From Paris the TGV reaches Lyon, Bordeaux and Strasbourg in about two hours — France is chosen by direction, not by city
France is planned by direction from Paris, because almost the whole high-speed network converges there. The TGV reaches Lyon, Bordeaux and Strasbourg in about two hours, so each makes a natural second city after the capital. Normandy is the west, with Mont Saint-Michel and the cliffs of Étretat; the south is Provence and the Côte d'Azur, where Nice is more than five hours from Paris by train.
After Paris you pick one direction, not three. The east is Strasbourg, with Colmar and the Alsace wine route, for four days; the south-east is Lyon, with the Beaujolais; the south-west is Bordeaux, with the vineyards and Arcachon, for five. All three are about two hours from the capital, so each works as an extension of Paris.
Each place has its own page — what makes it worth the detour, and how long you need.
All 277 places we write about sit on one page — narrow them down by continent, country, price or what you are travelling for.
The south is a separate trip, and its two halves ask for opposite things. Provence needs a car and five days with two bases — Avignon or Arles in the west, Aix in the east — because trains only run between the towns, not up to the hill villages. The Côte d'Azur is the reverse: from Nice a regional train reaches Monaco in about twenty-five minutes and Cannes in thirty-five to forty, so a car only gets in the way.
How it actually was when we were there, and what was worth it.
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More than a hundred million foreign visitors a year — more than any other country, and more than France has inhabitants.
The label says Bordeaux, Burgundy or Champagne rather than the grape: designation of origin is a legal category, and it draws lines even between villages in the same valley.
The first high-speed train linked Paris and Lyon in 1981. The network has grown outwards from the capital ever since, like a star, so getting from one region to another often means going through Paris.
The European Parliament's official seat is in Strasbourg, where most plenary sessions are held; the committees meet in Brussels.
The Festival of Lights runs for four nights around 8 December: façades, squares and the rivers in the centre become light installations.
The cathedral burned on 15 April 2019 and reopened on 7 December 2024, after five years of restoration.
This isn't a ranking — it's a route. Any one of these could carry a whole trip.
Three days for a first visit, four or five if you go inside the big museums, and the hub for every direction: Gare de Lyon for Lyon and the south, Montparnasse for Bordeaux and Rennes, Gare de l'Est for Strasbourg, Saint-Lazare for Normandy. Tickets are for a station, not just a city.
For lavender, hill villages and markets. Not for anyone who doesn't drive — without a car you are left with the towns, Avignon, Arles and Aix, while the fields and villages are out of the trains' reach.
For the sea without a car, with Nice as the base and the train along the coast. Not for anyone after a sandy beach — Nice is shingle, and August is the fullest month.
A day, or a night if you arrive without a car and want the empty morning. Walk on the sand of the bay only with a guide: at the biggest tides the water comes back fast and covers the approach.
For châteaux and cycling: Chambord and Chenonceau are the best known, and the Loire à Vélo cycle route runs about 900 kilometres with accommodation spaced by stage. Tours is an hour to an hour and a half from Paris by fast train, so the valley also works as a long weekend.
The Revolution introduced decimal time in 1793: a day of ten hours, an hour of a hundred minutes, a minute of a hundred seconds. It lasted seventeen months, because nobody wanted to throw away their old watch.
France is the most visited country in the world, with over eighty million guests a year, more than it has inhabitants. It also holds territory in every ocean, so the sun never sets on it.
Short answers to what people ask most before setting out.
From late June to mid-July, depending on altitude and the year. The bloom lasts about six weeks and ends with the harvest, so check the date before you book, not after.
Fast train to Rennes, then the Keolis bus, line 8, about an hour and ten minutes; it runs every day, all year. From the bus stop a free shuttle takes you to the walls.
For Provence, the Alsace villages and the vineyards around Bordeaux, yes. For Paris, Lyon, Bordeaux, Strasbourg and the Côte d'Azur, no — there are trains, trams and metros.
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The whole of France fits into one query — six questions and you know which of them suits you.
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