Cross001

Hello. My girlfriend and I are going to Europe in mid September. This will be her first time to Europe. We are flying into Rome and spending 4 nights and 3 full days there. We are finishing the trip in Paris, flying out of Paris (4 nights and 3 full days). We have 4 days in between I am trying to fill. We will not have a car so intend to take trains. I have already been to Venice and Florence and Naples, so would like to try to hit some other destination/s in France or Italy. I know that it is not a lot of days but I believe we could fill it with something nice. I would like to spend some time on the coast. This leads me to thinking Italian Riviera or French Riviera / South of France could be options. Maybe flying into Nice or Genoa? Looking for some recommendations on some of the specifics of what that 4 day Itinerary might look like between Rome and Paris.

Sassafrass

I would just head down to the Amalfi Coast and fly to Paris from Naples.

macdogmom

Camolgi on the Ligurian coast is one of my favorite places in Italy. Turin was a lovely city and you can do fast train to Paris from there.

Cross001

I have my eye on that area, the Ligurian coast. Was thinking we could stay in Santa Margherita or Rapallo to utilize the ferries that can take you to some of the other costal spots for day trips. Maybe our trip looks like 2 nights in Santa Margherita and 2 nights in Camogli? Either way we would fly into Genoa for these correct?

Iwan2go

I don’t know what you’ll end up doing, but if you do decide on Santa Margherita Ligure, this hotel was absolutely fabulous. SO relaxing, and we walked from there to Portofino. It was magical. Not inexpensive, but just wonderful. https://www.grandhotelmiramare.it/en/index

macdogmom

We stayed at this hotel and location was great. We took train from Rome to Camolgi, Ferries leave from Camolgi to cinque terre, Portofino and an amazing spot with just an old monastery and lots of great seaside restaurants and all are great day excursions. We’ve also stayed in Cinque Terre and rented a house in Portofino hills but this spot is great for 4 days. I prefer Ligurian coast (also love Puglia but too far out of your way). I hate flying so I’m always looking to take the train over a flight in Europe.
https://www.cenobio.it/en/home?gclid...BoCrEsQAvD_BwE

Traveler_Nick

Fly Easyjet to Nice from Rome. There are flights most days of the week.

hodo75

I second Camogli - stay at Cenobbio al Doge. We went on our honeymoon 10 years ago and I can't wait to get back. From there you can fly from Genoa to Paris or take train (tho not how long it will take). Another idea is Lake Como, you could fly out of Milan (an hour from the lake) or again, look into trains. I don't love the French Riviera, so my advice would be to skip it. Hope that helps!

Cross001

That hotel looks amazing, if we can budget for it we will definitely spend 2 nights there at least. Another option I have been thinking of is flying into Marseille and then going to Cassis, wondering if anyone thinks that is a better location (very subjective obviously I cant go wrong either way). But leaning toward Camolgi with day trips from there. If there is a fast train from Rome to Genoa I would love to take a train but dont want to spend too much time traveling.

hodo75

so I’ve done cassis as a day trip from Provence and it’s very pretty. Just not sure of what to do there besides the boat ride through les calanques. Id def say Italian riviera over cassis. Provence is one of my favorite places on the planet but really up in the hills so a little hard to get to, you would waste time traveling. I still think the Italian riviera would be your best bet. I am actually doing the reverse trip next summer with my kids. Starting in Paris and ending up in Rome. We have about 9 days to do it though, so I plan on doing camogli, Tuscany, and Rome. 3 of my favorite places on earth. Let me know if you have more questions!

macdogmom

Here’s some photos of Camolgi and the hotel. It’s a beautiful little town and mid September should be pretty quiet. Also great food there!

Cross001

I just booked the hotel for 3 nights, then we will do the 4th night in Genoa just to get closer to the Airport to avoid any issues. Looks like there is a 5 hour train from Rome to Genoa that we may do, if not a quick flight will be fine. Thank you all for the help, I struggle with decision making haha. Those pictures are great!

hodo75

I am on this board all the time running things by people, I hear ya! But I think you made the right decision and you will love camogli and the hotel. The train from Rome to Genoa might be less of a hassle than flying and 5 hours isn’t too bad. Good call to stay last night in Genoa. I will be doing the reverse trip next summer and can’t wait! Have the best time!

Leely2

Loved my stay at Cenobio dei Dogi. Great hiking in the area too, if that's of interest.


Camogli


Dinner at the more casual terrace restaurant at Cenobio dei Dogi

Arriving at San Fruttuoso on trail from Camogli

macdogmom

Leely2, Yes, San Fruttosa was the monastery I was trying to remember in an earlier post. We ferried over there from Camolgi. Such a magical place. Hiking there would be fun also. We ate dinner one night way up in the hills above Camolgi at a resturant (recommended on the Chowhound boards) I’ve never forgotten. I think we took a cab back and forth. We were definitely the only Americans in the place which I loved.

We also we ferried down to Manarola, my favorite village in the cinque Terre, and had a great lunch at Trattoria Billies. Still remember that octopus and potato dish fondly.

PS-I live in Santa Barbara and it has some of the same vibes with the ocean and mountains behind it, so if you’re looking for a great US vacation check it out!

Leely2

macdogmom , that dish looks delicious!

Wekiva

You've got two big cities...sandwich some incredible Swiss Alps in the middle. Go to Murren and see some of the most beautiful scenery on earth. In the attached photo Murren is on the top of the cliffs on the right side. This photo is taken from the gondola you use to get to the top where you take train along the cliffs to get to Murren.

hodo75

I’ve thought about doing this next summer in between Paris and Rome but from what I researched, it takes a while to get to. I think if you had more than a few days it would be great, but it didn’t seem easy to get to without a car. Unless I am missing something?

Wekiva

Using trains it's about 8 hours from Rome to the Lauterbrunnen valley and 7 hours from there to Paris. Flying portions of either leg might help but I'm not sure it would be by much. I guess for my family we've always loved train travel so much (and do so little of it in the US) that we see those as relaxing days we love seeing the scenery sliding by the window.

Once you're in the Lauterbrunnen valley train travel is very easy and the trains run all the time. No car is needed to get to any of the things you'd want to do. We did need a short bus ride to get to the Trummelbach falls, which is something worth seeing.