We will be driving through France in July. We plan to fly in to Paris and catch the train to Chartres arriving early afternoon. There we will rent a car and spend the night. The next day we will drive to Amboise. Seeking advice on how mnay days to stay in Amboise and lodging. I don't think we need to see every chateau Three nights??? Should every night be in one place, i.e. Amboise. We will drive from the Loire Valley to Sarlat. We plan to stay in Sarlat three nights. For the fourth night we considered driving to see Cahors and Rocamadour and lodging one night in Rocamadour. Would it be better to drive back to Sarlat? The next day would be the drive to Carcassonne. We would only have the evening and morning here. Then we would drive to Arles by way of the Galamus Gorges. This would mean a late arrival in Arles. We plan 4 nights in Arles. That leave two nights to drive back to Chartres to off the rental car and take the train back to Paris. In Paris we will meet family and take the river cruise to Normandy. On return from the cruise we will spend 7 nights in Paris. There are so many areas of this that I would like to ask your advice. We have been advised to linger in areas to enjoy. We would really like to experience this trip as an overview, an introduction to France. Are we trying to cover too many areas? We like many of Rick Steves' lodging suggestions, preferring the B&B, low-key with an opportunity to experience as much of the culture as we can. I like the idea of staying in a village, near Sarlat or Arles. Is there a trade off? Being in Arles and Sarlat, where you can walk around, see, enjoy and be central. or Lodge outside of Sarlat and Arles and drive there as just a day trip. Perhaps we do each a different way to have the experience. Thank you for your patience and time to help us. Maybe some day I can offer advice too.
Posted by
Boston
4132 posts
More time is almost always better, but I think what you've allotted is reasonable for a quick introduction to some great places. (You WILL regret having to leave them so quickly, however!) I especially admire the idea of starting in Chartres. A few minor suggestions. When you arrive in Chartres, instead of renting the car and spending the night, spend the night and rent the car. This will save you a little bother with parking. At the other end of your trip, return the car in Avignon and take the train to Paris. The train takes 2-1/2 hours. Net savings: Two days. Spend those in the Dordogne and Provence. Your plan for Rocamador and Cahors is reasonable, but I hope these places do not disappoint you. I'd expect Rocamador to be mobbed in July so the idea of seeing it either early or late is a good one, and Cahors, on the Lot, has its charms. But personally I'd prefer to visit the Grotte du Peche Merle and St Cirq along the Lot. Peche Merle has perhaps the best cave paintings in the area still open to the public, and St. Cirq is a beautiful French hill town. It wold be a lovely place for an overnight, though beds might be hard to come by in July. You could squeeze in a quick stop in Cahors as well. The decision of small town vs. small city is a personal one. Places like Arles have a certain late-night charm, and it's not so hard to wrangle a car there either (unlike, say, Avignon). But the small towns are charming and closer to nature. The little towns along the Dordogne are lovely and make great bases for day trips. I think your plan shows real thoughtfulness so I hope my suggestions are helpful. I do think you've got a fair amount of driving, and that the TGV train back to Paris, which wins you more time in the south, would be a logical choice.
Posted by
Pensacola
9110 posts
Thoughts to get you started: You might have too much time in the Loire Valley. Once you've seen a couple of chateaux, they all start to look alike. If you try to drive back to Sarlat from Rocamadour, keep an eye on daylight. Those roads are curvy, narrow, and dark as hell when the sun goes down - - and some of them have neither sidee nor center line markings. Cahors isn't worth a lot of time, I wouldn't bother to spend the night unless it works out logistically. You have more than enough time for Carcassonne - - stop by for a couple of hours and you're done. It's a tourist trap and not even rebuilt true to its origninal style. Sarlat is one notch above a village, move out and you'll have to drive into town to eat. Sarlat to Chartres is an easy, five-hour, drive if you're short on days. I always question the RS fixation on Arles. Nimes is more central to the Rhone delta and would give you a pretty nice city for a change of pace. Seven night in Paris might be a bit long (by double?) if you're shooting for an over-view type trip. Your track looks pretty good and you have enough time to do it all regardless of how you allocate your days. I'm betting that your area alloation will change when you start thinking about what's actually in each area. EDIT: In light of what Adam said that I didn't think about: Unless you want to spend a lot of time in Chartres (the cathedral takes two hours, max), leave Paris early, do Chartres, rent the car, and head for Sarlat - - or maybe even rent the car in Paris. Don't take the car back to Chartres. You'll be charged no more for dropping it off down south. The drive from Avignon to Paris/Chartres is only six hours, but it seems like a million.
Posted by
OP
Oklahoma City, OK, USA
8 posts
Thank you so much! I will definitely check out taking the train to Paris thought. That would also afford us another experience and as you said more time in the other places. I have read, watched videos, ask questions, alas, only to find out how much I don't know. You have given me awesome advice to process and consider. I appreciate your patience with me and the time you take to help!
Posted by
Victoria, BC, Canada
101 posts
We are also planning a trip to many of the same places as you, I agree with the other poster about dropping car and taking train (or Plane) to Paris. .. We will be picking a car up in Marseille and dropping it off at CDG Paris. I've trimmed a little time off our original nights in the Loire Valley, believing that we might get 'Chateaued out' we've decided that we will either use Amboise or Chinon or both as a base. We are also preffering B & B's and have a couple of choices near Sarlat that we plan to investigate further.. ... La Lanterne - Sarlat, Le Jardin - Sarlat are our 2 B & B choices for Sarlat, although I also really like the sound of... Les Bressettes outside of town. ... We decided against staying in Arles we are looking into basing ourselves near or in St Remy with 1 night in Vaison La Romaine, we are also spending a couple of nights in Aix as we have a couple of classes we want to take that would make it a good base for us. ...
http://www.intltravelnews.com/2007/09/france-%E2%80%94-from-the-dordogne-to-provence-minimizing-the-crowds-and-maximizing-the-enjoyment <<< nice article worth a read .. France from the Dordogne to Provence
Posted by
Victoria, BC, Canada
101 posts
If you come across some nice looking B & B's in The Loire Valley, Dordogne and Provence, please share them here.
We too will be looking at spending a night in Chartres before heading to Burgandy and Alsace :)