1176 Best Sights in France

This haven for foodies occupies a complex that combines starkly modern buildings and a renovated former hospital dating back to 1204, all sprawled over a 16-acre site at the southwest edge of the city. One of the contemporary wings houses an outpost of the Ferrandi culinary school and the Ecole des Vins de Bourgogne, which holds tastings and workshops. But the hub is the Gastronomic Village, an outdoor shopping mall with high-end food and wine shops, a culinary bookstore, and an on-site kitchen where top chefs hold live cooking demonstrations and masterclasses. One of the highlights is the Cave de la Cité, an oenophile's paradise, with more than 3,000 different wines, 250 sold by the glass. Among the on-site eateries, you'll find the café-brasserie Comptoir de la Cité and the first-class restaurant La Table des Climats. There are also permanent and temporary food-focused exhibitions, a museum, and a cinema complex.

Head to this famous waterfront promenade—which runs for 2 km from its western terminus by the Palais des Festivals—and stroll beside the palm trees and flowers and amid the crowds of poseurs (fur coats in tropical weather, mobile phones on Rollerblades, and sunglasses at night). Continue east past the broad expanse of private beaches, glamorous shops, and luxurious hotels—but make sure you are not walking in the bike path or a construction site. “La Croisette Reinvents its Legend” is the city’s slogan for a project to renovate this iconic seaside strip. The multimillion-euro face-lift (due for completion in 2027) will include red pavement—an homage to the red carpet of the Palais des Festivals—as well as new facilities and amenities.

Through eight generations on the same premises, the Brun de Vian-Tiran family has created France's most beautiful and luxurious woolens from fibers sourced throughout the world, including baby camel, cashmere, merino wool, alpaca, and baby llama. Housed in one of the company's old warehouses, this state-of-the-art museum takes you through the manufacturing process, from fiber to fabric, with interactive exhibits that are fascinating for kids as well as adults. The on-site boutique carries the entire range of luxury bedding and blankets, scarves, slippers, and other items, all of which are usually found only at high-end department stores in Paris.

Created in part to fortify France's supply of cedar and cyprus wood, this magnificent forest, covering hundreds of acres, also provides a cool, quiet place for hiking and picnicking. Information on the forest is available at all of the local tourist offices, and the route to it is well marked from the village of Lacoste. The winding drive provides astounding views of the hilltop villages that dot the countryside.

For an introduction to Cahors wine, this is the place. Though Cahors may not be as familiar as Bordeaux or Bourgogne, the local appellation is well-known and loved in France. Made from the inky black Malbec grape, this is a robust wine, bold and full-bodied and perfect for pairing with the local delicacies: walnuts, truffles, Rocamadour cheese, and foie gras. Adjacent to the Cahors tourist office, La Villa Cahors and chic Malbec Lounge provide visitors the opportunity to explore, taste, and learn about the local wines in an ever-changing series of tastings, courses, and evening events.

In 1940, four schoolchildren looking for their dog discovered hundreds of wall paintings in this cave just south of Montignac; the paintings of horses, cows, black bulls, and unicorns were determined to be thousands of years old, making the cave famous and attracting throngs of visitors to the site. Over time, the original Lascaux cave paintings began to deteriorate due to the carbon dioxide exhaled by thousands of visitors. To make the mysterious paintings accessible to the general public, the French authorities spent 12 years perfecting a facsimile, duplicating every aspect of two of its main caverns to create Lascaux II. In 2017, Lascaux IV, the most complete replica to date, opened within a sophisticated new complex—the International Center for Cave Art—that incorporates the latest technologies, including virtual reality, 3D cinema, and digital tablets, for a totally immersive experience. Painted in black, purple, red, and yellow, the powerful images of stags, bison, and oxen are brought to life by the curve of the stone walls under flickering \"torchlight,\" and even the precise humidity and muffled sound. Unlike other caves marked with authentic prehistoric art, Lascaux IV is completely geared toward visitors and literally takes you back in time from the point of view of the original discoverers, archaeologists, and prehistorians. There are several ticketing options, which can include the Parc du Thot, Le Grand Roc Cave, and the Laugerie-Basse Rock, or Lascaux IV. This is one of the most visited sites in the Dordogne and in summer tickets are at a premium.

Tickets sell out quickly, especially in summer; so reserve tickets online up to a day before your visit or at the center on the day of your visit, and arrive early.

Le Centquatre (meaning "104") takes its name from its address in a rough-around-the-edges corner of the 19e arrondissement, near Parc de la Villette. The former site of the city morgue, this soaring art hub is home to an offbeat collection of performance venues, shops, and studios (artists of all genres compete for free studio space, and sometimes you can get a peek of them at work). Contemporary art exhibits, some of which charge a small admission, are presented here, as are all manner of concerts, dance performances, performance art, films, and other events, many of them interactive. On-site you'll also find a restaurant, a café, a bookstore, a vintage shop, and a play area for children. There's much to see and do here for the whole family, so check the website before you visit to confirm what's on.

The flowering of a 25-year project, this lovely botanical garden is planted on rediscovered 18th-century terraces at the highest point of La Citadelle vineyards, with magnificent views of Ménerbes and the Vaucluse and Ventoux mountains. Stroll its scenic paths to see hundreds of medicinal and aromatic plant species used in traditional medicines for millennia. Afterward, enjoy a tasting at the domaine and entrance to the Musée du Tire-Bouchon, the world's first museum dedicated to the corkscrew.

The catacombs are a fascinating haunt for anyone with morbid interests. A visit starts with a descent through dark, clammy passages that bring you to Paris's principal ossuary, which also once served as a hideout maze for the French Resistance. Bones from the defunct Cimetière des Innocents were the first to arrive in 1786, when decomposing bodies started seeping into the cellars of the market at Les Halles, drawing swarms of ravenous rats. The legions of bones were dumped here over the course of several decades are arranged by parish and by type—rows of skulls, packs of tibias, and piles of spinal disks, often rather artfully arranged. Among the nameless 6 million or so are the bones of Madame de Pompadour (1721–64), laid to rest with the riffraff after a lifetime spent as the mistress of Louis XV. One of the most interesting aspects of the catacombs is one you probably won't see: so-called cataphiles, or urban explorers, mostly art students, have found alternate entrances into the 300 km (186 miles) of tunnels and come to make art, party, and purportedly raise hell. Advance reservations are required (tickets are not refundable) and the line is always long to get in, as only 200 people can enter at a time. It's not recommended for claustrophobes or young children. Note that the exit and gift shop are at  21 bis av. Rene Coty, about a half-mile from the entrance.

A 21st-century take on the traditional French municipal produce market, Les Halles de Pau has cast-iron columns and stone-paved floors in a colossal, two-story glass box. It's packed with more than 50 vendors of goods that include the best fruit, seafood, cheeses, charcuterie, wines, preserves, and baked goods that the surrounding paysage has to offer. Just strolling around the stalls is a delight, but there's more: ride the elevator to the upper level to sample oysters and other coquillages at the Oyster Bar, nibble tapas at the Bar Tapas des Halles, or savor truffle-infused treats at (you've guessed it) the Bar a Truffe. If you're in the mood for something more substantial, Brasserie l'Esprit des Halles will hit the spot.

Like a miniature Roman Forum, the ancient Quartier de Puymin, part of the largest archaeological site in France, spreads over a field and hillside in the heart of Vaison, visible in passing from the town's streets. Access to a garden, an archaeological museum, and the skeletal ruins of Roman villas below Vaison's ancient theater is via an entry booth across from the tourist office. Although it requires considerable imagination to visualize the structures as they once were, there are some poignant details, such as thresholds that still show the hinge holds for and scrape marks left by swinging doors. 

Closest to the entrance, the foundations of the Maison des Messii (Messii House) indicate that it had a sumptuous design complete with a vast gentleman's library; reception rooms; an atrium with a rain-fed pool; a large kitchen (note the enormous stone vats); and baths with hot, cold, and warm water. To see the accoutrements of everyday Roman life, wander beneath the cypress trees and amid the flowering shrubs of a formal garden to the Musée Archéologique Théo-Desplans. Here, items are displayed by theme: pottery, weapons, gods and goddesses, jewelry, and, of course, sculpture—including a complete figure of the emperor Claudius (1st century) and a strikingly noble nude Hadrian (2nd century).

Cross the park behind the museum to climb into the bleachers of the 1st-century Théâtre Romain, smaller than the one in Orange but also used today for concerts and plays. Across the parking lot is the Quartier de la Villasse, where remnants of a lively market town indicate main-street shops, public gardens, and grand private homes complete with floor mosaics. The most evocative image of all is in the thermes (baths): a neat row of marble-seat toilets lined up over a raked trough that instantly rinsed waste away.

The best way to understand the sites is with a self-guided audio tour (€2, available at the museum). Guided tours led by certified docents are also a possibility, though availability, duration, prices, and themes vary. Check ahead with the museum or the tourist board.

This arts center focuses on the pioneers of contemporary art and culture, bringing together sculpture, painting, dance, philosophy, literature, gastronomy, sustainability, and design. It has several spaces used for cutting-edge exhibitions and workshops geared toward art lovers and the curious of all ages, and its Frank Gehry building, a twisting silo sheathed in glittering silver scales, is spectacular.

One of four national historic museums dedicated to Napoléon, the multilevel house where the emperor was born on August 15, 1769, contains memorabilia and paintings of the extended Bonaparte family. History aficionados can tour bedrooms, dining rooms, and salons where Charles and Letitzia Bonaparte raised their eight children. Period furnishings and antiques in Corsican and Empire styles are scattered about and pay tribute to the family's bourgeois upbringing. Head downstairs to see the cellars and granite oil-pressing mill acquired by Napoléon III in 1860, which depict the importance of rural industry for the Bonapartes' income. Visit the trapdoor room and find the opening next to the door through which Napoléon allegedly escaped in 1799. The building itself changed hands multiple times through Bonaparte heirs until 1923, when it was donated to the state of France by Prince Victor, elder son of Prince Jérôme Napoléon.

After several years living north of Paris, Monet moved downriver to Giverny in 1883. With its pretty pink walls and green shutters, his house has a warm feeling that’s a welcome change after the stateliness of the French châteaux. Rooms have been restored to Monet's original designs: the kitchen with its blue tiles, the buttercup-yellow dining room, and Monet's bedroom on the second floor. Reproductions of the painter's works, and some of the Japanese prints he avidly collected, crowd its walls. The garden à la japonaise, with flowers spilling out across the paths, contains the famous "tea-garden" bridge and water-lily pond. Looking across the pond, it's easy to conjure up the grizzled, bearded painter dabbing at his canvases—capturing changes in light and pioneering a breakdown in form that was to have a major influence on 20th-century art.

The garden—planted with nearly 100,000 annuals and even more perennials—is a place of wonder. No matter that about 500,000 visitors troop through each year; they seem to fade in the presence of beautiful roses, carnations, lady's slipper, tulips, irises, hollyhocks, poppies, daisies, nasturtiums, larkspur, azaleas, and more. With that said, it still helps to visit midweek when crowds are thinner. If you want to pay your respects to the original gardener, Monet is buried in the family vault in Giverny's village church. Although the gardens overall are most beautiful in spring, the water lilies bloom during the latter part of July and the first two weeks of August.

Much of the credit for the city's ascendancy as a hub of international photography goes to Maison Européenne de la Photographie (MEP). Set in a landmark 17th-century mansion with a contemporary addition, MEP hosts up to four simultaneous exhibitions, which change about every three months, along with theme visits, workshops, and programs for kids. Shows feature an international crop of photographers and video artists. Works by superstar Annie Leibovitz or the late designer-photographer Karl Lagerfeld may overlap with a collection of self-portraits by an up-and-coming artist, and there are also regular retrospectives of photos by Doisneau, Cartier-Bresson, Man Ray, and other classics from MEP's vast private collection. The center has an excellent library, bookstore, and a café that spills out into the courtyard in warm months. Programs are available in English, and English-language tours are sometimes offered.

This picturesque market on the city's northern boundary still lures crowds on Friday from 8 am to noon, weekends from 10 am to 6 pm, and Monday from 11 am to 5 pm, but its once-unbeatable prices are now a relic. Packed with antiques booths and brocante stalls, the century-old, miles-long labyrinth has been undergoing a mild renaissance lately: its 15 covered "marchés" now house all manner of artisans and creators as well as buzzworthy shops and galleries (some of which keep weekend-only hours). Destination cafés and eateries—including the popular La Chopes des Puces, where Django Reinhardt used to jam, and the chic MOB Hotel—also attract a hip Paris contingent. Arrive early to pick up the best loot, then linger over a meal or apéro. Be warned, though: if there's one place in Paris where you need to know how to bargain, this is it. If you're arriving by métro, walk under the overpass and take the first left at the Rue de Rosiers to reach the center of the market. Note that stands selling dodgy odds and ends (think designer knockoffs and questionable gadgets) set up around the overpass. These blocks are crowded and gritty; be careful with your valuables here and throughout the marché.

The liquid highlight of many Burgundian vacations is a visit to the Marché aux Vins, where you can sample a tongue-tingling, mind-spinning array of regional wines in an atmospheric setting made up of barrel-strewn cellars and vaulted passages. Your options for tastings are the Découverte tasting with five wines that includes one Premier Cru (€29), the Prestige tasting with seven wines (€59), or the Exclusive tasting of seven wines including two Premiers Crus and two Grands Crus (€89); there's no need to reserve in advance for any of them. There is another Beaune tasting house at Caves Patriarche on Rue du Collège.

Place d'Aligre has two of Paris's best markets: the lively outdoor Marché d'Aligre and the covered Marché Beauvau. Open every day but Monday, both are great places to pick up picnic essentials, which you can enjoy nearby in the small park at Square Trousseau or on the Promenade Plantée. The picturesque outdoor market has dozens of boisterous vendors, their stands laden with fresh fruits and vegetables, flower bouquets, and regional products such as jam, honey, and dried sausage. Many vendors are happy to give you a taste of whatever they're selling. The covered Marché Beauvau stocks everything from cheeses and olive oil to brewed-in-Paris craft beer. Sunday morning, when the accompanying flea market is in full swing, is the liveliest time to visit. Stop for a plate of fresh oysters, charcuterie, and a glass of rouge (even on Sunday morning) at one of the city's quirkiest wine bars, Le Baron Rouge ( 1 rue Théophile Roussel), or one of the many chic cafés in the neighborhood.

This hangarlike indoor market, where you're sure to find the ingredients for almost any French recipe, is always a refreshing stop. Consider eating lunch at one of the five upstairs restaurants; Chez Attila, just to the left at the top of the stairs, is among the best.

An imaginative museum erected in 1988 on the north side of the city, the Mémorial is a must-see if you're interested in World War II history. The stark, flat facade, with a narrow doorway symbolizing the Allies' breach in the Nazis' supposedly impregnable Atlantic Wall, opens onto an immense foyer with British Typhoon aircraft suspended overhead. The museum itself is down a spiral ramp, lined with photos and documents charting the Nazis' rise to power in the 1930s. The idea—hardly subtle but visually effective—is to suggest a descent into the hell of war. The extensive displays range from wartime plastic jewelry to scale models of battleships, with a re-creation of German general Wilhelm Richter's underground bunkers. The D-Day landings are evoked by a tabletop map of the theater of war and by a spectacular split-screen presentation of the D-Day invasion from both the Allied and Nazi standpoints. The war's lasting effects are explored in an exhibition on the Cold War that examines a divided Berlin and the social ramifications of the resulting surveillance state. Softening the effect of the modern exterior structure are tranquil gardens, including a British one inaugurated by King Charles III. Fittingly, the museum is located 10 minutes away from the Pegasus Bridge and 15 minutes from the D-Day beaches.

The first installation in this compelling memorial and museum is the deeply moving Wall of Names, tall plinths honoring the 76,000 French Jews deported from France to Nazi concentration camps, of whom only 2,500 survived. Opened in 2005, the center has an archive on the victims, a library, and a gallery hosting temporary exhibitions. The permanent collection includes riveting artifacts and photographs from the camps, along with video testimony from survivors. The children's memorial is particularly poignant and not for the faint of heart—scores of backlit photographs show the faces of many of the 11,000 murdered French children. The crypt, a giant black marble Star of David, contains ashes recovered from the camps and the Warsaw ghetto. You can see the orderly drawers containing small files on Jews kept by the French police. (France officially acknowledged the Vichy government's role only in 1995.) The history of anti-Semitic persecution in the world is revisited, as well as the rebounding state of Jewry today. There is a free guided tour in English the second Sunday of every month at 3.

On the site of a crucial fort at the summit of Mont Faron, this museum recounts the planning and execution of World War II's Operation Dragoon, a mission meant to resecure the French ports of Marseille and Toulon and cut off German reinforcements. The story unfolds via firsthand accounts in French and English from men and women who fought for the French Resistance, descriptions of life under the occupation, a detailed timeline, and an 11-minute film showing original footage of the August 15, 1944, invasion—and its vast destruction—which was a decisive turning point in the war.

Literally, the \"sea of ice,\" the Mer de Glace glacier can be seen up close from the Train du Montenvers, a cogwheel mountain train that leaves from behind the main train station. At the top end of the track, you can mount yet another transportation device—a mini téléphérique (cable car) that suspends you over the glacier for five minutes. You can also venture into the grotte de glace (ice cave) and the Glacorium, an interactive space recounting the glacier's formation and history. The hike back down is an easy two-hour ramble.

Founded by Charles Moët in 1743, the world's largest Champagne producer is a must-see if you're in the region. Foreign royalty from Czar Alexandre I and Emperor Napoléon I to Queen Elizabeth II have visited these prestigious chalk-cellar galleries, which run for a mind-blowing 27 km (17 miles). During the tour, which lasts over an hour and takes place on foot, a savvy guide explains in detail the Champagne-making process. There are three sommelier-guided tasting choices, with the high-end option including a glass of Grand Vintage and Grand Vintage Rosé. Reserve a visit online.

When this world-famous cabaret opened in 1889, aristocrats, professionals, and the working classes alike all flocked to ogle the scandalous performers (the cancan was considerably kinkier in Toulouse-Lautrec's day, when girls kicked off their knickers). There's not much to see from the outside except for tourist buses and sex shops; if you want to catch a show inside, ticket prices start at €120 (although same-day tickets can be as low as €95). Souvenir seekers should check out the Moulin Rouge gift shop (around the corner at  11 rue Lepic), which sells official merchandise, from jewelry to sculptures, by reputable French makers.

The excellent Musée d'Art et d'Archéologie displays finds ranging from Gallo-Roman votive objects unearthed in the neighboring Halatte Forest to the building's own excavated foundations (visible in the basement); note the superb stone heads bathed in half light. Upstairs, paintings include works by Manet's teacher, Thomas Couture (who lived in Senlis), and charming naïve florals by the town's own Séraphine de Senlis.

This excellent museum traces the tempestuous backstory of French and European Jews through art and history. Housed in the refined 17th-century Hôtel St-Aignan, exhibits have good explanatory texts in English, but the free English audio guide adds another layer of insight; guided tours in English are also available on request (€4 extra). Highlights include 13th-century tombstones excavated in Paris; a wooden model of a destroyed Eastern European synagogue; a roomful of early paintings by Marc Chagall; and Christian Boltanski's stark two-part tribute to Shoah (Holocaust) victims in the form of plaques on an outer wall naming the (mainly Jewish) inhabitants of the Hôtel St-Aignan in 1939, and canvas hangings with the personal data of the 13 residents who were deported and died in concentration camps. The museum also mounts excellent temporary exhibitions, like the recent "Chagall, Modigliani, Soutine: Paris as a School, 1940." The rear-facing windows offer a view of the Jardin Anne Frank. To visit the garden, use the entrance on Impasse Berthaud, off Rue Beaubourg, just north of Rue Rambuteau.

Some of the town landscapes captured in paintings by Picasso, Gris, Dufy, Braque, Chagall, Masson, and others are on view in this fine museum.

Occupying an innovative 1960s glass-and-metal building, the city's art museum has soaring plate-glass windows that bathe the interior in the famous sea light that drew scores of artists to Le Havre. Two local painters who gorgeously immortalized the Normandy coast are showcased here—Raoul Dufy (1877–1953), through a remarkable collection of his brightly colored oils, watercolors, and sketches; and Eugène Boudin (1824–98), a forerunner of Impressionism, whose compelling beach scenes and landscapes tellingly evoke the Normandy sea and skyline.

With the Port Antique in front, this modern, open-space museum illuminates Massalia's history with a treasure trove of archaeological finds and miniature models of the city as it appeared in various stages of history. Best by far is the presentation of Marseille's Classical halcyon days. There's a recovered wreck of a Roman cargo boat, its 3rd-century wood amazingly preserved, and the hull of a Greek boat dating from the 4th century BC. The model of the Greek city should be authentic—it's based on an eyewitness description by Aristotle.