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Seven days is short for France, but the country's high-speed rail makes a four-region loop honest. Three nights in Paris for the essentials, one in Lyon for the country's most serious eating city, two in Nice for the Côte d'Azur, and a last night inland in Aix-en-Provence or Avignon. The TGV network handles every long leg; a half-day rental drives the Luberon on day six. It's the trip that shows a first-time visitor why France is more than Paris — without spending three weeks proving it.
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Each day is written to balance structure with breathing room. Named hotels, named meals, named activities; logistics noted where they matter.
Land at CDG, RER B to Châtelet, taxi to your hotel. Drop bags, walk the Marais — Place des Vosges, rue des Rosiers, the Village Saint-Paul antiques lanes. First-night dinner at Le Servan or Bistrot Paul Bert. Early night; jet lag is real.
Louvre at 09:00 pre-booked, Denon wing only — three hours maximum, no more. Lunch in the Tuileries. Afternoon on Île de la Cité: Sainte-Chapelle's stained glass, the reopened Notre-Dame interior, Berthillon on Île Saint-Louis. Evening dinner at Frenchie or Brasserie Lipp.
Morning at the Musée d'Orsay for Impressionism (Monet, Van Gogh, Manet — 2h 30m). Lunch at Bouillon Pigalle. Afternoon walking Montmartre — Sacré-Cœur, Place du Tertre, the vineyard behind rue Saint-Vincent. Farewell Paris dinner at Chez L'Ami Louis or Clown Bar.
Morning TGV Paris Gare de Lyon → Lyon Part-Dieu (2h). Check into your Lyon hotel, walk the Presqu'île. Afternoon in Vieux Lyon (UNESCO Renaissance quarter) — the traboules, the Cathédrale Saint-Jean. Evening at a bouchon lyonnais: Daniel et Denise or Le Musée for tablier de sapeur and quenelle de brochet.
Morning TGV Lyon → Nice (4h 45m via Marseille). Arrive early afternoon, check in, walk the Promenade des Anglais to Old Nice. Salade niçoise lunch at Chez Palmyre. Late-afternoon swim at Plage Beau Rivage. Dinner at La Petite Maison (the Ranieri original, not the London outposts).
Morning bus 82 (or hired driver) along the Moyenne Corniche to Èze village — perched-medieval, the Jardin Exotique with 400m sea views. Lunch at Château Eza terrace. Afternoon down to Villefranche-sur-Mer for a swim and the Chapelle Saint-Pierre (Cocteau frescoes). Back to Nice for dinner at Le Bistrot d'Antoine.
Morning TGV Nice → Aix-en-Provence TGV (3h). Check into an Aix hotel or drive an hour into the Luberon (Gordes, Roussillon) with a half-day rental car. Cours Mirabeau lunch, Cézanne's atelier on the way out, evening flight from Marseille MRS to onward hub.
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For a first-time overview: Paris + one region, yes. This itinerary threads four regions because the TGV makes the geography compress, but every leg is honest — 2–4 hours between cities, three nights in Paris, and two on the Côte d'Azur. Ten days would add the Loire châteaux or Normandy properly.
While you're there
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