France itinerary help

I was planning a very similar trip and everyone thought I was crazy. My post is here : http://www.ricksteves.com/graffiti/helpline/index.cfm/rurl/topic/80433/france-itinerary.html I was planning, Paris, Normandy, Loire, Dordogne, Carcassone and then the Riviera flying out of Nice. France is bigger than you think. I have revised my thought process to Paris 4-5 nights, Normandy 2 nights, Mont St Michel 1 night, Loire valley 3 nights and Dordogne 3 nights and fly out of Toulouse. With the itinerary you are shooting for you will be travelling constantly. Hope this helps.

I like the second one. I really liked the Loire Valley and Dordogne.

Thanks everyone. I think I am leaning toward the first one (my initial plan) because there is so much I want to do in the south that we really need to do that another time. Any thoughts about adding Colmar to the first plan? Or perhaps a night in Brittany?

Monique, I think if you're going with plan #1, you could add Brittany on day 7 & 8 (after MSM), and then do Loire on days 9 & 10. I think that would make a better flow. Not sure if Colmar is viable option.

The Dordogne is really special, but I think you will have a better trip with #1. #2 is just a ton of travel and not enough sightseeing, in my view. You would be basically driving around the perimeter of Texas, in terms of distance, but with hills, which will slow you down. For #1, a day in Mont St. Michel all by itself is sort of an outlier, but adding a few days in Brittany as suggested (or Normandy) would round that out. I do think that MSM is best seen as an overnight. I would nominate Beaune over Dijon, especially for a short visit. And if you have an extra day, you would not regret spending it in Paris.

You've already gotten good feedback, I like both. For #1 I would add a day to Paris and a day to Beaune. What I really wanted to add is not to miss the Luxembourg Gardens in Paris - they have a great playground your 8 yr old will love. Plus, donkey rides, a carousel and marionette shows. Also, two cafes, bathrooms, crepe stands, and toy boat sailing.

I have a very well-traveled 8yo who very recently packed her own bag and even carried it up steps when we went on a 10 day/3 city tour in Italy. I say that because I want you to understand I am speaking from experience. I think you had the right idea when you had it as Paris and Gimmenwald with one city in between. Anything less than 3 nights in one place is going to be hard on your daughter. We found it necessary to let the kids sleep in the day after changing cities. After the second city change, they were ready for a down day with lots of time in the room to read, color, play, etc and very little sighseeing. My 8yo is a trooper, but her fatigue showed towards the end of the trip. She ordered something for lunch one day, and when the waiter told us it wasn't available, she just started crying. Having got that off my chest, I would suggest working with your first itinerary. Either spend more time in Normandy or skip it. (a couple hours at MSM is enough, but there's a lot more cool stuff in the area. My 8yo watched "The Longest Day" and read books about WWII before going and really enjoyed the WWII stuff. Plus the Bayeaux Tapestry has a special audio guide just for kids that they loved.) The Loire is a nice area for taking it easy - lots of chateaux to pretend you're a princess with. Clos Luce for playing with Leonardo's inventions. And Beaune/Dijon can be ok. Not as much there for kids unless you have a rental car. Those places alone could take up your 16 days and I think you'd be happy. If you must do Gimmenwald, then pick just one or two of those besides Paris. Other recommendation: After spending time in Paris, head to south of France. Rent a beach front apartment for a week.

Monique, I vote for the first Itinerary, as I'm a huge fan of the Lauterbrunnen valley! The only other comment I would make is you should check and see when the high tide is the night you are spending on Mont-st-michel as seeing the tide come in is a really special thing which your daughter will really enjoy! you can check the tide for your date at this website: http://www.ot-montsaintmichel.com/en/horaire-marees/mont-saint-michel.htm

Adam #2 is definitely out. I want to spend more time than that in the south, there is just so much to see. Nancy Where in Britanny would you go? Susan We have been to Paris 3 times already, so that is why I only put 4 days. Thanks for the Luxembourg info, sounds great!! Dina Thanks for sharing your experience. It is so easy to forget how tired she will be after a few days. Jill Thanks for the tide info! I will keep those dates in mind when making the plans. Thanks everyone. We actually went to Gimmelwald once and it rained (and snowed in August!) so we ended up leaving. I am so torn, I can't decide if I want to just spend the whole trip in France. We have become hikers since that trip, so I can only imagine how awesome Gimmelwald could be... We have been to Paris 3 times, so plan for our time there to be more laid back this time. I think I definitely want to do: Paris MSM Loire Valley
then where? Beaune (I would love to rent bikes here maybe)? Gimmelwald? It's so hard to make a decision. I want to see everything, and with the current costs of traveling, I don't know when we'll return. Would it be crazy to stop at Giverny? I'm nervous about renting a car.

Adam #2 is definitely out. I want to spend more time than that in the south, there is just so much to see. Nancy Where in Britanny would you go? Susan We have been to Paris 3 times already, so that is why I only put 4 days. Thanks for the Luxembourg info, sounds great!! Dina Thanks for sharing your experience. It is so easy to forget how tired she will be after a few days. Jill Thanks for the tide info! I will keep those dates in mind when making the plans. Thanks everyone. We actually went to Gimmelwald once and it rained (and snowed in August!) so we ended up leaving. I am so torn, I can't decide if I want to just spend the whole trip in France. We have become hikers since that trip, so I can only imagine how awesome Gimmelwald could be... We have been to Paris 3 times, so plan for our time there to be more laid back this time. I think I definitely want to do: Paris MSM Loire Valley
then where? Beaune (I would love to rent bikes here maybe)? Gimmelwald? It's so hard to make a decision. I want to see everything, and with the current costs of traveling, I don't know when we'll return. Would it be crazy to stop at Giverny? I'm nervous about renting a car.

Well, writing about Gimmelwald makes ME want to go back there. But I do not know what you should do! I think the odds would be in your favor if you went back to the Alps. But there is terrific walking (not exactly hiking) in Burgundy, and it's a great place to ride a bicycle. You are not crazy to think about Giverney, but don't underestimate the time it will take you. It can be very crowded!