The French holiday has been part of my life for as long as I can remember. It’s a bit like Shakespeare’s seven ages of man. I went first as a babe, disturbing a seafood lunch — so I am told — in a Normandy hotel with a well-timed puke. Then I visited as a whining schoolboy on a school trip, unwilling student of the D-Day landings. After that came the first solo foray to Paris in my late teens, full of blushing excitement and maybe even a woeful ballad at being alone in the city of love.
I didn’t do the soldier stage from Shakespeare — “full of strange oaths and bearded like the pard” — but I did spend a couple of summers working alongside Mauritanians in the gherkin fields, which extended my exotic vocabulary and my chin fluff.
These days I am immersed in stage five: “Round belly with good capon lined/ Full of wise saws and modern instances” sampling Normandy’s seafood shore and investigating the latest château-stays in the Dordogne. It’s a tough job, but someone’s got to do it. That’s what I am paid to do, after all.
While I am not quite in stage six’s “slippered pantaloon” mode, I have learnt to appreciate a good spa hotel, even if it means being slathered in a seaweed wrap, as at Roscoff’s Hotel Brittany. And as for the final stage of “second childishness and mere oblivion”, that is still mercifully distant. But I do well remember taking my very elderly dad to a gîte in the Vendée and having to retrieve him when he wandered off full of childish wonderment towards the sea.
I suspect I am not alone in having France as part of my seven ages. The French holiday caters to all people at every stage of their existence. For me, the only constant whenever I set foot on the other side of the Channel is what I eat. Only once I’ve had my ritual feast of baguette and pungent camembert do I feel that I’ve properly arrived. These are 25 of the best short breaks in France, perfect no matter your age.
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1. Châteaux in Chantilly
Thanks to Byway’s château-spotting train itinerary, you don’t have to go all the way to the Loire for show-stopping architecture. Neoclassical Compiègne, northeast of Paris, ranks alongside Fontainebleau as one of the most important royal residences in France. Its town has added significance too as the location of the signing of the armistice that ended the First World War. An hour closer to Paris, meanwhile, Chantilly is a byword for lace (it sure impressed Jerry Lee Lewis) and whipped cream, with its château containing an impressive collection of classical art. The magnificent château gardens host the Chantilly Flower Show (May 16-18). You’ll spend two nights at the rather grand Auberge du Jeu de Paume in Chantilly and two at the simple and cosy Alfred Hotel in Compiègne.
Details Four nights’ room only plus all train travel from £751pp
2. Nantes gets creative
Nantes had a problem. No matter that it was the home town of Jules Verne and has a medieval district stuffed with restaurants, its location is simply too far down the Loire for many tourists. So it turned to a menagerie of mechanical beasts, as one does: a massive marching metal elephant came first, followed by a bestiary of winged and walking creatures created by Les Machines de l’Île de Nantes. Now there’s the Voyage à Nantes, a town trail lined with 84 contemporary works of art, which also connects heritage sites. There’s creative accommodation here too, at La Pérouse.
Details Room-only doubles from £92. Fly to Nantes
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3. Food and wine party
Great food, great wine, the lovely Château De Cruix to stay in and a gang of like-minded people: this young (18-35) group outing to the Beaujolais district has beaucoup de panache and includes a final dinner in the suitably unpronounceable village of Oignt. The maximum group size is eight, there’s a pick-up from Villefranche sur Saône station and most meals are included, as are morning yoga, a vineyard tour with lunch and a foodie day trip to Lyons.
Details Three nights’ half-board from £472pp, with regular departures from May to September. Take the train to Villefranche sur Saône
4. Hit the hills in Suisse Normande
South of Caen, the mountains of Normandy are buzzing with hikers, bikers and climbers. Here the belle époque spa town of Bagnoles de l’Orne sits up on the headwaters of the Orne River, which is popular with kayakers. The region is called the Suisse Normande and although its mountains barely top 1,000ft, the ski gear manufacturer Rossignol has mapped out 59 local routes for hikers, trail runners and gravel bikers in its On Piste app (onpiste.com). When you’re not pounding the hills, chill in Bagnoles’ bistros or plough up and down the pool in the Le Beryl spa hotel.
Details Room-only doubles from £73. Take the ferry to Caen
5. Chic treehouses in the Loire
France is at the forefront of treehouse evolution so it is only fitting that its latest manifestation should be in the Loire Valley, a region famous for striking architecture. And you may never get to see those châteaux because these 18 luxury “lodges” (they’re on stilts among trees) southeast of Tours have hot tubs, tiled shower-rooms, double basins, fluffy robes and wide balconies to entice you to stay. On site there’s a proper pool, visiting masseuses, a gourmet restaurant (which also does picnics) and, of course, lots of trees.
Details B&B doubles from £367. Take the train to Tours
6. Pedalling around Provence
Slake your thirst for the Tour de France in the little Alps of Provence. The massif of Les Alpilles, east of Arles, is a confection of rambling plateau and staccato outcrops of rock, a landscape that inspired Van Gogh. Expect lavender and poppies, olive groves and family-run hotels. This self-guided cycling itinerary starts in Arles, beloved by the Romans, and takes in St Rémy de Provence, the town where Nostradamus was born and where Van Gogh spent some of his latter years. It ends not far from Avignon, from where the TGV gallops north.
Details Four nights’ B&B with some extra meals from £790pp, including use of a bike. Fly to Avignon
7. Wolf tracking in the Alps
After near obliteration in the 20th century, wolves have been steadily returning westwards from central Europe. Farmers are not happy, of course, so the gathering of data to establish numbers and range is key to the coexistence of both. Humano-lupine encounters are deeply unlikely on this sociable hike up into the southern Alps but you may hear them howl and you’ll get to see a fair bit of their poo. Accommodation, in the church of an abandoned village, is basic.
Details Three nights’ full board from £724pp, departing March 29 (responsibletravel.com). Take the train to Aix en Provence
8. Surfie Biarritz
For a hardcore surfer, spring’s the thing in ritzy Biarritz. The beaches of this former royal resort are not crowded and the waves are still fuelled by Atlantic storms. For those who’d rather take things a little easier there’s a surf simulator at City of the Ocean (£13; citedelocean.com), as well as a prom, surrounded by art deco buildings, to amble along. Those buildings include the massive Biarritz Aquarium (£14; aquariumbiarritz.com), with its sharks and playful grey seals. Stay in the glorious Regina Experimental hotel, with its crazy wavy atrium, solarium and spa. And while you’re in Biarritz, why not nip across the border to San Sebastian to see how Spain does the seaside?
Details Room-only doubles from £156. Fly to Biarritz
9. The science of champagne
Champagne merits being taken seriously. It’s a huge business and the background story of how it was “accidentally created” by the monk Dom Pérignon, and how these days it is so carefully marketed, is worthy of study. This New Scientist trip, led by the drinks expert Jonathan Ray, uncovers its complex chemistry and analyses the sensory delight the bubbles create. Staying at the comfortable, modern Hôtel de la Paix in the heart of Rheims, you’ll enjoy multiple tastings and visits to vineyards, villages and cellars (Moët & Chandon has 17 miles of chalk tunnels). It also takes in the Rheims Cathedral for the assuaging of any guilt.
Details Four nights’ half-board from £2,686pp, departing on June 8 (newscientist.com). Take the train to Reims
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10. Big family, small price
Big families struggle with short stays, especially if the journey is long. Prices can be an obstacle, and patience can wear thin. An economical alternative is to secure a big lodge on a campsite not too far away which has all the pools and activities you need, as well as fertile surroundings. One such is La Croix du Vieux Pont, about 70 miles north of Paris. The theme park Parc Asterix (£55; parcasterix.fr) is an hour west, Rheims and the Champagne district an hour east, and Paris an hour south. Just down the road is Compiègne.
Details Three nights’ self-catering for ten from £1,295. Take the ferry to Calais
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11. Mini cruise on the Med
There’s a great way of getting a taste of the glitzier destinations on the French Riviera in hassle-free style: travel on a cruise boat. The five-masted teak-decked 184-cabin Club Med 2 mooches along this sumptuous shoreline from May to early June, starting and finishing in Marseilles and dipping in and out of places such as Nice and St Tropez. Sunrise yoga off the coast of Corsica? Mais oui. And as with all Club Med products, everything is included.
Details Four nights’ all-inclusive from £1,552pp (clubmed.co.uk). Fly to Marseilles
12. Hauts happenings
There’s a lot going on in the northernmost French region, Hauts de France, this year. The Matisse Museum, near Cambrai, is reopening in May (£7; museematisse.fr) and the Louvre-Lens is changing its main collection for the first time since it opened in 2013 (free; louvrelens.fr). Meanwhile, the Tour de France begins in Lille, which is also hosting its next Lille3000 (lille3000.com), an arts spectacular that builds on the legacy of the city being European Capital of Culture in 2004. Sample Lille, Lens and the beachside Le Touquet on a self-drive itinerary that arranges guided tours and luxurious accommodation.
Details Three nights’ B&B from £1,020pp, including train travel from the UK and hire car (originaltravel.co.uk)
13. La Fiesta and Le Tour in Lille
Every three years Lille stages a massive year-long artistic and cultural festival, a legacy from the year when it was Europe’s capital of culture. This year’s Lille3000 (lille3000.com) is Fiesta-themed, and this is also the year when the Tour de France starts in Lille, with plenty of opportunities for preview sorties along the first day’s route (letour.fr). So you can get sweaty, and then soak up the arts, in the same short break. Stay in the Grand Hotel Bellevue, both classical and modern in style, overlooking the Grand Place.
Details B&B doubles from £182
14. No drama in Molières
This charming enclave has no connection to the playwright of the same name. One of the region’s medieval bastides, so called because it was created in a grid format to be more easily administered and defended, Molières is becalmed, being slightly stepped back from the (very popular) Dordogne river. Meanwhile its even better-preserved sibling, Monpazier, lies another 10 miles south, its central square little changed for 700 years. Surrounded by ancient arcades, under which lurk delicatessens selling truffles, Monpazier was actually founded in 1285 by King Edward I of England. The Dordogne was British once, and there’s still a lovely hotel named after him.
Details B&B doubles from £112 (hoteledward1er.com). Fly to Bergerac
15. Cruise around Paris
Every great world city has water — river or sea — at its heart. For Paris, it’s the Seine, and staying on that river, in a moving home, adds a new perspective as well as extra conviviality to the whole experience. The moving home is the 149-passenger MS Botticelli, which spends a couple of weeks in spring and in autumn berthed not far from Notre Dame. From here a selection of guided tours spread out to celebrated city destinations, and in the evening when everyone’s back onboard the ship gets under way for dinner, night-time cruises and entertainment.
Details Three nights’ full board from £523pp. Eurostar to Paris
16. Regal Burgundy by bike
Back in the Middle Ages the dukes of Burgundy were almost equal in power to the king himself. They built grand châteaux and developed sophisticated wines that have become household names, including chardonnay, chablis and beaujolais. Today, some of the vintages along the 45-mile Route des Grands Crus from Dijon to Santenay retail for more than £1,000 a bottle. Follow the route in kingly fashion on two wheels and you’ll meander through 33 little towns, one of which is Beaune, a half-timbered gem with spectacularly patterned tiled roofs.
Details Five nights’ B&B with some extra meals from £1,830pp, including use of a bike (cyclingforsofties.com). Take the train to Dijon
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17. Nice encounters for solos
Travelling alone can sometimes seem like hard work, so joining a short break designed specifically for solos is like slipping on a pair of comfortable shoes (but don’t forget to pack the shiny ones too). Everything is arranged on this trip to Nice and Monaco, even a welcome dinner to make sure everyone gets to know each other. Walk the Promenade des Anglais, take a break for coffee and pastries in the narrow lanes of the old town, and get superyacht envy in Monaco, while remembering that all that money doesn’t always make them happy.
Details Three nights’ B&B with one dinner for £1,019pp, including flights, departing May 4 and September 26 (solosholidays.com)
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18. Vineyard walk in Alsace
There’s something deeply pleasing about walking through vineyards. Maybe it’s the satisfying symmetry and the impression that the lush landscape has been neatly combed. Or maybe it’s the prospect of an end-of-day riesling, crisp and fresh. This self-guided meander from Ribeauvillé to Eguisheim, one of the Plus Beaux Villages de France, ticks off half a dozen other beautifully preserved, brightly coloured Alsatian towns, such as Riquewihr and Kaysersberg, following a rich seam of French and German culture (Alsace was once part of Germany) and staying in typical village inns.
Details Four nights’ B&B from £580pp, including transfers (macsadventure.com). Take the train to Sélestat
19. Visit French Amsterdam
This mountain-surrounded mirror to the sky has all the elegance of the Italian lakes, but lower prices and fewer people. There are proper beaches along the shore, and the town of Annecy itself is a bit like a fairytale French Amsterdam, with flower-lined canals and a rich cultural programme. And then there are the surrounding slopes, source of Reblochon cheese, ribboned with road cycling and mountain biking routes. Stay in Le SwansDoors, an apartment that forms part of Annecy’s medieval city walls.
Details Four nights’ self-catering for six from £1,163. Fly to Geneva
20. Hikes around Mont Blanc
There’s nothing quite like a high Alpine trek: air like champagne and a mountainscape that does a slow striptease as you climb, culminating in that feeling of standing on the roof of the world. This self-guided short break is composed of daily sorties to selected highlights of the 106-mile Mont Blanc trail, which circumnavigates the massif through France, Italy and Switzerland. By day you’ll be sidestepping glaciers and greeting marmots, using cable cars and bus transfers to return every evening to the creature comforts of chic Chamonix. Stay at the riverside Hotel Lyret, which even has a sauna and pool.
Details Four nights’ B&B for £1,049pp. Fly to Geneva
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21. The floating gardens of Amiens
Once across the Channel, most people put pedal to metal, unaware that they are whizzing past magical backwaters. Just outside St Omer is the Audomarais, 110 miles of navigable waterways lined with willows and poplars, dappled with wildflowers and drowning in silence. And further south in Amiens there’s 300 acres of hortillonnages, or floating water gardens, a mix of working fruit and vegetable farms and private gardens, all best explored by boat. Stay between the two in the art deco town of Béthune, in a converted fire station Les Béthunoises, and get thoroughly sloshed in its spa.
Details B&B doubles from £79. Ferry to Calais
22. Homegrown theme parks
Francophiles with inquisitive minds (and teenagers) should make a beeline for two homegrown theme parks, Futuroscope and Puy du Fou, both located between the Atlantic coast and the Loire Valley châteaux. Futuroscope (£39, futuroscope.com) dives into all things techie and interactive, but it also has rollercoasters. If you must do splashy stuff, this summer it opens its first water ride, based on the Bermuda Triangle. Meanwhile, 90 minutes’ drive away, Puy du Fou’s spectacular live shows — 26 of them — dance sure-footedly through the centuries, picking out great stories from French history. Stay at its tented camp.
Details B&B doubles from £62pp, including entrance ticket (puydufou.com). Take the ferry to St Malo
23. Art of the Côte d’Azur
Spring has a distinctive colour in the south of France. The mimosa, that small tree slathered in lemon yellow pompoms, lifts the soul as it perfumes the coast. It is this kind of moment, the combining of intoxicating scent, colour and light, that has motivated a whole raft of artists, particularly Matisse, Chagall, Picasso and Monet. Track the Côte d’Azur’s influence on their creativity by visiting their museums and the villages that inspired them on an expert-led guided tour, staying in the newly renovated Hôtel Apollinaire in the centre of Nice.
Details Five nights’ B&B with some extra meals from £2,225pp, including flights, departing on April 29 and September 30 (kirkerholidays.com)
24. Cycle the Alabaster Coast
The Avenue Verte (London to Paris) has long been popular with cyclists, but it’s too time-consuming for someone with just three or four days to spare. Instead, catch the same ferry across from Newhaven to Dieppe (dfds.com), but turn right and follow the EuroVelo 4 bike path as far as you want along the Alabaster Coast towards Le Havre, 80 miles away. Expect clifftop scenery punctuated by quiet beaches, with scallop fishing ports such as Fécamp, old-fashioned resorts like Etretat and very pretty villages such as Veules-les-Roses, near Dieppe, where the charming Douce France is a suitably tranquil place to stay.
Details One night’s self-catering for two from £97. Ferry to Dieppe
25. Le Boat on Le Lot
A quieter, more southerly version of the Dordogne, the Lot river does a dramatic meander through limestone cliffs and medieval villages, and was the focus of the Mortimer & Whitehouse: Gone Fishing Christmas special. They didn’t catch a lot but were captivated instead by its serenity. Rent a cabin cruiser and set off downriver to do the same, mooring by historic châteaux and buying fine local produce from riverside markets. Nothing is far: Luzech, known for its gothic architecture, is just two hours from the boating base at Douelle, wine city Cahors is three hours, while the famous clifftop village of Saint-Cirq-Lapopie is six hours. Sleep on board the comfy cruiser with a lounging deck and all mod cons.
Details Four nights’ self-catering for four from £759 (leboat.com). Fly to Toulouse
Where is your favourite place in France for a short break? Please let us know in the comments
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