Beyond Paris, France has many towns with an exceptional heritage: listed historic centres, medieval quarters, royal squares and great museums. A day or a weekend is enough to discover the essentials on foot.
This selection brings together major cities such as Lyon, Bordeaux and Strasbourg, more intimate towns such as Colmar, Albi and Troyes, and southern towns such as Avignon, Nîmes and Aix-en-Provence. Several are UNESCO World Heritage Sites.
UNESCO World Heritage since 1998, the Historic Site of Lyon is one of the largest protected urban ensembles in Europe: Renaissance Old Lyon and its traboules, the Fourvière hill and its basilica, the Presqu'île and the slopes of Croix-Rousse tell two thousand years of unbroken history since the Roman foundation of Lugdunum.
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The historic centre of this port city in south-west France represents an exceptional urban and architectural ensemble, created in the Age of Enlightenment, whose values lasted until the first half of the twentieth century.
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European and Alsatian capital, whose Petite France district, crossed by canals and lined with half-timbered houses, embodies Franco-German charm.
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Located in the centre of Alsace, between the two other major industrial centres of Strasbourg and Mulhouse, Colmar is an essential stop.
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Former capital of the Dukes of Lorraine, between the UNESCO-listed Place Stanislas and the Porte de la Craffe, the monumental fortified entrance of the old town.
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Former capital of the Dukes of Burgundy, a town of art with half-timbered houses and mansions, renowned for its mustard and gingerbread.
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Historic capital of Champagne, famous for its colourful half-timbered houses and its old centre shaped like a champagne cork.
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Historic capital of Normandy where Joan of Arc was burned, whose Renaissance Gros-Horloge still overlooks a half-timbered shopping street.
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Prefecture of Charente-Maritime and a great historic Atlantic port, famous for its medieval towers guarding the entrance to the Old Port.
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Omnipresent, Albi's red brick sets the tone. Delicate pink in the morning, powerful orange under the blazing summer sun or madder red in the evening.
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The former city of the popes, ringed by ramparts, on the banks of the Rhône facing the famous Saint-Bénézet bridge.
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Prefecture of the Gard with exceptional ancient heritage, whose arena and Maison Carrée stand next to the elegant eighteenth-century Jardins de la Fontaine.
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Former capital of Provence shaded by plane trees, Aix-en-Provence strings out its fountains and mansions along the Cours Mirabeau, birthplace of Cézanne.
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Nicknamed the "Venice of the Alps" for its canals lined with colourful houses, this Savoyard prefecture overlooks the clear waters of its lake.
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