Nice or Burgundy for my honeymoon?

What kind of experience do you want for your honeymoon? A beach feel or a wine experience?

We spent 4 days in Beaune and 4 days in Lyon and I can't wait to go back! But we were interested in exploring great food and wine.

If you want to relax and hang out by water, then visit Nice. I don't think you could do Monaco, Cannes and Provence. That is too big of an area. Maybe Monaco and Cannes.

If you are there just 4 days, and you head south, I recommend just staying in Nice. There is plenty in and around Nice to keep you occupied for four days. Market, old town, beach, Chagall museum, trip towards or to Monaco, . . . . Not to mention other things one imagines you might be doing on a honeymoon.

Each travel day is one day off relaxing and enjoying your trip. Do you really want to spend 1/4 of your trip traveling?

You sound young. Assume you will be back. Multiple times. If you catch the European travel bug, you will be.

(I caught the bug at age 50, and have been to Europe 7 or 8 times in the ensuing ten years, often for a month at a time).

What time of year?

I agree with rizell: Nice is not at all a good base for Provence. Check driving times on ViaMichelin.com or train times on the SNCF website. Note that a lot of the places people want to see in Provence are small and have no rail service. Some don't even have bus service. The area is very interesting but not so easy to visit quickly by public transportation.

You won't want to rent a car in France and drop it off in Italy because of the extremely high international drop charge you'll face--many hundreds of euros. Therefore, you'll need to consider the travel time by train from your final French stop to Lake Como. From Nice to Varenna is over 6 hours by train. Traveling from Provence rather than from Nice would add a minimum of close to 2 hours; it could be a lot more. That's a full day of your honeymoon.

Alas, the links from Dijon and Lyon aren't any better; the trip from Lyon (about 7 hours) is a bit faster than from Dijon.

More details are definitely needed.

Time of year? For instance March is good for the western part of the Riviera but the mistral can make Provence undesirable. OTOH in June the Riviera may already be crowded, while the charming villages, chateaux and cathedrals of Burgundy will be pretty quiet still.

With a car? Going to Monaco or Cannes by car is close to madness. (and neither are as lovely as Antibes, Villefranche, Menton or even Nice, IMO).

What are your interests? Do you want to see the sights, visit museums, or chill by the water?

Yes, the time of year is important to know to be able to offer advice.

I think this has to be your choice, personal preference, between such different experiences.

But we can tell you things like "Nice not a good base to visit Provence!" which is true.

Thank you for the replies!

So we will start in Paris July 1st-5th and then head to our second destination. I am under the assumption that it will be busy wherever we choose to go due to the time of year.

I am thinking from the 5th-9th to go to another destination in France. We both love food and wine, and exploring historical sights but also love the beach which is why I’m struggling a bit.

If we did do Burgundy I have been reading Beaune is a good base and can commute around from there by car to vineyards.

If we did Nice, from what you are all saying I would be interested in Antibes as well and would like to visit different beaches. I understand the commute to Italy will be longer, but we are okay with that at this point.

Hopefully my explanation provides further context.
Would anyone suggest anywhere else in France?

That time period in July is a peak vacation period for France. Please keep that in mind.

Beaune and the surrounding areas are wonderful and probably won't be as backed as the areas further south. But its all about the wine (and pricey wine at that) and some terrific food in the area around Lyon.

You can have a lovely time in a luxury resort like the Grand Hotel de Cap Ferrat, a boutique hotel in Villefranche-sur-mer or on the sandy beach side of the Antibes peninsula (but that side will be more crowded). If you don't want to take day trips and have a car, you could stay near Saint Tropez at a top resort . Or, stay in Nice at La Perouse, and you'll be right near plenty of nightlife options in the Old Town and around the corner in the Port area. C

You could stay instead in the Luberon, in one of the countryside boutique hotels like Capelongue near Bonnieux. It's near the peak of lavender season. A TGV to Avignon from Paris and then a car rental.

Antibes beaches are not near the old city center, unlike nearly every other coastal town. Most of the beaches I saw were pebbly. If you want soft sand, check carefully, even some of the sandy beaches are very coarse sand mixed with very small pebbles and shell bits.