Provence or Alsace in late March
 

My husband and I have booked a ticket to Paris for March 24 for 8 nights, we have been to Paris many times, the Loire valley,Nice and surrounding areas, and Languedoc. We are debating between Provence (Avignon and surrounding) vs Alsace (Strasbourg/Colmar)? I know it could be rainy and cool at that time. We like history, lovely villages and relaxing. Please advise. thanks in advance.

With so little time I would opt for Alsace. We spent a week there in June and loved it!

You can see our pics here https://www.flickr.com/photos/pug_gi...7644953485474/

Both will be a little dead, I think I'd chose Alsace, if the weather is really bad you could always head to Strasbourg, Mulhouse or Besancon, each of which has a good day's entertainment. If the Vosges get some snow you could go cross-country skiing on the tops

There will be no weather guarantee for both, Alsace and Provence. There will be higher temperatures and more blooming flowers in Provence, however.
The train journey times from Charles de Gaulle airport to Strasbourg and Avignon are the same: 3 hrs for direct TGV trains, about 4 hrs for the other connections.

With a full 7+ days, I would choose Provence. Lots more stuff to do there than in Alsace. IMO, the "cute little villages" in Alsace start to look the same after about 4 days. I've heard the same thing from others too.

We've spent 20 weeks vacationing in Provence and 3 weeks in Alsace.

Stu Dudley

Thanks for your replies. I think we'll visit Provence at this time and base in Avignon.

Do you have my 35 page Provence/Cote d'Azur itinerary??? I've sent it to over 3,000 people on Fodors. If you would like a copy, e-mail me at [email protected] & I'll attach one to the reply e-mail. I'll also attach my shorter Alsace itinerary. Identify yourself on the e-mail - I get about 3-6 requests each day.

Stu Dudley

Thanks, Stu. I have your Provence itinerary, but I dont have Alsace. I will send you an email.