Road trip through France
Road tripping through France was one of the most amazing experience we’ve had during our time in Europe. There are so many beautiful and historic cities to explore, some are straight out of a fairytale!
On the blog I will share our road trip through France, visiting some of the most well known cities, while some are hidden gems. You can choose to add a few of these places to your France road trip itinerary, or make it an adventure and see them all.
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Road Trip through France
To make the most of your road trip through France, I suggest taking at least one week to explore France, but at the least, three days to see a few places on your French road trip itinerary.
If you only have one day in France, then I suggest you pick one place to explore. A day trip to Paris, in the city of lights is amazing, and you can pair it with a day trip to Disneyland Paris.
If a city trip is not your thing, then visit some of the lesser known towns in France. We loved our road trip through Normandy, with Mont Saint Michel as the highlight.
Things to know about driving in France
One thing to know when driving in France are the French road tolls. They are not everywhere, but you will come upon some of them on your France road trip.
Most toll booths accept Visa/Mastercard, but you can use Euros as well. Pay attention to some toll booths that only accept credit cards.
I suggest renting a smaller car when driving around France. Parking garages and roads in the some of the smaller towns are tight. I can’t imagine driving a SUV type vehicle and finding a parking spot for it.
I also suggest finding a place to stay that offers a parking spot or garage. It makes the drive easier, instead of having to search for one on the way.
FIND A HOTEL IN FRANCE HERE:
Booking.comRoad Trip Through France itinerary
PARIS FRANCE
I think one of the best places to add to your road trip through France is Paris. I believe it’s a city that’s on everyone’s bucket list and rightly so. It’s such an amazing city, and we’ve only scratched the surface in all there is to see and do.
If you only have one day in Paris, then I suggest going on a hop on-hop off tour. This bus tour takes you to all the main attractions in Paris, all while learning some history along the way.
Some of the must sees in Paris is of course the Eiffel Tower, the Arc de Triomphe, the Louvre, Notre Dame, and our favorite the Luxembourg Gardens.
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*Check out our post on The top things to do in Paris.
DISNEYLAND PARIS
Another France road trip suggestion is a visit to Disneyland Paris. Euro Disney is an easy day trip from Paris on the RER-A train.
The trip takes about 45 minutes and the train station is located right at the entrance to Disneyland Paris. Make a stop at Marne la Vallee and you’re there!
You can find tickets to Disneyland Paris here, or purchase them at the gates. If you are active duty military, you can purchase discounted tickets at the gates as well. Make sure to bring your ID card!
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*Check out this post on our Ultimate Guide on planning a trip to Disneyland Paris.
Recommended Hotels near Disneyland Paris
Best historical road trips through France
PALACE AND GARDENS OF VERSAILLES
One place to add to your France road trip is Versailles. Versailles is only a 30 minute drive from Paris, and it’s so worth the visit.
You can also get to Versailles by train from Paris as well, making a stop at the Gare de Versailles Chateau Rive Gauche station. From there, Versailles is a short walk away.
Recommended Hotel in Versailles
One of the biggest tip when planning a visit to the Palace of Versailles is to purchase tickets ahead of time. The lines here are SO long and takes anywhere from an hour or more.
If you only want to explore the Gardens of Versailles, entrance is FREE, except during high season (from April-October). It’s a vast garden, and getting around on foot to see it all is impossible. Luckily there are bike and electronic car rentals in the gardens.
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*Check out our Guide on visiting The Palace and Gardens of Versailles here. I share some tips on how to make the most of your visit.
NORMANDY FRANCE
If you are a World War history buff, then a road trip to the Normandy Region is one of the best driving routes through France.
Some of the must visit places in Normandy, is the American Memorial cemetery, Omaha Beach, and Pointe du Hoc. There are many other World War history locations, but I highlight some of the main points of interest to add to your Normandy road trip.
Recommended Hotel in Normandy
The Normandy region is not only known for its World War history. There is also some medieval history to explore as well.
One of the best places to visit is Rouen, made famous as the site where Joan of Arc was burned at the stake. Roeun is also known for it’s historic half timbered houses lining the streets, and the Gros Horloge, which is one of the oldest astronomical clocks in Europe.
Caen France is another place worth highlighting on your road trip around France. You can visit William the conquerors tomb at the L’Abbaye-aux-Hommes, or take a stroll along the historic center.
Normandy’s coastal region is someplace you should add to your road trip through France itinerary. One of our favorites is Etretat France, famous for it’s white chalk cliffs, which was painted by Monet.
Honfleur France is another coastal town to visit in Normandy, and one of the best places to visit on your trip to France. The Vieux-Bassin (old harbor), is one of the most famous spots in Honfleur.
This historic harbor is lined with 16th to 18th-century townhouses, which were painted by Monet and Boudin. It’s definitely one of the prettiest harbors we’ve seen, and so worth the visit.
One of the most stunning places in Normandy is Mont Saint Michel. This is one of the best places to visit in France by car. This historic abbey floating on an island is one of the most awe inspiring places. It’s free to walk around the island, but you need to purchase tickets to enter the abbey.
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*Read more about our Road trip through Normandy here. I share some of the prettiest places in the region.
Recommend hotel at Mont Saint Michel
Best underrated cities in France
LILLE FRANCE
One of the most underrated city in France is Lille. Most people have never heard of Lille, unless they’re passing through on a train.
I suggest making the time to visit Lille, and take a few hours exploring the city. It’s known as a shopping Mecca, but there’s some history to explore as well.
You can easily see most of the main sights in a few hours, and it’s the perfect road trip layover when exploring France.
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*Read our blog on how we spent one day in Lille France here.
NANCY FRANCE
Located in the Grand Est Region of France is the city of Nancy. You’ve probably never heard of Nancy, let alone add it to your bucket list. I myself didn’t event know about Nancy France till recently, and I must say I’m glad we’ve gotten to visit.
Nancy is sort of like a mini Paris, and is known for its late baroque and art nouveau landmarks. One of the main points of interest in Nancy is Place Stanislas, which is the city’s main square.
Recommended Nancy France hotel
This opulent Square is decorated with gilded wrought-iron gates and rococo fountains, and it’s the perfect place to people watch.
Take a stroll through the historic center of Nancy and explore the charming streets and alleyways. The architecture here is amazing and we loved sitting in one of the cafes and just admiring it all!
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*Read about more about our visit to Nancy France here. See why it’s so worth adding it to your road trip through France.
METZ FRANCE
Another underrated city to add to your road trip through France is Metz. Metz France is also located in the Grand-Est region, and is known for it’s gothic Metz Cathedral, famous for it’s massive collection of stained glass windows.
One of the best things to do in Metz France is a stroll along the historic streets. One thing you will notice on your sightseeing tour of Metz is that all the buildings are yellow. That’s because they’re all made with a type of limestone mined in the area.
One of the highlights in Metz is the Basilica of Saint-Pierre-aux-Nonnains. This basilica in Metz is one of the oldest churches in Europe, that goes back to the 4th century.
A leisurely stroll along the Moselle river promenade is another one of the best things to do in Metz France. You can even rent a boat and go on a relaxing boat ride.
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*Read more about our day trip to Metz here. I share some of the top things to do and see.
Scenic Drives in France
EPERNAY-MOET AND CHANDON TOUR
One of the most beautiful regions to add to your France road trip is the Champagne region of France. Driving through the miles and miles of vineyards was so amazing.
You can even stop and visit some of the most well known champagne houses on your road trip through France. One of the most popular champagne tours is Moet and Chandon.
*Book this Champagne Coach trip from Paris. Visit the Nicolas Feuillatte vineyards and sip some sparkling wine.
On our France road trip, we decided to take a tour of this famous champagne house in Epernay, and it was such a great learning experience. Learning the process of champagne making was eye opening, and has definitely made me appreciate it more.
If you want to go on a Moet and Chandon tour, make sure to reserve tickets online. Tours are on a specific time slot, and you may have to wait awhile if you just show up. I also suggest dressing warm as the caves are quite cold.
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*Read about our tour of Moet and Chandon here.
ALSACE REGION
One of the best road trips in France is the Alsace wine route. If you can only choose one place to add to your road trip through France itinerary, then I recommend visiting the Alsace Region.
These charming fairytale towns are the inspiration to the Beauty and the Beast movies, and they’re so breathtaking!
We visited a few towns in the Alsace, and it’s hard to pick a favorite. Although, Riquewihr definitely stands out as one of the most charming. We loved all the colorful half timbered houses, surrounded by vineyards.
We also visited Ribeauville France, and one of the highlights here are the Castles of Ribeaupierre. These castles perched up on the hills overlooking this fairytale town just added to the charm, it’s so magical!
Colmar France is probably one of the most well known towns in the Alsace. The Petite Venise is the main attraction, with it’s colorful half timbered houses. You can go on a Venice like boat cruise on the canal, which is one of the top things to do when visiting Colmar.
When planning your road trip through France, Strasbourg can be used as your home base when exploring the Alsace Region.
This is the biggest city in the Alsace, and is also popular for the Strasbourg Christmas Market. One of the main attractions in Strasbourg is the Petite France, famous for the historic half timbered houses.
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*Read more about our road trip through the Alsace Region here. We visit Strasbourg, Colmar, Riquewihr and Ribeauville.
More Road Trip Ideas in Europe:
Visiting the Netherlands? Read about our Road Trip through the Netherlands here.
Planning a trip to Belgium? Read about our Road Trip through Belgium here.
Austria is another one of our favorite road trips in Europe. Read our Road Trip through Austria here.
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