I’m traveling to Paris for the second week of the Olympics and am very excited! We love the Olympics and this will be a unique travel experience for us. But, busy cities otherwise wouldn’t be our thing- we usually prefer less crowded, back door type places. So, thinking about spending one night and a day or so in another town or city that is more our usual style. Thoughts or suggestions? Thinking Strasbourg, Bruges, or Lyon?
Thanks!!
I would say not Lyon as there are Olympic competitions there although I did not look up the scheduling.
For myself, if I were going to Bruges I'd want to spend at least 2 nights which would give me one full day to see things in Bruges. It might help me choose if I looked at train fares to both Strasbourg and Bruges to see what is left at this point.
Chartres would be my choice. The Cathedral illuminations every night are worth the trip and the town is a lovely one day stop.
Chartres is lovely, and easy to get to from Paris.
Of the cities you mentioned, I think Strasbourg would provide a very nice change of pace from Paris, and since it does not have any Olympic stuff going on, should be easy enough to deal with. The fast train takes about 2 hours to get there. Strasbourg is beautiful any time of year -- in summer the geraniums spilling out of their window boxes are lovely !
Not sure everyone thinks of it as a back door type place, but consider Reims. It's small, laid back, close, and has enough to do to keep you busy for a couple of days. Another option would be Colmar. Google them and see if they hold any interest for you.
Bruges is definitely not back door. It was packed in April. It's lovely, but I would go somewhere much closer to Paris, so you aren't spending all your time traveling rather than enjoying.
