Metz is an hour east by road or train. The Gothic cathedral has the largest expanse of stained glass of any cathedral in France, and the Centre Pompidou-Metz is a destination in its own right.
Reims lies about 1h 30min west: the coronation cathedral of the kings of France and the chalk cellars of the major Champagne houses.
Luxembourg City is 1h 15min north — the casemates, the old town, and the Mudam contemporary art museum make an easy cross-border day.
West of Verdun, the Argonne was the focus of the American 1918 offensive. The Montfaucon American Monument, the Meuse-Argonne American Cemetery at Romagne, the mine-cratered Butte de Vauquois and the Consenvoye German cemetery (all listed below) make a strong second battlefield day.
With a 1h 15min TGV from the Meuse station, Paris is feasible in reverse: a morning in the capital and an afternoon in Verdun, or the other way round.
