We are starting to plan a trip to France for next summer (late June) to attend a wedding. I'd love to get some early suggestions on an itinerary and accomodations. Here are some of the specifics so far:
- We'll be travelling in late June for a wedding in the Cote d'Azur area - We'll have our daughter w/ us, who will be 2 at the time - Total trip duration will probably be about 10 days, including travel days - We'll have a hotel room for the night of the wedding, but otherwise I'd like to look into apartments and suites - as sharing an actual bedroom w/our early to bed daugther isn't great - We've been to paris before, so I was thinking of focusing on provence and cote d'azur areas, but am open to other things. (I'd love to go to the lhoire valley, but it seeems like it would be difficult) - I'm not sure how comfortable we would be driving, so it would be nice to have some public transportation options - Places that are steep / have tons of steps may not be great for staying w/ a toddler - My husband and I look good food, quaint towns, and some history / art. Our daughter likes swimming pools, beaches, running in parks, and animals (especially bunnies)
Any suggestions on an itinerary? (where to fly in / out of, where to stay, cities to visit) Any input would be great! If any one has any specific hotel / rental suggestions, that would be great too!
Hi- This article about the Cote d'Azur and the website may be helpful for you. http://www.ciaobambino.com/coteDezure_article.asp I know nothing about this area of France but used this website to research a family trip for 13 to Tuscany (they have other countries too including France) and it made the planning much easier because all of the properties have some kid-friendly amenities. good luck.
Do you know more about the location (city/village) of the wedding? Knowing your starting location may help with some suggestions. We are retirees, but we saw a lot of French children enjoying Saint Marguerite Island off of Cannes (daytrip only). The beach at Frejus was nice and sandy with what appeared to be calm waters. There were a lot of other beaches with children playing near Saint Aygulf, Les Issambres and La Garoupe on Cap d'Antibes. There were quite a few children on one of the beaches along the Saint Tropez penninsula, but there were some clothing-optional and more adult oriented beaches as well.
The area is beautiful, the people friendly. The public transporation around Nice and Cannes is good, both bus and train travel. We had no problems driving a car for scenic drives on the coast and in the hills. No problems on the autoroute. However, we were there in off-season.
I am not positive on the actual town the wedding is in - but they suggested we fly into Hyeres/Toulon if we end up connecting in London or Paris, so I think we'll be somewhere in between Marseille and Nice. We'll have a room where the reception is for the night of the wedding, but we'd be willing to make a base elsewhere (but not too far) for the rest of the visit.
We had a similar discussion in March. You can read the suggestions in this thread. The poster will be traveling in September and choose the village of Cassis.
Thanks for the info! Do you think with a toddler it would be better to be in Provence or the Cote d'azur area. I think we'd like to be somewhere where we would have the most potential sites / towns in a relatively short distance - say w/in a 30 min car or train ride. That will maximize our siteseeing time since we'll need to travel back to our rental for afternoon nap.
Welcome to ST Provence and the cote d'azur are full of towns and villages with "potential sites / towns in a relatively short distance". Either will fit the bill. Living inside a largish village (St Rémy, Lourmarin, Bonnieux, Goult, Arles, …) in Provence or a smallish resort (Menton, Villefranche, Antibes, etc.) on the cote d'azur may be your best bet and give the most enjoyment for you and your baby because - you and your baby are "somewhere", with lots of visiting and strolling possibilities, and the baby is never far from home and nap. - convenient shopping, with a butcher's and grocery store within walking distance, etc.
Still, it would be nice to know where exactly the wedding will be, which would give all of us an idea whether you are closer ton say, St Rémy or Cassis or Menton. -- You have to find out where you are going sooner or later, no?
