Paris to Marseille

Viamichelin says it will take 8 hours by car with 58 euros of tolls and 70 to 120 euros of fuel depending on your mileage. Looking out to February, you can get tickets on the TGV for 25 euro per person (19 euro on iDTGV or 29 euro 1st class) and it takes 3 hours and 17 minutes.

I know you said time is no object, but it seems like taking the train and then renting a car would save both time and money.

Good information Sam. I've never heard of viamichelin. It will come in handy in planning the rest of our trip.

The train will give you more time to sightsee in Marseilles, but if you'd like to take your time and make stops along the way there is most of France in between.

You also will not have to worry about what do do with the car while you are in Marseilles--can rent a car there when you are ready to leave the city and see Provence.

I can't fathom why anyone would prefer to rent a car and just drive the whole thing in one day, but chacon a son goute.

Viamichelin is the Internet site for the famous Michelin maps, whose travel guides pioneered the star system of ratings and the equally famous restaurant reviews. I have found Viamichelin more helpful for European destinations while Google Maps have the edge in North America. Both are essential to my travels since I have not moved on the global positioning devices.

Ideally, you will stay to visit Paris before moving south, right? It's always risky to book a train ticket immediately following your flight, just in case of flight delays. The cheapest TGV train tickets go on sale about three months ahead and are not refundable or changeable; see also Rick’s France rail travel page. If you were thinking of flying to Paris but not staying there, then it's better to book the flight connection all the way to Marseille.

This is the first time I've used the forum so when adding my reply I don't know how to designate to whom I'm responding. Maybe its to the last response which in this case is Laura. So I guess this is to Laura and to the others that responded to my questions, thank you so much for your comments and insight. It is all very helpful. It seems like there is so much to do and it gets overwhelming at times.

In France we have one destination we want to reach where we will hang our hat for an extended stay and that is Saint-Cyr-sur-Mer (SCSM) where a friend is letting us use their apartment for as long as we wish. We've been to Paris a few times but never to the south of France so we don't plan on doing any sight seeing in Paris even though I'm sure there is more to see. At SCSM we plan on making it a base to make daily excursions. ** (1) WHAT WOULD YOU RECOMMEND AS "DON'T MISS SIGHTS"?** We will either take the train and see the country side, or fly to Marseille. I'm not sure how to check train schedules to Marseille. (2) WHAT IS A GOOD WEBSITE TO CHECK TRAIN SCHEDULES? Our flight arrives at CDG airport at 12:55pm on a Wednesday. There is a flight from CDG to Marseille that leaves at 3:30pm and arrives in Marseille at 4:45pm for $66pp. In Marseille we would rent a car head to SCSM. I believe that upon our arrival in Marseille it will be dark or close to dark. I'm a first time driver in Europe and don't think we should drive to SCMS and look for the apartment. (3) DOES IT GET DARK THERE THE SAME TIME AS IT DOES HERE IN SEATTLE? (4) WHAT WOULD YOU RECOMMEND FOR OVERNIGHT ACCOMMODATIONS IN MARSEILLE? Someone suggested that we drop the car off in Nice and take a train to our next stop which is Cinque Terra. I like that idea and will head in that direction. (5) OTHER THAN THE POSSIBILITY OF PAYING TOLLS ON THE WAY TO NICE IS THERE ANYTHING ELSE WE SHOULD BE AWARE OF? This is a broad brush approach for our stay in France. (6) DOES THIS SEEM LIKE A REASONABLE PLAN OVERALL?

Thanks for any comments you might make.

Number 2. Use this link http://www.ricksteves.com/travel-tips/transportation/trains/online-schedules
elsewhere on this website where Rick talks about how to use the DB website. It is run by the German railways, Deutsche Bahn, and is extremely comprehensive, if you follow the directions. It won't give you prices for trips entirely within France but will tell you everything about the trains you want to use.

Number 3. NO. If you say what date or month I can help with a comparison.