France has it all - enviable beauty, refined architecture, cultural sophistication, and infectious romance. Every little corner of the country is worth visiting regardless of season, and deciding on a compact itinerary given all those unmatchable attractions can really give you a hard time.
Following some research into the preferences and opinions posted by users of various social media sites, such as Twitter and Facebook, as well as own resources and reviews by the most popular travel sites, Open Travel has compiled a list of top 25 things to see or do on your France Vacations. We are sure it will convince you of the country's uniqueness and help you to plan your trip. France is not just a recommendable destination, but a definite must on the list of both an amateur tourist and a conscientious traveler.
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As befits the most visited museum in the world, even the main entrance to the Louvre is a work of art. But don't linger for too long marveling at the glassy pyramid. Inside await the riches of world's most exquisite artistic legacy, from Egyptian mummies and Code of Hammurabi to Venus de Milo and...
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Location: Le Mont-Saint-Michel, France
Where the forces of nature meet the artistry of medieval architecture and Brittany melts with Normandy, there rises one of the first sites to obtain UNESCO World Heritage listing. Atop a rocky tidal island sits the legendary abbey - a symbol of the French national identity and heroic resistance t...
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Built to mark the centennial celebration of the French Revolution, it lays claim to being the most visited paid monument in the world. On a gloomy morning you may not even find it attractive - a mere pile of welded metal. Yet standing on its top observation deck on a cloudless afternoon and gazin...
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All we know about the creator of Chartres is that by outlining some entirely new principles he inspired all distinguished architects for years to follow. The soaring spires, the glowing 12th- and 13th-century stained-glass windows, and the porches elaborately adorned with detail-faithful sculptur...
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Location: Versailles, France
Having access to grand pieces of fine art on a daily basis must be entirely rewarding, but living in one is a totally different affair. Louis XIV certainly knew what he was doing when he moved to the court of Versailles in 1682. Today the gilded royal apartments, the breathtaking Hall of Mirrors...
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Location: Département de Maine-et-Loire, France
The twisting Loire cuts through the landscape of rolling hills and rocky protrusions to provide a soothing spectacle of nature, and set stage for a stupefying fit of architecture. This fabulous land of vineyards and blooming flowers has both river banks dotted with more than a thousand of unbelie...
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If the Louvre is the most splendid museum in France, then the Musee d'Orsay is right behind. Housed in the former railway station on the left bank of the Seine, it holds mainly paintings and sculptures by French artists, all of great merit and stunning sensitivity to detail. And much as the entir...
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A runner-up in Europe, after Chartres, in terms of bedazzling sculpted ornamentation, the former coronation site is an outstanding blend of royal history and architectural artistry. The Cathedral of Notre-Dame de Rheims displays the perfect synthesis of Gothic elements distinguished by remarkable...
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By far the best preserved Roman amphitheater in the world, the arena has been dominating the city of Nîmes for nearly 2,000 years, bearing a testament to the genius of Roman engineers. It is down to the enviable degree of perfection they achieved that we can today enjoy numerous contemporary eve...
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Victor Hugo's novel and the hugely touching characterization of the hunchback, Quasimodo, has served the cathedral's popularity well, but no attention seeking was necessary at all. No measure was spared in conceiving of a church that would reflect the capital's prestige, and the result proved to...
RATE ITMore about Notre Dame Cathedral (Cathedrale de Notre Dame de Paris)
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Evidently under the spell of the ancient Roman architecture, Napoleon I commissioned Jean Chalgrin to design a triumphal arch dedicated to the glory of the imperial armies. The world's largest monument of this kind, today it links old and new Paris, forming a backdrop for the precious urban ensem...
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Centre George Pompidou perfectly epitomizes all those cases when the very building competes for supremacy with its contents. Named after a former President of France and completed between 1971 and 1977, the center is truly a weird construction. Representing hi-tech architecture, it's a skeleton o...
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13
Moulin Rouge
Toulouse-Lautrec adored Moulin Rouge, and he certainly had good reasons to do so. Located in the vicinity of Montmartre in the Paris red-light district of Pigalle, the cabaret was a hotbed of brash entertainment, and the lithe, long-legged dancers had a special appeal to the crippled painter. Tod...
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Location: Chamonix-Mont-Blanc, France
Backdropped by the monumental wall of Mt Blanc, the Chamonix valley is a year-round paradise not only for enthusiasts of outdoor sports, but for anyone who appreciates a speck of history wrapped in heart-melting vistas. Lifts transport visitors into the heart of the massif, endless trails unveil...
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The news spread fast that Our Lady of Lourdes had appeared to Bernadette Soubirous several times, and a tranquil market town nested in the foothills of the Pyrenees turned into a major pilgrimage destination, which today is believed to have the second greatest number of hotels in France after Par...
RATE ITMore about Pèlerinage de Lourdes (The Sanctuary of Our Lady of Lourdes)
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16
Pont du Gard
Location: Languedoc-Roussillon, France
2000 years ago over 1000 people spent 5 strenuous years constructing the Pont du Gard - a spectacular compilation of stones weighing up to 6 tons. Constructed entirely without the use of mortar, which makes it even more impressive, it was part of a nearly 50 km aqueduct designed to carry water th...
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17
Lascaux II
A little oak forest south of Montignac, France. Four boys are desperately trying to rescue their dog trapped in a cave, the depth of which it's hard to tell. As they lower one another into the darkness, little do they realize that the trusty companion has lead them to make a groundbreaking discov...
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Location: Carcassonne, France
To be precise, there are two Carcassonnes: the famous walled City (Cité) and the adjacent town spreading at its foot (ville basse). A visit to the fortified settlement is a true step back in time. Its narrow cobblestoned streets, medieval buildings, and little squares filled with atmospheric res...
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Orange is an ordinary town devoid of that touristy luster you expect to find in a place of this significance. Agricultural in its heart, the modest setting doubles the aesthetic impact of the ancient heritage it unveils to visitors. Orange is home to one of the most complete and best preserved Ro...
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10 June 1944, in retaliation for the sabotage attacks by the French Resistance, the idyllic village of Oradour-sur-Glane was razed to the ground and 642 innocent residents massacred by Waffen-SS soldiers. A new settlement was built post-war but the ruins of the martyred village have been preserve...
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Stretching from Marlenheim to Thann, winding through endless terraced vineyards and flower-decked adorable villages, passing medieval castles and myriad free degustation spots, Alsace's Wine Route cannot be missed on any account. The region may be in less spotlight than Bordeaux or Burgundy, but...
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Location: Marne-la-Vallée, France
A paradise for kids and an opportunity for adults to be kids again, Disneyland Resort Paris is the second one to open outside the United States. As you enter the "Happiest Place on Earth, you are immediately possessed with the magic you so happily yielded to years ago. Scream, chant your favorite...
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Location: Champagne-Ardenne, France
Celebrated around the world for the sparkling wines, the Champagne region has more highlights than just the fizzy beverage. It's a picturesque oasis of tranquility, pristine beauty, and fine historical heritage sprawled over five wine producing districts with the commercial centers in the towns o...
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Location: Saint-Tropez, France
Famous for Brigitte Bardot and the clumsy gendarme, this sparkling pearl of Cote d'Azur is able to cast a spell on everyone from history buffs to cinema aficionados. But it is beach bums, including the red carpet crème de la crème, that will have the time of their life in St Tropez. With the c...
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Location: La Rochelle, France
La Rochelle is an ocean packed into just two floors. From the dancing jellyfish and dazzling Mediterranean coral to zooming shoals of piranhas and the king of the depths - the shark, the riches contained in all those tanks are so well displayed that visitors gaze at the species as if hypnotized...
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i believe tha le cote d'azur is a place one should never miss
And that's France, my favourite country!
Very useful information and fabulous pictures
excellent post
wow france is sooo awesome! i really wanna go there!
Excellent post, but "Le Pont du Gard" is not located in Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur but in Languedoc-Roussillon.
Thank you, Will. Our users' watchfulness can only make us better and better. We're sorry about the mistake and promise to be even more careful
Regards,
Open Travel
this really help
i liked France but to be honest i thought my trip to ireland last year offered me more things to do and see. the guiness factory was sooooo awesome! but i really liked the ghost tour! check it out!
helpful for mah project
yay.
This was really helpful to my homework! And now I reeeeealllllly wanna go to France XD
Can anyone give me an iten. for the South of France. I';; be there for 3 days
this info was good
very helpfull information and pictures are fab. thax for posting.
epic
i like willy
i love you tooo
hes called percy actually :L
Well, quite liked this piece! Good enough to get me excited about France.
hi
edd loves lauren!
hello
whos edd
?
hey sian :L
hey sav
woooooo!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
hi
Yeah
A very good write up! Pics that you have used are also amazing. Seriously, u almost made France live in my imagination. Hope watever info i have got in the blog, will help me during the journey. And i am looking forward to an amazing trip.
Yo!
wow amazing
France looks SOOOO beautiful....I cant wait to visit!!!!!!!
it sort of helped me,'cause i had to prepare my speech..
my mom told that i can visit 'em next year..
they are beautiful!! but to be honest i do not like france more than my country but!!
i love it.!!
i went to france and it was good
helpfull for sosil studies project!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
wow this really helped me on my english project
my 2 friends and i are "going to france" ( not really, but someday I hope to!) this was so cool!
very helpful!!!this is the only site i actually found important, reaasonable info!& i loooked through liiikkkkkeee.......100!
thanks!btw im doin a school project in an intellectually gifted class on france.and needed to find out what atttraction to do it on nd i chose........Arenes-De-Nimes!!! ahh!its goona beee ahhhmazing!
this is awesome info!perfect!
Extremely helpfullllllllll
france is a nice place to be a gypsy
I am philipean and i hate france ASIA RULES!!!!!!!!!!
I work at the axevalley community college axminster devon england this website was very helpfull i love france!!!!!!!!!!!!
hi not helpful
helpful in school!!!!!!!!
amazing photos can't wait until i go to France!!!
this was the best trip ever
yes ilove it
It's Cool!! .. My favourite Place is Eiffel Tower
sik
whoa i'm impressed deeply i hope it never changes
i hope it never changes it's topretty to change
I love France
I am going to France in about a month for my honeymoon and I. CANNOT. WAIT! I only wish I had more than 2 1/2 weeks to spend there because I feel like I could spend my whole SUMMER there! BEAUTIFUL country!
Oh my god i want to paris for the racing
It was really bad tbh
tnx. all information at one place. : )
this is a really good sight
Thanks Open travel a really great site! Keep it up
this was so shitttt!!!!!!!!!!!
this was awesome
i want to kill myself after visting here
ha ha ive seen da eiffle tower all ready !!!
It very nice town
So iI was puting out a bus the other day in france and saw the eiffel tower and was very shocked to see wow figin tall it was. i was a hero that day. VOTE 1# WOONG STEVENS i like jelly on toast
FART
thats a real fucvking neato post you got there
ya frog
OMG WOONG STEVENS!!
Woong stevens you are actually my hero !!!!!!!
hey woong stevens!!! get facebook please i really want to meet you!!
this is totally awesome thnx a ton
this is the totally awesome st thing ever
i couldn't agree more
ikr!
awesome!
wow very intersting
why does france got to be so awesome
my name is john i have bee to paris it is so fun over there au revoir
my name is john i have bee to paris it is so fun over there au revoir
great very helpful
cheese on toast is delicious from a bus window but i coudn't finish so i threw it at a baby and the butter went in to my mouth and i ate a candle and had to have my stomach pumped and i forgot to wear a jumper.......God my marrige is falling apart.....But seriously good post
Love, Mel Gibson
your drunk dad
AWSOME
I LOVE FRANCE
hi
poo poo
u know u want some
3333333333333333
i hate u MR.fluffy!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
u poo poo
hi mr.not fluffy
u dog u
i dont want some mr fluffy!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
hi bob
mr.not flufy u are a cheating rat now go pick your moms big ugly nose
you smell mr.fluffy !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
hi joebob
chimp have u graped someone today
i like france
not
no but u have
how would u know u gay stalker
shit
WOOT WOOT
I LIKE PIZZA
U ALL SUCK
good for you mr.fluffy
WHATS ALL THIS RUCESS
hi everyone
i eat noodles for supper
wassssuuuupppp
i want to go to france right now babe take me 4 my 25th birthday
take me baby NOW
AWW HELLLLLLZZZZ NAAAWWWW
i really wanna go to france. i want a france boyfrined
i really wanna go to france. i want a france boyfriend. and stop talking about freaking mr. fluffffffffffffffffffffffffffffffff
wtf france is stupid homies
vcmvgbvcbm
this site was almost as gay as ed. bahahah
quentin if u read this your gaY
this site is almost as gay as tristan
tristan if you read this you're gay
ED IF U TYPE U ARE GAY
Thankyou so much for this site!! I found it so helpful!!!
We are Anonymous...
We are legions...
We do not forgive...
We do not forget...
Expect us...
I like big butts and i cant not lie.
You other fellas cant deny
when a girl walks in with a itty bitty waist and rubs it in your face you get SPRAAAAAAAANG
hey hey idk wtf this is all about but o well
HI
Who wrote this?
Mr.Fluffy(Retard)
Ha,ha,ha.Very funny.It's for school.
can we please just talk about your experiences in France. if u want to chat, go to a chat rm please. thx