Chamonix and then ?

Late June. Riviera sounds good. On the other hand - to be in Europe and even more - in France and not to see Paris? Or if you like hiking in the mountains there is so much of it that 7 days would be too short time. You yourself know the best what you would like. We can only speculate or think what we would do being in your place.

Something to consider, for perhaps a few days, is going to Provence and visiting local markets. Wonderful experiences -- colorful, aromatic. And the countryside is beautiful as well.

Mamitchener,
My daughter & I enjoyed visiting Annecy after our visit to Chamonix last May/June.
You may check it out then head to Provence or Paris afterwards ;-)
We took a Chamexpress Shuttle to Chamonix from Geneva's airport which provides door to door service, so it was very convenient to be dropped off right in front of our hotel.

I rented a car in Chamonix last year (late June) and returned it in Strasbourg, drove through Beaujolais, Burgundy and Alsace. Lots of sights - chateaux, abbeys, picturesque villages, lovely scenery. I had a 8 nights with the car, then 2 in Strasbourg before taking the train to Frankfurt for my flight home - at a slow pace. I was planning to do a lot of wine-tasting, but in the end I just had a glass or two with meals. Good food at reasonable prices, landed on a couple of local market days and some of my lunches were from them.

For Chani...Any recommendations on places to eat or stay in Strasbourg or Colmar? Nothing pricey please. Thabks!

Another option would be to head north over the pass up into Switzerland, Valais, on up to Zermatt, and then west to the Berner Oberland to see the beautiful mountains. You could do all of this by either train or car.
Italy is just over Mont Blanc from Chamonix via the gondola system. You could go to Aosta and then on to Milan, Verona, Venice...

I traveled to Chamonix with my wife on our 2010 France trip. (Only as a day trip from Annecy.) Chamonix is great, as is Annecy. I have been to the Alsace, Provence, and the Riviera. My advice based upon proximity and overall appeal, head to Provence and fly home from Marseilles.. or from Nice if you want to stretch it and go to the Riviera. In June I would be tempted to end in Nice, but book way ahead.

Judy - With the car, I didn't stay in Colmar. I stayed in a B&B in tiny Eguisheim and had my dinners at one of the restaurants there. Even though it was late June, the tourist season wasn't in full swing and there were only a couple places open on Wednesday (my first night). I liked it, so I went back for the next two nights (though other places were open for the weekend). It was on the main square and fun to watch the storks nesting on the roof of the church. I'm not a big foodie (mostly vegetarian, a little fish), but the food and service were very good and not expensive, less than €20 for a main with a salad and a couple glasses of good local wine, maybe another €5 for dessert.

I "hooked up" with another woman in Strasbourg for dinner on Saturday night. We meant to go to a place she had a recommendation for (I think it was Maison des Tanneurs), but we hadn't reserved and there was only indoor seating so we walked along the river (Petite France) and found another place that looked less expensive and not crowded. We had a great meal (maybe fish) and a pricey bottle of wine. It was a full meal and we probably split a dessert, it was €43 each.