Looking for a train day-trip from central Paris (we are staying between Notre Dame and Pompidou at the end of September) out to a quintessential countryside town to explore a village on foot, eat lunch, explore more, then head back into Paris by the late evening. We're thinking 1-2 hours out might be a good limit. Went to the Cotswolds in May, and loved the charm of these old hamlets and would love to see/feel this but in classic old Francaise instead. Thanks so much for your first-hand experiences!
Posted by
Lake Oswego, Oregon
1329 posts
Giverny! Easy to get to and wonderful gardens throughout the village, not just at Monet's place. Have a lazy lunch outside at the Hotel Baudy - the duck omelet is fantastic.
Posted by
Abruzzo Mountains
1088 posts
Crecy-la-Chapelle. It's a suburb of Paris, only 45 minutes from Gare de l'Est. It was where the earliest Impressionist painters went to develop techniques around outdoor settings, use of light, etc right after premade paint-in-tubes was invented so they could leave the studio. There are markers all over town of who painted what from this particular location, with the painting, an old photo of what they were looking at, and a current photo. No high-rises, no modern buildings, good restaurants, great walks. Home to many Disney executives, as the housing stock is both old and well-maintained. Also, look for "An Hour from Paris" by Annabel Simms, 2nd edition issued last year. It has lots of great little towns just like you're looking for, all accessible by public transportation from Paris. I couldn't find a copy locally, so I emailed her and she sent me a list of Paris locations that sell it. I found a copy here: Galignani, 224 rue de Rivoli, 75001, tel 01 42 60 76 07, Métro Tuileries PM me if you want the complete list of bookstores. Amazon might have it by now, but it was new last summer. We stayed in this town for three weeks last summer and loved it. It was so easy to go to Paris but also see other things.
Posted by
Savannah, GA
1384 posts
Maintenon, France is about 15 minutes away from Paris on the Paris - Chartres - Nogent-le-Rotrou - Le Mans line of the TER Centre (it leaves from Montparnasse). This charming little city has a lovely little chateau, aqueducts, and the perfect French feel. It can easily be paired with Chartres or Nogent-le-Rotrou as a daytrip.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ch%C3%A2teau_de_Maintenon Check it out. If you have any questions let me know.