Suggestions for 4 days outside of Paris

If it not to late, turn it around and end in Paris. YOu will waste your last day rushing back to Paris to be there for your flight home. If it is too late for that, be sure you come back to Paris the night before; perhaps stay AT the airport at the Novotel or Ibis so you are right there in the morning for the flight.

Three possible suggestions. I would probably choose Burgundy and go to a picturesque town like Semur en Auxois and then tour the general area from there. https://janettravels.wordpress.com/category/burgundy/ We did that for a week and just loved the beauty of this town; we rented a place just below the walls but there are hotels in the town.
Another good base might be Vezelay. We once stayed at a nice little hotel called Moulin des Ruats near Avalon
and then visited Vezelay, Auxerre etc from there.

Another obvious choice is Normandy -- go to Mont St. Michel and stay on the Mont, then head for Bayeux and perhaps do a tour of the beaches (you can do that yourself in your car, perhaps on your way back from MSM -- we did this on a tour in the fall but it looked like there was plenty of parking) and I would also suggest going to Etretat. We stayed in Honfleur and did a day trip there. https://janettravels.wordpress.com/category/normandy/ You could also see Rouen on the way back to Paris.

Another choice would be the Loire and touring the chateaux there. It would be my third choice.

Another possibility is to take the Thalys to Amsterdam for 3 nights. It is a beautiful city and 3 nights 2 full days gives you a good view of it and a chance to visit a couple of the great museums. Wonderful city. The Thalys is 35 Euro one way if purchased 3 mos out and takes about 3.5 hours. Again if you do this, come back to Paris the night before. I was actually on a Thalys once that came into Paris 5 hours late due to extraordinary circumstances. Always be in the town of departure the night before a high stakes flight.

Not sure if you have seen any sites on prior trips or not.

Giverney (Monet's home) is lovely if you like Monet. Mont St. Michel is beautiful and interesting. If you love grand palaces, the Loire Valley is full of them. You can rent bikes and bike from palace to palace. If you want a moving experience, there is Normandy with the WWII memorial. Does "7 Nights in Paris" include Versailles?

Thanks for the suggestions - We've travelled throughout Spain but never to France. We plan on taking the train to Versailles one day during our Paris week. The apartment is rented so Paris is definetly first - we've found staying put at the beginning has worked better for us to deal with jet lag and get acclimated. The Tour de France starts in the mount st Michael area during our 4 days so we will most likely skip that area. Hadn't thought of the burgundy area so will start reading up and biking in the Loire valley sounds like a good family activity especially to burn off the calories from the French food. But I know they are in different directions.

Last year we, along with our 19 yr old daughter, spent one night in Chartres. Their summer light show is amazing. We stayed at the former monastery across the street. We also went to Chateaux Chenenceaux in late afternoon after the tour buses were gone and it was very peaceful. Two of the best things we've done in Europe.

Burgundy is a great choice. I based in Avallon for 4 nights and drove to Auxerre, Vezelay, Noyers, Fontenay Abbey, Saulieu, Beaune.

Alsace is another. Strasbourg is the big city with the gorgeous cathedral and more, Colmar is just a little smaller. Best to stay in one of the villages near Colmar. . . I stayed in Eguisheim (closest) 3 nights, drove to Riquewihr, Hunawihr, Ribeauvillé, Haut Koenigsbourg, Monkey Mountain in one day, Niedermorschwihr, then small, colorful, charming Turckheim, finally Kayserberg on the next.

I would take the TGV from Paris to Dijon for Burgundy and rent car there, return it there or drive to CDG (4 hours), whichever is more convenient. I would take the TGV from Paris to Strasbourg or Colmar, then the car. There are direct trains from Strasbourg to CDG. I didn't find trains from Burgundy to CDG.

Just for the convenience of the train from Strasbourg to CDG, I would choose Alsace over Burgundy. Otherwise I would probably flip a coin. Both areas have charming villages, elegant chateaux, scenic driving, wineries and good food. Roads are better in Alsace, which is another consideration.

There have been several long threads on the forum about driving in France. Read them before you go!!! Lots of good advice and lots of valuable information.

Perhaps too ambitious, but some ideas here...

Day 1 To Reims
Day 2 Via Amiens to Rouen
Day 3 To Giverny and Honfleur
Day 4 Via Chartres to Paris

I'll echo Cala's recommendation of Chartres, if that is the direction you ultimately choose. We visited Chartres with our French friends primarily to see the cathedral and the Chartres en lumières light show. It was very special - and our teen/young adult kids really enjoyed it, too. There is a little train you can ride (no reservations, first come, first served) throughout the city center, and see beautiful light displays on the fronts of buildings, on bridges reflecting in the still water, and most enchantingly on the façade of the magnificent cathedral. There is narration and music to accompany the light displays - and we'd never seen anything like that show before. It was truly memorable for our family.

I agree with others who are recommending you get as close to CDG as you can the night before your departure. So many things can happen suddenly with transportation that are beyond your control.

You have lots of great suggestions to consider - I hope you have an amazing trip!

Laurie

Thanks for all of the thoughtful responses- family decision time - both burgundy and Chartres seem to be of interest to all so will pick one and start planning. Hopefully this won't be our last trip to France so we will be able to see everything else recommended on future trips.

Your first trip and can't decide on a direction. All the more reason to recommend that whatever direction you decide to head in, use the car. It is easy to navigate from Paris outward into the countryside and explore on the drive there and back. Some of the best memories we have come from the trips between destinations. Take time to enjoy the journey.
Champagne and/or Reims can be on the way to or from Alsace, especially if you have one overnight in Nancy. There are stark WWI battlefields/memorials to explore in that area as well as some nice museums. Nancy to Colmar is a wonderful drive with much to see, both manmade and natural sights. You can explore Alsace for a couple of days and then head back to stay in a CDG hotel the night before your flight, also exploring more along the way.
At every intersection, the directional signs will show you the road to the next named town along the route or the route to all other places - "Toutes Directions." You just keep track of the general direction you're heading and follow the signs. If you make a mistake, that gives you a little more to explore. Of course, a Michelin map or GPS makes it more of a sure thing, if you want to keep some type of schedule
This same 'explore along the way" approach works no matter what direction you're heading in. If you want to explore, the train is not your best friend unless you are willing to debark at interesting-looking towns. But if you are, that's also a terrific way to do it!

We spent a month in France last May and had many wonderful experiences. If I would choose a stop out of Paris I would definitely say, Sarlat and Carsonnone. Both stunning. The cave drawings were so interesting. We loved the walled city of Carsonnone, the markets of Sarlat. You just can't go wrong. You will need a car, but it is worth it. We also loved Mt. Ste. Michele and the D-Day beaches. I guess it depends on your interests.

We really loved the Loire Valley. It is easy to take the train to St. Pierre de Corps (Tours) and only an hour away. You can rent a car right there and be off very quickly.

We loved the area and our then 23 year old loved all the Chateaux.

Check out this place to stay. The girls can get their own room and it is so pretty, they will love it.
www.leclosdelachesneraie.com

I was worried it might be too much chateaux touring several, but it was really just fine. We spent time in small quaint villages just wandering around, visited gardens, chateaux and we had fabulous food!! If you stay at this B & B make sure you let Beatrix chose your restaurants! She knows the good food in the area.

Trains are just over an hour from Paris to Chartres, so it makes an easy day trip.
With four days you could ...
Day 1 Train to Strasbourg.
Day 2 Pick up hire car. Drive to Colmar.
Day 3 Drive to Beaune.
Day 4 Drive to Dijon. Return car. Train to Paris.

As I see you have already set your mind. Just focus on one area, if Burgundy is your choise you will need the complete 4 days, fitting in Chartres is certainly doable.

How many nights do you have? How far into Burgundy are you thinking of going? Beaune is about twice as far from Paris as Auxerre is. If you stop in Chartres, you'll probably have a one-night hotel stop. Chartres is an easy day trip (albeit not cheap by train) from Paris. . . depends on your priorities, time vs money. For me, staying in one place in Burgundy and driving back and forth was more efficient that packing and moving. If you do that, pick a small place on/near a major road. Staying in a larger town will involve more time getting in and out, especially with traffic.

Use viamichelin.com for routes, driving times and costs.