South of France after Christmas - Montepellier + ?
 

Hello!
Our son and his family live in Paris and we'll be visiting them for Christmas. The afternoon of the 25th we plan to take the train to Montepellier. We return to Paris on the 1st. My question is this: should we spend 7 nights in Montpellier, or should we spend 4 nights there and 3 nights elsewhere. We are looking at Uzes and Aix and wide open to another good location not too from Montpellier. We've been to Nice and no need to return. We'll be taking the train but also open to renting a vehicle to visit smaller towns and sites nearby.

We know it's winter, we have often wandered around Europe with family in the winter (Belgium/the Netherlands, western Sicily, Rennes + Paris, Paris + Rome, Barcelona + Valencia, Tuscany, etc.) We know it'll be less busy and fewer things may be open. We are traveling with a 3-year old and our interests are walking around to see interesting towns and cities, art museums where available, historic sites, good meals.

Thanks in advance!

Given your interests (art museums, interesting towns, good food), I would think Aix well worth considering. I enjoyed Uzes, but it doesn't have the same range of options. Marseille would also seem to meet your criteria, or perhaps Arles or Avignon.

You might find some useful information in my (LONG) trip report. The itinerary is listed in post # 15 and should give you an idea of how far to scroll to find various destinations. For Aix, post # 145. For Uzes, post # 174. For Marseille, post # 126+. For Arles, post # 158. For Avignon: post # 156. https://www.fodors.com/community/europe/a-stellar-month-in-southeastern-france-1669406/

Arles is only a bit over an hour by train from Montpellier, rosetravels.

Would you be returning to Paris to go home from Montpellier?

I hope you are not going there because you think the weather will be better.

That's really helpful kja - thank you. Perhaps Uzes would work well as a day visit from Montpellier. I'm glad to see that someone else never tires of museums!

Thank you kerouac - we are aware that it is winter in France in December :). As I said, we travel in Europe often at Christmas.

TDudette - we think we'll take the train to Montpellier, perhaps rent a car for the time we are there, and then take the train back from...wherever our last stop is. We don't want more than two locations - it always seems like a chore to change places with five of us.

Just took a quick glance at 'threads I've started' and ALL of them are just like this: planning a family trip to somewhere in Europe in December. It seems when I travel other times of the year I don't need advice - lol.

If you are going to rent a car (and you should), then you can stay anywhere you like. I tend to prefer staying in villages. Fontaine de Vaucluse is well situated with a lot to see right in the village. Nearby, Roussillon is fantastic. Descending into the ochre quarry is the quintessential Provencal experience.

Certainly Aix is a a good choice as well, and I stayed there for a week while renting a car for a few days, same time of year as you will be going. I adore the Fondation Vasarely.

With a car, you can hit tiny, fascinating spots like les Grottes de Calès (7th Century BC Ligurian dwellings) and Vieux Vernegues (village in ruins).

shelemm - I didn't realize the quarries were so close. I'm a painter, I use ochre from France some. Thank you for suggesting that. We tend to stay in cities in winter because they can still be lovely and interesting when the weather is bad.