We are going on the Loire to South of France in Oct. Planning on staying in Paris a few days early (been there before), but trying to decide whether there is enough to see in Chartres that won't overlap with what the tour shows. Basic question is, should we go into Chartres a full day and a 1/2 early or will we be repeating what is shown on the tour?
Thanks for the help,
Mimi
Sounds like a full day is planned at Chartres Cathedral, so going a day and a half might be gilding the lily.
https://www.ricksteves.com/tours/france/south-france
Sam,
Is the Cathedral basically the only thing to see in Chartres?
Mimi
We joined the Loire to South of France trip two years ago in the fall and arrived a day early, on a Sunday. Everything was closed for the day and we only took a cursory look at the cathedral. Some restaurants were open. It is the major site in Chartres. Actually, many stores, etc. were also closed on Monday but we were with the guide so had a great tour of the cathedral and the stained glass museum - definitely a "must do" if you like stained glass.
I lived in Chartres after my undergrad for a year. It's a marvelous city. There's plenty in the city to keep you busy including a stained glass museum, a fantastic beaux-arts museum, a few great churches, la maison Picassiette, and an archeology museum.
If you want to venture to Maintenon (a few towns over by train) to see that beautiful chateau, it's all within reach.
I echo what Lynda said above. On the tour you will walk around the town and learn about the history of Chartres, as well as get a tour of the Cathedral. That takes you up to about noon or 1pm on Monday. However most shops in town are closed Sunday and Monday. I suggest you plan ahead to leave town on Monday afternoon; check the train schedules and figure out some place to go for the rest of the day and perhaps dinner too (I think that is one of the nites when dinner is on your own). Rambouillet looks to be nearby, Le Mans is about an hour by train, etc. If you want to see the shops in Chartres then you will need to get there on Sat (the 1.5 days early you asked about) but plan on leaving town on Sun as well.
This is a nice tour, but there a couple of days where it is going to be up to you to either plan ahead to explore on your own, or if not comfortable with that then bring a good book to read. Another such day is the market day in Sarlat. It is fantastic, more booths than you can imagine! However there just isn't a lot else to do in Sarlat, and after a couple of hours you have pretty much covered every nook and cranny of the market. I would suggest again looking at rail options for mid-morning on, or, even better, rent a car for the day to go see more of the Dordogne region. This takes some advance planning, and I know a lot of people turn to a tour because you leave the planning up to them, so I'll repeat the advice about not running out of books to read!
This is another example of how different travel is for each of us. For some there isn't much in Chartres aside from the Cathedral. For others it's a marvelous city with plenty to keep you busy. I know Sarlat a little better than Chartres, and I can't agree that you could cover every nook and cranny of the market in a couple of hours, nor that there isn't a lot else to do in Sarlat.
Mimi, I hope you're getting useful information here for planning your trip. Every little bit helps. I just added Chateau de Maintenon to our upcoming trip as a result of reading this thread.
Bob, you won't regret it ! Have lunch in the little square in front of the castle. I love that little sleepy town,
Thanks Alexander. We love gardens so this looks like a good stop. I hadn't heard of Maintenon before.
Thanks, everyone. We have decided to stay in Paris and train to Chartres in the morning that the tour starts. We figure there's stuff to see in Paris that we haven't seen. (can't see everything).
I appreciate the help
Mimi
