Top attractions in France and secret places close by

France is the most popular tourist destination in the world. It’s a fact. Around 90 million people visit France each year – an astonishing number, way more people than actually live in France (about 68 million people). We take a look at the top attractions in France and the secret places close by – the best of both worlds!

Main attractions of Paris

Paris is the most popular tourist city destination of the world with around 30 million visitors each year and it hosts many of the most visited places of France including the Eiffel Tower and the Louvre.

Less busy (usually), the Musee d’Orsay, a museum in a former train station, has the most wonderful collection of impressionist art and art nouveau furniture, there are entire rooms complete with wood floors and wood panelled walls, and it also has a gorgeous restaurant. And if you’re into photography there’s a grand old station clock, it’s enormous, about 20 feet high, which looks out over the Seine and the Louvre palace – a great place to take a photo.

Wander in Montmartre which is always popular and pop into the little museum in rue Cortot where Renoir once lived, with Paris’s secret vineyard next door. Stroll the grand boulevards, sip hot chocolate listening to the church bells of Notre Dame, and peek into the past in the Latin Quarter.

Secret Paris

But I think one of the most memorable visits for me is the Saint-Chapelle. It’s a small church, older than Notre Dame and next to the Conciergerie building where Marie-Antoinette was imprisoned before losing her head. It’s astonishing to be in this church and know that more than 800 years ago, King Louis 9^th sat here looking at the glorious, stained windows. There are 15 of them each 15 metres high depicting 1,113 scenes from the bible.

When the sun shines through them, it’s mesmerizingly beautiful, like standing in a jewel box. It’s not a working church now and in the evenings classical music performances are held there and it’s quite magical to sit listening to Handel or Vivaldi’s music as you look at the stained glass, the gilded angels popping out of the walls, the glorious artwork that covers every inch of this incredible building…

That’s the thing about Paris, there are the really well-known parts, but there are also so many secret parts and you can see the city’s past right before your eyes – the great Gothic churches, the medieval buildings, Renaissance, Baroque, Haussmanian, Belle Epoque, Art Nouveau and contemporary – there is something to please everyone.

Quirky museums and hidden ateliers, workshops of artisans and artists like Lubin perfumery. Opened by Pierre-François Lubin who was trained from the age of 10 by Queen Marie Antoinette’s favourite parfumier and beauty products maker Jean-Louis Fargeon, supplier of perfume. Lubin created a pair of scented gloves for her using hyacinths, violets, musk jonquils and carnations and when the Queen was in prison at the Conciergerie near the Louvre, Lubin would take her parcels of her favourite toiletries.

Later Empress Josephine Bonaparte used to hang out at Lubins – it’s still there… And then there’s Patisserie Stohrer on rue Montorgeuil, the oldest cake shop in Paris and opened in 1730. It’s entirely possible that Marie-Antoinette may have indulged here, the shop was opened by her father-in-law’s pastry chef. And there are shops where Picasso, Renoir and Degas went to for their art supplies.

There are also the shopping galleries like Galerie Vivienne, they were created around 200 years ago, and they are full of boutiques and cafés, and look just as they did all those years ago, the architecture is exquisite.

Mont-Saint-Michel, Normandy

When we talk of great architecture, I think we must mention Mont-Saint-Michel, the island with an abbey off the coast of Normandy, right on the border with Brittany – so close that sometimes people think it is in Brittany.

It’s said that in 708, Aubert, the bishop of Avranches dreamed that he had an encounter with the archangel Michael, who instructed him to build a church on the little island. But the bishop took no notice. Three times the archangel instructed him to build the church and finally, it is said, he burned a hole in the bishop’s skull to drive home the merits of obedience. Ouch… And guess what – the bishop built the church!

I think I’d built it too if an angel stuck his finger in my head and burned my skull. Well, the abbey you see today is not the same church, one was built over the top in the year 1023. Way before William the conqueror went to England, builders completed the creation of the Romanesque nave. It’s astonishing isn’t it to stand there now and know these things, it gives me goosebumps!

I took my dad there once, he didn’t want to go, he moaned about having to go and see as he put it “another bloody monument – France is full of them” he said. I dragged him there moaning the whole way but when we were a couple of miles away and he saw it looming on the horizon topped by a golden angel, as French writer Victor Hugo once said, ‘like a pyramid in the sea’, he was captivated and so was my dad.

Mont-Saint-Michel captivates a lot of people – 3 million people visit this island every year. And rightly so. It’s unique. If you want to see it without feeling a bit like a sardine in a tin, go out of peak season – not in July or August, and get there early before the tour coaches arrive, or later in the evening when they depart… You’re welcome.

And wear comfy shoes because the medieval streets are cobbled. And if you want to eat one of the famous omelettes at the Mere Poulard restaurant take lots of money – they’re expensive! They are made to the same secret recipe and cooked on an open fire in front of customers as they have been since 1888, a taste that’s been loved by many – including Ernest Hemingway and Marilyn Monroe.

But the best thing is to just wander the little streets that wrap round the island and lead to the abbey. Be aware that it is a steep climb up 350 steps, a couple of paramedics were stationed halfway up the stairs when I was there! It’s worth the effort to get to the top but don’t even try to if you have any heart problems or medical issues. When we reached the top, we stood in the abbey and looked out through the grand open arched windows looking out to the sea and over the land. It is one of those special moments for sure.

Secret Mont-Saint-Michel

And if you go to Mont-Saint-Michel, but you want to visit a less crowded, more secret place afterwards maybe the Marine Train (le train marin) will interest you. It’s a little tourist train which runs around the Mont Saint Michel Bay. It takes you on a 2-hour guided tour on land and in the shallow waters, and you’ll discover the local fishing culture, and get a really unique view of the island. It’s a great activity.

Versailles

We have to talk about the palace of Versailles when we’re talking about top sites. You can take a train from Paris, it’s easy to get to. It was a hunting lodge until Louis 14^th decided to renovate and then some. His aim was very much “look at me, I am the greatest, only the greatest man in the world could have a home as beautiful as this.” So, in the mid 1600s, the simple – by royal standards at least – hunting lodge became the most luxurious home in the world.

It wasn’t exactly cosy though, several hundred people were squeezed in, the most important aristocrats of France were all required to be on site where the King could basically keep an eye on them. It literally glistens – there’s so much gold involved from the gates to the ceilings and the walls the door fittings, the mirrors.

And then there’s the gardens of the palace. The palace was built on swamp land and the swamps had to be drained and then the area was filled with soil and stone so that the grand gardens could be created. And the king wanted fountains, lot of fountains. Obviously. But there was no river nearby, so underground and aerial aqueducts were built to bring water in, they pumped it from the River Seine!

But it was still hard to keep the fountains flowing so basically the fountain operators used to just turn the fountains on when the king went by – everyone else could go without!

Louis was a bit of a control freak, well a lot of a control freak. Under his rule etiquette became everything, there were dress codes for every event including walking in the garden! And if you didn’t have the right kit, you could rent it at the entrance to the gardens!

Secret Versailles

And talking of walking – Versailles itself is a fabulous town for a walk, glorious old mansions galore, the Kings vegetable garden, the potager du roi, is close by, which for me is a must see, Louis had a brilliant gardener who innovated and experimented and was able to grow tropical fruit – in the north of France – and even coffee beans. Louis used to take guests there and boast about it like “Look what I’ve done” even though he did nothing!

And for another less well-known part of your visit to Versailles – head to the market. Marche Notre-Dame is one of the best I’ve ever been to. Its’ been there since the 1600s it has beautiful stone halls that were built hundreds of years ago, like miniature mansions for your fruit and veg! It’s very lively and very lovely. The halls of the market are open daily (except Monday) and the open-air market which spreads out over a huge square is on Tuesday, Friday and Saturday mornings.

Disneyland Paris

Ok a bit of a change in the type of attraction that’s most popular in France now – Disneyland Paris! Not very French, but French people love it too. I’ve been twice! The first time I took my kids, and the characters were on strike! So French. We had to go back because the kids really wanted to see Mickey Mouse!

Well, everyone probably knows a lot about the Disney parks, so I won’t say too much, but it’s the most visited theme park in Europe and it’s easy to reach from central Paris. And of course there is a Sleeping Beauty castle! And we like castles.

Chateaux of the Loire

Talking of castles – let’s head to the Loire Valley known as the Valley of the Kings in France because there are so many castles there. Chenonceau, Chambord, Villandry, Usse, Azay le Rideau, Chinon, Loches, Blois, Amboise…

Chambord gets almost one million visitors a year, but it never really feels crowded because it’s so huge. This was another case of “look at me, I am the best king in the world”, though it was 150 years or so before and built by King Francois 1^st who was known as the Renaissance King. He spent an absolute fortune on this place, it was an obsession, he pretty much gave up everything else to get this done including delaying paying a ransom to an enemy who had captured his young sons… and yet, he only spent 40 nights here!

This monumental palace had 426 rooms and 83 staircases – and to try to keep it warm it had 282 fireplaces, but it was so big it was always cold and that made it largely uninhabitable. Extraordinary. It’s an amazing place to visit with gorgeous gardens and a little village at the bottom with great shops where you can buy Chambord the liqueur and local biscuits and treats.

Secret Loire Valley

And if you want to visit somewhere close by, that’s a little less known, head to Blois where there is another fabulous castle, plus in the town there is a museum of magic. And don’t miss the pretty town of Amboise where there are two castles – one lived in by the Kings including Francis 1^st and the other lived in by his favourite artist Leonardo da Vinci who travelled here from Italy on a donkey carrying the Mona Lisa!

Francois used to keep the painting in his bathroom! I love that he used to sit in the bath and look at the painting. It’s in the Louvre now – the world’s most visited museum, and a former royal palace!

Lavender Fields Provence

And now let’s head outside for some fresh air and one of the most alluring aromas in the world – lavender! Provence is famous for its beautiful hilltop villages, historic cities like Avignon where the Popes once lived and for its lavender fields. It’s a sight that makes your soul soar from around mid-June to the start of August – miles of purple lavender, and the scent fills the air – it’s a must see…

Some of the best lavender fields are in the department of Vaucluse. They surround little towns and sit next to apricot, cherry and olive orchards. One of my favourite places is Sault which is where some of the most beautiful lavender fields can be found.

There is a legend that the lavender comes from the tears of a blue-eyed fairy called Lavandula. She was flying around in France – like you do – looking for somewhere special to call home, and she had a notebook where she made drawings of the places she liked the looks of. Yes really this is the legend! And she was really proud of her drawings but when she saw the page with Provence and the Luberon area in Vaucluse, it looked so dry that it made her sad and she cried purple tears from her big purple eyes.

The tears stained the book and she tried to wipe them away and it stained the whole page violet, so she coloured the fields a beautiful shade of blue so that her mistake wasn’t so obvious – and ever since, the lavender has grown in Provence!

Secret Provence

There are plenty of not well-known pickled in the past or pretty as a picture villages in Provence. Two of the most lovely are Brantes which has a “land that time forgot feel to it, and Vaison-la-Romaine. Once inhabited by the Romans, with plenty of evidence of their time there, with a lovely upper town of cobbled streets, as well as a dazzling lower town full of cosy cafes, art galleries and one of the best patisseries I’ve ever had the pleasure of!

Janine Marsh is the author of several internationally best-selling books about France. Her latest book How to be French – a celebration of the French lifestyle and art de vivre, is out now – a look at the French way of life. Find all books on her website janinemarsh.com