I'm trying to plan out a trip to Europe. I was thinking I would fly into Barcelona and spend 3 days there, and then next go to the south of France. I'm not really decided yet on where I want to go in France, and would be open to suggestions. I've been to Carcassonne, Avignon, Aix-en-Provence, Nice and Monaco, but that was 12 years ago on a high school trip. This time I will be traveling solo. I think I'd like to see Carcassonne again, but other than that I'm not decided on where else to go. I'd love to have a day or two at the beach during my trip if it's still nice out. I'd like to go next month if I can get this planned out. I think after the South of France, I want to take the train to either Paris, Amsterdam, or London. I'm not decided on that until I buy my plane tickets and decide which city I'm flying out of. I don't really need help planning that part of the trip though. I am flexible on the dates I go and would like to spend up to around 2 weeks there. If anyone has any suggestions on where to go and getting around, please let me know. I will be getting around by train/bus. I prefer to go to places that are easy to get to that way. I'm pretty new to traveling in Europe. Last year I went to Paris and Amsterdam on my own, which went well, but I feel like this trip might be a little more complicated. Thanks for reading.
Posted by
DALTON, MA, USA
178 posts
I don't have any real suggestions for you, but I hope you get some answers/posts, as I want to plan the same sort of trip. Into Barcelona, to Provence, then to Paris for a few days - fall of 14 or spring of 15. Good luck ! Should be awesome.
Posted by
Rochelle, IL
263 posts
I love Arles and pont du gard. My memory is a little rusty on transportation, but there is a train station in Arles. Pont du gard is reachable by bus, I believe from Avignon.....but again, a current travel book would give you that information. In Arles there are some Roman ruins and a Van Gogh walking path, which you can follow and see scenes Van gogh painted. I coincidentally am going to Barcelona this September then training it to Arles and renting a car for a couple of days. Avignon is neat and you might find it is more interesting now than 12 years ago....but maybe not. You also might consider Orange as a stopping place. Have a great trip.
Posted by
Boston
4132 posts
All of these are fine destinations. My personal favorites are the Rhone valley and west, but if you are going to visit the Cote d'Azure you might see if there is a reasonable flight from Barcelona to Nice. You can then work your way west from Nice. Aix is charming but overrated, again just my opinion. There's not a lot to see and do there other than just hang out. For a stay of more than a few days in central Provence, I think a car makes a great deal of sense. You could range across all of Southern France in a car, or just rent one in the Rhone Valley area. Otherwise you will be mostly limited to cities. But there are a lot of wonderful things you can see that way too. Your next destinations can be reached by rail, all going though Paris, but for long trips you might prefer to fly. There are airports in Nice and Marseilles. Rail times from Avignon: Paris, 2:40; London, 7:00; A'dam, 7:30. You do not have much time to plan! Grab some guidebooks and a map. September is a wonderful time to visit these destinations.
Posted by
OP
Minneapolis, MN, USA
5 posts
Thank you all for the suggestions so far. I got some travel books and am trying to figure out where exactly I want to go. Here's what I'm thinking so far: First off, I do not want to rent a car. I do not feel comfortable driving alone in another country. I like the suggestion of visiting Barcelona (3-4 nights) and then flying into Nice and spending up to 4 nights there, with day trips to Eze and Monaco, and maybe even across the border into Italy. Then I would make my way west in France. I'm also going to look into going from Barcelona to France by bus/train and making my way east in France instead of starting in Nice, but I think the bus/train takes a long time that way. I think flying into Nice and going west might make it easier for me. After that I'm not exactly sure where would be best to stay- but Arles sounds nice, and like I said Carcassonne is high on my list. Terry, I just remembered I meant to mention Pont du Gard. I saw it on my last trip and would love to see it again. I haven't gone through my travel books very closely yet, but from what I've read in the Rick Steve's book, it sounds like these are all reachable by train/bus. After that, I will either take train or fly into either Paris, Amsterdam, or London. I'm leaning towards London or Amsterdam since I spent a week in Paris last year. London would probably be a good choice since I've never been there before. I'm planning on trying to find rooms for rent on Airbnb, or cheaper hotels. If anyone has any feedback on this itinerary or any other places to visit, let me know. Again, I'm flexible on how long I can stay but I'd like to keep it at around 2 weeks. I'm new to planning out trips, so any feedback would be appreciated. Thank you!