Itinerary Nice to Paris, Mid October

How many nights will you have in Europe? I find it’s easier to plan that way. Two nights = 1 full day, 3 nights =2 full days, etc. If you have 3 (jet lagged?) nights in Nice you have only 2 full days there. Enough time to see Nice one day and do one day trip. You definitely don’t need a car, as public transportation is good in that area. Versailles is a short RER ride from Paris. My suggestion is to go take the train from Nice to Paris and spend your remaining nights there. Do a day trip to Versailles, paying attention to the day of the week. It is closed on Mondays. The drive to Versailles is approximately 600 miles and will take at least 10 hours when factoring in stops for fuel, etc. Fuel is very expensive and France has a lot of expensive toll roads. Not to mention the cost of the rental, which you don’t need for the places you are going. Since you have a little extra time I would consider spending it in Nice to see more of the Riviera.

No time for a drive between the two. You'll be seeing a freeway and traffic instead of architecture, landscape, and nature. Buy tickets for the train Nice to Paris. Be sure you book a fast train with no changes

We have 9 nights total giving us 8 days to explore. If we spent 5 of those days in the Riviera instead of 3, what day trips would you recommend?

I would probably split 4+4 rather than 5+3, because 2 days in Paris is really hectic (even if planning a later visit...). 3 days would let you have a better first impression.

Out of Nice: Antibes, St Paul de Vence, Menton, Eze are good trips out. Cannes is famous but not really worth visiting in my opinion.

I would also split 4+4. I really liked Nice, but I love Paris and 4 nights is not nearly enough. From Nice we went to Menton & Monaco (same day), Villefranche Sur Mer and Eze in the 5 nights we had. We also explored Nice. We had a nice walking tour through the TI.

I agree with Andrea. We loved the charming towns of Villefranche sur Mer and St Jean Cap Ferrat and easily could take the train or bus to Nice and Monaco. Taking the train to Paris would work out well for the last 4 nights. This will be a great trip!

If you are considering being in Paris at all next month, the first thing I would do is secure hotel reservations. The Rugby Wold Cup has made finding hotels in Paris this October, almost impossible.

Trying to decide where to stay while we're in Paris. We see hotels as just a place to sleep. Looking to keep it to around $200 per night. Since many of the sights in Paris are spread out we expect to use the metro a lot regardless of where we stay. I'm currently interested in a hotel in the Butte-aux-Cailles area, right next to the Place d'Italie Metro stop. Is this a decent neighborhood to stay in?

This is a lovely area (some cute streets near the top of the hill) and lines 5-6-7 will get you anywhere, especially 7. No safety issues, some neighborhood bars and restaurants.

Thanks, your responses have all been helpful.

For staying in the Riviera, I'm debating between staying in Nice or Villefranche-sur-Mer. Any thoughts? Would it be worth splitting hotel nights between both locations?

No, not worth changing hotels. They are not far apart,

We loved the Welcome Hotel in Villefranche sur Mer. Villefranche is a very charming town with a lovely shale pebble beach and great restaurants. Nice would be fine also.