Fly from Australia to France - Paris - Friday 23 August to Sunday 31 August in Paris. (will cover in another post)
Never been to France or Europe before and might not get back again anytime soon as it's a 24 hour flight.
Start road trip on Sunday 1 September 2019 - trying to pack in as much as possible and in Aust. we are used to 3 hour trips. The first 12 days are planned out. I would have liked another day in Dordogne but can't change the Carcassonne booking without paying a big fee now.
Day 1 Pick up hire car at CDG at 9am and then drive to WWI sites – Villers-Bretonneux, Le Hamel, Pozieres and Thiepval then drive to Amiens (overnight - booked).
Day 2 Drive Amiens to Etretat (view cliffs), Honfleur harbour then onto Bayeux. (2 nights booked)
Day 3 Bayeux Tapestry, various WWII beaches, etc
Day 4 Avvranches then onto Mont St Michel (overnight on MSM - booked)
Day 5 Mont St Michel to Angers (overnight - booked)
Day 6 To Saumur via scenic route along Loire River D952 then to Chateau Chenonceau for afternoon visit (not booked yet as not sure where to base for 2 nights) I would like small town location. Amboise and Blois too big? Thinking of staying in town of Chenonceaux or Luzille.
Day 7 Visit Chateaus Cheverny (morning) and Chambord (afternoon)
Day 8 to Dordogne via Orador-sur-Glane, Montignac – visit Lascaux IV then onto Les Eyzies (3 nights booked)
Day 9 Font de Gaume and Grotte de Rouffignac caves – Museum of Prehistory, Maison Forte de Reignac, La Roque Saint Christophe
Day 10 Dordogne scenic loop to Sarlat, Domme, La Roque Gageac, Castlenaud, Beynac, St Cyprien
Day 11 Toulouse to visit Victor Hugo markets for lunch then onto Carcassonne (overnight – booked)
Day 12 Carcassonne (sleep in and late checkout) to Aigues Mortes, Arles (overnight – not booked)
Use Arles as a base for 3 nights to see - the Carmargue (4 hr Alpilles Safari tour), Avignon, Aix-en-Provence, Pont du Gard, Les Beaux de Provence,Orange
Also want to visit Troyes, Les Faux des Verzy (near Reims), Auvergne (Le Puy en Velay, extinct volcanos)
Thinking about skipping Lyon? Is that a mistake? Not sure if I can fit all those places into 6-7 days.
Day 19 – Reims or Epernay area, hotel near CDG airport (recommendations?)
Day 20 – Return car to CDG and fly home to Australia for the 24 hour flight home.
Any helpful ideas for days 13 to 19. Probably will need a rest day in there somewhere.
Posted by
Panguitch, Utah
2707 posts
Consider the possibility that you have underestimated the amount of drive time required for this itinerary.
Best of luck.
Posted by
Washington DC
28096 posts
I liked Troyes a great deal. Town chock-full of half-timbered houses with (seemingly) no foreign tourists. There are several museums that might be of interest. The town is understandably popular with the French, but seems to get no bus tours.