Should we drive from Paris to Lyon or just take the fast train??
 

My wife and I are visiting France in May and plan to spend three days in Paris and the head to the Rivera , unsure what we would miss by going on train to Lyon then driving around the rivera or if we will still see enough of Frances countryside by train and the driving from Lyon, any help advice is welcome.

Well, you would miss various stopover points in Burgundy, but if you were planning on taking the autoroute nonstop, you would be far better off on the train.

In Europe, cars and cities don't mix. Avoid driving inside Paris, or inside Lyon. Nightmare!

The train does 300km/h (186mph), a car does 110km/h (70mph). Plus you have to spend hours signing paperwork at each end. If all you want is to go Paris to Lyon, take the train from €20 upwards, www.loco2.com or www.trainline.eu and experience France's famous 'TGV'.

The only reason you'd rent a car is to linger over 2 days or more exploring villages and countryside.

Thanks for the reply , appreciate that

Take the train. And assuming you do want to see some of France's countryside, there are plenty of routes you can take from Lyon to the RivIera that won't be all on the autoroute, if you have the time.

Train. As you follow the Autoroute close to the Rhone - there is a lot of ugly commerce nuclear power plants, etc) along the way until you get close to Provence. And heavy commute traffic around Lyon also. To the east of the Auoroute south of Lyon are the Alps - which naturally consume a lot of time to drive through. To the west is the Ardeche - which has some mountains in Northern Ardeche and would make driving time-consuming also.

I'm not sure if you plan to visit Lyon or not. I would focus on Paris & Provence only. You'll see the best countryide, IMO, in Provence - not anywhere between Lyon & Provence.

Stu Dudley

All depends on how much time you have - could yes do Burgundy or Loire Valley en route to Lyon but only if you have a week or so to do that. Otherwise take train IMO to Avignon TGV - the heart of tourist Provence with so many neat places in a compact area. Then a lovely drive via Aix-en-Provence and inland route via Gorges de Verdun to Cote d'Azur.

Book trains ASAP - www.oui.sncf French Railways site - www.seat61.com (Man in Seat 61 who posts above his commercial site) has didactic info on just how to do that yourelves; general info French trains- BETS-European Rail Experts and www.ricksteves.com.

Thanks very much

Stu,

I must disagree: some of the best countryside in the south if to be found in the district of the Drôme, which is easy driving. From there the trip south offers a multitude of interesting sights (Nyon, Vaison-la-Romaine, Orange, the river gorge of the Ardèche, and more). The trains stop at Montélimar, and there are car-rental agencies at the station. The large town of Montélimar is worth a stop in its own right, which is what Napoléon did on his march north.

And there is the nougat....

I always thought those chateaux nuclear were kind of interesting to drive by - I love driving in rural areas but also in urban ones - see the real country and not just some pristine countryside.

We spent 2 weeks in 2016 in the area Underhill described - and it is indeed beautiful. My older Green Guide for Provence describes sites around Grignan in the Drome and the Gorges de L'Ardeche - so I've always considered that area to be in Provence - thus my statement "ugly commerce along the way until you get close to Provence". But north of that beyond Valence - not so great unless you drive an hour east or west of the autoroute.

My Provence itinerary has a lavender field driving route that passes Grignan, and also a section about the Gorge de l'Ardeche and the newly opened Chauvet cave there, and Aven d'Orgnac cave with stalactites & mites..

Stu Dudley

Here is my wife's Shutterfly book for our 2 weeks in the Ardeche followed by time in the Alps
https://stududley.shutterfly.com/53

Stu Dudley

Here is my wife's Shutterfly book for our 2 weeks in the Ardeche followed by time in the Alps
stududley.shutterfly.com/53

Stu Dudley

Here is my wife's Shutterfly book for our 2 weeks in the Ardeche followed by time in the Alps

deletethispartstududley.shutterfly.com/53

The new Fodors has problems with Shutterfly URLs - so cut & paste this URL taking out the stuff before my name

Stu Dudley

Jeeze. When I submitted the first to posts about the Shutterfly book - nothing happened. I guess it did - but Fodors did not tell me so!!

The nougat--yes! You can take tours of the nougat factories if you wish.

Yes: the nougat is excellent, and you can tour the factories where it's made.

I agree. We don't have those in Paris, so I am always fascinated by the sight of them. And near the Tricastin plant right next to the autoroute, there is also the Haribo candy museum and factory. The candy probably gets its outrageous colors from radiation leakage. There is also the big crocodile farm with radioactive crocodiles basking in the warm nuclear water. One would miss all of these wonders on the train!

kerouac

Does the radiation leakage also get into the wine grapes??

Stu Dudley