My wife and I are going to Finland in the 2nd half of December 2023 for our son’s wedding in Helsinki and also spending some time in Levi. This part of our holiday is pretty much sorted. But before we travel back to Australia we plan on having 7 or 8 days travelling to Cognac, Strasbourg and Reims. Could someone give us some advice on the France leg of this once in a lifetime holiday. Thanks in anticipation, Glenn and Bev.

I'd start with the the train system and read up at seat61.com which explains how it all works.

You'll find that most trains operate along a radial from Paris at the centre and Paris has a ring of stations around it that link into these radials. Strasbourg is great place to visit as it has a very strong Christmas market in a medievel centre. You can also catch a train out to the Alsace wine region if you have time to taste more local wines (which are extra-ordinary). Colmar is the obvious town in the region but the real gold is in a line of villages to the west going north to south

Reims, similar train, the town is pretty old with the Cathedral as the main drawer, but also it Roman forum (hard to see) a Carnegie library is around the back and a lot of Champagne houses dotted around that you can visit. You can also catch a train to Epernay which is much smaller but holds the Avenue de Champagne with more Champagne houses.

French Tourist Information is highly advanced but tends to focus on "department" business so you need to look at specific town/city/region sites to get the best info

Cognac, I don't drink spirits so my interest is less but yes it is easy to get to on the train.

Obviously France is warmer than FInland (you seldom get dragged into bars for walking about outside without a hat in France) so whatever you wear for Finland may be too much in France but who knows?

Strasbourg and Reims will be lively in the winter. Cognac will be dead.

Last winter, just to use Paris as an example, we did not get any snow at all and the thermometer dropped below 0° at night probably only 2 or 3 times. So it should be quite different from Helsinki.

Thanks Bilboburgler and Kerouac, we have had a look at the trains and distances and decided that Cognac travel would eat up too much time. So plan 2 is catch slower train to Strasbourg stopping at Reims (2 nights), Verdun (1n), Metz (1n) Saverne (1n) and Strasbourg (3n). Then tgv back to Paris, fly home to Sunshine Coast Queensland, Australia where the temperature will be 30 plus centigrade not Fahrenheit. Thanks for any feedback.

Saverne, interesting. I've roller bladed along the canal near there.

Thanks everyone for your helpful advice. We haven’t quite finished our itinerary but we are getting there. We will be in Paris for Christmas on 25 December with our daughter, her husband and their 2 kids aged 8 and 11. We are staying at Yooma Urban Lodge in the 15th. We would like to have lunch at a not overly expensive restaurant that serves typical French winter food, that we could walk to. Would appreciate any suggestions. Thanks, Glenn

Am I right in thinking that you want to stop in Verdun due to the WW1 battle? If that’s the case, fine otherwise I would give it a miss and add a night to Strasbourg or if you are flying back to Australia from Paris, go there for your last night so you have less angst on your departure day.

No need to go to Cognac for cognac. Cognac Only Boutique in Bordeaux will have a wider variety of cognacs than any store in Cognac itself: https://www.cognac-only.com/en/

It's easier to get there by TGV directly from Paris and gives you the opportunity to explore Bordeaux wines.

I've stayed in the 15th some and like it there. It's more regular folks. They have a great weekly market there on Tues and Fridays (on rue St Charles). SOme of my favorite restaurants have closed, unfortunately.

But I'd suggest you go to the pedestrian shopping area, rue du Commerce and eat in the Cafe du Commerce inside, it's very historic and serves traditional French dishes. It's been there since the 1920s and is in the category of one of the "bouillons".

https://www.lecafeducommerce.com/

It's also convenient for shopping in that area.

https://www.solosophie.com/rue-du-commerce-paris/

Once again thank you all for your assistance. We pretty much have this sorted. It looks like our final itinerary (probably) is Reims (2n), Metz (1n), Strasbourg (4n or 5n). So the Strasbourg query is we do 5 nights there and do day trips, including Colmar and Black Forrest. Or 4 nights there with side trips and 1 night Colmar.
Thanks heaps, Bev and Glenn

Hello from Brisbane. We had a week staying in Strasbourg over Christmas, years ago, and visited Colmar by train for a few hours. The Colmar visit was after Christmas Day and it was freezing and mostly deserted. The fountains were frozen solid. I don't think we picked a good time. I lost track of what date you would be in Colmar but I wouldn't move hotels for one night if it was me. Also visited Obernai by train (these places were only a short distance to travel) just prior to Christmas Day and it was similar - cold and quiet.

We were living in the UK so reasonably used to winter weather but Strasbourg was too cold for me. One day was minus 5 outside. The Christmas markets in Strasbourg were fun to look at but didn't sell anything much we would be interested in. I'm not sure that I'd travel from that area, by train, back to Paris on the day of an international flight. You could be OK but seems a bit risky. Also I guess you know that TGV tickets start cheapish and get much dearer, closer to the date of travel.

I agree with KayF and would visit Colmar by train. It is a lovely town, but a day trip is fine.

I'd use the train to visit Strasbourg, Metz and Nancy. Large market squares in each, glorious museums and Christmas markets (check each cities website to get dates). I love the Alsace area and have been at every time of the year. Winter is my least favorite.

Scratch Nancy or Metz; you can't do both with a one night stop in that area.

When we were in Alsace once in mid-December, we walked on a very quiet back road from Ribeauville to Kaysersberg (then a bus back to Colmar where were were staying). We stopped at several villages along the way which were busy with the Christmas markets and Christmas fare. I recommend it if you enjoy walking. We're from Melbourne and it didn't seem that cold to us but of course that varies from year to year.

I agree that I don't think I'd move to Colmar for a single night. I'd also consider visiting Metz as a day trip rather than an extra stop (I avoid one night stays when possible). I prefer to be in my departure city the night before a long haul flight (especially when the weather or transport could be unpredictable).

I agree with dreamon. The train journey to Metz or Nancy takes about 1.5 hours although some trains to Metz are under an hour. Another option could be 2 stay in Nancy for 2 nights and stop in Metz on your way to Strasbourg leaving your bags at the station.

Nancy deserves a full day or more. There is the outdoor such as the Place Stanislas


the Parc de Saurupt with its collection of Art Nouveau manors:


and the scattered buildings in the center of town:


And the museums:



As for seeing Metz on the way to Strasbourg, check that there is a consigne available in or near the train station in Metz, and I would check to make sure that there is a direct train to Strasbourg. For us, Strasbourg to Nancy was more convenient by bus.

Metz is definitely worth at least a one night stop. I usually stay at the Ibis Styles near the train station because it is a magnificent grand old hotel restructured just a bit for modern needs. It has a big fireplace room and the rooms have double doors and double windows for insulation dating from olden times. The Centre Pompidou Metz is just a short walk away, and the downtown area and the magnificent Saint Etienne cathedral can be reached in about 10-15 minutes.

Even though I have no plans to visit France, the hotel kerouac describes sounds fabulous. I love it when historic buildings are repurposed. The older styles of architecture have such grace and elegance. To me, modern architecture is a concrete and glass box. Ugh. Just as an aside, I stayed recently in a grand building in Melbourne, built in 1890 for the Victorian Railways and now the Grand Hotel, and some apartments. They must have had a LOT of employees back then. The hallways were massive, with red carpeting, the rooms were large, windows massive compared to new builds. If anyone has any websites that lists this sort of historic repurposed hotel, I'd love to know.