June itinerary

Posted by Anton (Springville, Utah, USA) on 04/08/10 09:36 PM

We are planning to be in Barcelona at the end of June. We have two major itinerary possibilities: 1) After Barcelona, go up to Carcasonne, then across to Provence, the French Riviera and down the Italian cost to Cinque Terre. I worry about cost for that trip and how crowded the coast may be. 2) Carcasonne, then up into Switzerland possibly to Southwestern Switzerland (Oberland area?) and Gimmelwald (?), then up to Zurich, ending in Paris.

Cost is a concern, but we are mostly worried about intense crowds. Which itinerary would you recommend and why?

Posted by vftravels

S.F. Bay Area, CA, United States

04/08/10 10:21 PM

1878 posts

Consider also the Dordogne -- not far from Carcasone, yet so off the beaten path and very magical. We had a day and a half there in 2003, and it was one of the highlights of a trip that encompassed most of France.

Posted by Adam

Boston

04/09/10 07:36 AM

4132 posts

I think either would be outstanding.

However, I'd change #2 to go to Paris before Switzerland, flying home from Zurich. And enroute from Carcassonne spend a few nights in the Dordogne, as Vernon suggests. I'll bet it would be a highlight of your trip.

Of the two, I prefer the second by a hair. The reason is, it has more contrast in it, and contrast makes things more vivid and memorable.

Also, it has Paris.

The opposite case is that with #1 you will get to experience a continuous range of Mediterranean cultures, from Spanish Catalonia to French Catalonia to Provence to the French and Italian rivieras.

Have a wonderful trip!

Posted by Anton OP

Springville, Utah, USA

04/09/10 06:38 PM

34 posts

Thanks, everyone, for the nice comments and ideas. How expensive would it be, do you think, in Provence during the summer? Worse than other places?

Posted by david

washington

04/10/10 06:30 AM

837 posts

Anton, our experience is that Switzerland is the most expensive place in western Europe. Having said that, the Berner Oberland area has more reasonable lodging and food than the cities. We also found that dinners in Italy are the most expensive. That is unless you are happy with an appetizer and pasta or pizza. If you have a meat or fish course as well as primi, it will be very expensive.

Posted by Anton OP

Springville, Utah, USA

04/13/10 07:34 PM

34 posts

Thanks, everyone! Some good ideas. Last question: Where is Dordogne?

Posted by Adam

Boston

04/14/10 05:49 PM

4132 posts

The Dordogne in a river in the part of France officially known as Perigord, a few hours north of Carcassone on the way to Paris.

Check out a map.

Posted by Rosalyn

Portland

04/14/10 06:13 PM

3643 posts

The Riviera is very crowded in summer, but worse in August than at the end of June. I'd get to work making reservations NOW. I think you'll discover that in some areas many places are already filled. There has recently been a thread here on which one poster described the CT in summer. If you can find it, help may you make up your minds. On keeping food costs down: we often eat our main meal at midday. Many restaurants have set menus, then, that are a real bargain; and in general, prices are lower at lunch than in the evening.