Play a game: which to keep in France !

I start getting bored in one place after 5 days, so that would be my limit for Paris or most anywhere else.

I love the Dordogne/Lot region. So much prehistory to explore with several fortresses from the Hundred Years' War sprinkled around like punctuation. Amazing little towns and markets are everywhere. Great region for biking and canoeing. It was much less crowded than Provence during my visit, but the rain may have been keeping the crowds at bay.

This is similar to your previous post and I'm not sure how you want me to answer. So just some comments. It will be hot. My recollection is that you are from Canada so I'm guessing not used to heat. I wouldn't recommend Provence in the heat of summer. I would stay in Paris fewer days for the same reason and because 5 days would be about my limit for a big city. My preference would be Alps over Pyrenees, but Alps is geographically far from the rest of your locations. I would do Paris 5 nights, Britanny 4 nights, Normandy 5 nights, Dordogne 5 nights, and the mountain location of your choice. My reasoning would be in the previous post.

EDITED TO ADD: In your past post you mentioned wanting some beach time, I think. If you are going to have to choose between Britanny or Normandy, I would research or ask for comments in regards to beach weather conditions. My impression is that Brittany would be warmer for beach activities.

1. 5 nights in Paris (but that is my limit for big cities. I am more of a countryside person)
2. Normandy (But I have not been to Britanny.) However, there is so much history at Normandy and beautiful scenery, lovely farms. There is something for everyone.
3. Dordogne (and I have been to both) So much to do in the Dordogne. Visit the caves, canoe the river, enjoy visiting the different towns. I think Normandy and the Dordogne are the 2 most beautiful in the France. I was disappointed with Provence. Les Bauex and the Aqueduct were interesting, but after visiting one hill town, we were ready to leave. (We did visit a few more, but finding parking was impossible and they were so crowded. ) I prefer the hill towns of Italy.
   
4. Alps (and I have been to both) I have visited Chamonix 3 times. The alps are so beautiful and the town itself is charming.

These are my opinions of course. If you have more specific questions, please feel free to PM me and give me more information.

Ha Ha. Hiptoon1 and I posted at the same time and apparently
we are kindred spirits.

If it were up to me this is how I would split it up, with some alternate destinations:

Fly in to Paris
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Paris - 5 nights

Loire Valley - fun activities for kids + impressive Châteaux

Dordogne - prehistoric history + canoeing

Gascony - the French Countryside lost in time

Pyrenees - more wild, less tourists, and culturally more interesting than French Alps

Languedoc - lesser known cousin of Provence with much ancient and medieval history, and stunning beaches near Collioure.
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Fly out of Toulouse

With 5 nights in each it comes out to 30 perfectly.

1. Paris: 5 nights with no day trips - 6 or 7 with one or two daytrips.
2. I'd hate to eliminate either. If Normandy (D-Day beaches etc) is important to you then choose that one if you must choose. Personally with a car I would stay in St Malo for 6 or 7 days and see Normandy and some of Brittany from that home base.
3. Personally I loved Provence but I don't travel with kids and didn't have time for both. Either would be a good place to get a home to rent with a pool.
4. Alps. But then I've not been to the Pyrenees so hard to compare.

My gut vote goes:
- Paris for five nights rather than 7
- Brittany including Mt St Michel. More scenic than Normandy in my opinion, and I have limited interest in visiting WW2 sites (they make me sad)
- Dordogne, with a stop in La Rochelle on the way. Dordogne is perfect for the house with a pool.
- Pyrénées, with a détour via Albi and Carcassonne.

All by car.

Paris? I usually start and finish there so at least 2 or 3 nights on the front end and another similar stay at the back end. Since there is always plenty to see and do in and around Paris, you can always add any extra days you end up with.

Britanny or Normandy? I'd much rather go to Britanny and I think your kids will enjoy it more. In the summer, you can visit a Pardon (traditional festival). My favorite places in the north were Cancale, St. Malo (the kids would love the hike to the islands at low tide) and Dinan (great old center and cafes on the port). I really like Ft. La Latte. It's an old fortress that has served many purposes over the years but now shows as the medieval castle it once was. There are places to see out west but they are mostly wild coast. Locronan is a really pretty town but I'm not sure there is much there for the kids? My favorites in the south were Auray and Vannes (maybe add Port Aven). Seeing the prehistoric ruins around Carnac is reachable from either. Vannes has an incredible old center with ramparts and a large port area (sailboats not industrial). Auray is a much smaller version of Vannes. My favorite prehistoric sight is Cairn du Gavrinis, a passage tomb similar to Newgrange in Ireland. It's only accessible by a small ferry from Larmor Baden. The tour is all in French, which won't be an issue for you.

Dordogne or Provence? In summer I'd prefer to stay out of the heat of Provence. I'd suggest considering Lot Valley or the Languedoc area as a less crowded alternative. Otherwise, Dordogne is beautiful. I prefer the hills, oak forests, rivers and green to Provence's arid/hot desert feeling. Save Provence for cooler weather in the fall. I went mid-September and it still felt too warm.

Alps or Pyrenees? At first Brittany was my favorite place in France, then Burgundy, now it's the Languedoc area (Occitane). That area has the same green hills and medieval towns as Burgundy but they are less populated and more spread out. People in the area apologized and said the Spanish side was sunnier than the French side, but the French side is green while the Spanish side resembles the coastal mountains in California.

In this case, you could put Brittany, Dordogne, Lot, and Pyrenees together seamlessly into a vacation.

At least 7 nights/6 days for Paris -- it is also a great base for day trips by train

Of the rest I would do the Dordogne and Brittany and try to squeeze in Nantes for les Machines de I'les.
https://janettravels.wordpress.com/2019/09/13/les-machines-de-lile-nantes/
The Dordogne is just stunning with chateaux, canoeing on the Dordogne river, prehistoric caves -- especially with kids this is a great choice. Brittany with Mont St. Michelle and St. Malo -- also wonderful spots with kids and there are the neolithic sites around Carnac.

In regards to Brittany. Dinard is so cute with a beachy, mid century modern vibe. The beach is huge and even in October we saw a lot of people swimming.

Worth checking on the algae. It occurs elsewhere, as well. I believe most recently in Mississippi.

Jules , Canada can have some very hot and humid weather in summer , it’s when our igloos melt and we live in grass huts .

Pat, I live very close to Canada and have been to Canada many times. I also live somewhere that people have misconceptions about. I have had people ask me, even while traveling in the U.S. in June, if we still had snow. Our standard answer is that we have the same average temperature as San Diego, which is true. I'm not sure we hit 100 degrees this summer, but we typically get a few days, and when its that hot, its usually humid. But, we have air conditioning and we usually are not running around sightseeing from 10am to 5pm when its that hot. And we usually do not get entire weeks or longer of 90 plus weather that doesn't let up. That's what many parts of Europe had this summer, and many do talk about how hot it is in Provence in the summer. My point was that someone from Canada, just like me from Minnesota, is not going to be used to the consistent heat of Provence and may not find it comfortable.

Re the discussion about the heat. Well I was in Paris the day it hit 42.6c/108f. Yes that's unusual but I was in Europe for two of the heat waves this summer and in both cases Provence was not the hottest areas. This year it was actually really pleasant the week or so I was in Provence (high 80s) and other years (also in July) I've been to Provence and found it no worse in terms of heat than other places. I've been to Provence several times and love it. Been to Dordogne only once and I did find it beautiful and interesting. But - that particular year - it was too cool and rainy for my taste. Five days in a row with at least some rain. That trip I was really happy to get down to Provence. Of all the places you list only Provence has a pretty good chance of no rain in summer. So I would include it for that reason. You obviously could get a great month or a rainy month but if you are talking 'averages' then I'd include Provence over the Dordogne since the other locations 'could' be rainy and I'd want some 'assurance' of a week of sun.

A lot of people suggest putting all your Paris days at the end of the trip so as to cut down on hotel switches. But there's so much to see in Paris that even 7 nights is not 'enough', yet as others have said, people (especially kids that age) might get bored after too many days so splitting the stay with 2-4 nights at each end is a good idea.

Brittany and Normandy are right next to each other. Perhaps you could find a central spot (or pick two) and see a bit of each.

I've been to the Alps lots of time but never the Pyrenees but other recent threads have talked about Alps vs Pyrenees and I am definitely putting the Pyrenees on my bucket list. I think it also makes the most sense in terms of the other places you are going.

Typically, one can count on southern Spain, Italy and Greece to be consistently really hot in the summer. It's pretty unusual for Paris, London and some of these more northern cities to have so many super hot days, but they are happening more and more. And when places like Paris and London were so hot, many of the places that are consistently hot did not have the proportionate increase in temperature. I think I recall that when Paris was 100+ the weather was still "typical" in Sevilla, Spain, for example. So 100ish. Still, my point was Provence is typically quite hot in the summer especially for those who may not be used to it like younger kids. It is a lovely place and people that would like a rental with a view and a pool, I imagine would have a lovely time.

Brittany and Normandy on their own our quite big. Yes, one could plant themselves in one spot, perhaps St. Malo/Dinard/Dinan and see a bit of each region, but unless very long day trips were acceptable, you wouldn't see most of either region.