Planning a Trip to France

Are you planning a trip to France? If so, chances are Paris will be your first stop. Paris, France, the city of lights. However, there is so much to see in France, and it is not all in Paris. Over the years, Cos has traveled to Paris many times, sometimes on vacation, but mostly on business. France is truly a wonderful country. Since the pandemic, Cos and Robin have made two trips to France. The first, in 2021 covered Paris, Bordeaux, the Seine River from Paris to Normandy and the Loire Valley. The second was to Alsace-Lorraine on a river cruise down the Rhine and a separate visit to the Cote d’Azur (i.e. French Riviera) and Provence.

Paris, France

Okay, we will start with Paris. Clockwise starting at the upper left, of course you have the Eiffel Tower. Next is the Galleries Lafayette, a real Hidden Gem. It is considered the best shopping malls in all of Paris. Lower right is the Musee d’Orsay (see Our Favorite Museums post) and one of its famous clocks. Next, a Paris balloon that is actually in Las Vegas, and the Basilica of Sacre Coeur de Montmartre. By the way, the Paris Metro is a great way to get around. However, if you take it to the Sacre Coeur, be prepared to walk up some steep stairs. Alternatively, you can take the funicular, as the Metro stops are not too close to the Sacre Coeur Church. .

A few other great places to visit in Paris are of course, the Cathedrale Notre-Dame, the Louvre, and the Sainte-Chapelle. For more information about the Cathedral Notre-Dame and if it reopen in time for the Olympics in 2024, please visit our post “50 Famous Cathedrals in Europe“. We couldn’t visit Notre-Dame when we visited Paris in 2021 as the Cathedral we still being restored. Nevertheless, we were lucky to attend a great Vivaldi concert at Sainte-Chapelle during the evening. We took an amazing walk along the Seine River after the concert and watched the flashing lights on the Eiffel Tower; What a treat! Please see our Favorite Theaters Post for more information.

Great Photo Spots in Paris

Some additional pictures from Paris, France above. The first is Cos, taken from the roof of the Gallery Lafayette, perhaps the best shopping in the city, including a champagne cafe overlooking the interior of all the floors. Look closely and you will see the Eiffel Tower hidden between the “A” and the “R” in “Paris”. Everyone will recognize l’arc de Triomphe with the typical French traffic. Another Hidden Gem is the Statue of Liberty which can be viewed in the shadow of the Eiffel Tower. Who knew that there were more Statues of Liberty than the one in New York City? There are at least four, two in Paris, one in Argentina, and of course NYC. Finally, the famous Moulin Rouge with its legendary somewhat racy Parisian cabaret performers.

Some favorite Paris restaurants

We were lucky to have had lunch at Michelin one starred Apicius on 9/11/2022.  It was a glorious day, just perfect to sit in this garden setting behind the Champs-Elysees.  We enjoyed every single bit of it, from the wine service, to the food, to the impeccable service.  The garden setting is extremely pleasing to the eye and makes for a delightful ambiance. A highlight in Paris for sure.

Benoit Paris is a classic…everything you want in a French restaurant…a Michelin star, 100 years old and located in the center of the city. For more information about French Restaurants, please see our post Bib Gourmand vs Michelin Star.

Planning a trip to Normandy on the Coast of France

If you have been to France and never been to Normandy, you owe it to yourself to make this trip, get to the French coast and really experience the WWII memorial. In 2021 we visited the Utah and Omaha Beach memorials as well as the American Cemetary. Totally dispelling any rumors that the French don’t like Americans, the local people that we met were very friendly and made a point of letting us know their appreciation for what our American Heroes did to save their country.

We stopped for lunch (see Our Favorite Restaurants) in Sainte-Mere-Eglise. We had a wonderful ham and cheese buckwheat crepe while checking out the famous church. WWII paratrooper John Steele hung on the steeple and pretended to be dead before he was captured. See picture top right above.

Planning a trip to Bordeaux in Southwestern France

Well known for its outstanding red wines, Bordeaux is a complex wine area as shown on the map of the Bordeaux Vintages. Perhaps even more meaningful than Paris’s Left and Right Banks, Bordeaux has its famous Medoc vintage of wine on the Left Bank and the even more famous St-Emilion vintage on the Right Bank. A very liveable city, Bordeaux has some unique food as shown by the Dunes Blanche pastry poster which are quite tasty.

Planning a trip to the Loire Valley in Central France

The Loire Valley is located in the center of the country and is home to some of the grandest chateaus anywhere in the world. We found a tour on Get Your Guide that included two chateaus and a drive through the Loire Valley.

While we were in the Loire Valley, we visited the Chateau de Chambord, which is probably the most well-known. We also visited the Chateau de Chenonceau, which is actually located literally on the river Cher. We visited the Loire Valley on a full day tour from Paris. It was a long day. We recommend actually going out and staying there for a few days. You will enjoy and learn even more about this beautiful area. There are some great wine areas here as well including the regions of Muscadet on the Atlantic coast and Sancerre and Pouilly-Fume in north-central France.

Planning a trip to the Alsace Lorraine Region of France

The Alsace Lorraine region of France sits literally next to Germany on the western bank of the Rhine River. We visited two great cities Colmar and Strasbourg, both of which have a strong German influence.

Strasbourg

Traveling North to South, Strasbourg is the first French city you come to on the Rhine. The Strasbourg Cathedral (Cathedrale Notre-Dame-de-Strasbourg) is considered one of the finest examples of Gothic architecture in the world. The astronomical clock located in the south transept of the cathedral is one of the most famous features of the cathedral. People are mesmerized by the intricacy of the mechanics. To read more about the famous Strasbourg Cathedral please vist our post “50 Famous Cathedrals in Europe”.

Colmar

Colmar is the next French city we visited on the Rhine. It considers itself to be the capital of Alsatian wine. It has a strong German influence as can be seen by the traditional German guild signs. The city is known for its well-preserved old town with its narrow cobbled streets lined with pastel-hued buildings.

Planning a trip to Provence and the French Riviera

Nice, Marseille, Cannes, Avignon, Arles, Aix-en-Provence, Chateauneuf-du-Pape, Saint-Tropez, along with Monte-Carlo in neighboring Monaco are all famous cities and towns that make up this incredibly beautiful region of France. We visited this area for the first time in the summer of 2022 and stayed in a number of amazing places. We spent a very special day touring vineyards around Chateauneuf-du-Pape with a guide from England who was intent on showing us that there were many amazing wines that challenge the throne of Chateauneuf-du-Pape.

First, we were on the beach in a small town, La Seyne-sur-Mer, just south of Toulon. Surprisingly, this was great for visiting the western wine region including Avignon. Next, we based our location much closer to Nice, in a small hill-top town, Mougins, just north of Cannes in the Provence-Alpes-Cote d’Azur region. Mougins is a wonderful village (commune) with gourmet restaurants and a very strong art culture. Also, this was a great place to visit a number of small towns, and even take a tour of Monte-Carlo, which we did on an amazing small tour from Get Your Guide.

Finally, while on a cruise from Barcelona, we stopped in Marseille and Nice. Arles is our favorite town. Here, we explored this beautiful ancient city and learned even more about Van Gogh’s time here (1888-1889). In Arles, Van Gogh painted over 300 of his famous paintings. This is also where he was institutionalized after he cut off his ear. We have been lucky to see his series of paintings of cypress trees at the Met in New York and olive trees in Amsterdam; all were painted at a furious pace while in Arles.

While in Arles, you must have a beer at Le Cafe van Gogh. You can’t miss this place…bright yellow, the color of sunflowers. Said to have inspired an 1888 painting by Vincent van Gogh. (Café Terrace at Night).