Places to Visit in France

Everyone knows Paris, even if they have never been there. Everyone knows the tall spire of the Eiffel Tower, the broad avenue of the Champs-Élysées with majestic Arc de Triomphe at its end, the enchanting Notre Dame cathedral, elegant bridges across the Seine, lovely sidewalk cafes, and priceless art treasures of the Louvre.

You can see all the iconic sites of Paris known from hundreds of movies and immortalized by poets, painters, sculptors, and writers. Ancient and modern, Paris is a dense network of diverse neighborhoods with distinct character, history, colors, and aromas, with the never ending buzz of life – always changing but always enormously charming. You can live in Paris your whole life and not see all the City of Light has to offer, but visiting it is an unforgettable adventure.

Once a peaceful fishing village on the Mediterranean, St Tropez needed Brigitte Bardot to transform it into a hot jet setters’ playground when she came in 1956 to film And God Created Woman. Celebrities come to be seen, tourists come to see the celebrities, the million-dollar yachts show off in the marina, and the village is bustling with crowds and buzzing with excitement.

In the winter when tourists are gone, St. Tropez reverts to its real nature, and you can stroll peacefully through its charming narrow cobblestoned streets, watch fishermen bring in the catch, and enjoy watching old men playing petanque, and you will understand why this quintessential French coastal village inspired greats such as de Maupassant.

Located only about 22km from Paris in the quiet Parisian suburbs of Versailles, Versailles is the most glorious of all the French palaces and chateaus. The Baroque château was built in the mid-17th century by King Louis XIV and was the home of French kings until the French revolution. With time, various kings added to the splendor of Versailles, with additions such as the pink marble beauty of Trianon, Marie-Antoinette's estate, spectacular fountains, miles of formal gardens, and much more. A visit to Versailles is as delightful as it is overwhelming.

Versailles acquired a new role in the 19th century as the Museum of the History of France, and many royal apartments and lavishly decorated rooms were converted to house collections of artifacts that cover the country’s history until the early 20th century.

A jewel of the French Riviera, Antibes is a lovely resort town between Nice and Cannes on the Mediterranean coast. The old town is surrounded by the remnants of 16th-century ramparts with the Fort Carré, and it overlooks many ports, from fishing and cargo to luxury yachts’ marina Port Vauban. On one side of the town is the woody peninsula of Cap d’Antibes where the old trees hide many luxury villas of rich and famous Europeans who started coming to the lovely Antibes since the 18th century.

With forty-eight beaches and sixteen miles of scenic Mediterranean coastline, Antibes is packed with tourists in the summer who are attracted not only by the wide, sandy beaches but also by thriving nightlife, great restaurants, and endless festivals.

Romantic Places to Visit in France:

Beaujolais is a French province with its capital in historic Villefranche-sur-Saône, world-known for its light, fruity wine, and beautiful scenic landscapes dotted with picture-perfect vineyards. Located north of Lyon, Beaujolais is ancient and breathtakingly beautiful with charming stone villages, imposing Romanesque churches, and elegant17th and 18th-century Renaissance châteaux such as de la Chaize, de la Salle, and du Basty.

You can visit the vineyards that surround many of the castles, stay overnight, and taste their wines. Some of the most beautiful castles like Bagnols are actually luxury hotels. In the 19th century, many vineyard owners built beautiful large manors you will notice standing proudly on top of the hill surrounded by orderly lines of vines. If you drive through Beaujolais in November when they open barrels of new Beaujolais wine, you will find roads dotted by farmhouses offering their own wine with some local cheese and sausages.

World-famous for its film festival, Cannes is a luxury resort town on the French Riviera overlooking the blue Mediterranean and lined by sandy beaches. The town is known as the playground for the rich and famous, and there is usually a parade of expensive cars cruising along the Boulevard de la Croisette, which curves along the coast.

It is lined on one side with beaches covered body to body with lounge chairs and umbrellas and on another with expensive boutiques and chic, palatial hotels. It is glitzy, expensive, showy, and very beautiful with a colorful lively harbor full of luxury yachts, while the charming old quarter of Le Suquet is perfect for strolling around and soaking up the city’s history.

Family-friendly Places to Visit in France:

Located in the village of Chambord in the Loire Valley, the royal Château de Chambord is a stunning and massive châteaux, and is one of the most easily recognizable of the French castles for its distinctive French Renaissance style of architecture – a fine mix of traditional medieval French style with classical structures of the Renaissance. The chateau was built by King Francois I and completed in 1547 under Henry II.

The chateau has eleven kinds of towers and three kinds of chimneys. It also has no symmetry and is framed at the corners by the enormous towers. Its silhouette resembles that of a city more than of a building. The towers and moat are decorative since the chateau was never meant to provide protection. The château has 440 rooms, 282 ornate fireplaces, and 84 staircases including a unique double spiral staircase. It is surrounded by a 13,000 acre park and hunting reserve and a 20 mile long wall.

Eze is a gorgeous town in southeastern France, renowned internationally for its stunning hilltop views of the Mediterranean Sea. The French Riviera city, which is located approximately eight miles from Nice, was a favorite European destination for famed animator and entrepreneur Walt Disney and retains much of its medieval character, with buildings such as the Chapelle de la Sainte Croix dating back to the 14th century. World-class attractions within the city include the Jardin Exotique d'Èze, which has received a TripAdvisor Certificate of Excellence for its beautiful collection of cacti, succulents, and other exotic plants. A large number of art galleries, boutiques, and restaurants line its beautiful historic downtown area.

Located about 23 km from Nice on the border with the Principality of Monaco high up in the Alps at 1,150m and hanging over the Mediterranean, La Turbie looks like it is floating in the sky with the gigantic 35 meter high Trophee d’Auguste dominating the landscape. Built 2000 years ago by the Romans, the magnificent monument is the town’s pride, so start your exploring there before strolling through charming cobblestoned streets with ancient stone houses with flowers dripping from every window.

You will pass under vaulted passageways, sit at cool little stone fountains, admire old gemelled windows, and take a photo of the enormous ornate fountain and beautiful baroque church with an interesting square bell tower and varnished tiles on the roof. Take one of many narrow paths up the hill through beautiful local parks and enjoy the magnificent views that stretch for miles – on a clear day, you can see all the way to Corsica.