Need help driving in South of France

It's always a bit of a puzzle to figure out how things will fit together. I find it easier to figure out where I am going to spend my nights and then I sketch out where I will spend my days (I usually have more day options so I can shift things around due to weather or spending time on something unplanned).

So, you say 8 days...does that include the day you leave Barcelona? Will you leave at the beginning of the day?

At the end of the trip, you'll fly home from where? If it's in France, you will probably not want to rent a car in Barcelona and return in France because that would probably be expensive. So you'll need to figure out how to get from Barcelona to France (train or fly), then decide if you're going to train or drive within France.

Driving is more flexible and you can get to rural places and villages more easily. If you want to stick to cities, then taking the train will work well.

I also think that trips are more enjoyable if you don't try to rush around. You could easily spend all 8 days in Provence. You could add Carcassone but, personally, I would not do Nice as well. Nice is fine but it is a long way from Barcelona. Save it for another trip.

I suggest you get a good guidebook and figure out what you want to do during you 8 days, then figure out how the puzzle pieces fit together. I usually come up with 3 or more versions of my trip before I figure out my final itinerary.

Hope you have a great trip!

yes get Rick's guidebook which should have a map stuck inside, plan your trip and decide if you'd rather drive or train.

You should also consider whether you enjoy driving and whether, well, uh, you're good at it. Because it's pretty challenging driving in another country, which doesn't mean it can't be done (I've driven all over the world) but it can make for an unpleasant vacation, esp. if the passenger is expected to handle navigating since "they're just sitting there." You have to worry about gas, and tolls, and narrow roads, and parking as well as picking up and dropping off the car. In Europe I always vote for trains when possible.

Your itinery is not train friendly,you will need a car.Check and see if you can train from Barcelona to Carcasonne or Perpignan because of the drop off fees,you will also need a International Driver Permit.
Mike

Thank you all for your replies. Eef, I will have 8 days, july 11- 19. Yes I plan to leave as early as I can July 11. At the end of the trip, I will fly back to San Francisco from Barcelona, that is why I was planning to rent in Barcelona. I knew about the expensive fee of dropping it off in France. Phred, yes I love driving and I feel that I can drive in France. I have driven in Manila, I'm pretty sure that France can be that bad. And Mike I agree that our itinerary is not train friendly, that is why I was asking about driving. My whole apprehension about this whole thing is parking, and the toll. I've have input my trip viamichelin, and just the tolls alone roundtrip is a plane ride back to the US. I will probably change our plan as Eef as alluded to, to sketch the trip to get the best one that suits us. I was thinking of getting a Rail pass and just take the trains, maybe to Paris and London. Do you have any more advice in France, just in case I get the courage to decide to drive? Maybe a more realistic itinerary?

If you have driven in Manila, I can't imagine that you will find France difficult. We really did not have any difficulties driving in France. We had no problems with parking either. If you are going to RS guidebook destinations, he invariably covers where to park (in a map or with detailed recommendations). If you go someplace else, you can always look at the internet and figure it out before you get there. As far as tolls go, if you want to go long distances on toll roads, they add up, but you don't have to go long distances. I really enjoy poking along on 2 lane roads, driving through towns and villages. You see more than you do on toll roads. You could have a lovely 8 days, just driving around the Pyrenees or possibly up into Dordogne or to Provence, or many other destinations.

A rail pass used to be a great way to see Europe, but times have changed and I think you will not want a railpass with a little more research. Railpasses don't work well in France because you will also need a seat reservation on a TGV train (these are the fast trains that go long distances). So, you lose some flexibility there. Also, if you buy your train ticket in advance, you can get significant discounts, so economically, a railpass will be an expensive alternative.

If you want to go to Paris and London you ought to look at cheap flights and then take the train between them. Paris and London are wonderful cities. I personally would wait and see them on another trip, because it is very easy to get flights from the US to either city. I don't like to waste valuable Europe time on days that are mostly travel. Taking a long distance train or flying from Barcelona to Paris/London will eat up a lot of time.

If this were my trip, I would rent the car in Barcelona, drive to Carcassone as you orignially planned (or possibly stop someplace small before that), then drive to Provence or Dordogne and then drive back. I would not go as far as Nice.

Rolly,

Last year my wife and i spent 15 nites based in the Southern French town of Carpentras( We were baby sitting some friends animals while they went to Greece). This was ouir second trip to the area. We drove on day trips all over, and went as far as Carcasonne, and Aix in Provence. I'm 69 and the Boss is much younger. I drove and she navigated (GPS is a MUST, along with MIchelin map. IMHO). We had no problem driving, parking, etc.

We usually rent from the broker Autoeurope (based in Maine) and pick up in one town and drop off in another. Their on-line site is awesome, and gives you full info on all options and fees. The best rates include a stick shift for any rental agency. Gemut is another good broker, and they publish an excellent EU rental car primer: http://www.gemut.com/images/stories/report/carrentalspecialreport.pdf

I think that trying to do Nice and Carcassone might be too much. I agree that you should spend your time in Provence, preferably in two? "home bases". I also agree that you should get good guide books; we like Rick's book and the Lonely Planet books. But...... you could get a cheap flight to NIce (Use Skyscanner to find lo-cost inter EU flights), rent your car, and then at the end of the trip, drop it off at Montpellier, and fly back to BCN. Whatever you do, do not spend all of your time on the toll roads. In our 15 days we drove mostly the two lane roads, and really enjoyed our stops.

You might want to consider Arles and Pezenas as some good options for lodging and viewing the local areas. We stayed in Arles one year, and loved it. You can use this base to see the Pont du Gard, Avignon, Aix en Provence, etc. Driving into and out of Arles is "fun", but doable with a GPS. It has great dining options, and you walk everywhere. The market is soooo much fun; my wife loaded up my suitcase with tablecloths for the trip home.

Pezenas is a very old village with winding streets, a fantastic weekly market, and great restaurants. And the beach is only about 15 minutes away. It is a good home base for exploring the area without having to deal with a lot of traffic congestion, and would be about 1 hr from Carcassone.

I agree with those who say to scratch Nice from your plans, especially since you need to get back to Barcelona for your return flight. There are many interesting and charming areas to keep you busy without going farther than Aix. In fact, I'd plan to go no further east than Avignon. The Pyrennees and the coast from the Spanish border all the way to the Camargue, have loads of attractions. I'm not sure why you've included Montpellier, but I didn't find it compelling. More information about your interests would help us give better advice.