paris day trip to burgundy with driver?

What you want to do is doable but travel time is significant whether you go by tour or train, so planning is necessary. Because travel time is significant, you may want to go to the closest to Paris of the five Burgundy wine districts: the Chablis district centered around Auxerre. And don't mistake the inexpensive California wine that calls itself chablis for Burgundy's Chablis--not the same at all!You have several choices: 1) Use the Advanced Search feature of Google to search for a van or other small Burgundy wine country tour that departs from and returns to Paris. Remember the driving time from Paris by car is 6 hrs roundtrip, so this will be a long day but someone else will be doing the driving.2) Look for a similar tour that departs from/returns to one of the Burgundy cities/towns, such as Dijon or Beaune--this would require you to take the train from Paris to Burgundy, for example, train from Paris to Dijon is about 90 minute train ride. One website to check out is www.burgundy-tourism.safaritours.comI'd be surprised if you can't find a suitable tour departing from/returning to Paris--maybe you can even find one that will pick you up at your hotel.You won't find information on this in Rick's book or on the Helpline--you will need to use the Advanced Search feature of Google or other internet search technique.And by the way, you don't need to apologize here about choosing not to drive in France: you're wise to avoid driving if you feel nervous about it, your good judgment will pay off for you in having a more relaxed and fun experience.

Thank you, thank you! I am grateful for this website and your advice. I would have searched 'till the cows came home, otherwise! I will do a super search right away. And I love the "glass of pinot" Clever.

I'd just add that a driver is unlikely to be able to get you out to Burgundy as fast as a train, unless you are only going as far as Chablis.

So look for tours out of Dijon. Or, if it's your cup of pinot, rent bicycles in Dijon or Beaune.

If you dont find answers to your questions before you go, I would phone a travel agent and ask about a private car as soon as you check in.

Burgundy may be too far for a day trip but an agent will know.

Because travel time from Paris to the Burgundy wine region is significant, for a day-trip you may want to specify to tour providers that you wish to go to the closest to Paris of the 5 Burgundy wine districts: the Chablis district centered around the village of Chablis east of Auxerre. Don't mistake the inexpensive factory-produced California wine that calls itself "chablis" for the French real thing--not the same at all!For Burgundy Chablis, the best vintages are 2005, 2004, 2002, or 1996.The grand cru Chablis vineyards are Les Clos, Valmur, Les Preuses, Vaudesir, Grenouilles, Bougros, and Blanchot. The Chablis district also has over 20 premier cru Chablis appellations, the best known are Fourchaume, Montee de Tonnerre, Vaillons, Mont de Milieux, Montmains, and Les Forets.

Whoah! Sounds like you know your wine! And I LOVE wine, so since I cannot bring you along, thanks for this email! I will print it and reference this! Thank you, everyone.

Shelley: You encouraged me (a mistake), so here's a couple of other thoughts about Burgundy a wine lover may find interesting:Unlike Bordeaux, Bourgogne is a region of much smaller vineyards than Bordeaux. French nobility and the Catholic Church were once the major vineyards owners, but after the Revolution their lands were distributed to the populace; but Bordeaux, farther from Paris and once owned by the English, was considered somehow less French and wasn't as affected by this aspect of the Revolution. (I learned this and more in Wine For Dummies, which has a good chapter on France.)Result was, you have smaller and more fragmented vineyards in Bourgogne than in some other wine regions such as Bordeaux. In Bourgogne you can find two different vineyards growing the same grape but making distinctly different wines only 2 meters apart from each other across a dirt road, the terroir can be that different!