Travel suggestions - starting at Monte Carlo

Forget Italy since it'll be crowded and cheap digs hard to find.

Get a car and head east.

Make a loop that runs Monte Carlo, Perpignan, Perigeux, Lyon, Monte Carlo. See part of Rhone/Provence the first time and more the second time you pass through the area. Don't miss Carcassonne or the french prehistory area around Les Ezyies.

Stay in etap hotels (all over the place -- etaphotel.com) at about 50 euros/night/double (single bunk above queen lower). Eat breakfast and lunch from sack in the car, spend well on supper.

Total distance is about twelve hundred miles, a lot on really good roads. With a week, figure on an average of less than three hours driving per day. Gas would be about $250 for the whole thing. I figure cars at about $25-$30/day.

Hair, feathers, car, and gas will stiff you for about a hundred bucks per person per day.

Hotel Formule1 -hotelf1.com, is even cheaper then Etap. However, toilet and shower are down the hall. There are a few in the area of Nice. We usually stay at Etap or Ibis.

If you can, a bus from Nice to Grasse is 1 Euro each way and worth the fare. It is a lot easier than driving up and down the mountains. Grasse is an interesting town, plus you might find some great perfume at a decent price. They make it there.

We go to France every year and speak little French. A French hello, good by, and other basic works will suffice to get you around.

We buy cheese, fruit, bread to carry with us for snacks. Some Etaps have a great breakfast, which include boiled eggs, ham, etc. Some do not. Ask before paying if you are only getting bread, coffee, etc. They are cheaper on the road. We have a hot lunch at a pub or brasserie, and dinner is our cheap meal-we do sandwiches-bought or self made, or fast food. If we find a brasserie that is reasonable, we will eat dinner, but that is the expensive meal, usually, and that is the one we economize on.

On driving, check total amount of rental and gas, vs train and or bus. There is an extensive local bus that is really cheap. Look at the routes and times and see if they work for you. If so, I think they might be cheaper than driving. Plus, parking in some areas can be 20 or 30 Euro per day, to add to the driving costs. Just look at map and train/bus schedules and see if they work. If not, then rent a car. If they do, then do public transport.

Vueling flies between Nice and Barcelona. I didn't know what days you're going but I found a fare for 90 Euros round trip.

June is a busy travel time so cheap is not an easy thing.

If you prefer to stay in France, well, you have some time...learn a few words in French and do as Ed suggested. Rent a car and visit southern France. Provence is beautiful that time of year. (Provence is beautiful anytime.) If you don't want to rent a car, take the train. You'll be limited as to where you go but still some great sights.

Don't fret the language. But do learn to smile, look the person directly, and say, "Bonjour." That goes a LONG way. And that's with everyone. (Years ago, in the Bon Marche (Paris), we were chided by the check-out lady for doing the typically-American thing of rushing through our purchases without that human touch!) Great lesson ... even works back home.

All great advice, thank you! I should have added that the job will start with 3 days in Provence, then 3 days in Monte Carlo. Although I could go back and explore Provence I'm thinking of leaving France. I just don't know why I have that inclination.

Recent advice given to me: I will have to go back to Nice for 2 days before I leave the area. During that time I could explore cheap flights to the various destinations I'm considering and decide then. I'm worried about limited options with last minute travel. All of my friends say I would love Amsterdam (i'm not an alternative type, but I do like northern europe). Today I found a round trip flight for $200.

I wonder if last minute travel is super expensive and risky like it can be here....

Most, but not all deals on travel and lodgings are available early. The closer to the travel date, the more they cost. You can luck out and get last minute cheap fares, but that is a really big gamble, and with airlines decreasing flights, and using smaller planes, deals are few and far between.

More information, please.

What airport will you fly into when you arrive in France? Where will you be in Provence? What airport will you fly out of when you go home? Are you and your partner art lovers? Do you like taking extended walks? Do you want to see some historical sights? Do you want to focus on cities, small towns and the countryside, or some of each?

The schedule that I have for my work is I fly into Nice and stay on my own for 2 days to get adjusted to the time change. Then my client takes me out to Tourettes (spelling?) at the 4seasons for 3 days of touring and work. Then we go to Monte Carlo for 3 more days. I then plan to go back to Nice to wrap up my work before I go explore someplace. I currently fly home from Nice, but I can change that if I'm willing to pay the change penalty and any difference in flight. I had planned to fly home from Barcelona but... I'm now thinking not. So many options. Too many for me to consider. Plus, I will be exhausted after the job.

For the record, the correct spelling is Tourrettes.

You still haven't listed any of your interests or said whether you want to focus on cities, villages and the countryside, or both.

That's right... I forgot to list our interests, mostly because I'm not sure what they are. All I can think of is my experience in Italy 4 years ago. I loved the time in Venice, but it was hot and I really dislike hot places. I loved even more the time in a small "refugio" in the Dolomites because it was cool but I got bored. I hated the drive down to Florence - it was a terrifying long drive. Then I didn't care for Florence because again it was hot. Did I already say I dislike the heat?

My ideal vacation is Vancouver Canada in the summer. Fun city to explore, cool weather. Green. Water. Nice people. Great food.

Is there anything like this in the corner of Europe that I will be starting from? I've been considering Cinque Terre but I'm afraid of it being too warm for me. Maybe I should explore small French, Italian and Swiss mountain towns in the Alps?

Have you considered renting an apartment? I did so last year (in Villefranche-sur-mer) - had a great view of the bay and Cap Ferrat) and took day trips up and down the coast by bus or train, from Ventimiglia, Italy to Cannes. Delightful and worry free (although schedules are such that you cannot stay for nightlife, generally). But having a nice lunch on your day trip is cheaper and you can relax with bread, wine, fruit and cheese at your apt in the eve. The 100 bus from Nice to Menton has stops at key places and costs about 1 euro, OW. Train from Villefranche to Monte Carlo was about 5 euro.

The tourist offices are most helpful, within a matter of minutes I was on a bus to EZE (hill top town) rather than Ventimiglia on a Wednesday because they suggested going to the later on a Friday to take in the market, which I did. I loved the freedom of traveling so much that I'm going again this year.

Based on what you like (Italians, mountains, cooler weather), I'd suggest Lake Como. We drive from Monaco to Bellagio a few years ago. It's not that far. Lake Como is beautiful and it's right on the southern edge of the Alps. I think you'd enjoy it a lot.

If you think you might be bored spending all your time in the mountains, consider doing this. Fly easyJet from Nice to Paris and spend a few days there. Take a train to Dijon and pick up a rental car so you do a wine tour. Sleep in Beaune. Drive to Annecy (the "Venice of France") and spend a night there. Work your way through the mountains back to Nice.