My fiance and I are planning to spend two weeks in France for our honeymoon in October. We plan to spend the first few days on the coast, and the last few days in Paris. In the middle, we'd like to spend a week in Provence and the Loire Valley, and this is the part I would love some advice on. Any opinions regarding number of days to spend in each of these two areas, good bases for exploring, etc.? Any and all opinions would be very much appreciated. Thanks!<BR><BR>By the way, is anyone else enjoying the beautiful fall weather in Boston today?

For the Provence, I don't know, it is not my favorit place in October... But the Loire valley is always a beautiful touristic place.It also has a micro climat. The days you want to spend depend on how many castles you want to visit. I advice you to rent a car and to take 1/2 day for each castle.<BR>There are a lot of beautiful castles, but the ones you don't have to miss are : Chenonceaux, Chambord, Amboise and Blois.

It sounds like you have a 3, 4, 4, 3 day itinerary. This sounds practical and realistic. In the Loire valley and Provence a car is (IMHO) the best way to get around , unless you are in shape like Lance Armstrong. Probably even on the coast a car would be best.<BR>In the Loire anyplace in the triangle of Blois, Chenonceau and Tours is probably best. (consider bed and breakfast). In Provence near Avignon and Aix is central to most things.

It is not clear which coast you will be starting from - if it is the Mediteranean then Provence makes sense, but my opinion is that you should avoid crossing the country in a 2 week visit. So I would suggest Provence and maybe Beaune/Dijon on the the way to Paris, or Loire, and some of Brittany/Normandy so that you spend less time in transit. based in either the Loire, or Provence you will find plenty to see and do for the time you have available.

Another place you might want to consider seeing in the Loire is the Abbaye Royale de Frontevraud. Not maybe as well-known as the chateaux in the area, but one of the highlights of our trip a few years ago. The site is about a 1000 yrs old and restoration is ongoing.<BR>I'm curious though as to why Martine says Provence is not so enjoyable in Oct? We are heading there this Oct so would appreciate hearing insight as to what to avoid?!! Merci!

Caroline:<BR>Provence in October can be great, Warm sunny days and cool nights. If you like great food, hilltop villages, farmers and antique markets, Roman ruins and the sea, then Provence is it. Consider using the Avignon area as base and going to Les Baux, Arles, Nimes, Pont du Gard, Ils sur la Sorge and more. A week gives you a good intro.<BR>For more info and links to things Provencal check out the postings and archives at:<BR>http://groups.yahoo.com/group/provence<BR>John B.<BR>http://groups

Text got muddled.<BR><BR>http://groups.yahoo.com/group/provence

I support the view that October in Provence is fine - late september/early october is my favorite time. Visitor numbers are down, it is not too hot, but the days are still quite long and seasonal closures haven't started. Also October is the wine harvesting season and it is interesting to see that activity.

My computer was down the last few days - just got your responses. Thank you all very much for your helpful advice.<BR>So if you had 7 days to spend in Provence and the Loire Valley, how would you break it up? We were thinking 4 days in provence (lots of small towns/villages to discover) and 3 in the Loire Valley (to see chateau, vineyards), but I would like to know if anyone would choose differently for a first trip. Also, we are thinking of staying at the Chateau des Alpilles in St Remy - if we were to stay in Provence for 4 days, would it be preferable to stay there for all 4 or two there and two somewhere else?<BR>Thank you again - it has been a long time since my college travels around Europe and the U.S., and I think I'm a little rusty...

We spent a few days in the Loire Valley and Burgandy in October 1999. It was great! We based in Amboise (stayed at Chateau de Pray - great place!) We toured Chenonceau, Chambord, and Cheverny. We also saw some of Burgandy - which we loved! Stayed in Vezelay - a wonderful village - Madeleine Baslicia is fantastic! We used a book--Discovering the Villages of France by Michael Busselle to decide what villages to tour. <BR>Burgandy is closer than Provence to the <BR>Loire Valley. Just an idea!