kristafurlow52

Hi. My husband and I are planning a trip to Provence, French Riviera & Swiss Alps mid September for 17 days. HELP! More than likely flying in/out Paris. We have been to Paris but not the other areas. Plan to take train for part of trip and car for part of French Riviera 1. Would you start with the alps? 2.What is best mode of transportation per area? 3. Any itinerary suggestions?
Thank you!

gooster

If you do not intend to stay in Paris, you might consider instead flying directly into Zurich or Geneve. I would do the Alps first as the weather gets unpredictable the deeper you get into the month. It is possible to do the Swiss leg by train --- from Zurich to Lucerne/Luzern to recover before heading to the Jungfrau via Interlaken. You can also take the Glacier Express to the other side. You can rent a car in Switzerland as well -- driving is super easy but pay attention to the strict speed limits. Return the car and take the train to Avignon. From Avignon, you can rent a car and drive through Provence, picking a village to base at . From there, you can either train or drive to the Riviera. Once in the Cote d'Azur, you can ditch the car if you just want to say along the coast. You can easily fly out of the Nice airport in an open jaw. I used to live in Switzerland now have a holiday place on the French Riviera/CdA.

kristafurlow52

Thank you so much. Extremely helpful!!!!!

StuDudley

Attached is my Provence & Cote d'Azur itinerary.

Stu Dudley

kristafurlow52

Thank you very much!!!! Outstanding!! You know how to live. Much appreciated.

uktravelover

I agree that starting in Switzerland and using public transport out of Nice are the the best options. I know others like to hire a car, but you then have the hassle of parking in the Cote D’Azur which is not particularly fun. You can also get to Avignon and some other parts of Provence by train without difficulty, but that could be the section for a car rental, so you can explore the area more easily. I would return the car at Avignon and take the TGV back to Paris as it only takes 3 hours.

kristafurlow52

We are not flying in/out Paris. Starting the trip in Zurich. After we tour the Swiss Alps flying from Zurich to Nice. We are going to rent a car to tour Provence and any other areas along the Riviera that a car makes sense. Flying back to the sates from London,

uktravelover

Apologies but your original post talked about Paris and I did not pick up on the change in flights.
If you are picking up the car at Nice and staying there you could consider delaying the rental until you embark on the Provence part of the trip. Even though you are flying back from London, I assume you will be dropping off the car in France as since Brexit taking a French car rental to the UK can be problematic. If you are spending a short stay in London, you could still consider returning the car at Avignon and then pick up the Eurostar in Paris. Otherwise go back to Nice for a flight to London.