France, France

City · France

France

France changes character every few hours: Breton harbours, Lyon's silk-weavers' hill, Norman tidal bays and Paris's hidden green walks, each with its own table and its own rhythm.

Travel by Ildy tip

Architecture

In Lyon, slip through the traboules of Vieux-Lyon and the Croix-Rousse — covered passages cutting through courtyards and stairwells, such as the Longue Traboule; they are lived-in, so keep your voice low.

Best time to visit

Best time to travel

April to June and September to October suit most cultural and regional journeys; the coast and mountains have their own shorter peak seasons.

Travel tips

Travel by Ildy tips

  • Before booking a train out of Paris, check which station it leaves from: the city has several terminus stations, each serving its own region. Gare du Nord goes north, Gare de l’Est east, Gare de Lyon south-east, Montparnasse west and Saint-Lazare to Normandy.
  • In Douarnenez, Brittany, buy a kouign-amann from a local bakery: the caramelised butter-and-sugar pastry was created here around 1860, and the town's bakers still guard the original.
  • Before visiting Mont-Saint-Michel, check Normandie Tourisme's tide calendar: on the largest spring tides, with coefficients around 110 and above, the sea surrounds the Mont and it becomes an island again.
  • In Paris's 12th arrondissement, climb onto the Coulée verte René-Dumont, a garden walk laid over a disused railway viaduct and opened in 1993 — the model for New York's High Line.

Travel by Ildy recommends

Follow the rhythm of the place first, then shape the journey around the experiences that feel most like your own.

Location

France on the map

France

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Interactive map: France

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Where to stay

Stay ideas — France

France, France

France

France