Recommendations for time of year to visit Paris, Normandy

Yip Harburg, the lyricist for"April in Paris" was asked why April? It is often cool and rainy. His answer was "well, I wanted to use May but I needed two syllables." If you want early spring April is fine but May is a beautiful. September is summer without the crowds and October is nice,too.

Normandy can be cold and rainy anytime, but less so mid-summer.

Brittany is like Normandy, but I find its "robust" weather to be part of its lure.

I spent a long weekend in Paris just a couple weeks ago, and it was beautiful. Yes, we had a light rain one afternoon. Yes, the temps were on the cool side. But the majority of the tour groups were Asian, the students were still in school, and while the crowds were out it was nothing like it will be in the coming weeks. Peak tulip time is right now. Peak fruit tree blooms have past. Trees are greening, the fountains, which they turn off over the cold months, are on, and the chairs outside the cafes are filling up.

I've been to the city in every month of the year over the past 3 years. It changes character, and there's always something going on. If you come in the fall you have to be careful as to the dates, because once schools start it's time for the trade shows and fashion week. In high summer it's international tourists. in spring it's Easter/spring vacation you try to avoid, and at Christmas it's the lights. Take the tour that works best for you, but don't forget to book a couple days on the end so you can take time to explore on your own.

I've lived in France for over a decade and owned a house in Normandie for four years.

In Normandie, April tends to be drier with better weather than May.

I don't know why that is, but that's been my experience over the past few years. It certainly has been that way this year, and I'm expecting things will turn cool and wet in a few weeks.

Thanks so much everyone! Much appreciated!

We just finished that tour on Friday and we have had glorious weather the entire 2 weeks we have been in Paris and Northern France. On Omaha beach we had a little wind and a few sprinkles, but overall the entire trip has had blue skies and warm pleasant temps. Our tour started April 7th and I wouldn't hesitate to recommend April travel based on our experience.