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Itinerary for trip to France

Posted by (Fort Lauderdale, FL, USA) on

My fiancee and I are planning a 9 night/8.5 day trip to Europe from Thursday, June 28, to Sunday, July 8. We have not yet bought our plane tickets but are considering doing a trip to France and are trying to pin down an itinerary. We enjoy beautiful views, good food and wine, a great market, cafes where you can linger, perhaps somewhere for a short hike or bike ride. We would likely do 4 nights in Paris followed by one or two other destinations.

During past trips to Europe, we have split our time between a major city and the countryside and/or smaller towns, and we have enjoyed that strategy, although we tend to enjoy the slower pace of the countryside a bit more. For instance, during our two-week trip to Italy, we enjoyed our time in Cinque Terre and staying in an agriturismo in Tuscany more than our time in Rome. In Spain, we enjoyed Sevilla & the Andalusian hill towns over Madrid. I'm sure we will love Paris -- we just don't want to spend our whole trip there.

Based on my research, I think we would love Burgundy and Provence; I have looked into the Loire Valley as well but am not sold on visiting chateaux after chateaux. If we went with Provence, we would fly home from Nice. I'm aware that renting a car is ideal for either destination as well. I've also thought about staying in Paris for longer and doing day trips from there, but my fiancee is not super keen on staying in the city for a long period of time so we'd like to spend the trip in at least one or two other regions.

We've also considered doing Paris/Bruges (we love Belgian beer and chocolate!) or Paris/Switzerland (for the beautiful mountain views and hiking opportunities)... Paris/Amsterdam/Bruge (but that's likely too much city time for us). Or maybe Paris/Bruges/Burgundy. We have only been to Italy and Spain in the past, so we are open to any and all suggestions!

As you can see, I am all over the place :) Any recommendations are welcome. Thanks in advance for your advice!

Posted by
8166 posts

Pick two places to lodge one in Paris for 4 nights and then one in the area Provence Alpes Maritime; take day trips from there as there are some great views from some small hill top towns like Eze close to Nice. Forget Switzerland this trip or ditch the idea of going to Burgundy or Provence. If you don't mind spending 6 hours of round trip train travel from Paris to Bruges on a day trip go for it .

Posted by
5687 posts

Bruges is wonderful, but it's also very touristy especially during the day. If you go, I'd recommend an overnight (or perhaps in nearby Ghent, not as touristy but also lovely). Easy to get to these places by train just time consuming. While Bruges isn't exactly a small town, it will feel almost like one compared to Paris - not sure if that meets your criteria as a "small" place.

You could fly into Paris out of Brussels - all super easy by train, even to/from airports.

If you want to stay in France, there are plenty of options. I also loved Normandy and Alsace.

Posted by
228 posts

If I had to pick a single area/region, taking into account your stated preferences, I would say Provence. There you will have the options of beautiful countryside and peaceful villages, historic sites, but also cities and beaches (albeit rather crowded). There is also a range of scenery from shady avenues, gorgeous flower meadows, wineries, mountains and majestic gorges.

I the space of one day, you can gawp at enormous floating palaces in the harbour in Monaco, then sip a leisurely glass of local wine up in the mountains, while swifts swoop around the ancient church bell tower across the cobbled square. If Monaco is a little rich or crowded for your taste, there are smaller and less ostentatious towns all along the coast.

One of my most cherished holiday memories was a simple picnic of fresh bread, cheese and wine, taken in a stunningly-beautiful flower meadow near Flayosc, back in '94. I can still hear the Skylarks.

Now you've done it. I'm starting to think about another trip to Provence ourselves!

Also, though it has been many years since we used them ourselves, I can recommend Gite de France for accommodation if you fancy self-catering.

Posted by
4132 posts

Your first take is right, I think. Paris plus either Provence or Burgundy. And by Provence I mean the Rhone Valley area, though you might consider a day (with a hike) in the Luberon.

I will say that Burgundy is also lovely, and there is great bicycling to be had. And the wine is an order of magnitude better, if you are one of those who can tell the difference.

But Provence is richer. It is a little less rural and has those magnificent Roman antiquities.

So tell yourself you can't go wrong and pick one. But only one.

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