First European trip planned!

Welcome to our community of European Travelers!

To give the most helpful advice, these are some of the questions that arise re your request for advice:

How are you traveling from Nice to Monaco?

Travel time has to be carefully evaluated on a day trip, to make sure your wonderful day trip doesn't become stressful by trying to do too much in a day trip.

How are you getting from Paris to MSM?

And then from MSM to Normandy and back to Paris in a day, which will be your last day so you'll want to make sure you evaluate travel time so that you don't get back to your Paris hotel at midnight, before your flight.

How are you getting from Paris to MSM?

We'll be taking a TGV and we've already explored schedules. Looks like it's about 5.5 hours.

And then from MSM to Normandy and back to Paris in a day, which will be your last day so you'll want to make sure you evaluate travel time so that you don't get back to your Paris hotel at midnight, before your flight.

That's where I'm looking for some advice for something we may want to do that won't heavily impact travel time. I understand the quickest way is bus to Rennes, then TGV back to Paris. But there are other slower trains that may go through somewhere worth taking a few hours stopover.

That's where I was going with the question about Normandy--not sure you have time to start from MSM, see something in Normandy (transportation would be the issue there), and then back to Paris, and then pack for your flight home.

Have you studied a map of the area between Rennes and Paris? You'll be traveling due east from Rennes toward Paris, and Chartres would be a possible sight-seeing stop on your way back to Paris--the Chartes Cathedral is one of Europe's great cathedrals.

About travel times, it's easy to under-estimate travel times and it can be a problem, esp. on day trips or when you need to be at a hotel before a certain time when (as with smaller European hotels) there is no 24 hr reception desk.

Train travel time should take into account these factors:

You arrive at the train station, then you need to get to your 1st sight-seeing attraction at that locale.
Then eventually you'll need to return to the train station from your last sight-seeing attraction at that local.
The time adds up: the time to get to the train station, then waiting for the next train going to your next destination. And then back at your home base, the time to get from the train station back to your hotel.

Re your second question: If you were driving I'd recommend a stop in Bayeux or Caen or Honfleur on the fastest route to CDG, and spend the night at an airport hotel. With the caveat that June 6 is the 75th anniversary of D-Day and those cities, not to mention the roads and beaches, will be very busy. Not a time to be looking for accommodations. But a stop in Bayeux could cover all or any of the cathedral, tapestry, and WWII museum. Caen has a bigger museum and Honfleur has a beautiful harbor and church. Later in the month should be less crowded.

My limited research suggested that your train trip between Nice and Rennes will involve a change of stations in Paris. Maybe I missed a direct train, but if not you might consider renting a car at Gare de Lyon, heading straight for the Peripherique and then out to MSM, where you can leave it on the mainland end of the causeway and take a shuttle bus to the island. That might be time-competitive with a trip across Paris to Gare Montparnasse, plus a bus from Rennes to MSM.

If driving isn't an option, a local train from Pontorson to Bayeux takes about 2 1/2 hours, and the train from Bayeux to Gare St-Lazare takes about 2 hours. But that's a pretty busy day without lots of time in Bayeux.

If.I am reading correctly, you are planning to spend 2 of your 3 days in Nice elsewhere. Without knowing your interests, I will say this is a big mistake. Nice has some good art museums, Roman ruins, an interesting old quarter, and a lovely sea view promenade. Day trips are possible to places much more interesting than Monaco. St. Paul de Vence would be #1 on my list, but there are many others. Eze, Antibes, and Cap Ferrat come to mind. I haven’t been to Villefranche, but many people recommend it. Marseille is way too far and not nearly as appealing as many closer places.

IMO Rosalyn's advice is an example of the kind of advice people come here for. People, esp. newbies to European travel, presumably want us to tell them what they need to hear, not what we think they want to hear. There's a difference between those two in some cases.

If you fly into Nice and spend just three nights there, you'll probably only have about 2 days of sightseeing time. The arrival day is often experienced in a sleep-deprived, jetlagged haze. Your time will be very short, given all the attractions in that part of France. Traveling from Nice to Marseille would take over 2-1/2 hours one way, so I would definitely not try that as a day-trip. There are many lovely small towns and villages much closer to Nice. Pick up Rick's guide book to southern France and/or another book that covers that area comprehensively. See what place(s) sound most appealing.

Trips on the local trains are inexpensive, and the tickets needn't be booked in advance to get a good price, so you can head off to Monaco one morning without a fixed idea of how much time you want to spend there, then perhaps visit another coastal town that same day. If you happen to be art lovers, you'll probably have a difficult time dragging yourselves away from Nice, which has at least six good art museums.

I agree with the concern about trying to squeeze in an additional stop on the day you travel from Mont-St-Michel back to Paris. Rennes is an attractive regional city, but the train schedule doesn't seem to work well for a stopover. You'd have to get to Pontorson in time to catch the 8:42 AM train, then find a place to stash your luggage in Rennes and allow time to retrieve it before continuing your train journey less than two hours later. And if I'm not misremembering, the train station isn't particularly near the historic district. This plan would make me nervous about missing the onward train to Paris.

The fact is that there is very limited train service to and from Mont-St-Michel, which makes for a certain lack of flexibility when traveling there by rail.

You are not allowing much time in Paris itself. On Day 4 the trip from Nice to Paris will take at least 6 hours just on the train. By the time you deal with hotel check-out, getting to the station, finding your way to your Paris hotel and checking in, that day is going to be pretty well shot. You'd probably save a bit of time by flying, but you might reasonably judge that it wouldn't be worth the hassles involved in dealing with airports.

However you get to Paris, you'll basically just have Days 5, 6, and 7 there. On Day 8 you head to Mont-St-Michel. Unless you want to take the 7:40 AM train (which gets to Pontorson at 10:46 AM), you'll spend 4-1/2 hours getting to Pontorson at 2:40 PM, then take a shuttle bus to Mont-St-Michel. On Day 9 you'll return to Paris at 3:07 PM or 6:04 PM, with the day fairly well shot from the sightseeing standpoint by the time you get checked into your hotel. And Day 10, I assume, is the day you fly home, so really only 3 full days in Paris.

Are you sure you want to spend 2 days traveling to and from Mont-St-Michel when you'll have so little time on the Riviera and in Paris?

Nice - Skip Monaco and particularly Marseille. They're too far away and your time is very limited. Possibly visit Villefrance sur Mer to the east, and take the coastal train to locations west such as Cannes, Antibes, and Juan les Pins. For planning and evaluating points of interest, refer to a guide book, I use the Michelin Green Guide for the Côte d´Azur.

MSM - Unless you have the time, which you don't, MSM is a logistical nightmare without a car. You'll spend the better part of two days visiting a single location which, when included as part of a well planned itinerary of Normandy, would otherwise take but a few hours.

If I were to advise you before you had made hotel arrangements, I would have you fly from NCE to RNS (Rennes) nonstop, make your visit to Mont St Michel, then continue to Paris by bus/train the following day. It would avoid needless backtracking, save you money on transportation, and probably freed up one full day for additional sightseeing.

Generally, booking hotels is the last thing you do once logistical questions are answered. I am sure you'll have a wonderful trip anyway.

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I agree with many others here, especially if this is your first trip to France together. Happy Anniversary to you! We spent our 25th anniversary in Paris, and had a wonderful time being relaxed about our sightseeing. I’ve been to Monaco and Mont St. Michel on other trips, and I’d echo the advice to relax in Nice and perhaps take a day trip to a closer beautiful, small village. Check and see the market schedules as you consider day trips...that can really enhance your visit. Monaco was so opulent and felt out of reach to us...it wasn’t a highlight for me, but maybe you’re really looking forward to experiencing it? I would skip the longer trip to Marseille.

MSM is a unique and special place, but without a car, you might really spend a lot of time working out the details. Staying there allows you some peace in the hours when the hordes of tourists leave (early a.m. and evening hours)...a plus if you can manage the transportation details. Maybe consider a day trip organized by a company from Paris, so you have a bus tour and can relax? You might find some combo that includes a stop in Bayeux or Honfleur as well, and someone else is in charge of getting you in and out of these crowded places. It might be a 12 hour experience, but you’d return to your Paris hotel and not have to pack/ unpack again. Just a thought.

We found the Paris Museum Pass wonderful to use on that trip, and as we were in Paris for 9 days, we chose the 6 day pass. I mention this because once you start using it, you need to use it consecutively, and that might make a difference as you plan for your days. We didn’t start it until we had a full, well rested day for Day 1.

Many will tell you to make sure you have time to just sit in a cafe and relax and not try to do so many things in Paris. I think this is good advice, as long as you make sure to see the top things you’re dreaming of seeing. That pass is great for letting you dip in and out of places as you like, and especially take advantage of the evening hours for some attractions. It’s even good for stopping in for restroom or air conditioning breaks if you’re experiencing a heatwave, as we did! Jumping the line is a relief, and made the cost of the passes worth it for us, as we were traveling in peak season. We made a point of returning to both the Louvre and the Musée d’Orsay in the evenings and it was less crowded and a great experience.

If we get the chance to go again, without kids, I’d like to go to a concert at Sainte Chapelle, have pastries and hot chocolate at Angelina, enjoy a picnic in Luxembourg Gardens, and see a performance at the Opera Garnier. I’m still dreaming about the next itinerary! :-)

Have a wonderful trip! This forum is a great resource for advice and nailing down details as you plan. Check out the “First time in Paris” threads, too...many good ideas there that were so helpful for us, even as we planned subsequent trips to Paris!

Laurie