France Itinerary help: lyon, nice, bayeux, paris?

You can fly or take the train from Paris to Nice. Given that you will be at the airport, I would just go ahead and fly but allow at least four hours between scheduled arrival time at CDG and departure time for Nice. Nice is in Provence (eastern Provence that is). If by Provence, you mean western Provence such as Aix-En-Provence, Avignon, Saint Remy, etc., Nice is not a good base IMO because it takes about 2.5 hours to get from Nice to Aix-en-Provence, for example. Maybe take one night and one night from your time in Nice and Paris and spend those two in western Provence. I know that means an additional “base” but that is what makes sense to me. From there, you would take the train to Lyon.

I think you have chosen good bases and moving your bases will really not overall mean shorter travel times because moving closer to one thing will move you further from another. Flying between Lyon and Nice makes no sense at all. I am not sure that there are any non-stop flights between those two cities and without that flying will not be faster than the train. It will take you less time to take the train. I think your better plan is what you have which is to go directly to Nice and then make your way back to from there. I like going the furthest away from your arrival point first and them making your back to Paris.

Normandy is a bit of the outlier in this trip. I would really think about how much I really want to see it. If it is a must then you could take the train to Bayeux from Lyon, which would typically require a change in Paris and take about 6 hours. You could extend your time in Paris and do the day trips that you mention as long as you realize that the day trip to Le Mont Saint Michel will take about 14 hours and that the D-Day tours are best done as overnight trips from Paris. For me personally, a 5 to 6 hour train ride, which includes a one-hour break in between to get across town in Paris from Gare de Lyon to Gare St-Lazare is fine but for others that would be a deal breaker and cause Normandy to fall from the schedule. I think the D-Day beaches are well worth visiting (and this from a woman who was not interested in the beaches but went anyway) and are best done with at least one full day.

It sounds as if your fiancé has a serious interest in the WWII sites. Given that, I would plan to spend some nights up in Normandy so you can take a full-day tour. Trying to see Normandy from Paris will make for an exhausting day and will almost certainly make your next day less productive. I used Overlord for my D-Day tour. Most of its tours depart from Bayeux. There are other possibilities, but Overlord generally gets good reviews. The Hotel Churchill in Bayeux runs buses to Mont St. Michel. I did not visit MSM so can provide no further information about that option.

You need to decide what you want to see in Provence before you make a final decision about your base(s) in southern France. I agree that traveling from Nice to most Provencal tourist spots involves too much train or bus time to make for a pleasant day-trip. I recommend choosing either the Riviera or Provence for this trip.

Hi Mark, and congratulations.

I assume that in your proposed itinerary you will catch a flight to Nice the morning that you arrive at deGaulle. If so, I think you have the right idea.

Because your priorities are all over the map, if you are going to touch all these bases there are necessarily going to be some awkward transportation days, days that are less than ideal. Your first day will be long and grueling. The trip to Bayeux will be somewhat arduous. You can mitigate these but only by shifting the awkwardness to someplace else.

As I said, I think you've got the right idea. But you may need to let go of some of your day trips.

Mind, if you let go of the Riviera, you can consider other options. You could catch a train from deGaulle to Lyon, which then puts you close to the French alps and to Provence. But as long as you can fly to nice the day you land, I think that is probably the best plan.

To ease that train ride to Bayeux: you are going to be changing trains in Paris. Have a restorative lunch plan in Paris There are lots of crepe places around Montparnasse, where the Normandy-bound trains depart. Edit: Oops, that's wrong; see downthread. But the idea of lunch in Paris remains valid!

Now for the reality check. You've got a lot of time on trains this trip. For instance: Nice to Lyon is 4-1/2 hours. 3 days later, Lyon to Bayeux is at best 5. So, do you really want to spend 4 hours (RT) on a train for one of the 2 days between these trips on a day trip to Annecy? Especially when Lyon is such a fabulous place, with so much to see, do & eat. If you had 4 nights, now...but you don't.

A day trip from Nice to the Rhone Valley area is just not realistic, in my opinion. It would be better to stop there on the way from Nice, but you don't really have time.

Normandy is...tight. I'd worry if you'd be put off by bad weather on the day you hope to see the beaches. Definitely consider a tour to make the most of your limited time there. Bring appropriate clothing: Normandy can be wet.

One consideration is the light. That time of year the length of the daylight really fades. Not such an issue in cities like Paris and Lyon, but in Normandy it limits what you can do.

Normandy would be my number one place to add a day, if you were going to shift anything from Paris. Which I'm not saying you should do! Just if.

By the way, you'll want a car for the day you plan to visit MSM. Not too much of a splurge if you arrange before you go.

Speaking of light and weather: These considerations would argue for visiting Normandy first (more daylight, milder weather). The effect is likely not great over a 17-day span. If you were to do it I would recommend something like this:

Day 1: Train or drive to Bayeux (drive only if you know you are okay with jetlag). 3N
Day 2-3 D-Day tour, MSM.
Day 4: Train to Lyon, lunch in Paris. 3N
Day 5-6 Lyon
Day 7: Provence (e.g., Arles) 4N
Day 11 Train to Paris 6N
Day 17 Fly home

A big disadvantage of this is you'll have a very long day getting to Bayeux, however you go.

I hope this is helpful, and not too much "what if." The kind of planning you are doing will increase the amount of things you can see and do--arriving with a plan is smart. But there are limits, and it is wise to recognize them.

Have a wonderful trip.

Just one comment on Adam's plan above. The trains to Normandy depart from Gare St-Lazare not Gare Montparnasse so no crepe breaks.

Here's my suggestion:

Fly to Nice and stay for 3N. Go ahead and see Eze, Monaco, VilleFranche and maybe St. Paul de Vence or take the trains into the mountains. Rent a car, drive to the Luberon or another base in Provence (but not Aix) and stay one or two nights in a smaller village or town. Continue on through to Lyon and return your car. (Note there are direct flights from NCE to Lyon, but it is an oddity for certain).

I'd ditch the trip to Annecy. It's a lovely town and beautiful lake but if you thought you were going to see the mountains this really isn't the best choice with your packed schedule. I'd save it for another trip, and properly see the Alps.

It is actually possible to fly from Lyon to Caen directly, although with checkin logistics you may only save a bit of time. It's a bit pricey but Air France / Hop service the route with multiple nonstops. Pick up a car in Caen, unless you are set on a regular tour bus. It's an efficient way to see the beaches, the cemeteries, the museums and then head to MSM. You can then return the car and train back into Paris. (It's also possible to drive this route, although it is a bit long)

Thanks to JHK for catching my blunder. So you are on your own for food, but I'm sure you'll find something good to eat in Paris.