Paragkash

We are a family of 4 from Mumbai, india; which includes 2 daughters 18 and 20 years old; planning to explore France in 3 weeks by road in June, starting from Paris. We have been to Paris, twice earlier. We are comfortable with 15 days road trips and have done it earlier in Scotland, USA and Canada.

We love Architecture, culture, nature.. would like to see some small villages, picturesque routes, architectural marvels.

Rough Itinerary is as follows;

1-3 Days- Paris
Rent a car
4 & 5 Days- Loire valley- 2 to 3 days (Amboise)
6,7,8 days- Lyon, Dordogne, Carcassonne (Pont du Gard aqueduct )
Want to see Milau viaduct- Browse the town and market of Sarlat, take a canoe trip, and tour a prehistoric cave
9,10,11 Days- PROVENCE- Avignon, Beaune, Route du Vin villages, colmar, St Remy
Want to see Lavender Fields at Luberon (any other place?)
Luberon Abbaye de Senanque, Arles, Les Baux
12,13,14 Days- Roussillon, Nice, Monaco
15,16 Days- Chamonix (Optional)
17,18,19 Days- Dijon, Stasbourg, Reims
Return the car
20,21- Paris- fly back home

My order of places may be wrong..
I am avoiding St. Michael, Normandy, Brittany; as I think it would be too hectic in an already long road rip. I am not interested in D Day beaches.
I would have loved to tour in May, but am planning the trip in June specially for lavender bloom and hoping that the climate is cool and there are less tourists.

Please suggest if this itinerary is too long or hectic? Any changes or suggestions?
Should I skip Chamonix and add something else or reduce the number of days? We have seen Swiss Alps earlier.
Any specific things that I can see en route?
Any suggestions for small and picturesque villages, scenic places, Lavender fields, Cultural experiences?

Please help ...

StCirq

<<6,7,8 days- Lyon, Dordogne, Carcassonne (Pont du Gard aqueduct )
Want to see Milau viaduct- Browse the town and market of Sarlat, take a canoe trip, and tour a prehistoric cave>>

This makes no sense and won't work. When will you actually visit Lyon?

The Dordogne needs a bare minimum of 3 days. It's a 7-hour drive from the Dordogne to Provence. Carcassonne needs just 3-4 hours. The Pont du Gard is in Provence, nowhere near Carcassone.

You'll be exceedingly lucky to see lavender in bloom in June.

Yes, the itinerary is way too long and hectic. Looks as though you've been looking at bus tours, not thinking about the realities of distances. If I were a teen in that car, I'd shoot myself. You won't have time to stop at anything along the way. Yes, I'd drop Chamonix and that whole area.

You need to reduce this by at least half. Atleast.

Paragkash

StCirq, Thanks for a prompt reply. This is a wish list, loosely based on Rick Steves Itinerary and some trip reports.
I am willing to trim and change it.
Will I see Lavender bloom in late June? should I change my dates. I am flexible on that.
I am scared that it would be too hot and crowded towards the end of June and in July.
Please suggest a realistic itinerary for 16 to 17 days excluding Paris.

artsnletters

Your geography is very scrambled.

Carcassonne and the Pont du Gard are nowhere near the Dordogne, nor near each other for that matter.

Beaune is not in Provence, it's near Dijon. The Route du vin villages and Colmar are in Alsace, near Strasbourg, nowhere near Provence.

Roussillon is in the Luberon.

You would indeed be extraordinarily lucky to see lavender in June. If so, it would likely be very hot, to have brought it in much earlier than usual. I was there in mid-June in a year with record heat, and while the lavender was budding, it was not in bloom, nor close to it.

I think you need to spend some time researching drive times between the places you propose to see. Use this site:

www.viamichelin.com

Then you will see why StCirq says you need to reduce your destinations by half, a judgment with which I concur.

isabel

The lavender was about peak the first week in July last summer. This photo was taken on July 5th ( http://www.pbase.com/annforcier/image/151987225).

With two weeks starting in Paris you could drive south through the Dordogne for 3-4 days, then to Carcassone for 1, then spend about 4-6 days in Provence. Do you need to get back to Paris or do you plan to drop the car somewhere else? If you need to go back you could go via Lyon and/or Dijon. Even all that would be a pretty fast trip but it hits about half the stuff on your list.

schnauzer

Sorry but I have to agree with the others. The trip destinations need to be halved at least. Have a good look at driving times on the map site given to you. Pick three bases and do day trips from them. I spent a week in Provence and a week in Averyon/Dordogne this year and didn't have anywhere enough time for the Dorsogne area. Luckily I had already spent two weeks there a few years ago but STILL needed more time.

Your itinerary doesn't make sense..... Sorry... Back to the drawing board. You have allowed NO time to actually see or do anything. Good luck....

StCirq

Well, lavender is a crop, and it doesn't bloom when you necessarily want it to. You'd be better off scheduling this trip for the first half of July. Yes, it will be hot. So is Mumbai.

I would not drive to the Dordogne from Paris. I would take the train to Brive, pick up a car, and head to Sarlat or someplace nearby and visit the area for at least 4 days. Then, you cold plan for a long day driving to Provence, EITHER via the Millau viaduct OR via Carcassonne. In Provence, I'd spend at least 4 days in the Côtes-du-Rhone area, visiting Arles, the Pont du Gard, Uzès, St-Rémy, the Camargue, a few Lubéron villages, etc. Then you could head to the Côte d'Azur for 3 days and visit Nice, Eze, etc. I would dump the car and fly from Nice to Strasbourg (or take a train, but it's a long ride) and spend the remaining days visiting Alsace, then train to Dijon or Beaune, then train to Reims and train back to Paris. That's going to eat up your 16 days.

Of course, this is the kind of trip that begs for open-jaw tickets, so if you don't have to do a loop back to Paris, I'd plan it totally differently.

Please get a good map of France and study it, along with the ViaMichelin website.

dugi_otok

Rick Steves 22 Days in France customized for you:
1. PARIS- (Arrive Paris-Evening Stroll)
2. PARIS
3. PARIS
4. PARIS
5. AMBOISE (3 hr drive from Paris) All drive times do not include stops.
6. AMBOISE
7. SARLAT ( 5 hr drive from Amboise)
8. SARLAT
9. SARLAT
10. SARLAT
11. ST REMY ( 6 hr drive from Sarlat. Add time for a stop in Carcassonne)
12. ST REMY
13. ST REMY
14. ST REMY
15. BEAUNE ( 4 hr drive from St Remy. Lyon is a drive by)
16. BEAUNE
17. BEAUNE
18. COLMAR (3 hr drive from Beaune. Could stop in Dijon in route.)
19. COLMAR
20. COLMAR
21. PARIS (6 hr drive from Colmar. Could stop in Reims in route.)
22. Fly home
Notes
Pont du Gard, Avignon, Luberon, Arles, Les Baux, and Roussillon are day trips from St Remy.
Route du Vin is a day trip from Colmar.
Strasbourg is a day trip from Colmar.

Michael

Get a map of France, trace a circular route taht covers the Loire valley, Burgundy, the Provence close to the Rhone, Carcassonne, the Dordogne, and then read in the Michelin Green Guide for France what can be seen along that trace. You may discover that some things will simply have to be left out.

StuDudley

>> Lyon is a drive by<<

Huh??? What's your definition of a drive by??

Stu Dudley

dugi_otok

>> Lyon is a drive by<<
Just a poor way of saying that the autoroute from St Remy to Beaune passes by/thru Lyon.

Paragkash

Thanks everyone for your advice. Criticism is well taken.
I understand that my wish list is too long in too little time.
I also haven't listed places in the right order. Am sorry for that.

I may be able to spend 21 days including Paris, on the trip, but already have Paris as a stopover, so cannot have an open jaw ticket.
dugi_otok, I did refer Rick steves. Thanks for the itinerary.
I am thrilled that Stu Dudley the great has replied to my post.
Have been in awe of you.

Please pardon me for my Geographical Jumble.
I do have a Frommers map, but couldn't pin pint places.
kindly look at the places as my dream wish list, not necessarily in that particular order.

I have dropped the idea of Lavender tourism. I understand that mumbai is hot and am travelling to escapr the heat.
I remember travelling in June to Madrid and Rome in 41 and 39 degree C. It was sizzling hot and not enjoyable.
I love temperature between 12 to 25 degrees. That makes my dates flexible and now I can shift them to May 1st or 2nd week.

My priorities are
1. Loire Valley- 4 days min.Have studied all the structures in my history of architecture. Love it.
2. Riviera- 4 days
3. Liked the idea by schnauzer of making 3 or 4 bases and making day trips.
This leaves me with 8 days to spare including driving time.

I Would love a right mix of varied experiences from beautiful countryside, quaint villages, Historic cities...I like Strasbourg, but may have to drop it and leave it for next time.

Flying back from Nice is an option.. Car rental companies are charging additional 150 Euros for dropping the car in another city.
I also would love to take a train or Bus out of Paris and rent a car in Amboise, if a good and economical option is available.

Please suggest how do I trim my itinerary and spend the balance 8 days and which route do I take.

Have been fascinating about driving through the countryside in France.
Am eagerly looking forward to suggestions...
Thanks

StCirq

<< Car rental companies are charging additional 150 Euros for dropping the car in another city>>

Then you are looking at the wrong car rental companies. They should charge you nothing at all, or a very small fee.

Take the train to Tours and rent your car there - you'll have many more rental choices, and it's only a short drive to Amboise. If you buy train tickets 3 months out from you travel date, you'll get the lowest fares.

Michael

<i>Car rental companies are charging additional 150 Euros for dropping the car in another city.</i>

Have you looked at www.kemwel.com or www.autoeurope.com? It does not guarantee the elimination of the fee, depending on who is the actual car rental agency. But Europcar has not charged me with a one way rental (Hertz would have in two instance) when using the two above named brokers.

StuDudley

I rented three cars from Kemwel/AutoEurope within the last month. On two of those rentals, they charged me a one-way fee - about $95. This is the first time in 30 years that I've been charged such a fee. Things are changing. As Michael noted - I changed one of those rentals from Hertz to Europcar after Kemwell later called me and said that Hertz did not have the car I wanted.

Stu Dudley

StCirq

I have been reading lately that Hertz and Avis are charging one-way fees in France, even if you book them through AE or Kemwel. There's almost always a Europcar or Citer option where we pick up, so I just ask AE not to give me a company that charges a drop-off fee if they can.

kerouac

Europcar, the #1 car rental company in France, rarely charges a one way fee, especially when you keep a car for a week or more. That is unless you choose a very rare or huge car that cannot easily be rented again at the dropoff point.

Paragkash

StCirq- Thanks for the suggestion of renting a car away from Paris. That means I reach Tours, rent a car and proceed to Loire valley. Only way I can think of renting a car in Paris is leave the city by 5 or 6 am.
Michael, kerouac- Thanks for suggestions. will check for more car rental options
StuDudley- Thanks for your keen interest. I have been a great fan of you and have had great trips just by reading your posts.
I look upto you and other veterans to guide me with my itinerary.

Only things that I can freeze now is
Paris 3 nights
Paris to Loire Valley- Drive- 3 to 4 Days

Don't know where to go next.

I may end up at Nice and drop the car and stay for 3 to 4 days in the French Riviera and fly back to Paris.
( I do not know why many people don't prefer to drive in this area. I would love to have a car with me for all the days except my stay in Paris)

Do I drive back to Paris via different route. I can stretch my trip by 3 or 4 days if required. I would love a round trip if that is more rewarding than just another flight.

I am 48 years old and a frequent traveller and don't want a very relaxed or a very rushed up holiday. Something in between.

I Would love a right mix of varied experiences from beautiful countryside, quaint small villages, Historic cities. Highlights of France. Also want a rich cultural experience.

Please help me fill in the blanks.

StuDudley

>>Only things that I can freeze now is
Paris 3 nights
Paris to Loire Valley- Drive- 3 to 4 Days<<

I'm not sure whether you have booked accommodations in Paris that you can't change, or you just want to spend 3 nights in Paris. I'll assume the latter.

I think you are worrying too much about the heat in Provence. We've spent many Junes there, and it was only excessively hot there twice in the perhaps 12 times we've visited. Anyway, to avoid the chance or heat, start your trip in the Provence area so you'll be there in early June.

This is what I would do:

- Land at CDG and immediately catch a flight to Nice. Spend 4 nights in Nice.

- Rent a car & drive 2 1/2 hrs to Provence & spend 5 nights in Provence.

- Drive towards the Dordogne, stopping for a 3 hr visit in Carcassonne, and then on to the Dordogne. Spend 5 nights in the Dordogne.

- Drive up to the Loire, and spend 4 nights there.

- Return the car at St Pierre des Corps (outskirts of Lyon) and take the TGV to Paris. Spend your remaining days in Paris.

Stu Dudley

Paragkash

Hi Stu, That sounds like a nice and compact itinerary.
I haven't booked any air tickets and hotels.
Am planning to shift the trip to May, as there are anyway less or no chances seeing Lavenders in full bloom before July 1st or 2nd week.
It also becomes too touristy as I shift it further towards july August.
I love the spring in central Europe.
The climate is just wonderful, with lesser tourists around.
Will work on your itinerary and come back with finer details.
Thanks everyone.