Thoughts and ideas About the best way to spend 2 to 3 days when in route from Cinque Terre to Paris. Will be traveling in the last week of August and I am looking to capture the most quinisential non-urban French place(s) to visit?
Just to play the devil's advocate... can fun be "inauthentic"?
I would suggest ONE of two: for beaches, Nice, for country French, Provence. I would suggest staying either in Nice for the Riviera or Isle-sur-la Sorgue or Castillon du Gard in Provence. From Nice you can tour the area by bus and train. In Provence you should rent a car, probably from the TGV train station.
Yes it's called Disney World :)
The Vaucluse area of Provence.