Beaune, or Paris

You've probably an overkill on Beaune.

The original and a couple more is enough for Paris.

Nice isn't as great as you might think and not terribly central for much else.

Have you considered what you're going to do in each location and how much time you really need, or have you just picked them more or less because you've heard if them? (The time for Carcassonne makes sense, the time for Tours doesn't on the face.)

How are you planning to move between these widely scattered places?

We once stopped in Beune for one night en route to Paris from Provence. We got there mid day and had the afternoon for the Hospices and the historic center; that was enough for us. Four nights is not close to enough for Paris but I would not break up the time unless you have a round trip flight out of Paris. If you haven't bought your tickets, fly open jaw into Nice (or Paris) and out of the other so there is no backtracking. A week in Paris would be better than the 3 full days you have now. If you were to get bored in Paris there are a couple of dozen easy day trips to villages, chateaux, other interesting cities etc in the region. I would also never give 4 nights/3 days to Avignon.

I agree with Janet about Avignon. Nimes is more central for excursions around the Rhone delta.

Not sure what you have planned for your time in Nice but I'd include day trips to Monaco and Villefranche. Add more days to Paris if you can. You might want to include a day in Versailles and/or a day trip from Paris to Giverny. Have a great trip!

Thanks for your response. Our airline tickets are purchased, in and out pf CDG. We plan to travel by train and are meeting friends in Nice halfway through our trip, Oct. 11 for the balance of the trip.

Beaune or Paris? It really depends on personal preference. It also depends on how you are getting around. Will you have a car? If so, you could easily spend 3 nights in Burgundy. We chose Semur-en-Auxois as our base and spent 3 nights there, but Beaune would have worked as well.

We just got back from 27 days in France. We spent 3 nights in Paris at the end and that was enough for us. I have been to Paris a number of times, so it's not that I don't like Paris. You obviously have to choose how to use your time because there is a lot to see in France. Paris is great but so are plenty of other places. This trip, we chose to visit smaller places. We loved staying in villages and towns. My main recommendation for you is to find some smaller places to visit. This is easier when you travel by car, but you can still do it with public transportation.

I think Avignon for 4 nights is ok. You have plenty of days trips - Orange, Nimes, Pont du Gard, Arles, etc. We spent 2 nights in Avignon, then 2 nights in Vaison and 4 nights in Arles and had plenty to do.

Have fun planning!

I see now that you are traveling by train. I would look at train schedules and flight times out of CDG to see if you want to spend your last night in Paris to make your flight. Our flight out of CDG was early enough that I decided that staying in Paris at the end was the best way to plan our trip.

Without a car, Beaune is just Beaune alone, unless you rent bicycles. Beaune alone is good for part of a day and maybe a night.

With wheels, lots of great things to see and do in Burgundy.

Note that both Beaune and Avignon have super early trains that go to Charles deGaulle, bypassing Paris. The Beaune train has an easy transfer in Dijon and gets you to the airport around 9. The Avignon train is direct and arrives around 10:30.

So even if you do decide Paris over Beaune, you can group all your Paris together and save a little time and bother.

I love Beaune but I would not take time away from Paris to go there when your time in Paris is so short.

With just one night in Carcassonne, schedule your arrival no later than 1600, which gives you enough time to check in to your room and walk around the old city before most things close. We arrived after 1800, which meant that all we had time to do was eat dinner and walk between the walls.

I really like Adam's idea of bypassing central Paris on the way to CDG. If you do decide to spend your final night in Paris, give yourself plenty of extra time to get to the airport. One time, the RER line was out and we had to take a bus to the airport instead, which took over 2 hours because several hundred other people were in the same predicament.

I'm on the side of finding much more to do in Paris than Beaune. I probably stayed a full day in the past, but our tour groups just spend an afternoon and an overnight. The Hôtel Dieu medieval hospital is memorable and well displayed, but I think you can see it all in about an hour. If the timing works, plan to include the big Saturday morning market in Beaune.