MrMezentsev

Yes you will be needing visa to stay in Russia for a few days . Depending on what port you decide to stay I strongly suggest spent those few days in St.Petersburg, I went last year as a land trip and spent about a week there , not enough time and a lot to visit and see , Petergof,Tsars village , Hermitage , the Russian museum and more , beautiful city , like I said lot's of museums and sights to visit , enjoy your vacation! 🙂

I'd like to thank all of you , you guys helping me out so much ! im glad I found this website before I started doing and booking anything! I appreciate all of you. 🙂

18 hours ago, dogs4fun said:

Or Italy, Germany, and so on. 

I agree you won't see much in a day or two , you have any suggestions dogs4fan? I appreciate your time !

On 12/29/2019 at 8:05 PM, wowzz said:

Why not rent your own boat, and cruise along the Canal du Midi ? You will learn some interesting French phrases from the lock keepers on the way if your boat handling skills are not up to scratch!  An excellent way to see rural France (and I only fell in once!)

I wish but I've never operated a boat so that one would difficult to do , but thank you !

On 12/29/2019 at 4:07 PM, marco said:

A couple of years ago we did a river cruise, basically Paris to Nice and spent 4 days in Paris first.  Most enjoyable! Something to check out.

Thank you I'll defiantly look into it , and check it out !

13 minutes ago, ducklite said:

France is as diverse as the US (minus the desert) with quaint port cities, major metropolitan areas, vast farmlands, mountains, , rivers, you name it.  I think you should buy a guide book Rick Steves has a good one) and read it.  Determine what parts of France you'd like to see, and then figure out whether a cruise or land based trip (or maybe two weeks that covers both?) would work for your wants and needs.

Thank you for your advice, I'll look into it !

if I was to take a cruise to France (Med) which one would you suggest? (hope Paris included.)

if I was to fly to France (Paris) and get a rental car for a week or two where else should I travel ?(not far away from Paris)

On 12/27/2019 at 5:59 PM, Hlitner said:

The bulk of France either cannot be accessed from a cruise ship (or river boat) or is a ridiculously long port day (such as Le Havre to Paris).  So,  most Francophiles (including me) have learned that the best way to see France is on a land trip.  Personally I prefer to fly to France (or cruise to France) and rent a car for a few weeks. A lot of the best places in France cannot be reasonably accessed by rail, so a car (or bus tour) is the way to go.  For those that have lots of time we strongly recommend combining a Euro/Med cruise with a land trip.  In the case of France there are quite a few cruises that call at Le Havre for the last port and then end (the following day) in England.  Most cruise lines will allow passengers to disembark in Le Havre (you should get advanced permission) which is a nice way to get to France.  From Le Havre it is straightforward to take a train directly to Paris (or perhaps spend some time in Normandy before heading South).  Speaking of Paris, a great idea for a 1-2 week visit is renting an apartment (thousands are online).  Apartments get you a lot more space then a hotel are generally less costly.  It also allows folks to be choosey on exactly where they want to stay.  As a simple example, DW and I really enjoy staying in the 6th (St Germain des Pres) relatively close to the Seine.  There are few reasonably priced decent hotels in this area but many more apartment rentals.

 

Planning an itinerary in France is both a daunting challenge and exciting.  Paris (DW's favorite city in the world) is always worthy of a visit (we think a few days or weeks is best).  Normandy is interesting for a few days.  The "South of France" and Provence is an amazing region for a visit (the longer the better).  One can use a city like Avignon (or its smaller neighbor St Remy) as a base for many day trips.  There is also the area around Strasbourg (easily combined with some time in Germany) which is very rewarding.  And we have not even touched on the French Alps, the Bordeaux area, etc. etc.

 

Pity the poor cruiser who stops in one or two French ports and thinks they have "seen France."  

 

For those who have made up their mind to use river boat cruises we suggest an itinerary that includes a visit to Paris and a cruise into Provence (many river boats go to Avignon).

 

Hank

Hank thank you very much for your comment , gives me a lot to think about , I still feel like I'd prefer to travel by land most of all but living in USA doesn't leave me choice but to fly or travel by boat . I appreciate your time .

7 minutes ago, CruiserBruce said:

"Better" is a subjective judgement based on your interests, which we don't know. What are you interested in seeing and doing in France? Why are you focused on France? Med cruises will hit 2 or 3 ports in France, along with a few in other countries, like Italy, Spain or Greece. A river cruise, on the other hand, will probably only be in France, unless you do a major river like the Rhine.

 

A knowledgeable travel agent can help a lot here.

Well lot's of people I know that have been to France informed me that it's very charming , lovely , beautiful place, however everyone has flew there and spent they whole vacation there , this is going to be my first cruise actually , I've traveled by plane a little(vacation in St.Peterburg , Russia , in witch I spent all my time there). Now I'd like to take a cruise with my s/o so if we do go through multiple countries that be great ! But it seems like I do need to get with traveling agent . thank you for advise!    

14 hours ago, mom says said:

Where in France? Ocean (Mediterranean  cruises that include French Ports)? Or river cruises on the Seine or Rhone?

I was thinking more of a Mediterranean cruise but which would be better ? I'd like to make that cruise to France unforgettable for my lady and I .Thank you for the help.

Last year we went and visited St. Petersburg. We think about France cruise next. Any recommendations?

I think I'd rather buy one with the security features , then make one myself, I feel like it would be much safer and I don't think they are to expensive , get one off Amazon.

Which best company to use for a premium cruise to France?