My husband and I are taking our first trip to Europe and have decided to start with France. We are going the last week of May the first three weeks of June. My husband speaks fluent French, hence our country of choice. My question is, what region in the South should we experience? South East Or South West? Opinions please. We are also visting Paris for 5 days.

Alsace.
M

So you have a month in which to explore France?
I would surely include the Pays Basque and probably the Dordogne as well. But that's me..what kind of things are you interested in? Are you driving?

Mikemo is geographically challenged

It's difficult to say I "prefer" the South West, when I haven't been to the South, but it IS really delightful, and less crowded, and more varied, I think.

Lots of bastides, coasts on the Atlantic and Mediterranean, Gascon culture- did you know that "Gascon" and "Basque" are the same (ish) word?, mountains, good (albeit rich) food.

What do you want out of the trip?

I would definitely spend more than 5 days of 28-30 in Paris also. Perhaps arrive there, stay 5 days and do some other areas and return for another 4 before leaving from CDG. I know open jaw flights are a possibility but this is also a way to tie things together. TGV trains make long distances short in time for a return from Provence, for example.
I would suggest maybe "6 day weeks"-- Normandy for a week and Provence for a week.

Yes, start and end in Paris. We did that a few years ago. Our "second" trip to Paris was all the more fun for knowing our way around and being more comfortable with the language. But I would say 6 days at the beginning, 4 at the end.

As for the rest, it would help to know what you're interested in. Wine tours? Chateaux? WWII landing sites? Beach? French history? Colorful landscapes?

Any region of France should be beautiful at that time. I would probably choose 10 days in Provence. Then 10 more days working through the Dordogne and the wine region of Bordeaux. (Or up through the Loire on the way back to Paris.)

The places you choosew to visit ought to depend on your interests. For wine and food you have Burgundy, which is also very pretty. Normandy has Giverny and the D-day beaches. The Loire has nuclear power plants and the chateaus. A good general book on travel in France will help you cooordinate your interests and the delights of the various regions.

Little data, but 2 (young) people in france SE or SW? SW is more underdeveloped ( a bit) with large number of small towns(lovely) and generally non-discript cities (stop hitting me). I think the people are more patient and generally I would go SW (Carcassone, the canal du midi).

South you have the camargue and the various ancinet roman towns (ARLES ETC) which if this is your thing (think Van gogh) then go South. I like this area but you need ot have these interests

SE is more cosmopolitan with a wealthy jet set series of experiences plus a bit of Peter Mayle. Not my cup of wine (generally don't like this wine area) apart from Rhone

Hi G,

With a month, you can visit both the SE and SW.

Since we know nothing about your interests, we can't really help you.

You have enough time to consult more than several guide books.

I would devote 6 - 10 nights to Paris.

Sorry I am very new at this. I will give more information. My husband is a greater lover of food and wine and also a great lover. I had to add that he is bound to read this . We love the arts and spend alot of time meandering in galleries and museums. We are not into the night life except if really good music is involved. We love to walk and walked all over London when we were there. Thank-you for all the information I have used alot already. I think we will change our trip to all of June to avoid the holidays in May and add three days to our Paris visit.This is based on what many of you have reported here. We have consulted four guide books but thought hearing straight from those that have done it would help. We will be renting a car and we will fly from Canada to and from Paris. Thanks Again from the Great White North

Hi G,

Good idea adding more time to Paris.

Will you be renting a car?

If so, you might want to consider:

Paris to Dijon (see Burgundy)
Dijon to Aix en Provence (see Provence)
Aix to Sarlat La Caneda (See the Dordogne)
Sarlat to Paris or Bordeaux
Fly home.

Ira has a good plan. You might also want to include Lyon, a good eating city. And Aix is a little south if you want to visit the Chateauneuf de Pape area. Maybe Avignon or St. Remy for your base in Provence.

Finally nobody has suggested the Riviera. Does that interest you?