The south-west of France is well known for its wines – perhaps above all for the red wines produced in the Bordeaux / Medoc / Saint-Emilion regions. A little to the east of these world-famous wine regions in the Dordogne department around Bergerac there are also some well known wines produced which deserve your attention. In total there are 13 wines listed as ‘appellations’ in Bergerac, from seven different regions. A brief guide to these is shown below: Pécharmant wine [...]
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With the advent of cheap flights from the UK to France, it is increasingly easy and popular to spend a weekend in the south of France. You can set off on Friday evening, have the whole weekend somewhere glamorous, then return on Sunday evening – relaxed and ready to ask in the office on Monday ‘What did you do this weekend?’ Flights to France outside high season vary a lot according to your departure point but typical destinations for a [...]
The information here refers to the weather in south-east France, on the French Riviera. The weather in the other regions of southern France (Midi-Pyrenees, the Dordogne or along the Atlantic Coast) is significantly different – see notes below for regional variations. Weather in January Typical minimum daily temperature 5° centigrade, maximum 13° Seven days with rain in January 160 hours of sunshine
The Correze department of France is one of the country’s undiscovered (well, almost) highlights and if you are planning to visit the south of France but can’t face Provence or the Dordogne again this could be just place that you are looking for. Here are five reasons why you should consider Correze for your next visit to France: Peace and quiet Located in the southern Limousin, and neighbour to the Lot and Dordogne departments to the south, it has much [...]
We’ve looked before at some of the bastide towns (medieval ‘new towns’) in the north of the Lot-et-Garonne department of southern France. This time we head to the south of the same department, and across the border into the Tarn et Garonne department. The ‘Pays Agenais’ as it is known is the region around the town of Agen and features numerous villages and small towns, many of them bastide towns, of historical interest. The central open squares are intact, often [...]
Bandol is a popular harbour town on the French Riviera, with an extra attraction – the wines for which it is very well known. After exploring Bandol itself and before venturing out to experience the rest of the of the Var, be sure to tour the vineyards. For anyone accustomed to the glitzy tasting rooms of Napa filled with expensive glassware and expansive displays of wine-related do-dads, it will be an experience to remember. Here, in most cases, you will [...]
Carcassonne is situated in the Languedoc-Roussillon region of southern France. It is one of the most interesting towns in the region, indeed in the whole of France. The history of the town dates back to the medieval Cathar Wars, in which the town played a very important role. Located 90 km to the south-east of Toulouse, Carcassonne is in the ‘gap’ between the Pyrenees and the Massif Central, at the crossroads of two major traffic routes in use since Antiquity: [...]
Mussidan is a sizable town in the (less visited) north-west of the Dordogne region, north of Bergerac. Escaping from the impact of tourism is perhaps a good thing for a town – but tourism also brings with it facilities, and money for maintenance. Perhaps the best way to describe Mussidan is that it has escaped both the benefits and the ‘perils’ of tourism. Unfortunately these perils are what visitors are looking for, and it is true that you do need [...]
If you are looking for a family holiday somewhere on the Bay of St Tropez then the Pierre and Vacances holiday village, Les Restanques is well worth considering. I can say that with confidence because we just spent a week there ourselves and I’m very happy to recommend it, having had a great time! The holiday village has about 500 apartments and villas and is set out on a hill overlooking St Tropez and the bay of Saint Tropez. The [...]
The action packed town of Saint-Tropez stands just a few kilometres from Grimaud, and in dramatic contrast! If you are visiting the Riviera and want to leave the car behind, why not take the train? It is possible to get to Grimaud on a little tourist train that parts from Port Grimaud, the coastal ‘twin’ of Grimaud and itself a sophisticated town – a nice hassle free way to reach the village. A visit to this super-attractive perched viillage is [...]
