Friday, March 30, 2012

No plan aussies

Hi All,



Hubby and I are heading back to France/switzerland this september for a 3 week trip with our 18 year old son.



We are going to book accommodation in Paris but have no firm plans for the rest of the trip. During our last vacation in France it was late October and we had no trouble getting hotel rooms.



Is it feasible for us to not book accommodation and still be able to pick up 2 rooms throughout France.



We are going to head towards Strasbourg and then will just make it up as we go.





Will this lack of a plan work in September or will we have to get more structured and have accommodation organised in advance.





Cheers



Trish






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No plan will work in September, as long as you start looking for a bed at about 4.00pm. I found that at about lunchtime I used to find myself in a town and think %26quot;I wouldn%26#39;t mind exploring more%26quot; and booking a room then. You may find occasionally that you are in different hotels, but hey, he%26#39;s 18, and this is France, he doesn%26#39;t want to spend ALL his time with mum and dad looking over his shoulder!





Keep your eyes open for the Logis de France sign on hotels. These tend to be friendly, family run and good value for money.





Simon



http://daysontheclaise.blogspot.com/




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Hi Trish,



I love the fact that you two are planning on spending 3 weeks in France with your son this September. It%26#39;s a great time to explore since the huge crowds of tourists that are prevelant from mid-July through August will have gone home and, the weather will still be really good. While it will, without a doubt, be easy for you to find rooms in September, I remain convinced that a slower trip will be a better trip - ie. one that your son will really remember as more than %26quot;if it%26#39;s Tuesday it must be Belgium ...%26quot;



That having been said, I wonder whether you wouldn%26#39;t be better off deciding upon exploring a specific region (or maybe two) this trip and establishing a base, or maybe two during your stay.



AlpillesGal



PS - Have you considered heading South from Paris and eventually right down into Western Provence? There are tons of wonderful historical sites, and, keep in mind that September is a great time to be in Western Provence - great weather, not too many tourists, great summer type food, etc. .......... Keep in mind that if you decide to do the %26quot;slower%26quot; type of trip, you may want to consider establishing a base or two for a week at a time in a house or apartment - it%26#39;s a great way to explore and come to really know a specific region of a different country.




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Thankyou both for your advice. On our last trip we did about 5 days in Paris and then used a combination of trains for the long trips and then used cars to explore local areas.



The highlights last trip were the tapestry at bayeux(on my son%26#39;s dream list), the D-day beaches, loire valley, rocamadour, carcassonne and mont st michel.





Thanks for the suggestion of Provence. My son has been having private french lessons for the last 5 years and his tutor adores this region of france.



I shall dig out the guide books and do some further planning.





I am relieved that we will be able to have a fair amount of flexibility as we travel.





Thanks again and cheers



Trish




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