Relaxing family getaways in France off the beaten path.
What are some less-touristed family getaways in France, for travelers seeking beautiful places with fewer crowds? Answer
Options include Rocamadour, a medieval pilgrimage village clinging to a cliff face; Banyuls-sur-Mer, a seaside resort on a bay naming a wine region; and Gérardmer, a compact town on its own lake in the Vosges. This page includes more than 40 options. Click here to see which are close enough to be day trips from major cities like Bordeaux, Lyon or Marseille.
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…
Cauterets
This spa town and ski resort in the French Pyrenees, Cauterets sits along the Gave de Pau river within the Pyrénées National Park, surrounded by mountain sce…
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…
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…
Gérardmer
Sitting directly on its own lake in the Vosges mountains of northeastern France, Gérardmer is a compact town with a café and restaurant scene that would suit…
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…
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…
Wimereux
Seafront resort town on the Opal Coast in Pas-de-Calais, Wimereux sits where the river of the same name meets the English Channel, just north of Boulogne-sur…
Aussois
A pocket-sized ski and mountain village on the edge of the Vanoise National Park — France's first — in the Savoie department of the Alps, Aussois draws winte…
Sète
This Mediterranean port town in southern France's Hérault department, Sète is built across canals between the sea and the Étang de Thau lagoon, climbing up t…
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…
Yvoire
A medieval village on the shore of Lake Geneva in Haute-Savoie, Yvoire holds a strong visual appeal — its flower-filled streets have earned it a place among…
Nantua
Sitting directly on the glacial Lac de Nantua in the southern foothills of the Jura Mountains, this small French town in the Ain département is known for its…
Saint-Florent
A former fishing port on the Gulf of Saint-Florent in Haute-Corse, this small Corsican village now fills its harbour with pleasure boats and its waterfront w…
Saint-Cirq-Lapopie
Clinging to a steep cliff above the Lot river in south-western France, this small Quercy village draws visitors with dramatic viewpoints, a strong café and r…
Huelgoat
A little Breton village in the heart of the Argoat, Huelgoat sits beside a lake within the Armorique Regional Natural Park and earned a rural heritage label…
Florac
This modest riverside village in the Lozère department of southern France, Florac sits at the heart of the Cévennes National Park — whose headquarters are ba…
Gruissan
A little Mediterranean coastal town in the Aude, southeast of Narbonne, Gruissan sits within the Narbonnaise en Méditerranée regional nature park alongside l…
Le Touquet-Paris-Plage
One of France's most storied seaside resorts, Le Touquet-Paris-Plage sits on the Opal Coast at the mouth of the Canche river in Pas-de-Calais, with a wide be…
Mazamet
Tiny town in southern France's Tarn department at the foot of the Montagne Noire massif, Mazamet sits within the Haut-Languedoc regional nature park, roughly…
Bidart
A small Basque Atlantic-coast town in southwestern France, Bidart stretches along several kilometres of shoreline where heavily folded cliffs drop down to be…
Saint-Jean-de-Luz
A little beach resort on the Bay of Biscay in France's Basque Country, Saint-Jean-de-Luz sits at the mouth of the River Nivelle near the Spanish border, with…
Argelès-Gazost
This tiny town in the Hautes-Pyrénées with a café and restaurant scene that punches above its size, Argelès-Gazost sits on the Gave de Pau river in the footh…
Saint-Véran
Claimed to be the highest permanent settlement in the French Alps, this pocket-sized hamlet in the Hautes-Alpes sits at high elevation within the Queyras Reg…
Mers-les-Bains
A small seaside resort on the Somme coast, Mers-les-Bains is known for its Belle Époque seafront villas — a listed quarter that earned the town second place…
Morteau
Morteau, a small town in the Doubs department of eastern France's Jura massif, is known nationally for its smoked sausage, the saucisse de Morteau, and has a…
Cabourg
Marcel Proust's favoured retreat on the Normandy coast, Cabourg is a Belle Époque seaside town on the Côte Fleurie where the river Dives meets the English Ch…
Le Grau-du-Roi
The only commune in the Gard department with a Mediterranean coastline, Le Grau-du-Roi is a small southern French town with a real café and restaurant scene,…
Gourdon
A compact subprefecture in the Lot department of southwestern France, Gourdon sits at the heart of the Bouriane — a forested, hilly natural region of the Que…
Bédarieux
This tiny town in southern France's Hérault department where the Orb river runs through the centre, Bédarieux sits within the Haut-Languedoc Regional Nature…
Mauguio
This Mediterranean-climate town in the Hérault with a compact centre of cafés and restaurants, Mauguio sits in the heart of Languedoc wine country and extend…
Mont-de-Marsan
Founded in the Middle Ages at the confluence of three rivers on the Vézelay route of the Camino de Santiago, Mont-de-Marsan is the prefecture of the Landes d…
Thiviers
A compact stone-built town in the Dordogne, with a tall church tower rising above terracotta rooftops, serving as a gateway to the Périgord-Limousin regional…
Soorts-Hossegor
This small Atlantic resort town in the Landes department of southwestern France, Hossegor is built around surfing: its beach break, including the wave known…
Saint-Omer
Saint-Omer is a sub-prefecture town in Pas-de-Calais where the canalised river Aa begins its course toward the North Sea, giving the centre a waterside chara…
Saint-Girons
This compact town on the Salat river in southwestern France's Ariège department, Saint-Girons sits within the Pyrenées ariégeoises regional nature park and s…
Aubenas
This small town in the southern Ardèche with a café and restaurant scene that is well stocked for its size, Aubenas sits on the river Ardèche at a crossroads…
Arbois
Arbois holds a double distinction in French wine history: it became France's first AOC-designated wine region in 1936 and is still known as the capital of Ju…
Saint-Valery-sur-Somme
This pocket-sized seaport and resort on the south bank of the Somme estuary, Saint-Valery-sur-Somme has medieval ramparts, a Gothic church, and a long waters…
Île-aux-Moines
A sandy bay lined with blue-and-white beach huts, windsurfers on calm water, and a grand white villa behind stone walls — this Breton island village in the G…
Casteil
This compact hamlet in the Pyrénées-Orientales with mountain scenery, river access along the Cady, and a surprising number of cafés and historic churches for…
Cosne-Cours-sur-Loire
This walkable Loire Valley town where a tree-lined riverside promenade, a traditional flat-bottomed boat moored at the bank, and an elegant suspension bridge…
Berck
This seaside resort town on the Opal Coast in northern France's Pas-de-Calais, Berck sits behind a broad sandy beach stretching several kilometres along the…
Saint-Palais-sur-Mer
A modest Atlantic seaside town on France's Côte de Beauté, just west of Royan in Charente-Maritime, Saint-Palais-sur-Mer developed as a resort in the late 19…
Saint-Chamond
A former industrial town in the Loire department of central France, Saint-Chamond built its 19th-century prosperity on lace-making and steelworks, and is ass…
Family getaways in France: quick answers
Which family getaways in France can you visit on a day trip from Bordeaux, Lyon or Marseille?
Saint-Palais-sur-Mer, Saint-Jean-de-Luz and Niort are among 4 family getaways on our day trips from Bordeaux. Saint-Chamond, Nantua and Morteau are among 3 family getaways on our day trips from Lyon. And Moustiers-Sainte-Marie, Le Grau-du-Roi and Sète are among 3 family getaways on our day trips from Marseille.
Where are France's less-touristed family getaways?
Wandering Well lists 47 family getaways across France. The most are in Pas-de-Calais (4), Lot (3), Hautes-Pyrénées (3), Hérault (3) and Savoie (2).
Which are the highest-rated?
25 are rated gold, including Cauterets, Arbois, Rocamadour and Florac.
Which can you reach by train?
16 of the 47 have a railway station within a 10-minute drive, including Arbois, Banyuls-sur-Mer, Morteau and Le Grau-du-Roi.