Where to stay for a week anywhere in France

There will be no place not crowded in August, but if I had one place to spend a week and could rent a car, it would be the Dordogne. Rent a place in a village and then tour the region. It is the most beautiful part of France IMHO. Most of Rural France requires a car. Two places that would not are the Riviera (which will be crushed with French vacationers in August but also has great public transport) and Brittany or Normandy which might be a bit cooler that time of year..

We spent 5 nights in Brittany without a car last May and did fine. We spent 4 nights in an apartment in St. Malo which we loved and I did day trips by bus (in summer there are several by boat as well to Channel Islands, to Dinan and Dinard and some other towns along the way.). St. Malo while touristy has lots of really good restaurants and we thought it was just beautiful. We stayed in a small apartment about a block from the entrance to the beach and enjoyed hiking along the coast. We also trained to Auray and hired a private guide to take us to the Neolithic sites near Carnac.

Bayeux has tours to Mont St. Michel and to the WWII landing beaches.

Consider adding a couple of days to Paris. There are dozens of great day trips to villages, towns and chateaux in the region reached by short train trip from Paris and it is so convenient when traveling without a car.

You can also consider Provence as another destination or Basque Country to spend a week and tour the region.

I would stay far away from the Riviera and Provence in mid-summer because of the heat. I found the weather in Normandy and Brittany much more pleasant at that time of year. I didn't get very far west in Brittany or to Mont-Saint-Michel but moved around quite a bit otherwise, all by public transportation. The two places that were most slammed with tourists were Honfleur and Saint-Malo. Rouen, Bayeux, Deauville, Cabourg, Dinard, Dinan, Rennes, Vitre and Fougeres were at least somewhat less crowded. Vitre and Fougeres seemed to have very few tourists at all.

The problem I have is in recommending one, single place to stay for a week that will not result in a few too-long day-trips. Saint-Malo might be the best option logistically, though it was not my favorite place by a long shot. Caen works very well from the transportation standpoint for visiting quite a bit of Normandy, but it's a mostly modern, industrial place and not a particularly engaging base.

I haven't been to the Dordogne and am not familiar with its mid-summer weather pattern. As a public-transportation user, I can say that dealing with high heat day after day can be difficult when you have to fit your travels around train and bus schedules. On a day-trip-heavy vacation (as this would be), you don't have the option of returning to an air-conditioned hotel room to escape the heat, nor do you have an air-conditioned car to hop into.

Northern France maybe an option to escape the summer heat. The Loire Valley can be an intriguing place to explore in summer.

Thanks so much! Does anyone have any opinions about the Burgundy region, Dijon or Beaune? I’m not very knowledgeable about wine so wouldn’t want to spend a lot of time at wineries.

As others point out, heat in addition to August crowds is a problem. I've done August two ways, shore and elevations. The least crowded shore areas were the west coast Bayonne/Biaritz and Brittany around Quimper to Nantes and for elevations Annecy area and the Pyrenees. I did frequent day trips to Trouville/Deauville from Paris too. But this was a while ago. With tourism in mass, this may have changed. I no longer remain here in August because of the heat and lack of AC.

I love Burgundy and we once spent a week in a cottage at the base of the walls in Semur en Auxois BUT you just really need a car to tour Burgundy:
https://janettravels.wordpress.com/category/burgundy/

Another I Love Burgundy vote. Like it better than the Dordogne. But as janet said, you need a car. The towns, villages, chateaux, vineyards, history, scenery are amazing and beyond charming. I love Paris, Normandy, Loire Valley, but for you, i highly recommend Burgundy.

We enjoyed Nancy in late August...2007 for a week. It is like a mini Paris, IMO. Loved the art nouveau buildings and just enjoyed walking and being in Nancy. We were almost the only Americans there. We rented a car for two days. One day we went to Verdun and the other day we went over the Vosges to a couple small 1/2 timbered villages: Riquewhir and Beauville, I believe. Strasbourg is also a quick train ride away.

I am thinking along the same lines as Wray but will suggest Metz, just north of Nancy. I have only been there once but Metz also is a really pretty mid-sized city & definitely off the usual tourist track. There is an extensive city & intercity bus system to the suburbs and short train rides to Nancy, Luxembourg City & German border cities if the spirit moves you. Also Metz is relatively inexpensive: a nice hotel room will go for well under $100/night. Lots of activities going on in the summer. IMO, no car needed. Hope you have a great trip!

Have you considered Alsace? Strasbourg and/or Colmar are easily accessed by train, and give you options via train, bus, bike (or car, though a rental wouldn't be required) to lovely wine villages in the Vosges foothills. You can also take trains into Switzerland and the Black Forest region of Germany as well. We absolutely love Strasbourg, which has some city bustle but such a charming, and walkable city center, not to mention a stunning Cathedral. I don't know how crowded it is in August, but I don't imagine it's ever that crowded there. It can get a little warm in the summer, depending on the year, but you can escape to cooler elevation in the Vosges Mountains, and it cools off well at night too.

As far as Burgundy, it may not be the best destination if you're not into wine. Beaune, at least, is best for oenophiles. The surrounding countryside is lovely, though, with beautiful church history sites (from Cluny in the south to Fontenay and Vezelay in the north), and rich, delicious food. You would need a car to truly enjoy the Bourguignon countryside, though. We found Dijon to be kind of bland, and not that well connected to the charming hamlets and villages of Burgundy.

I do not drink and i love Burgundy. I’m sorry, but saying if you’re not into wine, Burgundy isn’t the best destination is really ridiculous.

I like to drink wine, but that's not why I'd recommend Burgundy. If you have a car (and GPS!!), it's pretty easy to stay in one place and day trip to charming villages and small towns, visit medieval abbeys and churches, pop in to see some chateaux, and enjoy the scenery as you drive. I can't think of anywhere in France that isn't safe for an older solo woman, just be smart about petty theft prevention.