I%26#39;m in the initial planning stages of a 10-trip to France in mid-September. I%26#39;ve only been to Paris briefly (for 3 days) more than 5 years ago. What are some suggested itineraries for a trip of this length?
I realize this is a very general question - but I%26#39;m looking for ideas...
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I would pick 2 main areas of France, and visit those in-depth for 4 or 5 days each.
eg
Normandy (D Day sites etc) %26amp; Brittany
Normandy %26amp; The Loire
The Loire and Burgundy
The Loire and Massif Central
The Loire and Provence
The Somme (WW1 sites) and the Vosges
The Somme and the Champagne Region
Champagne and the Vosges or Jura
and so it goes on! Hiring a car is a must, it%26#39;s the best way to get around and to find those special %26#39;hidden%26#39; parts of France. Find a central place to stay in each region you choose, and do day trips out, cut%26#39;s down on %26#39;hassle%26#39; and spending time booking in %26amp; out of hotels, packing, unpacking, repacking etc.
Think about what you are interested in - wine? food? castles? landscape? art? literature? and arrange your areas based on that perhaps?
GET a good guide book, and MAP of France, to help YOU decide which places best suit you.
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Hello Torigin:
Consider 5 days in Paris and 5 days in St. Remy (your Provence base)
(TGV fast train from Paris to Avignon where you rent your car for the five days in Provence, drive to St. Remy and then return it to Avignon before you return to Paris to depart for home. Actually Paris is perfect at the beginning or end of your trip. Have a wonderful time and keep reading and asking questions.)
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It depends on what you would like. If you would like history and a France that is not often seen by tourists I%26#39;d suggest a tour of Brittany along the coast. An easy way to do this would be to take the train to Rennes and use this as a base to rent a car and travel. However, this area, along with Normandy and the Loire Valley may be a bit rainy at this time of year.
Personally if I were going I%26#39;d either do something like a tour from Bordeaux to Toulouse or do something in Provence because of the weather. A trip along the Mediterranean would be very nice.
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Since September is a perfect time to visit Provence I would seriously cosider heading directly there and spending the entire time really exploring the area in depth. The weather in September is perfect and, although the lavander will be long gone, you will probably get to see the vandange (ie. grape harvest)in the vinyards throughout the area. September in Provence is also wonderful because all the Chefs still have the wonderful fresh produce that makes eating there such a joy.
Provence is chock full of wonderful historical sites that are easily visited as long as you have a car. Check out some of the good guidebooks (Cadogan, Time Out, Rough Guide, Ulysses, and Michelin Green Guide for Provence are all wonderful) at your local B%26amp;N or Borders to get a feel for the area and begin to dream. Some of the places that you should consider visiting include: Avignon, Arles, Roussillon, Nimes, Les Baux, Nimes, St. Remy, the Camargue, the Southern Cote du Rhone,Nyons, Vaison-la-Romaine,and,of course,the Luberon.
If you decide to choose visit Provence this September think about settling in St. Remy for the duration of your stay. The area is well situated for visiting the above mentioned sites. You should also consider the option of staying nearby in amongst Les Alpilles in a smaller provencal village such as Maussane-les-Alpilles. Either way, if you base yourself in one place for the duration of your stay you don%26#39;t have to keep packing and unpacking as you go from one hotel to another. You might even want to look into staying in a gite rather than in a hotel - it%26#39;s a more home-like and less sterile atmosphere.
AlpillesGal
PS - If you decide on this option let me know if you would like a copy of the Traveller%26#39;s Aid doc that I produced for some friends who were visiting the South of France for the first time.
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