Paris and Northern France in 10 amazing days
France
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Jan 12 - Jan 22, 2026
My only regret was not adding a few more days. ...
We started working with Sebastian back in October, telling him the must see places for a 10 day January trip in Paris and the surrounding areas. We basically told him the places we wanted to see-Chateau country, Chartres, Mont Saint-Michel, Bayeux , and Reims and he put together the itinerary which included trains, car, and truly lovely hotels, all perfectly placed to be close to the historical sites we wanted to see. La Maison Rabelais in Amboise, Le Boeuf Couronee in Chartres, and the Grand Hotel Luxembourg in Bayeux . In Paris, where we explored Notre Dame de Paris, Ste Chapelle, the entire Left Bank from Shakespeare and Company out to St. Germain de Pre, (didn't have time for the Invalides, Musee de Cluny, or the Rodin) the Central sites and we stayed with hotels from the Astotel Group, my personal favorite was the Astoria near the Pigalle area of Paris.
Speaking of guides, Veronique (Vero), our full day guide in Chateau country for Chambord and Chenonceau, was a walking professor of history, she knew not just events and dates, but all the fun stories that go behind the dates, as did Stephanie for le Mont Saint-Michel. Nico for Paris and Gwen for Normandy rounded out our local guides.
France By Locals/Sebastian was immediately responsive each and every time we had a question on this trip, like when we couldn't find a guide or forgot where to return something. All resolved swiftly.
Hotel Reviews
Has a great vibe which you can feel as soon as you walk through the front door, bright, cheerful, lots of French travelers, so the Petit Dejeuner breakfast room is always hopping. Comfortable rooms and main sitting room, close to Pigalle and Montmartre.
I loved it. Mere Poulard is right at the beginning of the main street of Mont Saint Michel in the walls of the city. so bring your overnight clothes in a backpack because you don't want to be rolling any kind of suitcase on the cobbles. From where we were located, you could walk up another set of stairs and have amazing views of the Ramparts and the city, which I did just before dawn and it was stupendous. The only thing I would say is there was a strong odor of cat, not in the room at all, but in the staircase going up to the room. If they could remove that, this would be a 10.
Activity Review
Veronique the guide was truly fabulous. knew everything about what we were seeing and answers to the most obscure questions.