First time prelim itinerary

You might enjoy the Cotes du Rhone (AOC) Wine District. The Chateauneuf du Pape Cabernet is very tasty with Beef. If you go to Nice; the Matisse Museum is World Class and could be considered an "iconic" site. Bon Voyage!

If you want to drink decent Burgundy, make sure your checking account is full to the brim. Delicious stuff, but way beyond my pay grade for anything substantial. But the Burgundy region is lovely, and there's more to enjoy there than wine.

As for the Rhône wine region, IMO it's more scenic than the Burgundy area because of its topography. And the grape varietals are much more diverse; in Burgundy it's almost entirely pinot noir and chardonnay, while in Rhône one finds a wide diversity of both red and white wine grapes. By now it should be evident that I'm obsessed with wine.

Have fun! All of your ideas look good to me.

My suggestion is to cut back on some of your destinations, and spend more time in others, so you have time to experience and enjoy. Four weeks is a lot of time, but (and I have been on several four-week European trips) with a trip of that length, packing up and moving on gets old much faster than you might think. Also keep in mind that for every location at which you spend two nights, that's only one full day and part of another day. And, each new location will take some time to leave, arrive, pack, unpack, find parking, etc. Wouldn't you rather spend that time wandering around a gorgeous small town, or driving past lovely vineyards, or sitting at a cafe with a glass of wine?

Which locations you drop really depends on your interests, though you could consider dropping a region (such as the Loire or Normandy). And yes, I would drop Burgundy and add a night to Provence. I love the Dordogne area; I feel it's one of the most beautiful places in France (Provence is also beautiful, but in a different less-lush way, and I find the Loire interesting for the chateaux but not really beautiful.) Dordogne has many castles, prehistoric sites, the river, and great food. Though it's a bit out of the way, and if it didn't appeal to you, I would drop this part of the country.

jatcmeyer,
lexma has some good suggestions. You haven't given yourselves much time to see your locations. Since art/museums and the like are not high priority for you, and since you would have a car, I highly recommend the Dordogne/Lot area. 5-7 days in one spot would give you time to avail yourselves of gorgeous scenery, some castles, prehistoric caves, great markets, goose farms, walnut orchards and processing, nearby wineries (generally in the direction of Bordeaux), river canoeing or kayaking, outstanding food (truffle season begins around October, I believe), and even some medieval and Roman sites.
With the rest of your time, Provence/Luberon areas need a week, and Normandy/Brittany together need a week, especially if you want to see Mont St. Michel.

Of course, these are my preferences. Since you have been to Switzerland, I would skip that portion of your trip and fly into Nice, stay 4-5 days there, then get your car and head to your Provence base(s), then off to the Dordogne, then up to Brittany and Normandy. Return the car near Paris (perhaps Rouen or Chartres), and take the train to CDG for return.
This means skipping Burgundy and the Loire, both of which have great wines, but topographically are not as interesting as the other regions. Of course, the chateaux may be important to you, in which case a couple of days there after Normandy would allow you time to see some of them.
In any case, this is just a suggestion. Whatever you decide, you will have a great time. Just don't spend all of it in the car. Use the website viamichelin for drive time ideas.

Bon voyage!

J - Agree with Lexma. Pick two or three places to explore, plus Paris. Don’t try to see all of France.

Last year, on our third trip to France, we spent 4 weeks in France. We started with 3 nights inn Bordeaux, followed by a week in the Dordogne. Then Nantes, where we briefly visited an exchange student who we hosted 20 years ago. After that, we spent a week in the Loire Valley and finally finished our trip with two nights in Chartres, one night in Versailles and five nights in Paris. Our original
Plan was four nights in Paris, but our flight was cancelled so we had to make the best we could with an extra afternoon and evening in Paris. Tant pis (Such a pity)

Our first trip France (1999) was a week solely in Provence, as part of a longer trip that started in Munich with a drive though Switzerland on our way to visit friends in Spain. Our second trip (2010) was a week in Paris. No day trips out of Paris.

You mention hiking and September. Have you considered cycling? Our 2023 trip included a week cycling the Dordogne and another week cycling the Loire. https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/trip-reports/fabulous-tour-de-france-2-weeks-on-foot-and-by-train-2-weeks-by-e-bike

I have found driving in France can be expensive for both fuel and tolls. Sometimes there are country road routes but these have strict speed limits. Although the delivery van on your bumper honking doesn’t care.

I hope you have plotted this entire trip out on google map. I think you’ll find getting from nice to Sarlot is no quick commute.

Between Annecy and Vilkefranche sur mer are other interesting places. And VSM is nice enough I wouldn’t call it a huge draw like Antibes or Nice. If you are driving that area there are the famous corniches of various altitudes - but you are up high looking down - not passing through the coastal towns.

I would suggest more research. There are many places you are blowing past to get to lesser places.

I disagree with the people saying to stay a week in each place. Actually with a car you can be more flexible and mobile.

For example in a single day in Sarlat with a car I hit le Roque Gageac, Belves, Beynac, and Rocamadour.

Cars are not always easy to park in cities so you might save money and hassle staying at smaller towns.

I have found it’s most comfortable to spread out your cities to be 1-3 hours apart, planned around strict French eating times.

As for wine, there is nothing like CA Napa/Sonoma on the Burgundy, Bordeax, Chablis, Coates de Provence, Champagne, Nalbec, Pinot Gris areas. There are occasional tasting rooms but much fun. Go to Santa Barbara CA or up north for fun and variety of tasting.

I appreciate your thoughtful replies. I've decided to omit Burgundy and the Alps region, possibly Loire as well (we did see a number of castles and palaces in Germany) and will still have Versailles and Vaux-le-Vicomte as day trips. I'm not comfortable with the single overnight stays either so wondering about a homebase between Honfleur and Brittany?? Driving more than an hour to the various sites also cuts into our time, just like changing lodging, so maybe two bases in that region. Perhaps we could omit Rouen and Giverny altogether and just pick up a car in Honfleur?