Unforgettable journeys you can have in France

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This was published 7 years ago

Unforgettable journeys you can have in France

Getting away from the crowds: There's a side of France that few travellers get to experience.

Getting away from the crowds: There's a side of France that few travellers get to experience.Credit: iStock

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From the lavender fields of Provence to the statuesque beauty of Normandy's Mont Saint-Michel; from the noble chateaus of the Loire Valley to the vineyards of Champagne; from the glamour of the Cote d'Azur to the languid beauty of the Dordogne villages – there is nowhere else like France.

Centuries ago the French began using their great rivers to transport wines, wheat and livestock. Today those same rivers have become highways for travellers looking to experience a slower, richer France, with powerful reminders of its past glories.

France remains the world's most visited country, and for good reason. Yet its rivers take you into serene and luscious landscapes that are far from the crowds and show you a side of France that few travellers get to experience.

PARIS

It's the smell of fresh croissants from a boulangerie, the sound of the bells of Notre Dame, the chic bicyclists along the Canal St Martin, the white-aproned waiters in the brasseries, the sheer beyond-words gorgeousness of the Place des Voges. With a thousand sensations, Paris will steal your heart. It's the City of Love, so packed with magic moments you may want to stay up all night.

DON'T MISS

The spectacular lightshow on the Eiffel Tower. After sunset, the tower sparkles as if it was covered in tiny, dancing diamonds in a dazzling five-minute display that happens every hour on the hour. Best view is from Place du Trocadero on the other side of the River Seine from the Eiffel Tower.

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INSIDER TIP

Put on your glad rags for dinner and a cabaret show at the famous Moulin Rouge in the saucy Pigalle district of Paris.

BORDEAUX

It's a region as well as a city, a name synonymous with some of the world's greatest wines. As well as Cognac, Saint-Emilion and Bergerac, the rivers of this part of France, the Garonne and Dordogne, take you deep into a France that is still steeped in the past, with a distinctive cuisine, a character forged by hardship and architecture that dates from the Middle Ages.

DON'T MISS

Château de Cazeneuve, a royal castle from the Renaissance, once the property of King Henry IV of France and Queen Margot. An APT Signature Experience, it is set at the heart of the Aquitaine region and close to the Sauternes vineyards, source of the world's most famous dessert wine.

INSIDER TIP

One of the best ways to experience Bordeaux nowadays is by bicycle, passing medieval abbeys, chateaus and acclaimed wineries along the way. A taste of Chateau Laffite Rothschild before re-mounting, perhaps?

PROVENCE

WHY WE LOVE IT

With a cuisine all its own, great wines, markets, some of the prettiest villages in France, a landscape that sighs and a coastline that smiles, Provence is one of the brightest stars in the French firmament. The Romans were the first to celebrate its sunny charms and ever since the rest of the world has been paying homage to its sheer charisma with painters and poets leading the cheer squad.

DON'T MISS

Les Baux-de-Provence, a fortified village that leaps from the gnarled olive trees on the limestone plateau of southern Provence. Van Gogh spent a year near here and his works from this time – Cypress Trees and the extraordinary Starry Night – are richly evocative of this stunning landscape.

INSIDER TIP

The imposing 12th century Grignan Castle is built on a commanding rocky outcrop below a rippling sea of lavender in spring. Superb views of the region can be enjoyed from the terraces and gardens of the castle while classical and jazz concerts are held regulary in the Hall of Adhémars, restored in 2012.

MONTE CARLO

WHY WE LOVE IT

Even though this isn't technically part of France, the capital of the principality of Monaco is the glittering jewel of the Cote d'Azur a name synonymous with wealth and the opulence of the Belle Epoque era. It's breathtaking, but you don't have to be James Bond to get inside the Monte Carlo Casino, and the billion-dollar view of the megayachts of the rich and famous in the harbour is free of charge. APT's Rhine, Rhône and Moselle river cruise lingers over this lovely enclave and its southern French surrounds.

DON'T MISS

Pretty and pink, Villa Ephrussi de Rothschild is one of the loveliest villas on the Côte d'Azur. Just as wondrous as the villa itself are the nine themed gardens that surround it, while the view over the Mediterranean and the Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat peninsula takes the heart by storm.

INSIDER TIP

Just inland from the Cote d'Azur, Saint-Paul de Vence is a medieval village where the locals play petanque in front of the cafés. The village has connections to some of the glitterati of the art world, including Chagall, Renoir, Matisse and Picasso.

NORMANDY

WHY WE LOVE IT

Famous for its half-timbered buildings, Calvados, Rouen Cathedral, Mont Saint-Michel and the port of Honfleur, a favourite subject of the French Impressionists, Normandy is an enchanting part of France, a quilt of moods and sensations. Viking blood runs in Norman veins and Normandy is also the source of some of France's most celebrated cheeses, Camembert, Pont l'Evêque, Livarot and creamy Brie that will spoil you forever.

DON'T MISS

Giverny, Claude Monet's garden, where the famous French Impressionist lived and worked for more than 40 years. It was during this time that Monet painted his romantic water lily series, and the garden remains as it was in his lifetime, a botanical wonder of infinite beauty.

INSIDER TIP

Not far from Monet's house and garden is a four-kilometre long cultural walking tour of Giverny. There are 20 signposted points of inerest along the way, including one for the preserved Old Hotel Baudy, where Monet as well Cézanne, Renoir, Sisley and Rodin all spent time.

BEAUJOLAIS AND LYON

Just to the north of Lyon, these slow rolling hills are famous for Beaujolais Nouveau, the first wine to appear on the table from the vintage of the same year. Geographically part of Greater Burgundy, the vineyards of Northern Beaujolais are the source of serious Cru Beaujolais wines while Southern Beaujolais is famed for its pretty villages of honey-coloured stone that have earned it the subtitle "Land of the Golden Stones".

DON'T MISS

Charming and highly photogenic, the historic heart of Lyon is virtually an open-air museum of medieval history. Among its most notable features are the labyrinthine traboules, covered passageways that allowed the city's silk manufacturers to transport their delicate products without being exposed to the weather.

INSIDER TIP

Savour a gourmet feast at Lyon's L'Abbaye de Collonges, owned by legendary Michelin-starred chef Paul Bocuse. Even your tastebuds will applaud.

UNFORGETTABLE PEOPLE

DANY BAUCHER

APT RIVER CRUISE CAPTAIN

Ask Dany Baucher anything but don't ask him to name his favourite part of France. For this French APT river cruise captain it's just too hard a question, and, really, who can blame him. "I mean France is a beautiful country from north to south and east to west," he says. "Just take some time to discover it." With pleasure, Captain Baucher. When pressed he does, however, nominate, Lyon - the third largest city of France - "a very pretty town crossed by the Rhône and the Saone rivers and from where they meet at the confluence."

Dany began his career at 18 years of age as a sailor on a river passenger ship. "The funny thing is that when I started as a sailor, I didn't expect to be captain one day," he says. "But when you like something and you're doing it with passion, things just happen. It's not a routine job at all, as every day is not the same as we sail across the four seasons. It's so nice to see the nature change and to navigate with the natural elements." And there are the special connections, too, which, in such close yet luxurious quarters, develop between a river ship's crew and passengers from around the world.

This article is produced in association with APT. See France like you never imagined on board an all-inclusive APT luxury river cruise. You'll embark on an unforgettable journey where once-closed doors are opened and exclusive experiences await. For more information visit www.aptouring.com.au/traveller, call 1300 290 669 or contact your local travel agent.

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