southwestern france

Alternatives to Bordeaux: Toulouse (a big city), Sarlat (a small one).

I think it would be a shame to get all the way down there and not visit the Perigord, or at least the Dordogne, Vezere, & Lot valleys.

There are fortresses from the 100 Years War, caves full of neolithic art, marvelous little towns, great food.

Good luck!

What attracts you to Bordeaux? I ask only to understand more about your interests. Carcassone not west, but it does put you close to Albi; a great little town with an interesting history, cathedral, etc. Religious history is open to you if you go Lourdes; but Pau, Tarbes, and other towns are great to visit and the Pyrenees are wonderful. Back up north, the Perigord fantastic area. Lascaeux for the cave art may be of interest to you. Once I have a better understanding of your interests I could be more helpful.

To me Bordeaux is a large city. We like to look at the shops, especially the French bookstores. I love Paris and liked Nice and Arles, and Avignon a lot, so I figure I'd enjoy walking around Bordeaux. However, Blois and Rouen seemed so just so so. I really know very little about the southwest so don't know what to see yet. But we don't like staying over many nights in small villages unless there's something to do everyday. We did the Rick Steves Riveria/Provence tour and loved it.

I was in Bordeaux last year and really enjoyed it - great food, wine tasting, pedestrian friendly areas, people watching. You might consider the Atlantic coast, places like Archachon, Cap Ferret, and La Rochelle. Lots of sandy beaches, nature areas, nice villages. This is where the French vacation but not many Americans go there.

Adding to Grier's post, Hossegor is an enjoyable little town at the Atlantic coast just north of Baritz. The beach is very un-crowded.

You mentioned Biarritz, John, and that's not a bad area to spend a few days. I've got a ten-dayer planned for September so have been doing much research. Our main interest is Pays Basque and the Pyrenees with a bit of hiking thrown in. We also want the 'big(ger)-city experience and a bit of beach/ocean so the plan is:

About 4 nites in Bayonne then south/east to Espelette/Ainhoa, across the border at Dancharia to Elizondo and Santesteban/Doneztebe then up to San Sebastian/Donostia. Might even fit in Bilbao if time permits and Pamplona's not far from Elizondo/Santesteban.

Couldn't imagine going to that part of the country and not 'doing' the Pyrenees; I will take a pass on Bordeaux, though. Check out "Maribel's Guides" (that's close to the website name but you may have to play around a bit). Free, downloadable guides to Basque country by some very knowledgeable people.

Have fun.