Any advice on traveling from paris to Dinan?

Just checking... did you mean "Dinant" in Belgium (one of the prettiest towns in the Ardennes)? If so, I can help answer your questions. If "Dinan" is a location in France, of which I have no knowledge at all... sorry, can't help.

Tom, Dinan is in Brittany.

Denise, apparently there is rail service from Paris to Dinan and the journey is about 4 hours. Have a look at seat61.com for train advice & info. Also google Dinan Tourism.

Denise,

Travel from Paris to Dinan is "doable" but in order to provide a reasonable time to do a day tour there you'd need to choose your trains carefully.

For example, there's a train departing Paris Montparnasse at 07:35, arriving Dinan at 10:54 (time 3H:19M, reservations compulsory, one change at Dol de Bretagne).

On the return trip, the last train appears to be at 19:10, arriving Paris Montparnasse at 23:10 (time 4H:00M, reservations compulsory, 2 changes in Dol de Bretagne and Rennes).

Keep in mind that these schedules may differ slightly, depending on when you'll be travelling.

Happy travels!

Paris to Dinan is easy by train, exactly as Ken says. The city is walkable as long as you don't mind hills. The paths along the river are enjoyable on foot or you can rent a bike. You can also rent canoes, kayaks and small motorboats. Bus service in the area is good and inexpensive (2 euro fare to St. Malo). We stayed at Le Logis du Jerzual in August. It was very nice, although I would recommend a room on the first or second floor. The ground floor room is right on the main street leading from the port. The tourists are noisy walking by and the flashes are distracting as they stop to take photos of the building (which I will admit is really old and pretty).

Thank you all. I did locate the train to Dinan and we will be staying overnight. Thank you for the hotel reccommendation as well. It looks like a charming place.

I just got back from France and stayed two nights in Dinan. I loved it! It is a very charming town with cobblestone streets and endless medieval buildings. We also stayed at Le Logis du Jerzual and thought it was great. There was some noise on the street, but since it was cool, we just closed the windows.

I forgot to address your transportation question. We rented a car at Chartres and drove to Dinan. We never used the car while we were there. Dinan is not tiny, but it's easy to cover by foot if you enjoy walking. The walk down to the port from the main part of town is very steep though. Le Logis du Jerzual is half way down the hill.

Denise, we did have a car when we went to Dinan this past July because we were driving all around Brittany and Normandy. The day we went to Dinan, however, we parked the car in a garage and left it for the entire day while we explored the town on foot. So nope, you do not need a car there at all!

Personally, I can't imagine going to Dinan without incorporating St. Malo and Mont St. Michel. It's really easy to rent a car in Dinan, drive up to St. Malo, then drive along the coast to Mont St. Michel. We stayed at Hotel le d'Avaugour in Dinan and were quite pleased...they have a great breakfast spread. Reserve your car in Dinan online or through the hotel. Have fun and wear study shoes for those cobbled streets in Dinan.