Hello,

I'm planning a trip to France in September. I've bought my Eurostar ticket from London to Paris, and a rail pass allowing 6 days of travel within one month (I'm away for 13 days). I'd like to spend a couple of days in Paris but then head South, and maybe West, and end up back in Paris. I'll be on foot, and on my own. I'm not sure how many places to try and visit. Has anyone done a similar tour? Can anyone recommend any reasonably priced hotels?
Thanks!
Katie

Hello Katie,

First off, France is not really a place for reasonable hotels and especially in Paris. Don’t worry, though – there are plenty of hostels scattered around that will be nice and cheap. Although you don’t say exactly what your budget is, you can also get private rooms if you’re not a fan of dorms that will be a bit more expensive but still more affordable than a hotel room.
Luckily France is a great place to be able to get around by train (unlike the UK, they run efficiently and quickly) so you are not exactly limited by your time scale although I’m not sure that you want to spend too much time travelling in a short-ish space of time.
Paris is a great place to start, I’ve been there maybe 8 times now and I think it’s my favorite city in the world. Don’t miss the view from the Montparnasse Tower – go up to the bar on the top floor rather than via the tourist lift and save yourself from being ripped off – it’s actually better from the Eiffel Tower (which you can see from Montparnasse!). Paris hostels used to be pretty rubbish but there have been a couple of really good ones opened recently so now it’s much easier to find somewhere to stay. Nice too if you’re on your own in the big city.
For another city, try Lyon – think Paris with fewer tourists and less London-like prices.
Next I would go on to the south coast (even though it may not be really hot weather) and stay on the Riviera. Nice is probably the best place to use as a base and explore from there as there are some good affordable restaurants and Nice hostels tend to be better and cheaper than elsewhere in the vicinity. Definitely go to Monte Carlo for the day if you can! (Again, easy hop on the train)
Then if you go west, I would definitely stop at Bordeaux, its lovely, and nearby St Emillion too – a lovely gem of the Provence area. Limoges is also very quaint (slightly more inland) and has great scenery or if you wanted more coastlines then Biarritz on the Pacific is very trendy and cool.
And if you wanted somewhere quite close to Paris in the west for a final stop then I’d head up to Brest in Brittany…
Anyway, that’s a lot of recommendations…I guess I just love France! Hope you have a great time.

Hope it helps!

Hi Katie,

A couple of days in Paris makes sense and then I'd recommend heading south to the warmer weather. There are so many lovely towns to spend a night in - Avignon, Arles, Bezier, Montpellier, Nimes, Narbonne to name just a few.

Good luck!

Mark
http://www.holidayrental.tv

This message has been edited. Last edited by: HRTV,

Thanks so much for the suggestions!

I've decided to have 3 days in Paris, then am heading down to the Riviera, basing myself in a little hotel for a week and making day-trips. Then back up to Lyon, staying in the Youth Hostel in the old town, for 3 days, and exploring around there. Then home.
Can't wait!! I love France, and am looking forward to speaking French..
Thanks again,
Katie