to help us see where we would like to return.

Sorry if I made it seem like we were thinking of going to all those places...I was wondering what places to avoid as well as which to include.

Samantha, I am researching Normandy as my sisters and I are going to France in July. Search on Mont St. Michel on this board and you will find some insightful threads on the Mont as well as accommodations. I believe that if the Mont is what you want to see, you should stay there and see it after the tourists leave in the late afternoon and evening. Accommodations seem to be a little on the expensive side as compared to off. As much as my sister wants to stay on the Mont, we may opt for a chateau at 145 euros per night for 3. Take a look: http://www.chateaudebouceel.com/BienvenueUK.htm
Might be a nice place for a base for you to see the area.

I did a 17 day road trip in France (by car). I found the following to be my best resources given the fact that both you and your husband like small towns/villages. France's best love driving tours by Frommers. And also the website "The most beautiful villages of France". It is a organization that has a list of criteria. Each village has to meet the standards each year to stay on the list. I don't know which ones can be reached by train but you can get some good ideas.

If you are heading up to Normandy, a good place to start is Honfleur. You can take a train to Le Havre and rent a car, or drive directly out of Paris. Norandy is close enough to justify doing that and that is what I prefer to do.

After Normandy, you can easily make your way down to the Loire Valley, dumping the car in Tours or Amboise, let's say, and catching a train back to Paris. Or you could go over into Burgundy.

However, if your plan is to go south to Provence and/or the Riviera [train from Paris], it might be better to skip the Loire and train from Normandy back to Paris. Some people like to rent a car at CDG and start the trip from there, and that would make more sense in that case.

An open jaw ticket, returning from Nice, is another idea.

For driving routes and approximate times your best bet is www.mappy.com

For Vimy Ridge, read this account of how to do it by train out of Paris (high speed train 50 mins to Arras, then a cab to the site.)

http://www.cbc.ca/news/background/vi...l_memorial.htm

I'd go to ricksteves.com and take a look at their tour itineraries of France. NOT because you want to take a tour, but because it gives you an idea of what you can do in how much time. Bear in mind that independent travelers, especially by train, are unlikely to maintain the pace of a tour with its private bus and driver. You easily have 2 weeks of stuff to do with Paris, Normandy, the Mont, the chateaux, and the day trip to Vimy Ridge.

If you fly into Nice and out of Paris (or the reverse) you could manage a bit of the Riviera if you go via Avignon (to which there is high-speed train service to/from Paris.) I'd forget Grenoble, it just doesn't fit this trip. Ditto the wine region. Best of luck

Poor Photobear...

I got curious and googled "day trip Paris France"...and, had many hits, but JUST FOR EXAMPLE there was one under essentialfrance...

They have daytrips out of Paris; they pick you up at your apartment and whisk you off to the Loire say...for the day, 3 Castles, there were your choice of trips,(I'd have chosen Amboise, Chenanceau and another one whose name escapes me...) Lunch and finally whisks you back to your hotel.
Its another possibility to consider.
A sort of "Leave the driving to us"...sort of thing.

Thanks everyone for all the help...Keep it coming.I am learning more by the minute.

I'm glad that you want to visit the memorial at Vimy. It's a place that every Canadian should visit at least once.

That said, you should be aware that the memorial is now undergoing massive restoration and will be closed until completion sometime in 2006. You will want to check back as your trip draws nearer to see if it will be open when you will be in France. The park, trenches, visitors centre and tunnels will remain open.

It could certainly be done in a day trip from Paris, but my recommendation would be to spend a night in Arras, which is a very interesting town. An alternative to taking a cab out to Vimy would be to rent bikes and ride out from town. Here's some info on directions:

http://www.vac-acc.gc.ca/remembers/s...ctions/vimymem

While you are north of Paris, you should also visit the Newfoundland Memorial at Beaumont Hamel, where the trenches are still intact. There is a new and excellent interpretation centre there. Directions are at:

http://www.vac-acc.gc.ca/remembers/s..._beaumonthamel

If you want to visit both of these sites, you might consider renting a car for a couple of days. Take the train from Paris to Amiens and rent there, thus avoiding driving in Paris and environs.

In Normandy, you will want to visit the Juno Beach Centre, although it's nothing to compare with Vimy. You should be able to book a tour of the principal Canadian battle sites at Juno Beach (including those inland from Juno). Don't miss the Memorial at Caen, including the Canadian Memorial Garden (which is not to everyone's taste). Try also to visit the Abbaye d'Ardenne just outside Caen where there is a memorial to the Canadian prisoners of war murdered there by the SS. If you want to stay overnight (and you should), Bayeux is the place to be.

Here's a couple of Canadian links for Normandy:

http://www.canadianbattleofnormandyf...on.ca/main.htm

http://www.junobeach.org/Centre/index.html

For Normandy, I recommend two books: George Blackburn's "The Guns of Normandy", and Terry Copp's "Fields of Fire". Terry Copp has also published an excellent guide book to the Canadian Battlefields in Normandy (new and completely revised edition in 2004).

Great post, Laverendrye.