I'm starting my winter Alps trip with 2 nights in Torino after landing in Milan. I'm planning to spend a night in Aosta, 3 in Megeve, a night in Lyon, and a night in Paris before an evening flight home. My current plan is to take a bus from MXP to Torino, then rent a car to drive between Torino and Lyon before taking the TGV from Lyon to Paris. The main goal of the trip is some early season skiing, but I found cheap flights in each direction and I thought I'd add some additional touring to the trip. I plan to stop at Chateau de Fenis between Torino and Aosta, in Chamonix between Aosta and Megeve, and Annecy between Megeve and Lyon. Are there any suggestions for additional stops to add? Any general itinerary feedback?
Posted by
Idaho, USA
10029 posts
That sounds like a fantastic itinerary, Lee! I will add the link to a couple of trip reports. The first one was returning to Torino last year for several days. If you’re interested in an excellent food tour, I highly recommend the one in the first report.
The second one has our trip that included Torino, Annecy, Lyon & Paris. It’s not recent but might still have some good activity ideas. Enjoy your time there!
https://community.ricksteves.com/travel-forum/trip-reports/3-weeks-in-italy-france-french-locations
Posted by
10372 posts
If you rent a car in Torino and drop it in Lyon, you may incur a huge charge renting in Italy and dropping in France.
Also, I lived in Augsburg, Germany from 87-91 and would drive into Austria for skiing every Winter. You may encounter snowfall that would slow or delay your drive, or cause you to buy chains for your rental car.
Posted by
Maryland
1247 posts
May we ask when you are going on this trip? And how long you will be staying? - the nights discussed don't leave much time for on-the-slopes. Given the current drought and warmth, the weather in the Alps for normal skiers may still be problematic "early" in the season (compared to how they take care of race courses for ski racers there). This is absolutely not a reason not to go at all, but it will be a consideration. I have done many ski trips in Austria by train alone, and in the Dolomites by bus alone. Of course I only brought my own boots and kit - no skis - which can be rented everywhere anyway (and premium rental skins will be way cheaper than auto drop-off costs). Transportation for your trip though - Flixbus from Aosta to Chamonix in January takes about 90 minutes and will cost about 11 Euros. Flixbus also goes from Chamonix to Annecy and Lyon frequently (and is faster than the trains). There are other bus companies too. Given how close Chamonix is to Megeve I expect transportation between them will be on local buses. Check out Haut-Rhone Tourism's website. Americans thinks "cars." Europeans think trains/buses and they go everywhere. Larger rolly-duffles with ski kit in them are no problem on public transportation. Have fun!
Posted by
Seattle, WA
982 posts
Lyon and Paris don’t seem worth the bother.
Why not fly back from Geneva? Add a ski day and either one more day in Italy or Geneva or Annecy or shorten the trip a day. Or any other such permutation.
Posted by
Long Beach, Ca, usa
3550 posts
Lee,
Please be aware that renting a car in one country and returning it in another can incur fees from 500 to 1,000 euros. It's not like returning a car in different US state from where you rented it...far more complicated and costly to return to original country. Maybe rework this part of your plan?
We stayed in Aosta for one night en route from Florence to Besancon, France. It is a lovely, charming town in a beautiful part of the country. And very relaxing! Enjoy!
Posted by
OP
6 posts
Thanks for all of the responses! I should have added that this will be late-December/early-January. I don't have high expectations for snow that early in the season, which was one of the reasons we decided to limit the number of days we're committing to skiing. This is a family trip so there will be 5 of us traveling together. The economics of renting a car make a little more sense when considering bus fares for 5, but I appreciate the suggestion of buses instead and I'm looking into it. We did a trains-only ski trip to Austria last winter, and it was fantastic. In the interest of visiting a different area this year, we trying the French Alps. Travel planning has really made me appreciate how connected the Austrian ski resorts are to airports and cities via railways.
I did look at flying out of Geneva but found a flight from Paris that was too good to pass up price-wise. Lyon seems like a good stopping point between Megeve and Paris considering a visit to Annecy on the way. At this point I have flights and accoodations in Megeve booked, but I'm certainly open to suggestions or feedback on the other aspects!
Posted by
Maryland
1247 posts
Some thoughts on Chamonix and Lyon from our 2025 trip: In Lyon we stayed near Place Bellecour at the Hotel des Celestines. I've stayed there before and I consider it excellent. But... such a tiny elevator. Lyon restaurants to add to your “must-visit” list include La Mere Lea/Maison Lea on the Quai des Celestins and Café Le Terroir in the same area on Rue Montcharmont. In Chamonix the Hotel La Sapiniere was very comfortable with a great balcony and terrace with a view down the valley. An absolute “must-visit” restaurant in Chamonix is on a back street south of downtown across from a construction site that hasn’t moved a brick in eighteen months. Bizes at 64 Rue du Lyret. It had outstanding selections on a riverside site.
Posted by
OP
6 posts
@NickB That's exactly the kind of feedback I was hoping for! Thanks so much! If there are any other recommendations for restaurants, hotels, or less touted attractions, I'd love to hear them!