My family of four (husband, two young adults ages 21 and 17, and myself) will travel to France next June into July for three weeks. We're thinking of staying in 3 different areas - Provence, Dordogne/Lot, and one mountainous area - for approx. one week each. Three of us have been to Paris and other areas in France; we're looking for a more small town and rural experience this time as opposed to visiting cities and more touristy places. We all like to hike, canoe, and kayak and hope to include some of these activities along with sightseeing. If you've been to either the Pyrenees or French Alps, and especially if you've been to both, could you give your opinion concerning what you liked/disliked and which location you would choose? Also, if you know of any small, interesting, medium-priced places to stay in any of the areas I mentioned, I'd welcome suggestions. Thanks.

<BR>This will be one of those answers you just hate. <BR> <BR>I haven't been to the French Alps or the French Pyrenees..but I've been both to the Austrian Alps and the Spanish Pyrenees. <BR> <BR>My week in the Pyrenees last summer was one of the highlights of my life. It's diffcult to know how well it translates over the border, but for scenery, you could not do better. It is also much less touristy than my experiences from 20 years ago in the Alps. <BR> <BR>At home (I'm at work now) I have some records of some Pyrenean web sites I've been colecting which I'll post for you tonight

Thanks, Sheila. I can't wait to check out the web sites.

I have been to the Italian alps and was in the French pyrenees for 4 days, at the end of may. <BR>The scenery at both places is spectacular.I liked them both equally. <BR>We stayed in Cauteret, in the Pyrenees. It is a lovely little town,more like a village. <BR>We seemed to be the only English speaking people.It was very un-touristy. <BR>There are many lovely hiking trails in the area with incredible waterfalls.We walked at least 15 miles a day.Its the kind of place you want to keep walking to see whats around the next bend. <BR>Gavarnie is a lovely place for hiking too.We had a 2 hour horse ride there.Then we walked a long way up a mountain to a meadow.It was so green and it was filled with wild flowers of every colour.we were surrounded with snowy peaks and the sun was shining.There was a small waterfall that looked so clean and pure that I drank from it.The 1st time I have ever done anything like that. <BR>The only negative, was the French driving <BR>very fast on narrow roads with hairpin bends.They must have been locals and knew the road.It was very irritating having a fast French driver behind you. <BR>My husband would speed up and then we would have to do a bend at 90 miles an hour.It's a wonder I didn't have a heart attack. <BR>In Cauteret, we stayed in an excellent hotel.We had a big room with a double balcony.We had a 4 course, delicious, dinner everynight.For the room and food, it was 200ff per person.The hotel is called St cecile.No one at the hotel speaks English,But we got by with abysmal French. .

I know the Alps much more than the Pyrenees, so I might be a little biased. The geological structure of the Pyrenees is the "cirque" (circus), a rather undramatic way of "presenting" a mountain. Andorra is very ugly and dull, but the Basque country, on either side of the border, is definitely worth the trip. <BR>For the Alps + sports activities side, I've spent a few summer weeks doing rafting and canyoning in Bourg Saint-Maurice (Isère river), Morzine (Dranse river) and Barcelonnette (Ubaye river). Bourg Saint-Maurice is almost at the source of the river, it is a rather non-descript valley town, but with a great access to all the ski resorts of the Albertvill olympics. It is the HQ of the biggest and most professional French white water operation, Arc Aventures, that offers a wide range of activities. The same company also operates out of Morzine, near Evian, a much more picturesque and neat alpine village. Barcelonnette is a more original option, since it combines the charms of the Alps and Provence. This small provençal town is tucked away in the Southern Alps and offers the best white river rafting in France on the Ubaye river. A great climate, not a lot of tourists and a nice provençal atmosphere. And one curiosity : funnily enough, until the 1930s, there was a very steady flow of immigrants from Barcelonnette to Mexico, where they founded dynasties of wealthy industrialists. Their nouveaux riches houses now line "the" avenue of the town.

Try www.borderlinehols.com/ai.htm <BR> <BR>or www,web-show.com/casguilla/Index.htm

My wife & I have been to both. We enoyed the Pyrenees and villages/cities in SW France for the lack of crowds and the beautiful scenery. Day hikes near Cauteret (sp?). We did no canoeing or water activities. I was surprised that we enjoyed a short visit to Lourdes; lots of pilgrims but so large that you didn't feel too crowded. Pau is a nice, small size city for good restaurants, wines; has a main street that overlooks the Pryenees. That said, we also found a wonderful, inexpensive hotel/chalet (La Cochette) near Lake Annecy in late May-99, not far from the Alps. $45 per night with wonderful food and great hiking nearby reocmmended by the proprieter. Overlooks Lake Annecy, a huge lake with what appeared to lots of water activities avaialable. The hotel has a web site. The traffic was a bit worse in that region, though, than in the Pyrenees. <BR>We also have a good hotel recommendation in a small village in Provence. If interested, e-mail. --- Steve <BR>