We will be driving from Florence to Paris the 1st part of Oct, looking for some wonderful suggestions on what to see, which cities not to miss, places to stay, etc....

How many days do you have to do the trip? What are your intrests? Who is we (senior couple? honeymooners? family with kids?)?

(We've done this or similar several times on road trips 0 but do need some parameters to work with.)

You might want to take a look at the Michelin Green Guides for the respective countries.

I'd head to the west coast of Italy and turn north, going through Genoa, and around the coast to Monte Carlo and Nice. Stop wherever it looks interesting.

Then go through Marseille, an interesting city with an ancient history, and head north through the Rhone valley.

We will be w/friends ,50- 65, no kids and plan on taking about 2-3 days to drive to Paris, looking for the most interesting, beautiful sights, stopovers possibly stop in two different places on the way.

I think by that time of year you really have to think twice about heading over mountains, due to fog.

I'd stick to the coast of the Med, as charnees suggests, before heading north in France. There are always nice places to stay with good restaurants attached. So in addition to the Michelin green guides, I would use the Michelin Red Guides for accommodation and lunch and dinner advice, and just pull off the road when you need to. The Red Guides are comprehensive, and you will seldom have to drive more than a few minutes before finding a recommended eatery or hotel. In October, you won't need to book in advance.

Are you ready for a huge drop charge?
I suggest Menton and Avignon if you do drive.