France is a beautiful place to visit, but it depends on what activities you want to do.
While the coastal regions are really nice and can be hot, there are many sites inland and the mountains that have stunning locations.
Depending on when you want to go an ACSI card is a good option and save a lot of money.
Check that the sites you visit accept dogs and their prices as some charge €70 a week per dog.
Most supermarkets sell the cheapest fuels, but only accept card payments, to get the best value get a credit card that doesn't charge for use abroad like the post office as this get you the bank rate not the exchange rate saving you more providing you pay it off in full every month.