Regions of France

Alsace - Nestled in the north-eastern corner of France, Alsace displays an expansive landscape of history, gastronomy, recreation and tradition. From ancient ruins and gothic cathedrals to nature reserves and activities such as golf, mountain biking and snow skiing, Alsace is sure to please everyone from the history buff to the sports enthusiast.

Aquitaine is in the south-west of France and is in fact France's largest region. It comprises of five departments Dordogne, Gironde, Landes, Lot-et-Garonne and Pyrénées-Atlantiques. It's west coast is long and unusually straight - if you look at Aquitaine on a map you'll what I mean! This coastline stretches more than 200km from the mouth of the Gironde estuary down to the border of it's neighbour Spain. Along this border you'll find two main resorts, Biarritz in the south which has recently become popular with trendy Parisians, and Arcachon to the north with its expensive villas. Other than these resorts, the coastline tends to stay reasonably quiet during the summer months which makes Aquitaine a very good alternative to France's packed Mediterranean coast. If you are a fan of surfing, the beaches here are the only ones in France where surfing is possible, and is reputed to provide the best surfing in the whole of Europe!

Auvergne - Anchoring the center of France is the Massif Central, a rugged plateau of ancient granite and hardened lava, punctuated by volcanic peaks and deep river gorges. This is the land of the Auvergne, a region of natural beauty and dramatic landscapes, located midway between Paris and the Mediterranean.

Brittany - One of France's most rugged regions, Brittany is a fascinating mix of spectacular coastline, ancient towns, magical islands and inland woods. A Celtic duchy for more than one thousand years before its annexation to France in 1532, it is a land rich in culture, tradition and history. When your journey through this Western peninsula, you'll discover a people whose language, customs and dress remain a vivid homage to their past.

Burgundy - The region of Burgundy is located just southwest of Paris, easily accessible from the capital thanks to the high-speed TGV train, excellent highways, and a network of rivers and canals. The Saône River, the Canal de Bourgogne, and numerous other waterways provide a leisurely means for a traveling vacation. From behind the wheel of a rented boat you can glide along tree-lined canals, hardly faster than a brisk walk. Luxurious hotel-barges are also available which offer exquisite service, haute cuisine, and the best wines from Burgundy's vineyards. Regional cuisine includes the famous boeuf bourguignon, coq au vin, and garlicky snails. And don't forget that Dijon is synonymous with mustard!
Famous for its fine wines, Bourgogne is home to "the best wines in Christendom," including Chamberlain, Pommard, Meursault, Chablis, Pouilly-Fuissé, and a long list of other well-known names. In the medieval city of Beaune an annual three-day wine auction draws vinophiles from around the world. Called Les Trois Glorieuses, it is held in the Hospices de Beaune, a 15th-century charity hospital.

Centre/Loire Valley - Centre Val de Loire (known to the British as the central Loire valley) is one of the largest regions in France. It is situated in the heart of the country and marks a north-south divide between the urban and the rural and the cool and the warm. The region capitalises on its central location and incorporates the very best of French cuisine and culture.
The Loire, which runs through the region's major towns of Tours, Blois and Orléans, is France’s longest River and completely bisects the region. Blois and Orléans have been named the second and third best places to live in France by French magazine, Le Point.
The region has always had a reputation for bourgeois prestige, attracting artists, poets and writers throughout the centuries. In the 13th century, Orléans had the distinction of being France’s intellectual capital.

Champagne-Ardenne - Champagne. The name alone invites celebration, sophistication, intrigue -- a fitting description of your vacation to this renowned region of France. Here, you'll discover heavy forests that give way to fertile vineyards. Beguiling villages inviting you to stop and wander a while. Stunning stained-glass windows that adorn centuries-old cathedrals, seemingly untouched by the ravages of time and war. And, of course, there is champagne.

Corsica - Corsica was ruled over the centuries by the Carthaginians, Romans, Vandals, Goths and Saracens. It was eventually sold to France by the Genoese. Located in the western Mediterranean, just to the north of Sardinia, it's 160 km (99 miles) southeast of Nice, France, and 82 km (51 miles) west of Tuscany, Italy. Famous for its independent spirit, rugged beauty, olive oil, wine and citrus fruit, Corsica was the birthplace of Napoleon Bonaparte. Its major industry is tourism, with many visitors arriving by ferry.

Franche-Comté - Discover Franche-Comté, a beautiful but perhaps little known part of France. Far away from the main highways, picturesque roads will entice you through the heart of a countryside of wild, fascinating, ever changing scenery. More than half of the region is covered with forests and innumerable rivers and waterfalls. Eighty tranquil lakes offer undisturbed peace to calm the mind pressurized by the hustle and bustle of city life. Situated along the Swiss border, between Alsace and Burgundy, Franche-Comté is accessible by international highways, making travel easy and comfortable. From Besancon, capital of Franche-Comté, to Montbéliard, Belfort and Luxeuil-les-Bains, you will come across many pretty towns of historic interest with attractive shopping centers. Do not forget to try the Comté cheese, hand made in "fruiteries", with some Jura wines, the "vin jaune", and the wines from Château-Chalon and Arbois. Besançon stages a famous music festival every September lasting for two weeks. And various exhibitions take place in the exceptional site of the Royal Saltworks at Arc-et-Sénans.

Ile-de-France - Ile-de-France has borne witness to many historical battles, and from here monarchs extended their power slowly over France's other distinct regions. They escaped from a crowded Paris into lavish hunting lodges located throughout Ile-de-France's bountiful forests, a landscape that also inspired several esteemed artists. Corot painted the village of Barbizon, Monet chose the Epte River as a subject and several of Sisley's riverside canvases were created at Villeneuve-la-Garenne.

Languedoc-Roussillon - The two distinct provinces of Languedoc and Roussillon stretch from the foothills of the Pyrenees on the Spanish border to the mouth of the Rhône. The flat beaches and lagoons of the coast form a purpose-built sunbelt accommodating millions of holiday-makers every year. The Languedoc-Roussillon region of France is relatively unknown to foreign travelers, although it is a popular region for French tourists. The region offers a wide variety of tourist attractions, including beaches, ski resorts, sulfur springs and historical attractions. One special attraction of the region is the Canal du Midi, which tourists can travel by barge or boat.

Limousin - The Limousin region is a largely undiscovered part of France of stunning natural beauty, rich with history and tradition, charming chateaux and ancient churches. It gets its name from the Lemorices, the large tribe of people who lived here at the time of the Gauls. Known as the French Lake District, the verdant countryside filled with valleys, ravines and forests provides everything for the nature enthusiast and the lakes and rivers are not only beautiful, but also mean there is lots to do for those who enjoy walking, riding and water sports. Golf is also popular here. For those who enjoy city life, there is Limoges, a great city with plenty going on and lots to see. There are many picturesque villages and towns to explore, including some of the most beautiful in France. There is a strong agricultural tradition and a real feeling of community, which extends to the warm welcome visitors receive.

Lorraine - Lorraine, in the far north-east, is often called the Pays de Trois Frontiers (the land of three frontiers) as it shares borders with Germany, Belgium and Luxembourg. Geologically, western Lorraine is composed of rolling hills of clay separated by the northsouth running limestone ridges of the Côtes de Meuse and Côtes de Moselle. The heavy soils of these rolling plains support mixed farming: dairy, oats, and wheat and the ridges have worked as defensive barriers during the many times that Lorraine has been threatened with attack. The cities of Metz, Mancy, Verdun, Thionville, and Toul are route centres and fortress cities defending the gaps in the ridges.

Midi-Pyrénées - Situated in the heart of south-west France, Midi-Pyrénées extends from the wooded hills of the Dordogne, in the north, to the great river valleys of the center and the majestic Pyrénées in the south. It is one of the largest regions in the country, with a landscape of ancient towns, villages, castles, Romanesque churches and an inexhaustible history. Its extensive agriculture makes it a region of farmers and peasants, producing a variety of crops, maize, Soya, sunflowers, tobacco, wheat, tomatoes, beans, kiwis, melons, strawberries, apples, pears, plums and peaches. The gastronomic excellence of the Midi-Pyrénées is unquestionable, whether you dine in a Relais-Château or in a local inn, you will taste wonderful foie gras, cassoulet, Roquefort and drink local wines such as Fronton, Gaillac, Cahors and of course Armagnac.

Nord-Pas-de-Calais - Nord-Pas-des-Calais is in the far north of France bordering Belgium. It is an area that people mostly see in passing as they travel through the ferry port at Calais, however it has many beautiful areas and is noted for its clean beaches, undulating countryside, secluded woods and scenic river valleys. There are also so fine gold courses and many pretty villages.

Normandy is a place of perpetual change. Just a glance at its skies will provide a view that is continually renewed, from the turbulent shores of the Channel to the gentle twists and turns of the Seine river around Paris. This diversity is also reflected in the region's history, architecture, culture and art. A whole range of emotions awaits you : amazement at major world heritage sites, poignancy at the evocation of events which shaped Western history, unexpected pleasure at an ancient monument or a residence full of memories.

Pays de la Loire/Western Loire Valley - Pays de la Loire is a region of western France, comprising the departments of Loire-Atlantique (44), Maine-et-Loire (49), Mayenne (53), Sarthe (72) and Vendée (85). It has an area of 32,082 km2 (12,387 mi2) and a population of 3,222,061 (1999); the capital is Nantes. Pays de la Loire has a long coast on the Bay of Biscay to the west and is bordered by Brittany to the north and west, Lower Normandy to the north, Centre to the east, and Poitou-Charentes to the south.

Picardy - In the north of France, near the cities of Amiens, Compiègne and Chantilly and between the rivers Marne and Somme, you can find the Picardy region. This district is the cradle of gothic art. Here you can find countless treasures of art and nature. The region has many beautiful cathedrals and churches. One can relive the atmosphere from former days by participating in the many feasts, festivals and Picardy games.

Poitou-Charentes - One of the best-known technological achievements of the Poitou-Charentes region is the Futuroscope, located at 7 kilometres from Poitiers. This futuristic European science-oriented exhibition and audiovisual centre attracts huge numbers of visitors. La Rochelle has been an important naval and trading port since the eleventh century, and is now also a major university and oceanographic research centre, with a famous marine aquarium. Angoulême, another major town in the Poitou-Charentes region, is the headquarters of the National Comic Strip and Image Centre (CNBDI), which keeps vast archives on world comic-strip art, specializing in the Franco-Belgian school and the golden age of US comics. Every year, comic book aficionados flock to Angoulême for the annual festival.
The region is also renowned for its oyster farms. Sixty percent of France's oysters come from the famous Marenne-Oléron basin, endowed with ideal weather conditions and fresh water from the Seudre estuary.

Provence-Alpes-Côte D'Azur - The Mediterranean seaside: The Côte d'Azur,the famous French Riviera which stretches from Hyères to Menton is set up to receive a large and rather affluent tourist clientele. The cities and coastline abound with first class hotels, in restaurants, chic boutiques, private beaches and luxury houses. But the coast is also Camargue and its keepers, and the great ports of Marseilles, Toulon and Nice, all three, gateways to Africa since ancient times.
Provence : The heart of Provence is in the hills that bind the sea to the alps. . These are the sloping vineyards; the cultivated lands and the colorful scenery that charmed Cezanne (Aix en Provence), Van Gogh (Arles), Chagall or Giono. In Provence or the Midi the local people have a soft singing accent which evokes their whole relaxed lifestyle.
The Alpes : Skiing one hour from the seaside? Well yes! Here you can do it! The Alpes d'Azur rise high above Nice up to 4000m. . ....Clean pure air and vast protected lands, this is still Provence with the Alpes of Haute Provence and the Hautes Alpes. In the winter there is sunny skiing, in the summer one can explore on horseback, on foot or by bike.

Rhône-Alpes - Its two most important geaographical features, the Alps and the River Rhône, give to this region both its name and its dramatic character. The east is dominated by majestic snowcapped peaks, while the Rhône provides a vital conduit between North and south. Lyon, with its great museums and fine Renaissance buildings, is the second city of France. To the North lies the flat marshlands of the Dombes and the rich agricultural Bresse plain. Here are the world famous Beaujolais vineyards which, along with the Côtes du Rhône, make the region such an important wine producer.
The French Alps are among the most popular year-round resort areas in the world, with internationally renowned ski stations such as Chamonix, Megève and Courchevel, and historic cities like Chambery, capital of the Savoie before it joined France. Elegant spa towns line the shore of Lac Leman (Lake Geneva). Grenoble, a bustling university and high-tech centre, is flanked by two of the most spectacular nature reserve in France, the Chartreuse and the Vercors.
To the South, orchards and fields of sunflowers give way to brilliant rows of lavender interspersed with vineyards and olive groves. Châteaux and ancient towns dot the landscape.
Mountains and pretty, old-fashioned spa towns characterize the rugged Ardèche, and the deeply scoured gorges along the river Ardèche offer some of the wildest scenery in France.