Travel Advice - France

[Kid Charlemagne]

(cross-posted from Circvs Maximvs)

I'm making a commitment to doing more travelling in the next few years - I lived in France for five years as a kid, but I haven't been overseas since '86, and I'm tired of that!

I'm in the first stages of planning a week-long vacation in France (and possibly northen Italy) for next Spring, and I'm doing my first bits of research on the subject. If anyone has any recommendations of travel guide books, places to go things to see, websites to visit, etc, please let me know.

Items on my wish-list for my first trip(s)
-A couple days in Paris
-The Dordogne region of France (Castelnaud, Beynac, Marqueyssac)
-Mont St. Michel (I want to stay overnight on the island)
-possibly the Cinque Terre in the Italian Riviera
-Venice

These last two I think will probably be bumped to a second trip later on. I don't want to rush myself. I'll be travelling by myself most likely.

Any thoughts or recommendations?

 

[Stormborn]

You can spend all the time in the world in Paris and not see it all, so if you are going to limit your time there I would plan wisely. I personally would have prefered seeing more historic sites and less museums, but thats just me. If interested in aristocratic masions the Loire Valley is a nice day trip. I would recommend getting a package deal (if you take the train to Tours you can find a visitors center that can set that up for you) that visits 2 or 3 of the famous sites. Unless you are just a French History buff that should be enough for a good feel and some interesting sites.

In Italy I would go to Venice and Florence and skip Rome all together. But then I went in August and the city was closed, and hot, and mostly miserable in part due to my company ("There was this girl" as all my pre-marriage stories start).

Switzerland is a wonderful place to visit, and if I had to choose between time in Switerland and in Italy I would stick to the former. A scenic panorama train through the mountains is a must.

 

[Kid Charlemagne]

You can spend all the time in the world in Paris and not see it all, so if you are going to limit your time there I would plan wisely. I personally would have prefered seeing more historic sites and less museums, but thats just me.

I actually lived just outside of Paris for five years, so I've seen most of the sights there - I want to hit my favorites like the Place des Vosges, the Marais district, parts of the Left Bank, Montmartre, and so on. I'll be skipping the museums - no time, and I've seen them before (although 20 years ago or more).

If interested in aristocratic masions the Loire Valley is a nice day trip. I would recommend getting a package deal (if you take the train to Tours you can find a visitors center that can set that up for you) that visits 2 or 3 of the famous sites.

I'm not a big fan of the Loire style chateaus - I'm going to the Dordogne because the sites are older, and less touristy. The package deals are a good suggestion - I've got plenty of time to keep my eyes open for those.

In Italy I would go to Venice and Florence and skip Rome all together. But then I went in August and the city was closed, and hot, and mostly miserable in part due to my company ("There was this girl" as all my pre-marriage stories start).

For some reason I've never had that much interest in Rome.

Switzerland is a wonderful place to visit, and if I had to choose between time in Switerland and in Italy I would stick to the former. A scenic panorama train through the mountains is a must.

Switzerland is nice. I'd like to do some hiking in the mountains, but that may have to wait for trip #2: Switzerland, Cinque Terre, and Venice? That just might work. Then trip #3 can be Spain - Moorish Spain and Madrid, perhaps.

 

[Thunderfoot]

Its kind of funny that you mention going to Europe and you live in Chicago; the other night on "My Boys" the protagonist and her best friends were getting ready to leave on a trip to Italy, when her brother mentioned that why were the going to Italy when there were so many things that they hadn't seen in locally (It's set in Chicago).

If you've ever seen the series, the female lead has five friends that are guys, she writes for the Tribune as a junior sports writer (kind of a Cubs-reporter - sorry) They usually start each episode at the local sports bar or playing poker at her house. So the brother challenged each of the persons assembled to pick out one local thing the hadn't done and the group would make a day of hitting the local sites.

Sorry to derail, the timing was just weird.

 

[Kid Charlemagne]

Has anyone got any preferences in travel websites? Are there travel-related forums that could be compared in any way to ENWorld in terms of friendliness and usefulness?

 

[Horacio]

If you go near Mount St Michel, sleeping in the island is a must, yes. The night, when most tourist leave and shops close, the whole island seems faeric.

And if you are at Mt St Michel and you have an extra day to spend, go see St Malo, the ancient corsair city, and Dinan, a wonderful medieval town.

And once you're there, visiting Brittany could be a good idea

If you want more information about it, don't hesitate to ask me

 

[Kid Charlemagne]

If you go near Mount St Michel, sleeping in the island is a must, yes. The night, when most tourist leave and shops close, the whole island seems faeric.

And if you are at Mt St Michel and you have an extra day to spend, go see St Malo, the ancient corsair city, and Dinan, a wonderful medieval town.

And once you're there, visiting Brittany could be a good idea

If you want more information about it, don't hesitate to ask me

Actually, I've been to St. Malo twice, and spent two weeks in Brittany the last time I was in France...

I may hit St. Malo since its so close, and depending on my schedule I may consider hitting the standing stones in Quiberon further south (I've been to those a few times as well!), but overall, Brittany (and Normandy) are a couple of the areas that I've been to more than any others, and so are lower on my priority...