France in Late October - Recommendations Please!

[mom2and]

We have Covid plane tickets we need to use this year and have planned a 12 day trip to France for late October due to family schedules. Me, DH and two young adult sons.

I have done very limited overseas travel and DH, who has traveled a lot, has not been to Paris or much of France. We would spend some time in Paris, go to Normandy, and then plan a car rental to some other areas. One son wants to go to the mountains, possibly Chamonix.

I am reaching out to a travel agent, as it seems overwhelming trying to figure this out from Rick Steves and other sites. Any recommendations, “must-sees”, things to avoid welcome! Thanks in advance!

[momofboiler1]

That’s a lot of driving in only 12 days. I would personally just do Paris and Normandy, or Paris and the Chateaux de la Loire. The drive to Chamonix isn’t an easy one and that stretch of road in the mountains is prone to car accidents and traffic.

[abasket]

Could you use the train for some side trips or splitting the trip up? We really loved the ease and comfort of the trains.

[DadOfJerseyGirl]

+1 for using trains. The driving experience isn’t the same as here in the US. Trains are a far more convenient option for getting around.

[taverngirl]

We just returned from France. Did eastern and southern. How about Normandy to Bordeaux to Pyrenees? Or Normandy to Bayonne to Pyrenees? They are beautiful mountains and much less touristy than the Alps. ETA weather may be nicer in Pyrenees as well in October.

[momofboiler1]

There is a TGV route between Paris and Annecy. Under 4 hours. That might be a good option if the mountains are non negotiable for your sons. I’d do that before trying the drive.

[kjofkw]

We made a similar trip pre-Covid that was about 10 days total (including flights). Flew into Paris & spent a few days. Took the train to Versailles, and spent a full day there. Picked up a rental car in Versailles, and drove via Chartres to Normandy, returned the car in Caen, and trained back to Paris for about 5 days.

Tidbits that worked well:

• We stayed at a hotel for the first and last day only. The first day was a small Parisian Hotel, the last day near the airport. The other days were spent at AirBnB’s WITH a family, or at a Bed& Breakfast. Those were some of our best memories. Hosts were all incredible.

• If you’re going to Versailles, start at the Petite Trianon & Gardens, and return to the palace - backwards from most tourists. The palace is always crowded, but starting to thin out later in the day. We had the Trianon estate nearly to ourselves.

• Chartres was wonderful. Stay at least one night to experience the evening Light display. When we visited, it was only on weekends in October, so check the schedule.

• Purchase a museum pass. It included all the major museums. If you have time, visit some of the minor ones. Those were unexpected treats. Always check their schedules. When we visited, some closed on odd days for special events, which is not a problem if you know in advance & plan accordingly.

• WALK the neighborhoods & find surprises (esp. Le Marais).

I felt fine with the amount of time we spent in Paris for a first visit, but our time to/from/in Normandy was too short. It included a full day around Mt.St. Michael , another getting to/from The American Cemetery, and an afternoon in Bayeux. Caen was just to drop off the car and transfer to train.

Feel free to message & I’ll try to find more of our past itinerary, or if you have questions.

[FallGirl]

You didn’t mention the south of France, but H and I went there in October about 4 or 5 years back and it was lovely. We stayed in Nice and took trains to Monaco and Cannes. We would definitely go back.

[Illinoisparent12]

Wow, so jealous!

For Normandy, I’m assuming you’re going there for the history, and learn something about Dday and WWII? If so, I highly recommend hiring a guide. They’ll take you to the beaches, the American cemetary, to St. Mere Eglise, and walk you through the background leading up to the day, and then the battles that happened on the day itself. It was such a memorable experience for us. We used: First Normandy Tours (recommended in Rick Steves book), and did the one-day American tour.

For Paris, a couple of recommendations:

Paris by Mouth food tour: Neighborhood food tours - you pick your date and which neighborhood. They’ll walk you around the neighborhood and stop at different shops - patisserie, macaron store, cheese shop, bakery for bread, meats and pates, wine. At each stop the guide will give the group a talk about the different foods and the group picks out some items at each place. Then at the end you go to a wine shop and feast on all of the spoils. I put this first for a reason, as this was one of our favorite experiences. I recommend it to everyone, and everyone has given it great reviews.

Bike About tours: Great bike tours from a smaller company. We did a Versailles Tour - awesome. Stopped at a market in the morning and picked up food for a picnic, then did a bike tour of the Versailles grounds - had a picnic by the water. Then tickets to a tour of the castle.
They also do a really good bike tour of Paris - stopping by different monuments and areas- nice way to see a lot of the city and learn a little something.

Bateaux Parisiens: This was a lunch/dinner cruise of the Seine. We did lunch, and thought it was great. Kind of expensive though, but a really fun treat.

Chez Janou - great restaurant in the Marais neighborhood. We always recommend it.

Hotel Des Grandes Ecoles - wonderful little hotel right in the heart of the Latin Quarter. The best thing about it is it has a gorgeous courtyard where you can sit in the morning and eat breakfast, and come back in the afternoon and open a bottle of wine. It feels out of the way even though it right in the heart of the Latin Quarter. Overall, I’d recommend getting a VRBO, but if you wanted a hotel, this is a good one.

[mathmom]

Ice cream at Berthillon’s on the Isle St. Louis even if it’s cold and dreary.

I spent 10 days in Normandy eons ago and did not run out of things to do. I highly recommend going to the beach at Etratat (the stones are all geodes!) and admiring the rocks that Monet painted. My brother and his wife did the cliff walk that starts there as well and really enjoyed it. Visit Etretat - Normandy Tourism, France Pointe du Hoc was our favorite of the battle sites, there’s enough of the fortifications remaining that you can really imagine it. Don’t miss the Bayeux tapestry. Agree with trains for long distances.

[gouf78]

Returned in May from 2 week trip to France. Started in Paris for a few days (we’d visited before) and then high speed train to Montpellier (kids were there). From Montpellier we were able to do easy train day trips. Avignon, Carcisson, Sete, Nimes. Longest train ride was about an hour and shortest 15 min. Kids and H did a day wine tour–I went shopping.

All the day trips required no car–just get off the train and you’re there in the city! So much fun. Montpellier was very fun as well. Train travel was very easy and inexpensive.

Haven’t been to Normandy. I have been to Chamonix. Personally I’d save Chamonix for another time of year and another trip. The driving in a car will wear you out and the mountains are not fast driving. What you think should take 20 min will turn into an hour. Parking anywhere in a city (all over France) is in very short supply. Guess it really depends on what you really want to see.

Take a bit of time to research the train system. There are the high speed trains, the direct and local lines, and the high speed trains (very similar) are two different types–high cost and low cost. Make reservations especially for high speed long distance- like from Paris to Normandy (in our case Montpellier which was 5 hour trip) WAY in advance–up to 60 days. The price increases drastically as you get closer to your date and the type train you sign up for. We took the trip TO Montpellier for 26 euros and it cost me 111 euros on the way back because I messed up. It’s like price line–only 3 left at this price!!! Local short excursions we just reserved night before or day of with no problem (just used our phone and done! Get a QR code)

[momofboiler1]

Visit one of the Lenotre pastry shops. If you go to the one by the opera house, there are a number of speciality gourmet shops in that area.

Musee d’Orsay is my favorite of the museums. If you can, eat lunch in their restaurant (not the cafe, the actual restaurant). Feels funny to recommend a museum restaurant but the food is outstanding and it’s an amazing space.

I love just walking around Paris. Love the area near Parc Monceau. I could stroll the city streets all day for your 12 days and not get tired.

[mom2and]

Thanks all! Appreciate the quick and detailed responses, especially about the difficulty of driving. I would be happy to do train travel so will check the train routes.

I am sure I will have more questions after I read the responses in more detail and do more research. My DH has been having some difficulty walking and walks very slowly due to neuropathy and arthritis, so have to figure that in as well. But I also could spend my days walking the city!

Appreciate any other recommendations!

[great_lakes_mom]

When D lived in France at various times, I really appreciated the smaller cities and countryside. They are more relaxed; food is wonderful and less pricy than Paris and they hold their agricultural traditions in high esteem. Nantes, Pau and Nime were some that we really enjoyed. Many small train stations rent cars, and I had no trouble driving with her direction in rural France. A GPS would do the same thing. The cities were far more intimidating as signal lights were placed lower and were less obvious, plus traffic when I was bewildered in the first place. We drove up the peninsulas in Brittany, around the Pyrenees, and in Provence where there are lovely small towns and villages to explore.

[DrGoogle123]

Thanks for mentioning it, I used to have Lenotre pastry cook books. I think I gave them away.

OP, I’m going to do Normandy and the local areas as well next year, I will add to check out Mont-Saint Michel.

[Twoin18]

Normandy weather will be a bit unpredictable in late October, probably a mix of rainy days and bright blustery days unless you are lucky. If you start from Paris and are comfortable driving, I’d suggest a loop taking in Normandy (stop at Monet’s garden in Giverny on the way), Brittany (Mont St Michel/St Malo and the area around Vannes/Carnac/Quiberon are both nice) and coming back via the Loire Valley and Chartres.

[elena13]

For Paris, I definitely recommend the Musee D’Orsay and the Louvre (do a guided tour for sure). Walk along the Seine and walk through the St. Germain neighborhood (in the 6th arrondissment). We also loved the neighborhood called Le Marais (they have great spots known for crepes and falafel). We loved the neighborhood near the Eiffel tower, especially Rue Cler (we gathered picnic supplies at a variety of cute shops and a wine store and ate near the tower) and Rue St. Domenique. We also ate in a wonderful quaint restaurant in the 7th called Le Florimond and we met Rick Steves there! This was this past March and we took the metro everywhere in Paris, but if you are up for bike riding, you’ll be able to see more of the city.
If we had more time I would have gone to the Opera house and Sacre Coeur.

[LostInTheShuffle]

LostWife and I spent a week in Bordeaux (driving from Paris) in late September/early October many years ago and absolutely loved it. Fewer tourists and weather was cooler (and usually sunny).

[Catcherinthetoast]

@elena13

For Paris, I definitely recommend the Musee D’Orsay and the Louvre (do a guided tour for sure). Walk along the Seine and walk through the St. Germain neighborhood (in the 6th arrondissment).

Great advice above. We did all of the above first week in December. Been to France a dozen plus times for work and enjoyed the relative calm of this time of year. Pre holiday post summer but a bit rainy.

I would add in a small group walking food tour. These can be done at various price points but are a lot of fun and a great way to mix a history lesson, sight seeing and great food and wine.

Of course worth a quick cab ride to Notre Dame to see the repair process might also be of interest…

About an hour outside of Paris is a great horse town Chantilly that is the home of a great hotel (the chateau Chantilly) and a beautiful castle, museum and horse facility that welcomes guests. Their is also a Michelin star restaurant. Beautiful place and if time constrained allows for a great Paris/French country side combo.

Beautiful place!!

[mom2and]

Wanted to come back and report on our trip to France. We returned on the 30th. Thanks to all for the suggestions and hints. As suggested, we limited our trip to Normandy, Brittany and Paris. South of France or the mountains will be for another trip. Was great to spend about a week in Paris.

The trip was fantastic. We were concerned before we left because there were fuel refinery worker strikes that had led to gas shortages. The first part of our trip was driving! Luckily, while shortages continued in and around Paris, we did fine going north.

We landed and got our rental car, drove to Giverny and toured the gardens and home. It was lovely, even in late October. We continue onto Bayeux, a fantastic town with a beautiful cathedral. From there, we did a day trip to the Normandy sites starting at the D Day museum and remnants of the constructed harbor in Arromanches, the German battlements, the American cemetery and Omaha beach. All interesting and very moving. We did not hire a guide, which may have provided more context, but felt like we learned a lot from the displays and from googling!

We returned to Bayeux to view the tapestry (tells the story of the Battle of Hastings in 1066 and the rise of William the Conqueror) and had great mussels. Next day off to Mont St. Michel which which is truly one of the Wonders of the World. Luckily, the weather was good and we got there at low tide so could walk around the outside of the structure. From there we continued on to St. Malo on the Brittany coast. Again, lucked out with good weather at this beach town.

We then drove to Paris and returned the car at the train station, which was much more convenient than the airport. Overall, the driving was not a problem and the roads were good.
Drove on some highways, but also through lots of old, historic villages.

We rented an apartment in the Latin Quarter, a couple of blocks form the Cluny museum and about a 15 minute walk to Notre Dame. Since it was our first time in Paris, we did lots of walking, lots of good eating, and saw most of the key tourist sites - Louvre, Orsay, Rodin, Cluny, Eiffel Tower, etc. Strolled the markets, Le Marais and gardens, sat at outdoor cafes, and enjoyed just walking around. We took in a professional soccer game and went to a jazz club but most other nights by the time we had a late dinner and an evening walk, we were happy to relax and recharge for the next day.

We got the Paris Museum pass for a couple of days, and made timed reservations for a few museums and St Chapelle. However, I found myself at the L’Orangerie and only waited about 15 minutes so seemed like a good time to visit, even though French schools were closed for the “All Saints” fall break.

Was glad to see that there were very few “chain” restaurants, certainly compared to NYC. A couple of Starbucks, a Chipotle and somewhere a Five Guys burgers were all we saw. The cafes and markets were all bustling. Almost everyone we met was quite friendly.

The last day we checked out of the apartment and stored our luggage through at a local store through an app. Was a bit concerned but worked out fine. Stayed at a hotel at the airport, which was quite convenient.

Hard to pick a favorite. Some things were definitely one and done like Versailles and the Eiffel tower. Definitely hope to get back. On another trip would probably do less time in Paris and then go South.

Thanks to all for the suggestions. Definitely too many wonderful things to do even in a full week. So thankful we were able to take this trip.