France Itinerary

For my next trip to France will depend on what areas of the country I want to concentrate on.

Paris and Environs

See my Paris and my Places to Go pages. Also try other ciders from Paris gourmet store La Grande Épicerie de Paris, rue de Sèvres in the 7th Arrondissement. They have a second store at rue de Passy in the 16th Arrondissement. Stop by La Maison Nordique for some caviar and buy TWO caviar tin keys.

Near Paris: Chartres (1.5 hrs by train), Château de Chantilly (1hr by train).

North

I most want to visit Normandy for a tour of battle sites and memorials. See my Normandy page.

I would also be in or near the premier cider regions of Brittany and Normandy. See the cider route on my Cider page.

West

I'd like to visit some of the great chateaux:

Loire Valley: Chambord, Chenonceau, Villandry (noted for its gardens), Chantilly, and Chateau de D’Azay le Rideau (also look at Pierrefonds, Chaumont, D’Usse, and Suscinio). See my page for a 2 week itinerary.

There is a Champagne tour that stops at various houses for samples.

South-East

Annecy is a great lakeside town — a great hiking and biking location.

Visit the gourmet capital of France: Lyon.

Chamonix, the great winter resort in the French Alps, but in summertime offers picturesque hikes. The cable cars making hikes into the mountains easier.

South - Mediterranean

Pont du Gard, the great Roman aqueduct, (near Avignon and Nimes; Montpellier is the nearest large city.)

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Nina, the guide on the Rick Steves tour, recommended a friend of hers who does tours throughout France but Nina specifically noted her Loire Valley tour and wine tours in the northeast - Alsace, etc. See France with Véro.

Annecy

Bordeaux

In 2024 stayed in the town of Bordeaux and went on a couple of wine tours (by Olala). I stayed at the Novotel Bordeaux Centre Gare Saint-Jean which is one tram stop from the train station. I had some very good meals as well.

Wine

In Bordeaux, the tour operator Olala Bordeaux provide excellent tours of the Bordeuax wineries and vineyards, and the towns. I did the half day Margaux tour and the full day St. Emilion tour. They also do tasting workshops in Bordeaux, guided sampling of wines with food pairings.

Olala Bordeaux, 2 ter rue Mably, Bordeaux. Email: contact@olalabordeaux.com. I booked both tours through GetYourGuide.

The Riviera

I've been to Nice, Cannes and Monaco. Nice was nice (ha, ha), Canne was not a place to visit, but I really liked Monaco. 

Restaurants & Food

During my 2024 trip I had four excellent meals, one was in Tbilisi, Georgia at Otsy, and three were in France. At Pedzouille l'Etable, rue du Faubourg Poissonnière, Paris I had a very good steak. It is about a 10 minute walk from Gare du Nord or Gare de l'Est.

At La Tanière, 41 Quai Richelieu, Bordeaux, I had the best meal of my entire two and a half month trip: a Landaise salad which is a salad of romaine and other greens with tomato and a very light dressing (a basic vinaigrette, I believe). This is topped with thinly sliced smoked duck, duck gizzards cooked rare to medium-rare, and a slice of fois gras! Amazing flavours of the duck. Completely unexpected.

In Toulouse across from the train station I had a very good meal at Ô Mana Brasserie. It was filet de dorade Sébaste et risotto parfumé à la carotte (ocean perch with carrot risotto), and was excellent.

Salade Landaise at La Tanière

filet de dorade Sébaste et risotto parfumé à la carotte at Ô Mana Brasserie

Had very good dim sum at Aux Delices du Commerce, rue de Commerce, Paris.

I visited a great food gourmet food market is La Grande Épicerie de Paris, rue de Sèvres, Paris. (They have a second store at rue de Passy.) I bought some escargot and duck terrine by Maison Papillon.

La Maison de l'Escargot, rue de Fondary 79, 5015, Paris. I assumed it would have a large variety of escargot but they only sell their own brand. Closed Sunday & Monday.

Found on Facebook recommendations for some good cafes in Paris:

1. Café de la Paix, 5 Place de l'Opéra (9^th arr.)
2. Café Maxime Frédéric at Louis Vuitton, 2 Rue du Pont Neuf (1^st arr.)
3. Le Café Marly, 93 Rue de Rivoli (1^st arr.)
4. Café de Flore, 172 Blvd Saint-Germain (6^th arr.)

HEAT WAVE

With increasing temperatures in summer, it may be difficult to find a place to eat out of the stifling heat. It was 37°C when I was in Paris in 2025. Air conditioned restaurants are rare and most are in hotels. Here is a list of a few categorized by arrondissement:

1st
English Bar at Hotel Regina, 2 Place des Pyramides €€€

4th
Bofinger, 5-7 Rue de la Bastille €€€

5th
Assiettes aux Fromages, 25 rue Mouffetard €-€€

6th
Café de Flore (upstairs), 172 blvd Saint-Germain €€€

La Closerie de Lilas, 171 blvd du Montparnasse €€€

Les Editeurs, 4 Carrefour de l’Odeon

7th
Domaine d’Olleac, 20 rue Rousselet €€-€€€

8th
L’Avenue, 41 Avenue Montaigne €€€€

Les Cocottes Arc de Triomphe, 2 Avenue Bertie Albrecht €€€ (Michelin rated)

Madison Blanche, 15 Avenue Montaigne €€€€

11th
The Blue Elephant, 45 Rue de la Roquette €€€€

14th
Café Bohemia, 19 Blvd Edgar Uinet €€-€€€

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From Anthony Bourdain's No Reservations, he visits some of the best restaurants and bistros that locals favour. Here are a few he tried and enjoyed:

Le Royal, rue de Grenelle 212, Paris, Anthony went for an excellent breakfast of orange juice, coffee and croissant.

La Tour Montlhéry – Chez Denise, rue des Prouvaires 5, Paris, makes a delicious dish: Blanquette de Veau – big hunks of veal slowly cooked in stock with cream sauce.

For a great baguette and a huge variety of pastries go to Pâtisserie Pinaud Pascal, rue Monge 79, Paris.

Bike Tours

Bike tours can be a great way to see the countryside up close at a leisurely pace. I love trains but scenery goes by pretty fast! Many tours are available so are self guide, others are organized and can include a vehicle that carries your luggage and provide refreshments, so you have a lighter travel experience.

Discover France has a large selection of tours including ones geared especially for seniors. From Brittany and the Loire Valley to Provence, or a Bordeaux wine tour.

See also 57Hours on my Travel Info page. Some research is need on them — they appear to be just a booking agent rather than a tour company.

Canal and River Cruises

Like Britain, France has numerous canals that provide the opportunity to have a relaxing tour through the countryside. There are also numerous river cruises.

The most famous is the Canal du Midi which is 241km long, running from Toulouse to Sète. The Canal de Garonne branches off the Canal du Midi and flows west to the Bay of Biscay near Bordeaux.

The Burgundy areas is rife with cruising waterways. According to the Lonely Planet guide to the canals of France:

Canal boating between Bourgogne vineyards really can’t be beat. Burgundy's 1200km of placid waterways include the Rivers Yonne, Saône and Seille and a network of canals, including the Canal de Bourgogne, the Canal du Centre, the Canal Latéral à la Loire and the Canal du Nivernais....

You can rent a self-drive boat to explore the Canal du Nivernais © Christophe Boisvieux / Getty Images

Adventure Life is a comprehensive site for all types of cruises. Some highlighted cruises are in the Midi, the Lire, Champagne, Alsace & Lorraine, Bordeaux, and Burgundy. (They are a travel provider, so their selections may be biased.)  European Waterways also provide a selection of cruises in France.