I am planning on flying in to Rome on December 27th. Staying there for a few days, taking a day trip to Naples and then traveling to the south of France. As I begin researching and trying to create an itinerary we had a few questions and thought this group could help me with the details.
Our current thoughts:
Depart from NOLA on 12/27 and fly into Rome. Make Rome our home base from 12/28 – 12/31. Take a day trip to Naples from Rome. Our plan was to then either fly or take a train from Rome to the South of France. It is at this point that we have questions. If we fly which city is best to fly into? Nice, Marseille, or Montpellier? We would also like to rent a car. Would you have a suggestion on which city would be best to do this?
Our research reveals that the majority of Roman ruins are in the Southeast of France, from the coast through Nimes and up to Lyon. We are departing from Paris and would like to stop in Versailles. We would rather not drive into Paris but rather take a train from either Lyon or Versailles. Thoughts on what would best. We will be flying out of Paris to return home on 1/10.
Any guidance you could give us would be greatly appreciated. We are trying to figure out where we should make overnight stops. I would like to include a visit to Lourdes but we are not sure if we can fit it in our timeframe.
Posted by
L'Occitanie, France
10621 posts
For Roman ruins, fly into Nice, go to Arles, Nîmes, pont du Gard, up the Rhône valley to Vienne and then Lyon.
Posted by
OP
9 posts
Thank you! Any preference on transportation? Would it be better to take a train or rent a car?
Posted by
Portland
3643 posts
Vaison la Romaine is another site well worth visiting for Roman ruins.
It looks to me like you have less than 2 weeks, (3 days in Dec. + 1 travel day, Italy to France + 9 in Jan.). I would caution you to check out carefully holiday closing times. Also get restaurant reservations for New Years Eve and New Year’s Day. Lourdes is out of the question. It’s a long way to the west.
My preference would be renting a car for the south of France portion of your trip. Again, check out holiday schedules. You do NOT want a car in Rome or Naples. The very idea makes me shudder. 😱 Also, given your limited time, I suspect that flying from Rome to Nice may be the best plan; however, that’s also something to investigate. The Nice airport is close in, but that of Rome is not.
Posted by
Lubbock, TX
416 posts
I flew into Nice and then took the train to Arles to see the Roman sights there. Then I took the train to Avignon TGV station and picked up my rental car to drive around to the other sights. I would recommend Nîmes, Pont du Gard, Orange and Vaison-la-Romaine along with the suggestions of other people.
Posted by
Olympia, WA, USA
6713 posts
I hesitate to question advice from Bets, who lives in southern France, but you might save time by flying into Marseille instead of Nice, renting the car there and driving north through places like Arles, Nimes, Pont du Gard, Orange, and Vaison, to name a few, then on to Lyon.
If you're spending time in Lyon, you won't want a car there. But you could get another and drive from Lyon to Versailles in a day, with time to stop in some nice towns in Burgundy on the way. Via Michelin shows several routes, but its time estimates don't include any stops or possible traffic issues. Then drop the car in Versailles and take the RER into Paris -- or drive around the Paris suburbs to CDG on the opposite side if you don't plan to spend time in Paris.
If you don't want to drive from Lyon to Versailles, take the TGV train from Lyon to Paris, then the RER out to Versailles and back. It isn't clear how much time you want to spend in either Lyon or Paris, but you're looking at a lot of destinations in a short period. Lourdes would be a long day's drive from Provence, then another long day back to Provence or Lyon. Best to save it for another trip.
Posted by
Edmonds, WA 🌨 ☂
11877 posts
It appears easyjet has direct NAP-NCE flights.
Rather than a day trip to Naples, why not spend a night ( or more) in Naples and then fly to Nice?
Posted by
L'Occitanie, France
10621 posts
easyJet does have Naples-Nice flights. I took one when my flight to Montpellier was cancelled in April. Flights to Montpellier from Rome are only twice weekly. I haven't looked at Marseille's offerings recently. Nice is beautiful, especially in winter. I love seeing it appear from the plane.
East of Nice, above Monaco, you have Caesar's Trophy of the Alps, an amazing Roman monument. I wouldn't miss Vienne just south of Lyon, a former major Roman port. Large Roman museums across the river from Vienne and in Nîmes, and a Gallo-Roman museum in Lyon. A small museum in Vaison. Note that Vaison has little intact, but you have a lot of building foundations. The theater in Orange, which was mentioned is another spectacular site.
Burgundy can be a bit gray and bleak in winter. I'd take the train straight to Paris, do a day trip to Versaille.
Take care that daylight is very short this far north in December. Some places will be closed January 1. Driving north on January 2 will be hellish traffic jams. Avoid.
Posted by
Moncton NB
1117 posts
If you are interested in Roman ruins, Nimes is your bet. Do not miss the Pont du Gard or the Amphithéatre de Nimes.