I am starting to plan a 16 day trip to France. We fly into and out of Paris, and are going to end with 3-4 days in Paris. I'm looking at Rick Steve's 3 week Kamakaze trip for drivers and feel there is too much crammed in, so am cutting it down. I'm thinking it may make sense to cut out Dordogne, Provence and the Riviera because of the hefty amount of driving to get to Southern France. This would leave Normandy, Loire Valley, the Alps, Burgundy, and Paris. Thoughts? Has anyone ever traveled from Amboise to Chamonix and if so, did you drive or train?
Posted by
Boston
4132 posts
Michelle, I can only give you "thoughts," since I've never done this (and probably would not choose to). But this sort of issue is not unusual given the Paris-Hub aspect of France's rail network. Amboise - Chamonix will take you almost 8 hours not including stopping for food. The train is 9 hours and probably more expensive. It's actually easier to get to Provence if you take the train, because that route is so fast. It's only about 3 hours from Chamonix to Beaune (supposing that's where you want to go in Burgundy). And there is a potential time-saver you may not have considered, which is to shift your Paris visit toward the start of your trip and take the train to Charles deGaulle directly from Burgundy. There is one early morning train connecting in Dijon that goes straight to the airport, bypassing Paris. Why would you want to do this? Well for one thing you could then Paris after Amboise, which would break your long trip to Chamonix into something shorter. Or you could start in Paris. If you don't care about that, then you might look at driving from Amboise to Burgundy. It's nearer than Chamonix and you could break your trip in Vezeley or one of the towns in the Serien valley. Then on to Chamonix, ditch the car, and take the train back to Paris. Have fun whatever you decide!
Posted by
lexington, il
4105 posts
Michelle,
Is there a reason you're flying RT Paris? If not, consider open jaw flight into Lyon or Nice and use a combo of driving and train. This would at least give you an extra day on the ground. look at a map and try to think in straight lines
Posted by
OP
Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States
2 posts
Thank you for your input. There is a reason we're flying in and out of Paris - we are using frequent flyer miles to get there. Since my post, my husband pointed out Colmar, so that is now in the mix. Right now our trip looks like this - (Driving to Normandy) Day 1 - visit Giverny, sleep in Honfleur first night 2.5 hrs driving) Day 2 - Normandy beaches, sleep on/near Mont St. Michel (2.5 hrs driving) Day 3 - Mont St. Michel, then drive to Loire Valley (3.5 hrs driving) Day 4 - Loire Valley Day 5 - Loire Valley, drive to Beaune (3.5 hrs driving) Day 6 - Beaune Day 7 - Beaune, drive to Colmar (2.5 hrs) Day 8 - Colmar/Strasbourg Day 9 - Colmar/Strasbourg Day 10-11 unaccounted for Day 12-16 Paris/Versailles For anyone who has traveled in France before, is there a spot in this where it would make sense to take a train? Is there somewhere we aren't going that you would highly recommend? I'm sure some of this info is elsewhere in posts and I will keep looking through them incase it is. Again, appreciate your input! Cheers!
Michelle