France in February

Places like Nimes and Marseille are within your time limit because they have TGV service from Paris. The problem is that they're far enough west that the mistral could be an issue. There's much less risk of that infernal wind over to the east, but the Riviera takes longer to reach: Nice is about 6 hours from Paris.

I guess it sort of depends on how desperate you'll be for (a good chance of) sunshine. It wouldn't be faster, door-to-door, than Nice, but I might check into budget-airline flights to southern Spain, ideally Seville. Seville + Cordoba should be good for the amount of time you have.

I like Normandy and Brittany. I don't know that they are likely to be miserably cold in February (check timeanddate.com for actual, day-to-day weather stats for Feb 2019, Feb 2018, etc.). Based on my summer experiences in that part of France, I would fear a lot of overcast skies and frequent precipitation. But I haven't researched winter weather.

Honestly, February in northern France and awful weather can kind of go hand-in-hand! But you're right, five days isn't much. Is this five isolated days with a long flight before and after? Or are you moving on somewhere else next? That would have an impact on what I'd decide to do if it were me. I'm someone that doesn't mind bundling up for whatever weather - rain, cold, etc., so I'd probably still go to Paris. I have limited southern France experience, but hopefully someone else can help you there!

Thanks Amy. I’ll be going after time spent in Paris. So the plan is to leave Paris, head out on train and tour for 5-6 days and then head back to Paris to fly home to US

Thanks acraven. I’m realistic and know I won’t be sitting on a beach (boo!) but I also know that I want to be able to spend time outside. Being bundled is ok (I’ll check the previous temps). Curious on your thoughts on Brittany and Normandy. Any particular place? I’d love to see dday beaches and also maybe mont st michel.

I went to Mt St Michel and Normandy to visit the beaches in January 2015. It had to be around 50 degrees as I remember sweating .
It was warmer there than when I got to Paris. But I am use to the long cold overcast winters of Chicago so winter in Europe seems really mild

There are many nice small towns in Normandy and Brittany. In the summer. I don't know what they would be like in February. Bayeux for certain is a good base because there's a lot there for such a small town: jumping-off point for many small-group D-Day tours (highly recommended but check winter schedules), cathedral, Bayeux tapestry, very good invasion museum, attractive historic center that avoided war-time destruction, and I think there's a little lace center or something like that. So Bayeux's good for a full day plus a day for a D-Day tour. To the east there is the very popular Honfleur as well as some handsome resort towns like Deauville and Cabourg (all accessible by train or bus). But will they be dreary and depressing in February? For sure they won't be as annoyingly touristy as they are in the summer.

There's also the inland city of Rouen whose historic center was gloriously reconstructed after the war. It has several interesting museums that would offer good escapes if the weather was bad.

I haven't been to Mont-St-Michel, but it's somewhat challenging by public transportation even in the summer. A part of that trip is a shuttle bus from the Pontorson RR station to MSM. It would be imperative to check to be sure the bus runs in midwinter at a reasonable frequency. In the summer the Churchill Hotel in Bayeux runs a shuttle service to MSM. I don't know whether it's designed just for day-trippers or whether it runs year-round; I'm virtually certain you don't have to stay at the hotel to take the Churchill Hotel shuttle.

Also to the west of Bayeux (and not so far from MSM) are St-Malo and Dinard--two more places that are really overrun in the summer but would be much quieter in February. The inland towns/cities of Dinan, Rennes, Vitre and Fougeres are all attractive.

As you can see, there's plenty in the area for a lot longer than 5 days. However, if you plan to depend on public transportation, you'll be exposed to whatever the meteorological gods throw at you. For the time away from Bayeux, I think it would be nice to have a car to escape to and with. I have no experience doing that, mind you, but I have certainly coveted other visitors' cars when I was sweltering in mid-summer heat at a bus stop.

Several years ago we were in southern France and Nice in late February/early March. We did need a winter coat for southern France (we were near St. Remy), but we were not bundled up. The weather was not unbearable. I don't think we had too much of an issue with the mistral winds on that trip, but you never know. We also spent a night in Nice during that trip, and Nice was warmer. Wore a spring coat, and had lunch outside on the beach. So I suggest either St. Remy or Aix en Provence, which would be closer to Paris. You could take the train to Aix or Avignon. Or you could fly to Nice from Paris if the train trip is too long.

Given "only have 5 days and don’t want to spend more than 4-5 hours on a train each way" I'm thinking the Loire Valley might work for you. You could train to Tours or Amboise and take day trips to different chateaux. Viator lists several (but if you book, you're better off going to the actual site of the tour operator). https://www.viator.com/Loire-Valley-tours/Day-Trips-and-Excursions/d178-g5

If you're less interested in chateaux and want to experience countryside and wine region, then maybe Bordeaux.

You need less than three hours to get to Avignon on the TGV, and southern France will be much nicer with greater chance of mild weather.

Northern France in the winter is gray, leaden, and chilly. And potentially wet (although we are currently in a drought).