Hello, I am taking my mom to Paris in Oct. A good friend is getting married on the 10th in Paris so we are planning our trip around the wedding. We have 2 weeks and are hoping to go/do/see as much as possible (Neither of us have been to Europe). What would you recommend are the absolute musts and would it be too much to fly into Germany and then take the train to France? Any reccomendations? Thanks!!!
Posted by
Clawson, MI, USA
199 posts
It depends. How much time do you want to spend in each place? Are you flying round trip or open jaws?
If I had to fly to Germany I would fly into Frankfurt or Cologne. They're closest to France and both have excellent train connections to Paris. Cologne has the high-speed Thalys trains that take about 3.5 hours to Paris Nord. From Frankfurt it's about 4 hours by train to Paris Est if you use the ICE. Your mom may get a discount if she's a senior?
If you fly to Frankfurt then I would explore the towns along the Rhine River up to Koblenz. Then I would take the train to Trier, Germany. From there to Paris and I'll let you fill in the blanks from here.
Posted by
S.F. Bay Area, CA, United States
1878 posts
For your mom is mobility an issue at all? Even in Paris, there is a lot of uneven pavement.
Would you anticipate renting a car, or sticking to the train? With a car you have to be careful to avoid picking up and dropping off in different countries, because then you would incur a big drop fee.
Not too much at all to fly into Germany and then go to France on the train. What parts of Germany are you interested in? Why try and do two countries, do you have a special interest in Germany too? Germany is great, there is just so much to do in France alone.
The Rhine is a fun area of Germany, also Baden Baden. Both are near France, with a quick train connection from Strasbourg to Paris. Strasbourg is a great place to visit (we were there just a couple of weeks ago!).
You can also fly into Frankfurt and take the train to Baden Baden or the smaller Rhine villages. Bacharach is my pick in the Rhineland, that is where we stayed in 2006 on RIck's recommendation. If I really wanted to do a little of each country, I would fly into Frankfurt and figure out some way to do the Rhineland and Rothenburg.
Depending upon what you and your mom like, in France Normadny and the Loire Valley are also the greatest.
Posted by
OP
Portland, Oregon
8 posts
My mom is in good shape and does not qualify for the senior rate, but that would help with the fares!
Being that this is our first trip we thought it would be great to maximize our time and try to visit Germany if possible. We were thinking about visiting Bavaria and going to some of the castles.
In France how many outings outside of Paris are really do able in 2 weeks? Would you recommend day trips or are there any that really require spending a night to see?
Thanks again.
Posted by
Danville, VT
12040 posts
I would recommend getting some good guidebooks, start reading, mark down things you want to see, then try to chain them together into a feasible itinerary. I'm about to commit a heresy for this website, but I would advise using Rick Steves' books only for recommendations in specific locations, and not for overall planning. The reason- your stated goal is "to to go/do/see as much as possible". The biggest weakness of the Rick Steves series, particularly the Germany edition, is that his books focus on a few specific dispersed locations, rather than giving a larger overview. Reading solely his books, you may waste time in transit going from one distant site to another, when you could have probably seen something similar that was much closer (and not listed in his book). The Rick Steves books are best for getting specific hotel recommendations (he has the best mid-price suggestions in the business, in my opinion) and for in-depth exploration of specific cities. So start reading, try to come up with a list of things YOU want to see, and then perhaps we can help you link them together in a workable itinerary.
Posted by
Tacoma, WA, USA
671 posts
You might want to price out "open-jaw" (i.e. multi-city) tickets. I am planning a Paris-France-Germany trip and plan on flying in to Paris and out of Frankfurt. It isn't too much of a problem to get from Frankfurt to Paris, but might as well fly straight there!
Posted by
Reston, VA, USA
810 posts
Nicole, you mention Bavaria for the castles - just be aware that the Rhine valley has tons of castles and would be a good stop on your way from Frankfurt to Paris [which others have recommended]. Many are in ruins but still fun to tour; another castle, Burg Eltz [along the Mosel], was never damaged by fighting and is beautiful. The Rhine castles you could do by train, but I'm not sure about Burg Eltz. You could even stay in a castle - the youth hostel in Bacharach is Burg Stahleck and sounds like a great place to stay. It's on my list for my next trip...
I like the RS books because they don't overwhelm one with choices, but the poster who said there are many wonderful things to see that Rick doesn't mention was right on. For example, I spent a day in Mainz on a river cruise; Rick says don't bother with Mainz, but I had a great time. I particularly enjoyed the Gutenberg museum. So check out a number of different guides, and try to look at travel videos/TV shows also, to help you focus on what will be of most interest to you and your mom. Have a wonderful trip!