Hi,
You seem to have a very good forum going so I'd welcome your comments.
My husband and I are planning a 4 week car tour of southern France in May & June... small villages ... "Plus Beaux" and bastides. After seeing Switzerland by train, we plan 1 week in Provence (Vauclause); 1 week Languedoc (Aude, Herault); 1 week in Midi Pyrenees (Aveyron, Lot) and 1 week in Aquitane (Dordogne). Then we plan to fly from Bordeaux to Paris and home to Sydney.
I'm a bit worried about travelling on the other side of the road. Would it be better to catch a train from Geneva to Vaucluse?
In Vaucluse, Aveyron and Dordogne we plan to use one place as our base. We don't want this base to be awkward to drive in and out of. How about the Luberon area, Najac and ?
In Languedoc we are looking at Carcassonne Cite for a couple of days, then a barge trip, then one more night. Is it sensible to drive up through St Guilhem le Desert and head for Najac via Millau?
Really appreciate your time and advice. Thanks.

We drive that way many times. We find driving easy in France after Boston. Be sure to drive over the Millu bridge. Spectacular!! St Guilhem le desert is where I snapped one of my favorite photos.

Thanks cigalechanta. We could leave Le Somail on the midi canal in the morning and check out St Guilhem le desert and La Couvertoirade and stop the night in Millau. Does that sound too much? Have you stopped in any hotels/ guesthouses there?

What a wonderful rip you are planning!

I can console you as far as driving on the "wrong side" of the road is concerned because we are in the same boat.It is not dificult. We have a golden rule - we do not drive after dark on the smaller D-roads. You will even get used to the round abouts - entering them from the wrong side and watch for traffic from the wrong side as well!

Enjoy your trip! The experts will be here soon to advise you!

Hi J,

>Then we plan to fly from Bordeaux to Paris ...<

Are you flying home from Bordeaux via CDG or will you be stopping in Paris?

If the latter, I suggest dropping the car in Libourne (outside Bordeaux) and taking the TGV to Paris - 25E PREMS fare.

You could also drop the car at Brive la Gaillard or Perigueux and train to Paris.

See www.voyages-sncf.com

Hi

I've got much Languedoc info here :
http://www.the-languedoc-page.com

Peter

It looks like a 4 week trip in France. You might consider leasing a car for the entire period of time. The Renault site is: http://www.renaultusa.com/, and gives a good base in figuring out prices because it gives you all the information on the web site itself. Autoeurope handles Peugeot leases, but the pricing is held back until you make an actual choice. Ira idea of taking the TGV is good, but unless Bordeaux is a destination, you might want to drive to Paris to see some of the sites between the Dordogne and Paris

Je, after the bridge we found a hotel in a nearby village we had a nice alfresco dinner and played billiards after dinner with our digestif. It was a simple but warm place. I'll see if I can find that years ephemera.

Voila! I found it. It's run my a mother and son, Brunel(he wrote the brochure I have)We did not have reservations as we were traveling for a few days without plans after Provence and on the way to a burb of Poitiers.
HOTEL BRUNEL...48200 LA GARDE
www.lerocheblanc.com

correction: www.lerocherblanc.com

Thanks Ira,
We don't plan to stop in Paris (have stayed there before). To fly from Bordeaux to CDG costs just 50 euros and would leave us right on the spot, ready to fly home.
Thanks for the railway site. I have been using it to work out trains from Geneva to Avignon or Aix-en-Provence (probably stopping in the Luberon area).

Thanks mpprh,
I liked the interactive car map with parking areas http://www.viamichelin.co.uk/viamich...ntroller/Maps#

Thanks for looking that up cigalechanta,
Nice hotel.

Chiarachiara, Thanks for the encouragement. We start our trip in Geneva. So the first part is probably the most difficult. Winding roads? Would taking a train to Provence and starting the driving from there be a better idea?

I suppose you can take the Autoroute for quite a distance before "getting off" and start travelling at a more leisure pace. If you want to stop before reaching the Luberon I suppose a car will be better. I would take the train to a town closer and pick up the rental car - enjoying part of the trip by train - sit back and relax with your picnic in front of you!

The experts will be able to tell you which will be the best town to do this. We picked up cars in both Nice and at Avignon TGV station - and driving to and from there was relatively easy and without stress. All the companies have offices there.

And you will see - after 1 day of driving you will start enjoying it!

Another tip - do not take a big car, even if they offer to upgrade you at no extra cost. Get what is a comfortable size for you and stick to it.