Can you drive from France to Italy in August?

There are several parameters at play: there is a questionnaire to answer this question. Available below:
https://infocovid.viaggiaresicuri.it/index_en.html

However, the rapid rise of the Delta variant would make me think twice about a multi country trip this summer. We're here if you need help reconsidering your route!

also look for the recent CNN travel article about driving in France in August (hint, it's not pretty)

Thank you both SO much for the response. I'm a bit nervous about a multi-country trip right now as well.

We are trying to keep things low-key with all of the unknowns. The goal for us going is to explore and understand Provence and Tuscan country-side living/gardening/eating. We have been building our backyard around pictures from Pinterest for soooo long with not being able to travel, so I might be pushing the idea too much.

Our single-country plan is to fly into Nice, pick up rental car, drive to Avignon as a home base for 5 days. Then drive to Beaune as a second home base for 5 days and return to Nice. We are good with driving around France normally but after reading the CNN article about traffic, I'm getting a little concerned about this itinerary. Are we crazy for even trying this?

Thank you again for amazing help!

I learned enough about not attempting this after watching Clark Griswald.

Also keep in mind, you're talking about August and it's only mid-July. So much can change by then, and it seems to on a daily basis. There might also be insurance issues if you're driving between countries, and perhaps vignettes?

Another yes for staying in France. If you decide to stay in France, keep in mind that not every day in August is a nightmare on the autoroutes. Bison Futé is a trusted predictor of traffic in France. Here is the link:

https://www.bison-fute.gouv.fr/webapp/tabs/forecast

This website seems to have an English option but I couldn’t get it to work. August 7 and 14 seem to be the worst days so far.

For most of your trip you will probably be exploring on smaller roads. Sure they will be busy but not stop-and-go.

I have driven in southern France often in August, and have avoided the autoroutes on Red and Black days. Orange days require a very early start. If you plan your schedule around these days, you will probably be fine. Once you are there daily traffic updates will help fine tune your timing. The management of your lodgings should also be able to help.

In addition to Bison Futé, Viamichelin. com is also helpful for live route predictions and travel times.

betty,

It would be a really good idea to have an International Driver's Permit for driving in France, and it's compulsory for driving in Italy. These permits are used in conjunction with your home D.L. and are available at AAA/CAA offices for a small fee.

You'll also have to be vigilant to avoid the ZTL (limited traffic) zones which exist in many Italian towns and cities. Each pass through these will result in hefty fines, which you may not know about until several months after you return home. There are also tolls and speed cameras on the motorways, including the Traffic Tutor which measures both instantaneous and average speed.... again, hefty fines for exceeding the limits. This thread on the forum provides some information on the Tutor - https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/italy/speeding-on-italian-roads-update .

In France in August, you should really avoid driving more than 200 miles on Saturdays. Fridays aren't too great either (but better), and Sunday can also be tricky in the south-east. Otherwise, it is fine, except between Lyon and the Avignon but even there, tailbacks typically aren't huge outside of Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays.

This website seems to have an English option but I couldn’t get it to work.

For Bison Futé, language shouldn’t matter too much — the colors are how they communicate projected traffic. As you can imagine, green is good, Orange is worse, red is worse still, and BLACK is the worst of all.

Other than that, all you need to be able to do is read how the calendar is set up.