South of France - where to go and stay?
 

Hi, I am planning a vacation in France this summer with the wife. We will be in France for about a week before moving on to Italy. We plan on flying into Paris, staying there for a few days, and then heading down to the Rhone area for a day, and then over to Nice for a few days. We are not very familiar with south France at all, and could use some suggestions for where to stay, how long, and what to do. We would like to do some winery-hopping and make our way though some of the nice Rhone valley wineries. Is Avignon a good place to stay in order to do that? After that we planned on going to Nice.. the Hyatt in Nice is cheap on points, so we figured we could stay there 2 or 3 nights and make that a base, but not exactly sure what to do there. Do you guys have any suggestions? More about us - We are in our late 20s and have no problem with high paced trips. We will probably rent a car unless it is super easy to get around without one. The trip should be focused on relaxing, wine, eating, and enjoying the scenery. We don't speak French and I couldn't even come close to faking it. Any thoughts?

If you can't communicate in French, I would limit yourself to larger cities. While a good number of younger people can communicate in English, most older people genuinely cannot.

Wineries generally aren't the overbuilt establishments they can be in North America. They're generally very simple. You'll find several in any village in the wine-growing areas and if they're open for sales and tasting, you'll see "vente" and "degustation" respectively.

If you can learn some written French driving from Lyon to Nice would be a good trip (take the back road to take in the often-charming rural landscape rather than the costly autoroute). I'm not sure any large city save Reims and Epernay are good for visiting wineries (they're usually in the country by the vineyards) if you're not planning to drive.

Research the wines you like and look up if the wineries are open for visits before you go.

As far as eating goes, it'd be good to learn French again to read up good restaurants in guides such as Michelin, Routard, and Petit Fute among others. Menus may not be available in anything but French in many places (and I've noticed inaccurate if not downright bad translations when offered an English menu.

About France, always. ;)

I stayed for a week in Provence and used Arles as a base as it interested me both for its fine Roman coliseum but connection to my favorite artists, van Gogh. It was small enough to easily walk to most of the town and is close enough to allow an easy day trip to Nimes and Avignon by either road or rail. English was well spoken given the town is built around tourism so no worries too much on that front.

A few rambling thoughts on a place is massively enjoyed and still think of often.

The south of France is a bit like a department store (no pun intended). There is very little that you will consider a "mistake." Depending on what you like, you are almost certain to find it somewhere.

On transport, considering relaxing is one of your criteria and that you don't speak French, I would take the train from Paris to whichever place you plan to start, then go to the local tourist office (often, in the smaller towns, the tourist office is in the town hall, called Mairie or Hôtel de Ville in French) and inquire about guided tours. These tours will often be available in English and will usually include local transport.

You will certainly see a lot more if a local person who inquires about your interests takes you around.

i have enjoyed myself without the native tongue, and been out in the hinterlands in belgum, france, germany, italy, spain, russia, turkey, bunch of central and south american countries and islands. i just do not think it necessary. i presume the people who think communicating in french is so important have learned venetian dialect before going to venice. american english is close enough to lingua franca that it is not positivily necessary to learn turkish to go to turkey

we enjoyed lyon. not much to see and do, but great food and wine.

Thanks, any other thoughts?

Nice is a big busy city with a great promenade along the beach. For relaxing--if you have a car---I would prefer Mougins or Biot or if you can afford it Chateau Eza in Eze Village.
Have a relaxing meal along the harbor in Cannes. Visit the Oceanographic Museum in Monte Carlo. Go see the great motor yachts in the boat basin in Antibes. Visit the enchanting hill villages like St. Paul de Vence.
I don't speak French---but in many trips there have never ever had a problem. The whole area is used to international tourism.

Interesting. Where do you think I should stay to visit the Southern Rhone wine areas.. Avignon or somewhere else? I planned on having a car while in Avignon and driving to Nice, but then probably dropping off the car until I leave Nice and head to Milan. I would keep the car but I think parking is difficult and/or expensive, but correct me if I am wrong. Who knows - the weekly rate might be better than the 2 separate rentals anyway.

Best towns for wine in that area are Bandol and Cassis. Grapes growing in the most adverse of terrain. Very interesting.

P.S. If you stay in smaller towns, parking is not a problem. You can take a train or bus to the big cities if you need to. In Avignon, check out Isle Sur La Sorgue. In Nice, we always stay in Beaulieu sur Mer.

I love Avignon---Chateauneuf-du-Pape wine region is nearby. My wife and I have always enjoyed the Hotel D'Europe in Avignon---although we have not stayed there in 3 or 4 years.

search it yourself on autoeurope. we were going to get a car for 3 days in sicily, then were surprised that the 3 day rate was about same as the weekly rate.

That's pretty much what I saw when looking for the rates too.

It seems like Bandol and Cassis are halfway between Nice and Avignon. What makes those towns good for wine?

I basically have 4 days to spend in the south. Do you guys think that splitting the time between Avignon and Nice is a good idea, or do you think a different split would be more ideal? I'll be heading to Milan (probably by car) after Nice.

any other thoughts?