France and You
- Nov 21, 2025
- 5 min read
Updated: Dec 11, 2025
Paris
The capital of France is a global center of art, fashion, and gastronomy, celebrated for its world-class museums, elegant architecture, and vibrant cultural scene. To enjoy Paris comfortably, it is recommended to stay at least 4 days (3 nights) in the city.
Suggested Day trips and activities in Paris:
Spend 1-3 days to explore the sightseeings in Paris: Notre-Dame Cathedral, Sainte-Chapelle, Louvre Museum, Tuileries Garden, Eiffel Tower, Champ de Mars, Champs-Élysées, Montmartre and Sacré-Cœur, Opéra Garnier, Panthéon, Luxembourg Gardens, and a short half-day trip to Palace of Versailles.
Take 3-hour train for a long day-trip to Mont Saint-Michel - a beautiful Gothic-style Benedictine abbey in a tidal island.
Have a beautiful floral day trip to Vernon-Giverny by train (~30minutes) to visit Monet's house and gardens and walking through lovely villages.
Bordeaux
Bordeaux is a vibrant city in southwestern France, famous for its world-class wine, elegant architecture, and lively riverside atmosphere. From Paris, the TGV Speed Train takes ~2hours to reach Bordeaux. Since it's a small city, staying 2 days (1 night) or just a day trip from Paris to Bordeaux is enough time for the trip.
Suggested activities and day trips from Bordeaux:
Explore the city by walk: Place de la Bourse with the water mirror in front of the palace, Bassins De Lumières Museum, Cathédrale Saint-André Bordeaux, the wine museum Musée Du Vin Et Du Négoce, local cuisine at Marché des Capucins, short walk in Jardin Public Garden.
Visit Château Pape Clément by train in 15 minutes from Bordeaux downtown.
Take a day trip to the Bordeaux wine region Saint Émilion (~20 minutes by train) for wine tasting.
Take 50-minute train to Arcachon Bay for fresh taste of seafood and ocean vibe.
Lyon
Within 2-hour by train, you can travel to Lyon where offers a warmer, more relaxed, and authentically French vibe compared to the fast-paced atmosphere of Paris. Lyon is to some extend more friendly to travelers than Paris and has cool energetic vibe that we recommend to stay at least 3 days (2 nights) here.
Suggested activities and day trips from Lyon:
Exploring the city on foot for one day: start from Vieux Lyon (the old town) with historic sightseeing such as the Traboule et Cour des Voraces , the Amphitheatre of the Three Gauls, Théâtre Gallo Romain de Lyon-Fourvière (the museum), Odeon of Lyon, Basilica of Notre Dame of Fourvière (Lyon Cathedral), Lyon Botanical Garden for some fresh and relaxing moments.
Short day trip to Grenoble by train (~1.5hours) to explore the Fort de la Bastille or Musée de Grenoble, and other notable spots.
Vineyard day trip to Villefranche-Sur-Saône by train (~35minutes): Villefranche-sur-Saône serves as a charming gateway to the storied Beaujolais wine region, where you can wander from the playful exhibits of Hameau Dubœuf to elegant tastings beneath the fairytale turrets of Château de Corcelles.
Visit beautiful lake town Annecy in a day trip by train (~2hours): Turquoise canals weave through this small city on their way to the romantic shores of Lake Annecy.
Sweet change of scenery to Geneva in Switzerland by TGV train in 2 hours.
Avignon and Provence region
Avignon, the capital city of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. The town is a captivating gateway to the Provence region, celebrated for its medieval architecture, vibrant arts scene, and the iconic Papal Palace. From Lyon, the train takes ~1.5hours to Avignon. From Paris, there are many direct TGV trains to Avignon in about 2hrs40.
From Marseille, TGV train takes 30-51 minutes to Avignon.
From Nice, TGV takes ~3hours to Avignon.
If you want to explore other towns in Provence region, it's recommended to stay at least 4 nights in Avignon. However, it's still nice to stay 2-3 nights in Avignon with sufficient time to enjoy the vibe here.
Suggested activities and day trips around Avignon:
Explore the town on foot with notable sightseeing: Start from the landmark bridge Pont St-Bénézet (Pont d’Avignon), next stroll in the English-style Jardin des Doms (currently closed until 2027), then visit Cathédrale Notre-Dame-des-Doms, containing the tombs of Pope Jean XXII and also the grandiose Palais des Papes. Next, walking to the Rue Banasterie to reach the gothic-style cathedral St-Pierre Basilica.
Spend another day to enjoy more the local cuisine and culture in the town: short hike to the beautiful and romantic garden Jardins de St-André (From here you can enjoy views of Avignon, the Palais des Papes, the Rhône Valley and Mont Ventoux), visiting the Musée Calvet covers Avignon's artistic creativity from the Renaissance and the contemporary art museum Collection Lambert. And don't forget to see Roman-era Théâtre Antique d'Orange.
Lovely day trips by train and time from Avignon: Nîmes arena (~35mins) or Arles’ Roman arena (~15mins), visit Van Gogh monastery and lavender farms in Saint-Rémy-de-Provence (~90mins),
Visit an ancient Roman aqueduct Pont du Gard by bus from Avignon bus station.
Take bus 707 from Avignon to visit Les Baux de Provence town for the castle Château des Baux and the art museum Carrieres des Lumieres.
Visit famous Provence Lavender Field in Sault between June-July: take a train from Avignon to Carpentras (~30mins) then change to the bus line 912 from Pem Gare Routière (Carpentras) to Place Des Aires (Sault) in 1 hour.
Marseille
Marseille is a vibrant Mediterranean port city where historic charm, coastal beauty, and a bold multicultural spirit come together.
From Lyon, the TGV train takes ~1.5hours to reach Marseille.
From Paris, the distance is longer taking ~3hours to Marseille.
From Avignon, it's just 30-minute train to Marseille.
If you're a beach person and like to relax by the coast, it's recommended to spend at 3-4 nights in Marseille.
Suggested activities and day trips from Marseille:
Spend 1 day to walk around the city: Starting from the old harbor Vieux Port, the Cathédrale de la Major, and Notre Dame de la Garde with its famous gold ceiling, wandering around La Panier neighborhood, pay a visit to Musée des Beaux Arts and Musée d’Histoire de Marseille.
Another 1 day to explore the seafood cuisine and visiting the beaches near Marseille - Plage des Catalans (near the port in Marseille), L’anse de Malmousque, and Plage du Prophète.
1-day trip to the beautiful beach Calanque de l'Érevine: From train station Marseille-Miramas, get off at Niolon station then walk along the Chemin des Douaniers. There will be a short hike along the coast to enjoy panoramic scene.
1-day trip to visit Cassis (~30minute by train from Marseille) and then take a short cruise to Bandol. There are some guided tour for hiking around 3 Calanques Cassis including Port-Miou, Port-Pin and En-Vau. Besides the hiking, Cassis also has some beautiful beaches - Plage de la Grande Mer, Bestouan beach, and the Calanque d’En-Vau.
1-day trip to explore Martigues with colorful and picturesque houses in the village, well-known as Venice of Provence region. There a a few nice beaches in Martigues to explore Sainte-Croix beach, Carro's beach, Verdon beach, Plage de la Saulce and Crown-old beach.
If you have one more day, don't miss to visit Aigues-Mortes to explore salt mountains rise up around the fortified village, surrounded by the pretty pink hues of the ponds.
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