I am on a Road Scholar trip to Strasbourg in October. I would like to fly in early and stay somewhere else in Europe (probably France) first for 3-4 days. Then take the train to Strasbourg. My first thought was Paris, but I'm not a big arts/tourist-attraction fan. Just like to wander about and experience a foreign place. I have only been to Greece so far.
I'm not limited to the length of train ride or cost (I's a bucket list trip!). Any suggestions? Thanks!
Of course the easiest would be Paris but Strasbourg is easily reach from other major cities. Try Brussels or maybe Cologne. Amsterdam would be nice but a long day travel via train.
Colmar is a lovely small town. Basel is close and has a nice old town. Or Reims is on the way, champagne region.
What is the focus of the Road Scholar trip? It sounds you have built in a good amount of flexibility , ie not hampered by train ride duration or cost. You do have numerous choices.....Berlin , Hamburg, Leipzig, Vienna , by day or night train
You could go to Paris and spend your time walking through a different neighborhood each day (Paris Walks has tours or just wander) or in the parks or cafes or taking a market visit/cooking class or a food tour.
Paris is much more than what you describe, fear it will be.
Go and see Paris your way. It offers so much that I
am sure you will enjoy it.
Thank you everybody! I have some new places to consider. And thanks for the Paris suggestions. It sounds even better to me now.
My best trips have always been those that contain two totally dissimilar locations. For that, I would choose Istanbul.
https://www.google.com/travel/explore?tfs=CBwQAxoqEgoyMDI0LTA1LTA3KABqDAgDEggvbS8wOWI4M3IMCAQSCC9tLzAyajl6QAFIAXABggELCP___________wGYAQKyAQQYASAB&tfu=GioaKAoSCdrONXTQtEpAEbyHhC4-TEFAEhIJtFtS7kNlP0ARD-HtRQd4IcA
This tool might help -- it shows you all the places with direct trains to a city. Here's what you get for Strasbourg...
A few ideas jump out looking at the results. If you fly into Frankfurt you could take the train down to the Black Forest region, which would be quite beautiful in October. Karlsruhe, Baden-Baden, Offenburg, and Freiburg are all along that line.
Is this early or late October? If it is early then consider Stuttgart's Cannstatter Volksfest which runs to October 13th. It is Germany's second largest Oktoberfest and is wonderful to experience at least once.
From the eastern side, I always advocate for Metz, which I think is a great, overlooked city rich in history, along with Nancy just to the south.
Finally, you could fly into Luxembourg City and explore the tiny nation before your trip.
