Me and my husband are planning on this trip from July 13th to August 1st. We are flying to Barcelona. We have planned to stay couple nights in Marseille in between. How should we divide our time between Barcelona and Italy? We would like to avoid too much tourist traps.
Posted by
Chicago
8166 posts
Do you know where you want to go for sure in Italy?
Here is the Spain to France Part:
Train from Barcelona to Nimes or Avignon
(Stay in Nimes or Avignon 3 nights take a day trips to see Pont du Gard and Arles)
Train Nimes or Avignon to Marseille stay 2 nights.
Train Marseille to Nice 3 nights go see Monte Carlo on a day trip
Posted by
Brisbane, Australia
7175 posts
Do you have 19 nights ?
You arrive in Barcelona on July 13?
You leave August 1 ? From where ?
Posted by
Washington DC
28083 posts
I'm a fan of cities, especially cities that aren't very touristy. Including Palermo, Sicily, which I believe Rick has called "challenging". However, I'd be hesitant about recommending Marseille as a base city for travelers without much time in southern France. To me, it just doesn't have the blockbuster sights to outweigh the grittiness. In this situation I'd recommend it only if the traveler was planning to see the Calanques and couldn't get a room in Cassis. Otherwise I'd suggest Aix-en Provence or more time in Nice, which has many, many attractive side-trip possibilities.
I'm currently staying in Avignon and day-tripped to Arles yesterday. Both nice small cities, and less than 30 minutes apart by train. But the timing of this trip is a concern, because it falls within the period of the Avignon Theatre Festival, which sucks up a lot of hotel rooms. Even on this current weekend I had difficulty finding a last-minute room in either Arles or Avignon and ended up paying much more than I usually do. Anyone interested in staying in the Arles-Avignon area should check room availability well in advance while there's time to tweak the itinerary if necessary. I'd be concerned about nearby St.-Remy, too, but I'm daytripping there and haven't needed to look for a room in St.-Remy.
Posted by
Brisbane, Australia
7175 posts
A little perspective for you ...
You will be regarded as a 'tourist' while travelling, and no doubt will be visiting sites, whether they are 'traps' or not.
It's a bit like the driver in his car complaining about the traffic that he is contributing to.
But I get your point, and would say that staying home is never an option.