Car Trip Paris to Avignon Then To Nice- Chateau Visits In between

I´m not clear on the itinerary. You have 4 days, one of which you want to spend in Monte Carlo? It will take the bulk of two days on the autoroute to drive from Paris to Nice. That does not leave a great deal of time for châteaux, Avignon, or Nice itself. The most notable châteaux are probably in the Loire Valley which you could visit on your way south but the basics of the Loire Valley take 2 days.

You really need either more time or fewer destinations.

I'm sorry, I guess I wasn't clear. We have a full 4 days of car travel between Paris and Avignon. So another words 4 days on the road.
Thanks,
Chris

Hi Chris and welcome to the Forum.

Figure out which Chateaus you want to visit first.
Then train from Paris to either Tours or Amboise.
You don't want to drive out of Paris.

Pick up a car after you arrive.
2 nights Amboise.

Amboise-Lyon 4Hr40m w/o stops.
2 nights Lyon

Lyon-Avignon 21/2 hrs

I'd advise picking up your rental car at Orly Airport, not in Tours or Amboise. Why? Two reasons. (1) With 4 adults, your train fare would be significant. (2) Car rental availability is better at the major airports than in the smaller cities and towns. Once you leave Orly you are right by the Autoroute so you don't have to drive through the streets of Paris, and the navigation from there to the Loire region is not too difficult.

As the previous comment advised, identify which chateaux you most want to see, and choose lodging nearby. Two per day works out about right. We stayed in Azay-le-Rideau at Hotel Biencourt and it was wonderful, but if the chateaux that interest you are more to the northeast (the more famous ones) then this would not be an ideal location.

You could drive from your Loire region base to Avignon in one day (that's probably what I'd do), or choose a place along the route for an overnight stop.

Thanks for the suggestions. I was wondering why not drive out of Paris? Too crazy? I keep hearing that the trains are really unreliable. Do you know if that's the case? Thanks for your response.

I traveled extensively in France during the summer of 2017--89 days by a combination of trains and buses. Some of my trains were about 5 to 10 minutes late. I don't remember anything much more significant than that. I'd consider the French trains quite reliable. Nothing is ever 100%, however.

Make sure you look at this site for the BEST villages in France that you should visit - http://www.les-plus-beaux-villages-de-france.org/en/the-most-beautiful-villages-of-france.

You could go into the Loire Valley from Paris or head to the Dordogne. This is where you will see 1,000 castles from the 100 Years War. Visit La Roque Gageac and eat a fabulous 4 course meal at La Belle Etoile for 36 euros.

Then head into Belcastel (close to Rodez) and stay at Chateau de Belcastel. This medieval village is charming and there are no tourists. Drive through Uzes to their market and in to Le Thor to stay at the amazing Les Carmes (lescarmes.com), right outside Avignon.

You could drive the highway to get to St. Cirque la Popie - charming !!! and stop through Carcassone before heading into Le Thor to stay at Les Carmes.

Using the Les Plus Beaux Village site and traveling through the backroads will be more enchanting than trying to visit 2 chateau's every day. And your wife will find France AND Europe absolutely delightful.

Wow! So much to think about. Thank you to everyone that has responded. Now I really have some thinking to do. Anyone else, please feel free I'd love to hear any additional suggestions. As Sir Francis Bacon said "Knowledge is power".

Yes, a lot to think about, but a couple of these suggestions are taking you from Paris to Avignon via Timbuktu. A good map will help you plan. There are chateaux in all regions of France, though the royal Renaissance leisure chateaux in the Loire are favorites of visitors.

The trains in France are very reliable. It's faster to take the train to the Loire valley, unless you need an automatic transmission, check first for availability at the Tours office. Only then would I pick up at Orly.

Pick up car in Tours visit the Chateaus in that area first then head to Amboise.

Midway between Ambois and Lyon is the sweet little village of Charroux. Great place to stop for lunch and wander a bit.

Edit: train 9:15 Paris-Montparnasse > Pierre-de Corps (Tours) 58 minutes tickets under €20.

You are right, Bets. It is Timbuktu.

But so many people travel from big city to big city and this was another suggestion. One can rotate between a larger city and smaller, more intimate villages to truly get a taste of a region or country.

We love Paris and Nice, but our last trip through the Dordogne and the Le Plus Beaux Villages was exquisite and charming.

Which was why I also suggested the Loire Valley and the Dordogne, and then taking the fast freeway through Carcassone - a really great town - and into Avignon. One could make up time on the freeway.