July Family French Trip!

ktulu123

Hey,

Apologies in advance for long post!!:)

Me and the family are starting to plan a summer trip to france and surrounding countries for one month, we will be driving the whole trip as i have always wanted to drive through europe.

It will start by getting a ferry from rosslare to Cherbourg, planning to stay in beyoux then on down to La Rochelle via either Le Mans, Rennes or nantes
(Dont really know which one of these places will be the nicest, i love cars and motorsport so im thinking Le Mans! Any Tips?)

From La Rochelle were going to Bourdeaux, Toulouse and Montpellier ( I love Montpellier!)

After that were going to stay in the south of France for a few days maybe in cannes and visit Monte Carlo and the likes! Im thinking this will be the half way point.

After France on the return leg I have planned to visit Turin, drive over the alps to Geneve, then Dijon then live it up in Paris for a few days then return home via Cherbourg.

My questions are:

Does this sound reasonable for 1 month?
Has anyone been to the places were going and what were they like?
Any tips on sites to see etc?

Cheers

SilverSparkle

Hi,

Sounds brilliant!

Last summer my family spent a month travelling around France in a camper van. They had a blast. I flew over for a week and stayed for a week.

I flew to La Rochelle and met them there. They travelled down through Le mans and there was a vintage car rally on at the time. They were in a cafe and there was a woman there and she offered my brother the chance to travel around in her car. I cant remember what type it was but it was a vintage car. Also on Le Mans there was some sort of festival on and the atmosphere was supposed to be brilliant.

I joined them in La Rochelle and it is gorgeous! The restaurants around the port are lovely.

I've only passed through Toulouse and Montpellier so I cant say much.

As For Cannes and Monte Carlo personally I love them!

And then returning through Paris is a must do.

I've done many similar holidays through France in a car and have enjoyed them a lot.
I think that a month is a lot of time once your only spending a few days here and there.

In Monte Carlo go to the aquarium. Its really brilliant. If you're looking for something to eat in Monte Carlo try Stars and Bars. Its not too pricey for Monte Carlo.

And if in Paris you want to visit Disneyland the fact that you have a car is a plus because you can stay at a cheap hotel and drive there. For example Novotel in Collegien.

Fratton Fred

As you are down that way, I would suggest a night in Lourdes, the parade is worth seein.

biko

I've been on European road trips with mates. Great fun!
Have a plan but leave it open for changes as the weather might be better somewhere else or you come up with alternatives.
Frequent stops, no-one likes to sit cooped up in a back seat for hours.

skibum

Sounds like a great trip! Only getting 2 weeks in France this year...:mad:
If you have young children get the dvd players that hang off the head rests to help keep them occupied. Get a sat nav, takes a lot of the stress out of the drive, less arguments / discussions with your co-driver:D

If you do hit Lourdes, head up to the mountains, the drive / scenery is amazing.

landser

sounds great indeed

i drove from Cherbourg to Bergerac (about 60 - 90 minutes due East of Bordeaux) during the summer. c 7 - 10 hour trip done in one fell swoop. Watch out for traffic around Nantes... you will get stuck there. i dont think you will be able to avoid it given your itinerary

loads of stops on the way and some ok rest areas etc.

i was in cannes and monte carlo and didnt like either of them. there is a lovely small town just east of Monte Carlo called Menton. its about 10 KMs so you can still visit the other places. you can take a bus trip from there to Nice along the coast road. try it, its better than driving. make sure to take the bus that travels the highest road for the best views!! lovely spot without all the gawdiness of the other two or Nice. you should also visit Orange and Avignon if you can

driving in Germany and Austria is a doddle... i found italy a bit of a nightmare, but it was in the alps in winter so the snow probably had something to do with it.

either way... enjoy yourself

leincar

I've been going to Normandy for over 40 years you cannot go wrong with staying in Bayeux.

Two hotels in the centre would be:

Hotel De Brunville - Rue Genas Duhomme Ph. 02 31 211800
Grand Hotel Du Luxembourg - Rue Des Bouchers ph.02 31 920004

Two excellent restaurants:

La Rapier - Rue Saint Jean ph. 02 31 210545 (Closed on Thursdays)
Le Pommier - Rue Des Cuisiniers ph 02 312 215210.

Also there is the most amazing coffee shop where gluttany is the order of the day. You can't miss it. It has the most over the top decor inside but the pastries are to die for. Also further up from Le Rappier there is a bar/ Tabac where the staff are great and you'll find an old FCA beret behind the bar.

Ther is an excellent museum on the outskirts of Bayeux on the Bd du 6 June(D5) and nearby there is the Bayeux British cemetary.

The American cemetary at Colleville-Sur-Mer and the German cemetary at La Cambe. The difference in atmosphere at both cemetaries is remarkable. Despite thousands being buried at both La Cambe is a bleak place but a different atmosphere prevails at Colleville. Quite hard to explain you have to go there.

Take the D6 out of Bayeux and head for the D514. This road will bring you to Omaha Beach, Colleville and Point Du Hoc.

After that Ste Mere Eglise is well worth a visit. Another great museum there and of course Paratrooper John Steele still looks down from the church spire. Saint-Come-du-Mont is also worth a look with a small museum and shop at Deadmans Corner.


Its a great drive down to the South. I usually go via Nantes the bridge over the river is huge and gives you a great view. Down around Toulouse the scenery is fantastic. I usually stay outside Toulouse at a little town called L'isle Jourdain. There is a lovely B&B on a hill outside the town called Le Loubet run by a guy from Cork and his French wife. Great restaurants in the town and if your lucky you will get to see some of the Airbus convoys down that way. After that Carcasonne is worth a visit and a trip over the Millau bridge is a must.

Like a previous poster I don't particularly like Monaco but driving back up country Nice, Lyon and Dijon are great spots. Have a great time my only piece of advice would be pace yourself. You can suddenly find your driving more then you planned. If necessary avoid Italy and concentrate on France. After so many years of going there sometimes twice a year I still find new places.

leincar

I forgot. You said you like cars. If you are driving South there is the Vendee motor museum between Les Sables D'Olonne and Talmont Saint Hilaire. The weather is good there in July with some great beaches.

SilverSparkle

I agree with visiting Avignon. It is really lovely. If you have time while in Nice you should visit a village called Gourdon. Its up high and has lovely views

hargo

You got the Airbus factory in Toulouse which is supposed to be worth a visit. Not far from Montpelier you got Aigue Morte, a fortified town in the middle of the Camargue and in my opinion a lot better than Carcassone. Nimes half an hour from Montpelier is an old Roman town with a very good Colosseum and other Roman remains. The Pont du Gard is a must when in that area. I would also recommend the Les Alpes and Mont Blanc.

jrar

ktulu123 wrote: »

Hey,

Apologies in advance for long post!!:)

Me and the family are starting to plan a summer trip to france and surrounding countries for one month, we will be driving the whole trip as i have always wanted to drive through europe.

It will start by getting a ferry from rosslare to Cherbourg, planning to stay in beyoux then on down to La Rochelle via either Le Mans, Rennes or nantes
(Dont really know which one of these places will be the nicest, i love cars and motorsport so im thinking Le Mans! Any Tips?)

From La Rochelle were going to Bourdeaux, Toulouse and Montpellier ( I love Montpellier!)

After that were going to stay in the south of France for a few days maybe in cannes and visit Monte Carlo and the likes! Im thinking this will be the half way point.

After France on the return leg I have planned to visit Turin, drive over the alps to Geneve, then Dijon then live it up in Paris for a few days then return home via Cherbourg.

My questions are:

Does this sound reasonable for 1 month?
Has anyone been to the places were going and what were they like?
Any tips on sites to see etc?

Cheers

Sounds great - like yourself, love driving in Europe and France especially (18 days booked in eastern France for July - roll on ! )

You don't say when you're going but beware that Aug. is traditionally family holiday time in France with the majority of traffic heading from North to South esp. on the first w/end of the month and the reverse in late Aug. so allow for that if your timing clashes

Other than that, as others have said, keep a degree of flexibility, lots of breaks etc. regardless of your family's ages

olaola

We do this every year, covering more countries in half the time. So it's definitely do-able. Avignon is really worth a visit. And I thought Turin was really great (esp if you are into cars ). If you're going over that way - I would also recommend the Cinque Terre, I thought it was spectacular.

Lyon is also a consideration for the trip back up.