For visitors on holiday in France, the whole of France can seem like a market—it's one of those rare countries where every region offers its own distinctive landscape and culture.
Paris represents the height of fashion, art and food—its sense of style is unique enough to intimidate some visitors, yet the city can also be remarkably comfortable an intimate.
A holiday in France suits just about any traveller's taste and it is a popular and addictive destination.
For a different style of holiday in France, visit the French Fields of Remeberance. These guided tours are organised and guided by Australians for Australians, in private vehicles or a mini-bus, with the best local accommodation available. They can be personalised to visit specific cemeteries, historic and commemorative sites in France. If you wish, you can visit a specific grave or where a particular regiment fought.
Holiday in France over Christmas. Europe lights up at Christmas and in Paris this year you'll find Christmas markets, special events and Christmas Mass.
Enjoy your holiday in France at this gorgeous French hotel. Located in a quiet corner off the busy Rue de Rennes, along the cobbled streets between Montparnasse and St Germain des Pres and close to the Luxembourg Gardens. This family friendly hotel is within walking distance of the Musée D’Orsay, Musée Rodin and the Louvre.
For your next holiday in France, Swiss & Europe Travel has discovered one of the most trendsetting spa cum vineyard resorts on Europe, just 15 minutes from Bordeaux, France. It is thought that as well as imbibing a couple of glasses of wine a day, we should be bathed and massaged in it, too. The theory is that the humble grape pip is highly effective at countering skin damage caused by free radicals (smoking, pollution and sunlight). This French spa resort is a joyous mélange of 5 star comfort, scenery that is a knockout and food and wine to please the gods. We have already had clients who have come home completely enthused with their stay.
If you are visiting Avignon you will find a multitude of restaurants where you can have good food, but some, such as this, are really worth the effort as well as being good value.
Food is one of the main reasons people like to holiday in France. This is one of the best-kept not-so-well-known great restaurants in Paris, France. It will make it into the guidebooks so we recommend that you beat a path to its newly-opened doors before the stampede begins.
Take a ski holiday in France. The French ski resort is a former luxury hotel in the heart of Chamonix. It is less than 5 minutes walk from the town centre. The Cinq Mondes Spa compliments the range of sporting and leisure activities that are offered.
Following two nights in the Moselle and Rhine valleys, stay four nights in the French Alsace region, three nights near Lake Geneva, and four more in the heart of the Swiss Alps. Relax in the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, follow the Alsace wine route, ride on the chocolate train and enjoy a journey through landscapes that include Europe’s highest mountains.
The 2011 Tour was a thrilling race. Australia claimed its first ever victory, while the infamous Schleck brothers snatched up second and third places. 2012 should be equally (if not more) exciting; the inclusion of a few new stage sites will certainly spice things up. The Tour invariably promises high tension, particularly in the mountains, where the roads switchback and the steep grades separate out the real contenders. You will be there to witness all the epic moments: the climb at La Planche des Belles Filles in the Vosges, and the Alpine finish at La Toussuire.
The week starts high in the Vosges mountains for the uphill finish of Stage 7 at Planche des Belles Filles, a newcomer as a finish for the Tour. We follow the peloton the next day with a ride through the nearby Jura Mountains in Switzerland, and will be there again along the fences to witness the stage finish in Porrentruy. After two days of mountain stages we should have an indication of who the real contenders are.
From there we power through to Besançon for the highlights of an individual time trial, before heading south to the imposing peaks of the Alps. Here, with Lake Annecy at our backs, you'll ride the cols of the Parc Naturel Massif des Bauges before pedalling the famous hills and villages of the Chartreuse Massif.
Our final day of riding we will tackle the legendary climb to La Toussuire (1,705m), arriving in plenty of time to join the screaming, flag-waving fans awaiting the arrival of the leaders.
For a holiday in France that includes some interesting history visit Alsace. Alsace, formerly part of Germany, has a distinctive flair and is without any doubt one of the most dynamic and prettiest regions of France. This 3-day mini break is a perfect entrée into the region.
Alsace, France has become a symbol of the trans-national European economy and has developed privileged partnerships with Germany and Switzerland. Although modest in size, Alsace offers an incredible variety of landscapes and climates contributing to the diversity of the region. It boasts outstanding heritage, famous wines and gastronomy that attract gourmets from all over the world. Its main city, Strasbourg, houses many institutions of the European Union as well as an old town nestled around the cathedral. This luxury three-day holiday in France will introduce you to spectacular wine roads dotted with vineyards, pretty villages and hamlets.
Any holiday in France would not be complete without a visit to a château. Dating from the 13th century, the Château de Bagnols is set among vineyards, forests and green hills in the heart of the Beaujolais countryside in south-eastern France. Lyon, about 20 kilometres away, has an international airport and a train station accessible from Paris or Geneva. With its towers, moat, honey-coloured stone and entrance across a drawbridge, Bagnols is one of France's major historic monuments.
Enjoy fine food and wine on your holiday in France. Beneath the streets of Champagne’s capital, Reims in north eastern France, is a honeycomb of champagne cellars. One of France’s finest restaurants is in the heart of the town, in a picture-perfect chateau of 20 lavish rooms. Its appeal is its Michelin starred restaurant where the cuisine is almost surreally simple. In summer you can dine in the chateau’s garden and travellers from the Antipodes will love its unpretentious atmosphere.
For a fascinating self-driveholiday in France head to the Loire Valley. The beautification of the Loire Valley in 15th and 16th C by successive French monarchs and their wealthy courtiers may well be the most extravagant rural building program in Europe’s history. This itinerary takes in the highlights of the Loire Valley.
Since 1996 this unique tour has been staged in the Pyrenees Atlantic region of south-west France during spring and autumn. For a wonderful holiday in France, this slow food tour is based in the country, giving you the rare opportunity to meet the locals, taste the regional produce, admire the beautiful landscapes, and experience up close the culture of France.
A 4 day / 3 night self-drive holiday in France to the lovely Dordogne Valley taking in the best holiday activities of the region that will interest both adults and children. Travelling through this region in France is an exploration through time, a chance to uncover layers of prehistory, history and tradition. Traces of the past are everywhere. Reindeer, bulls and horses gallop across cave ceilings where they were painted in Cro Magnon times. This holiday in France is through one of the prettiest areas in France.
A cycling tour en Bourgogne is exhilarating way to spend a holiday in France. This is French wine’s ancestral home, where grand cru vineyards are your most trusted landmarks. On this holiday in France you’ll cycle to the top of the gorgeous Hautes Côtes, sip vintages in the fields where they grew, spend the night at Abbaye de la Bussière — the region’s most exclusive hotel—and, with the help of a local guide, explore the unhurried pleasures of Beaune. For Burgundian locals, time is measured by the season. For you on your holiday in France, it’s calculated by the kilometre, the meal and the vintage — the yardsticks of pleasure.
In 1815 Napoléon journeyed on horseback from Golfe Juan, east of Cannes, to Grenoble on what is now known as the Route Napoléoon (Route Nationale 85). It features some of the most dramatic scenery in France. The places where he and his troops ate meals and spent their nights will thrill anyone who has a penchant for French history. A one-week drive using comfortable hotels, coupled with some satisfying meals and glorious scenery, has never made history so appealing.
Enjoy a holiday in France on the Côte d’Or region of Burgundy, France, the route of the “Grands Crus” from “Côte de Nuits ” to “Côte de Beaune”. You will taste the finest grands crus and premier cru wines. On this holiday in France you will enjoy the visit of the famous “Hospices de Beaune” and the château “Clos Vougeot”. Tours are designed for individuals or your own small group of 4-20 people.
For your next holiday in France, Swiss & Europe Travel recommends the Victoria Palace Hotel that is close to the Jardins du Luxembourg, famed museums, fashion boutiques and popular local restaurants and bistros. The Left Bank is a tapestry mostly of private apartments and homes so the Victoria Palace Hotel can therefore be enjoyed for its charm and ease of access to local Parisian life.
