French Alps or Pyrenees ?

I personally like the Pyrenees more, but I think for your needs you list, I would go with the French Alps, they are much more easy to tackle for a family with young children who are not familiar with mountain roads or the local languages.

The Pyrenees are much more wild and off the beaten path, the villages there truly feel like they are from another time, where many different languages are spoken other than Spanish and French, like Aragonese, Catalan, Basque, Aranese, Gascon, some very ancient. This cultural and historical depth is what I love of the Pyrenees, like you will find Romanesque churches older than anything you will find in the Alps. Though not much English is spoken, so knowing some French or Spanish or Catalan would be helpful, also remember most of the Pyrenees are actually on the Spanish side.

Thanks carlos !
Since we are from Québec, canada, the only language my kids speak perfectly is french !

In that case, très bien lol! I look back at my initial response and I see I actually put more positives for the Pyrenees than the Alps, they are very nice in the summer time too, for me if you want to feel lost in time that would be in the Pyrenees, these are some of my favourite areas:

Foix and its Chateaux
Vall de Aran
La Cerdanya
Vall de Núria
Aigüestortes National Park
Vall de Boí
Arreau

I admit most of my experience has been in the Catalan and Aragonese Pyrenees, but the French side is very nice too, the good thing is you can hop over the border very easy, most times you don't even notice :)

I like both but Pyrenees are definitely wilder. The trails in the Alps (near Chamonix) are better marked. But I experienced a lot more tourists. The town of Chamonix and views were great.

We stayed about an hour south of Lourdes for our Pyrenees adventure. The town was much smaller and was not mobbed with hordes of tourists. The trail marking system was not as good but scenery was spectacular. One hike we only saw a couple people all day. The hike Gavarnie, sorry about the spelling, was spectacular.

Chamonix had much better restaurant/bar scene than our little village in the Pyrenees. But that was not a surprise.

I haven't really had a chance to explore the Pyrenees since I don't rent cars in Europe. However, I can report from first-hand experience that the Cerdanya Valley (as opposed to the nearby mountainous areas) can be very, very hot in the summer. There are some interesting little villages there, and Puigcerda has some colorful architecture, but the valley itself is not a reliable place to escape from mid-summer heat.

La Seu d'Urgell is another town with a very pretty historic district.

The SNCF Yellow Train trip from Latour-de-Carol-Enveitg to Villefranche-de-Conflent is fun and, being a regular SNCF train, is less expensive than the typical tourist train. Note that Villefranche is as touristy as it is picturesque.

If you decide on the Pyrenees, there is a park of prehistory at Tarascon-sur-Ariege, which would be great for children. In addition to a small museum, a number of hands-on activities are offered, like fire making, spear throwing, and painting as the Cro-magnons did.

Here's another vote for the Pyrénées: better food than in Savoie (more varied), a higher "density" of scenery - driving from one valley to the next is very quick, fewer crowds than in the hotspots of the Alps.

I am far from having explored the entire mountain range, but I can vouch for the area south of Lourdes as previously mentioned: the Cirque de Gavarnie is spectacular, so is nearby Cirque de Troumouse (but the drive to that one IS crazy) and, slightly to the west, the valleys above Pont d'Espagne near Cauterets. Also of note is the cable car up Pic du Midi, with incredible views.
Cauterets is a good base for the entire area, it is an old Spa town.

I also had a question about the French Pyrenees , traveling next early July . I will be driving and looking for a good overnight stop between Provence and Gavarnie to break up the trip , any suggestions ?

If you are aiming for the western or central Pyrénées (basically west of Foix/Toulouse), Carcassonne is a great overnight stop. The old Cité is beautiful at night (I am less of a fan during the day).

I stayed in Chamonix for five nights and there are a lot of areas to hike as well as Helbronner on the Italian Side of the border.There is a lot to see and do there.
Mike