First week of April in France

Bordeaux, Strasbourg, Grenoble, Annecy, Rouen, Aigues Mortes and area, the Normandy Landing Beaches, St Malo,

I spent a few nights in Montpellier this summer. It's a nice city with a large historic district. I think if you include day-trips you can keep yourself well occupied there. The town of Pezenas is known for its crafts; it you like to window shop, you might kill a day there. I don't know how lively Pezenas will be in early April; it might be best to head there on a weekend. Sete is also worth a visit (less than a day). Narbonne is larger and also interesting. If you Google the town names and "market", you should turn up useful information. I didn't happen to hit a market in any of those places.

I didn't get to Beziers, but it has a lot of markets (see below).

My pre-trip notes contain the following information on markets in the area, but I took these notes for a summertime trip, and April may be different.

Beziers: antique market 1st and 2nd Sat. of the month (two different locations). Also food market every morning (two different locations) and an outdoor produce market Tue-Sun morning.
Montpellier: market of one kind or another every day except Saturday (and that could be an error in my notes).
Narbonne: good daily covered food market. Outdoor market on Sunday is said to be one of best markets that day in Languedoc, but is primarily clothing.
Pezenas: market on Saturday, which one of my sources said is the best Saturday market in Languedoc.
Sete: market on Wednesday. There was an old reference to a flea market on Sunday, but that may no longer be active.

If maximally sunny weather is important, you might consider Menton instead. It's east of Nice, almost on the Italian border, and has the warmest winters in France. There are two very good gardens. Both are on hillsides, so can be somewhat challenging if you have any mobility issues. There are lots of interesting coastal and hill towns you could visit from Menton, How attractive this option is may depend on how much traveling around you did while you were in Nice.

Menton has a daily covered market and apparently also an outdoor market (possibly contiguous). Also a flea market on Friday morning. (If my notes are accurate.)

Hi, Acraven, thank you for your very detailed trip suggestions. I actually took a day trip to Menton this summer when I was on a Mediterranean cruise. It was a very beautiful city and the market building there is superb. I did think about going to the Côte d'Azur but I couldn't get a reasonable award ticket to Nice. Have you ever taken the TGV to Nice from Paris? I have read that the train slows down dramatically as it approaches the coast.

It does sound like Montpelier is worth four days (with the surrounding area) and I thank you for that. I will continue to explore TGV possibilities to the Côte d'Azur as well.

I would not go to Normandie or anyplace North in April.
For one thing, there are the Easter vacation holidays, and things will be a mess.

Go to Nice, if it makes you the happiest. Montpelier is basically a college town.
I would land in Paris, then stay in Nice. You can take the early train back to Paris.
I'd recommend staying in a hotel, both times.

Just one word of caution - Paris, Nice and other cities have changed dramatically from the time you were there 40 years ago.

We froze in Paris and Alsace in early April so go south for warmer temperatures.

It's gonna be chilly wherever you go. Paris averages 52 in April and Nice averages 56 so chances are you'll be in a coat wherever you go by train. You could skip Paris and just get on another plane South to somewhere like Malta. Another option is take the TGV to Amsterdam and wander around there, chilly but lot's to do.

I would agree that Montpelier is a college town. Some low cost meals and bars, for certain, and some nice features in the core. It's pleasant but the greater attractions are elsewhere nearby.

You could also try Marseilles and Aix-en-Provence, or one of the villages in the Luberon. Temperatures in general will be warmer during the day than Paris and there usually will be much more sun (less rain, but you never know). There is a chance of a late mistral wind, primarily west of Toulon. Nice is usually more moderate, with warmer nights, and it gets warmer as you head to Menton (as mentioned). This past April was often great, with highs mostly in the mid to upper 60s, but with several days of rain. Regarding Nice, if you have not been in 40 years, some things have changed quite a bit. There has been a significant set of urban renewal in many of the southern coastal cities (obviously less so in the historic areas). The TGV slows down between Marseilles and Nice, the journey lasts 5 hours 40 minutes.

I would choose Provence for a week in April. In fact I did way back in 1990, and it was superb, a very memorable holiday.

Possibilities for days out.

By train ...
•Arles
•Nimes
•Avignon
•Aix-en-Provence
•Marseille

By car ...
•Les Baux + St-Rémy
•Pont du Gard + Uzes
•Roussillon + Menerbes
•Orange + Vaison la Romaine
•Gordes + l’Isle sur la Sorgue

Lyon or Dijon will be nice this time of year. You can take the TGV (not TVG) and be there in 2.5 hours.

Thank you all for your very helpful answers. I was intrigued by the suggestion I go to Malta (even though I have been there before). But the temperature charts show basically the same temperature as Nice.

I know someone who is from Provence and he said Nice is definitely the better choice. His suggestion, as well as suggestions on this board helped me make up my mind and chose Nice. There is so much culture in the area that I am sure I will never be bored. For the record, I have decided to take an Air France flight round trip CDG-NCE. It's only $10 more than the TVG and the 1.5 hour flight sure beats 6 hours on the TGV. That said, I am a bit nervous about the strikes in France! Air France cancelled service for a short time in both October and just last week.