Where else besides Paris?
 

Hello, we will be going to Paris for a Wedding June 28-July 8. After that we have 3 days to do something on our own. Would like to rent a car and see something else. <BR> <BR>Rhone to far? <BR>Champagne enough things to do? <BR>Loire valley overrated? <BR>Normandy? <BR> <BR>We like the off-the-beaten-track locations. Don't mind relaxing in a nice area or seeing some must see sights. <BR> <BR>Thanks, <BR>~Chris

on a trip to france i was fortunate enough to have been with natives...i ended up driving about an hour east of the border into belgium (after taking the TGV from paris to lille, then driving to comines)to an AMAZING medival town eclosed in walls, called EPRE. comines is a small french town, which is shared be neighboring belgium & also called comines. if you dont mind going out of your way to find the off-beaten, go for this one, you will not regret it. it is so magical & beautiful, quaint, fantasy like. it even has a mote around it. email me if you have q's....

It would be hard to imagine that you can't find a nice mix of off-the-beaten tracks and must-see sights (you're asking for a bit of a paradox, you realize) in Normandy. Take a look at http://www.normandy-tourism.org to whet your appetite. It's a very well done regional website. <BR> <BR>And I don't mean to dispute what Rachel says, but it seems likely that when she refers to "Epre", she actually means "Ypres" (Ieper in Flemish). Here's a nice little article about the place - - it's a little bit dated, but still one of the many scores of useful articles available on the Boston Globe (travel) website: <BR> <BR>http://travel.boston.com/world/europ..._ieper_1.shtml <BR> <BR>Best wishes, <BR> <BR>Rex <BR>

Chris, <BR>Three days would be a good amount of time to venture up to Normandy. See the beaches and surrounding villages. Then maybe a drive to Mont St Michel. What a wonderful place. Spend the night there. After the tourists leave, you can wander the island. Very peaceful. On the way back to Paris, stop in at Chartre. The cathedral is breathtaking. I've done this in three days before and it was great.

We just returned and spent 3 days in Paris and then 4 in the Loire before going down the Rhone. Based in Blois which we liked. Trips to Chateaus, tiny village of Vezelay, Beaune, etc. <BR>Didn't go north at all. Many rave about Versaille and Giverny. So many choices.

If you want off-the-beaten-track, think about the Route Jacques Coeur in the Berry region of France, taking in Gien and Sancerre. <BR> <BR>Websites which may be of interest: <BR>http://www.aubigny.net/introduction.htm <BR>http://www.sancerre.net/otsi/welcome.htm <BR>http://www.s-t.com/daily/09-00/09-24-00/e10tr173.htm <BR>

Thank you for the advice. What I meant was that we prefer off-the-beaten-track but we will do a must see if we need to.

The Loire valley is a wonderful place to spend a few days. Stay in a lovely chateau, visit Azay-le-Rideau, my favorite, and Chenanceau, Blois, Amboise. Not for nothing was the valley called "the breadbasket of France"--it's very lush agriculturally and the food is incredibly fresh and wonderful--cheeses, breads, vegetables, fish..and the patisseries are enough to make you cry (all that fresh butter). Plus--if you like active sports, there's lots to do there. I don't think it's overrated at all, but as always, a careful plan is necessary. You might check Karen Brown's book on Inns and Itineraries in France--she really knows and loves the countryside.

If you dogo to the Loire , try to stay atDomaine des hauts de Loire, a fantastic country house hotel(chateaux, actually a hunting lodge if you can believe that!)0 It is very near Blois and wonderully located for visitubg chateaux , wineries, etc. Ypres is another option, if you are interested inWWI battelfields, my husband is a great WWI buff and I thought I'd be bored bt that was not the case. we have been back twice and are planning another trip for this fall. Wonderful , moving sights , museums, etc. Very close to Belgium and Brugges is not that far. Of course we are great drivers and walkers and are up before breakfast to get a jump on the day! <BR>ENJOY

I would do Normandy for three days. Take the train to Rouen and discover this wonderful city. Spend the night in Honfleur. Drive along the cote Fleriue and head to Bayeux. See the tapestry and head over to the amazing D-Day musee in Caen. Spend the third day doing the D-Day beaches, American cemetery, Arromanches............ <BR>drive to paris via Giverny. Return car to CDG (if you leave then) or in Paris.

Arrgh!!! Are they calling the Loire Valley "overrated" these days? While Normandy and Champagne are equally interesting, my personal favorite is the Loire valley. Unique food and wine, so many castles to choose from, beautiful!!! The gardens at Villandry, I could spend a day gazing at them. Walking on the paths around Chenonceau is simply gorgeous. I've been there in three different seasons and it's amazing each time I go. <BR> <BR> <BR>I will say this though, Mont St. Michel was great too. It's so hard to choose.

Loire Valley

Definetly spend the day at Versailles-walk the gardens, see the fountains, etc. Also, we loved Beaune. There are some great old wineries that are hotels-low prices and the region is lovely.

Here's what we did with our '3 days after Paris' in 1993. We visited Chartres, then all of the chateau that begin with the letter "C" (just coincidence!) in the Loire Valley. This included an overnight stay in Blois, which my husband and I dubbed "the lovely town with the ugly name" and a truely fascinating visit to the "out of the way" home of Leonardo da Vinci at Clos-Luce, near Amboise...topped off by a night in and visit to Fountainbleu. Was the Loire Valley overrated? Absolutely not! Unless you're a WWII battlefield officionato and hate castles, I vote for the Loire Valley. (Assuming you'll visit Versailles on a 1/2 day excursion from Paris, as this is also a must-see!) Psssst - remember to try speaking a bit of French and upon entering or leaving a shop always make eye contact with the proprietor and say 'Bon jour....Merci, A Revoir, etc." as this is considered common courtesy in France and should add to your positive interactions with French people, which was our definite experience.