When folks plan a vacation in troubled economic times, they often calculate up all the costs associated with it–like lodging, transportation, and such–and then try to trim those costs to the bone because they think of those things as peripheral to their vacation. Why not look at things the other way around? Why not make the lodging and transportation the point of your vacation?
Take transportation. I’ve recently had a ball walking the great, scenic vineyards of the Hermitage, located in the Drome département of the Rhône-Alpes region of France. You can get to Tain-Hermitage by train, and walk to your heart’s content. So why not take up a residence near a chateau, perhaps one with a garden to enjoy in the evenings where you can sit and have a drink of the wine that came from the vineyards you just visited? The place over there to the left is called Mas des Adhemar and it’s in a larger town of Montélimar. It’s located right below the Château des Adhémar.
There’s no law that you have to see the great art in the Louvre when you visit France. You can please yourself freely. Walking vineyards is free, the the steep slopes of the Rhone valley are so scenic they’ll raise your spirits–and you’ll be shedding calories instead of Euros when you walk them. All the better, because the food in this region is darn tasty.
Or you can stay in a castle. Yes, apartments are sometimes carved out of real castles so you and your family can pretend you’re privileged and everyone outside is a peasant who wants what you’ve got. The castle rental over there on the right is near Viens, east of Avignon. Four can sleep in an apartment inside, and the weekly rent is darn cheap for four people. Click the picture to find out more.
Trails in France are well-marked and maintained. There are thousands of miles of them; you can walk from just about any town to any other along a marked and maintained path.
So think about renting a spectacularly evocative place, and then do like the medieval people did: get out and walk. If you go in the shoulder season–looking for wildflowers in May or vineyards changing color in October–you can save a bundle on airfares.
Think cheap. Have an inexpensive vacation in France without sacrificing anything. Well, maybe the soles of your shoes…
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