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Late January or early February trip: South of France, Umbria/Tuscany, or somewhere else?

I'm looking to travel somewhere for nine or 10 days in late January or early February. Warmth and sun would be amazing, but anything will be better than where I live (a bitterly cold and dark part of North America that time of year). I'm torn between two ideas.

South of France
- Fly in/out of Nice
- Stay in Nice 5-6 nights - using several days here to see the art museums and explore the old town
- Take a few day trips from Nice to places like St. Paul de Vence, Eze, Antibes, Villefranche-sur-Mer? -- but which ones? Monaco? It doesn't appeal to me but I'd like to see every country in Europe at some point so it would be more of a check-off... is there are a Monaco for the quiet, low-budget art-museum lover?
- Spend two nights in Menton (which looks like it has some surprisingly affordable nice hotels that time of year?)

Umbria/Tuscany
- Fly in/out of Florence
- Stay in Perugia - 5-6 nights, take day trips to Assisi, Spello and Folignon, Arezzo, Spoleto (but which ones?)
- Stay in Pisa - 2-3 nights, visit Pistoia
- Do we expect Jubilee-year travel to affect Tuscany and Umbria much in January/February?

Other options... Puglia? (But I think this would be hard without a car... the bus routes between, say, Lecce and Matera look quite convoluted...) Basque region of Spain/France?

I'm on a modest but not shoestring budget (two-star hotels about $60/night for accommodation or less each night... which looks doable both places, honestly). I'll be relying on public transit. I love art museums, churches, architecture, walkable places, hiking, and I've been on a big Medieval kick lately.

Not really into shopping. Good food is great but food options aren't going to steer me one way or the other. I speak some French and a serviceable amount of Italian, so that's not really a factor.

I've previously visited Marseille, Avignon, Villeneuve-les-Avignon, Aix-en-Provence, and Arles in the South of France (in March a couple years ago, during a major train strike!) -- it was a bit cold, I know it's unpredictable! I've also been to Andalusia in February (lovely...) and Sicily in February (beautiful weather but, outside of Palermo, everything was deader than dead).

Thank you for your kind advice --

Posted by
8235 posts

I haven't been to Umbria, but have a tour booked for Tuscany and Umbria next year.
Not sure about going to any of these places in the Winter, I lived in Europe for four years and the Winters were long and cold.

Haven't been to Public, but frankly, don't want to go there.
The Basque region of Spain is fantastic. San Sebastian and Bilbao for sure.

Still, I also like your option of the South of France. However, if you have been there, go somewhere else.

Posted by
65 posts

We loved the area by Nice with beautiful views of both the sea and the mountainous backdrop. We were there in October and June, so I do not know what it is like in February. The regional trains and buses are great for getting from town to town.

We especially liked Villefranche sur Mer and Eze.
St Jean Cap Ferrat has some beautiful walking paths and the Villa Ephrussi de Rothschild is worthwhile also.
Monaco surprised us. We especially enjoyed the Oceanography museum and the Royal palace and Cathedral in Monaco. The Nice airport is great.

Posted by
170 posts

I've been to Marseille and Provence, but not any of those places in the French Riviera!

Posted by
170 posts

Thank you for the recommendations and I'm a bit surprised to hear what you say about Monaco -- that's encouraging. I was picturing a big open-air casino!