Charming old-world towns in France off the beaten path.
Less-touristed old-world towns in France, for travelers seeking fewer crowds but all the beauty.
Conques
This tiny village in Aveyron whose Romanesque abbey church and its treasury — including a gold statue of Sainte Foy — earned UNESCO World Heritage status in…
Gisors
Gisors, a compact Norman town in the Eure department within easy reach of Paris, is dominated by a medieval castle that has stood on its mound since the Midd…
Aire-sur-la-Lys
A fortified town on the River Lys in northern France's Pas-de-Calais, Aire-sur-la-Lys has a photogenic centre with cafés and restaurants along the waterfront…
Modane
Compact town in the Maurienne Valley of Savoie, Modane sits within the Vanoise National Park close to the Italian border, with mountain scenery on all sides…
Rocamadour
Medieval pilgrimage village in the Lot département of southwestern France, Rocamadour clings to a cliff face rising steeply above the Alzou valley, with a co…
Donzy
A compact Burgundian village of terracotta rooftops and stone-built streets, dominated by a tall Gothic church tower, with a river meadow landscape spreading…
Moulins
This heritage-dense town on the river Allier in central France, Moulins is the historic capital of the Bourbonnais province and holds a walkable centre with…
Cremieu
A little medieval town in Isère, southeastern France, Crémieu has preserved its historic centre largely intact and hosts an annual September festival, Les Mé…
Joinville
This small town on the water in Haute-Marne, north-eastern France, Joinville carries a layered medieval history: it was the seat of a lordship in the county…
Saorge
Particularly photogenic and a member of the Les Plus Beaux Villages de France association, Saorge is a compact hilltop village in the Alpes-Maritimes with an…
Terrasson-Lavilledieu
This small town on the Vézère river in the Dordogne, Terrasson-Lavilledieu is known for its Jardins de l'Imaginaire, a medieval-origin market trading in truf…
Estaing
Estaing, a modest village on the Lot river in Aveyron, is a member of Les Plus Beaux Villages de France and carries an unusual concentration of protected his…
Niort
Walkable town in western France's Deux-Sèvres department, Niort sits on the Sèvre Niortaise river and serves as the eastern gateway to the Marais Poitevin re…
Saint-Amand-les-Eaux
A walkable town on the river Scarpe in northern France's Nord department, Saint-Amand-les-Eaux has a centre with a real café and restaurant scene and sits on…
Forcalquier
Once the capital of a flourishing county in medieval Haute-Provence, Forcalquier is a tiny town in the Alpes-de-Haute-Provence sitting between the Lure and L…
Senlis
This compact historic town in the Oise department north of Paris, Senlis preserves a medieval old quarter of ancient lanes and houses enclosed within Gallo-R…
Colmars
A small fortified village in the Alpes-de-Haute-Provence, Colmars-les-Alpes holds membership in the association Les Plus Beaux Villages de France, a recognit…
Espalion
A little town in the Aveyron department of southern France, Espalion sits directly on the Lot river, with a café and restaurant scene in its compact centre a…
Quimper
Quimper faience — white glazed pottery with colourful painted designs — is the signature craft of this Breton town, the prefecture of Finistère in northweste…
Pesmes
This village on the banks of the Ognon river in Haute-Saône holds membership in Les Plus Beaux Villages de France and carries a dense concentration of listed…
Foix
The castle of the Counts of Foix, classified as a historic monument since 1840, rises on a rock above this modest medieval town at the foot of the Pyrenees i…
Toul
This compact town in Lorraine where an ornate Gothic cathedral with twin towers and intricate stone lacework dominates the old centre, set alongside a river…
Banyuls-sur-Mer
Banyuls-sur-Mer gives its name to the surrounding wine region and sits on a bay at the southern end of France's Mediterranean coast, making it the country's…
Moustiers-Sainte-Marie
Village in the Alpes-de-Haute-Provence with an unusual density of cafés and restaurants for its size, Moustiers-Sainte-Marie sits against a rocky escarpment…
Sainte-Enimie
This photogenic village in the Gorges du Tarn in southern France's Lozère, Sainte-Enimie sits directly on the river and holds membership in Les Plus Beaux Vi…
Saint-Céré
This compact town in the Lot department of southern France, Saint-Céré sits on the River Bave with vineyards in the surrounding countryside and scenic views…
Aubusson
Tapestry-making has defined Aubusson for centuries, earning this modest town in France's Creuse department a reputation that extends well beyond its size.
Chenonceaux
Château de Chenonceau, built across the River Cher and the most visited château in France after Versailles, sits at the edge of this little hamlet in the Ind…
La Roque-Gageac
Sitting directly on the Dordogne river in southwestern France, this tiny village carries membership in Les Plus Beaux Villages de France and a strong reputat…
Decize
This stone arched bridge crosses a wide river into this compact Burgundian town, where a Romanesque church tower and slate-roofed buildings rise above a live…
Corte
Corte served as the capital of independent Corsica under Pascal Paoli between 1755 and 1769, and the town still carries that history at its centre — the cita…
Saint-Lary-Soulan
This dual-season mountain resort village in the Hautes-Pyrénées, Saint-Lary-Soulan draws skiers in winter to its slopes at Pla d'Adet and Espiaube, and hiker…
Joigny
A tiny wine-country town on the river Yonne in Bourgogne-Franche-Comté, Joigny has a medieval old town that has earned the Pays d'art et d'histoire designati…
Montauban
Founded in 1144 by the Count of Toulouse, Montauban is a reddish-brick town on the Tarn river in southern France, known as the birthplace of the 19th-century…
Montargis
Laced with canals and bridges along the Loing and several other waterways, Montargis is a walkable town in the Loiret that markets itself as the "Venice of t…
Josselin
A multi-turreted medieval castle rises directly from the riverbank in this tiny Breton village, its grey stone towers reflected in the calm water below, with…
Ménerbes
This walled hilltop village in the Luberon mountains of Provence, Ménerbes holds membership in the Les Plus Beaux Villages de France association and sits in…
Auch
This walkable Gascon town in southwestern France's Gers department, Auch sits on the River Gers and is known for its gastronomic scene, its cathedral, and a…
Beaune
Widely regarded as the wine capital of Burgundy, Beaune is a walled town in eastern France whose historic centre holds the cellars and facilities of wine pro…
Vitrac
A small Dordogne village on the water in southwestern France, with a photogenic setting and a handful of cafés and restaurants that punch above its size.
Cordes-sur-Ciel
Built in 1222 by Raymond VII, Count of Toulouse, on a ridge high enough above the Cérou valley to earn the name "sur-Ciel" (above the sky), this medieval for…
Maintenon
The Château de Maintenon, built across several centuries from the 12th to the 18th and enlarged by Madame de Maintenon with gardens laid out by Le Nôtre, anc…
Le Puy-en-Velay
One of the principal starting points for the pilgrimage route to Santiago de Compostela, Le Puy-en-Velay is a heritage-dense town in south-central France's A…
Morlaix
Walkable Breton town in Finistère whose centre sits at the confluence of two rivers, Morlaix is defined by its 19th-century viaduct rising through the heart…
Bavay
Once the capital of the Nervii during the Roman Empire, Bavay is a compact town in northern France's Nord department whose Gallo-Roman forum and departmental…
Pont-Audemer
This small Normandy town where tall half-timbered buildings line waterside streets, Pont-Audemer rewards a stroll with its well-preserved medieval architectu…
Rodes
This compact stone village in southern France's Pyrénées-Orientales, where red-tile rooftops and a brick clock tower rise toward dramatic rocky outcrops topp…
Soissons
One of France's most ancient towns, Soissons sits on the river Aisne in the Hauts-de-France region, with a walkable centre full of cafés and a strong archite…
Béthune
A walkable town in northern France's Pas-de-Calais with a café-filled centre and a strong photographic profile, Béthune sits between the hills of Artois and…
Nonza
Small Corsican hillside village of stone and pastel houses, crowned by a watchtower, with dramatic mountain ridges behind and the sea close below.
Château-Verdun
A hamlet in the upper Ariège valley of southwestern France, Château-Verdun sits beside the Aston river in mountain country and holds a nationally listed monu…
Châteaudun
A heritage-dense town on the Loir river in Eure-et-Loir, Châteaudun has a compact centre with a strong concentration of listed buildings — among them a 1938…
Cassel
Perched on a prominent hill above French Flanders, Cassel is a modest commune in the Nord department with panoramic views from the summit of Mont Cassel and…
Sancerre
Sancerre is a medieval hilltop village in the Cher département of Centre-Val de Loire, overlooking the Loire river and recognized as one of France's most bea…
Gaillon
A compact Norman town of half-timbered houses and slate rooftops rising above a river valley, Gaillon pairs a walkable central core of cafés with vineyard su…
Cluny
Founded in 910 by Duke William I of Aquitaine, the Benedictine Abbey of Cluny shaped this little Burgundian town into one of medieval Europe's great centres…
Castres
Castres, a town in southern France's Tarn department, is the birthplace of socialist leader Jean Jaurès and home to the Goya Museum, one of France's leading…
Romorantin-Lanthenay
A compact French town where a flower-lined weir and stone arched bridge span a calm river, with a church steeple and cream-rendered townhouses forming the ba…
Douarnenez
This photogenic port town on Douarnenez Bay in Brittany, long famous for sardine fishing and canning, with a walkable centre and a food-and-drink scene to ma…
Marvejols
This little town in the Lozère department of southern France, Marvejols sits on the Colagne river in mountain terrain and served as a royal town and capital…