Western Europe · Europe
France · 5 days
5 Days in Toulouse
A city of brick, blue woad money and airliners. Five days in Toulouse, planned around what is actually open.
Updated Oct 2026Read the plan →
Western Europe · Europe
France
Discover France - the world's most visited country, where the Eiffel Tower, the Louvre, Champagne vineyards, and the art of living well have defined culture for centuries.
Where Is France?
France is a country in Western Europe. Its capital is Paris.
- Capital Paris
- Population 68.7M
- Area 543,908 km²
France is the most visited country on Earth, and it knows exactly why. Paris alone has the Eiffel Tower, the Louvre, Notre-Dame, the Champs-Elysees, and roughly a thousand years of architectural magnificence crammed into a walkable city that also happens to have the best bread, cheese, wine, and pastries on the planet. But France is not just Paris. Provence has its lavender fields and Mediterranean light. Bordeaux has its vineyards. The Loire Valley has its chateaux. The Alps have Mont Blanc. Normandy has its beaches and cider. And every region has a cuisine so deeply rooted in local tradition that a Burgundian would not dream of eating like a Provencal.
The French contribution to civilization is immense and delivered with characteristic confidence. Liberty, equality, fraternity - the Revolution of 1789 reshaped the modern world. Impressionism, existentialism, haute couture, nouvelle cuisine, cinema, the metric system - all French. From Voltaire to Camus, from Monet to Coco Chanel, from Pasteur to the Lumiere brothers, France has an unshakeable conviction that the good life is a serious intellectual pursuit. The French don't just eat dinner - they compose it. They don't just drink wine - they discuss it. And they don't just disagree with you - they construct a philosophical argument about why you are wrong. It is exhausting and magnificent in equal measure.
At a glance
Language
French
Currency
Euro (EUR)
Calling Code
+33
Drives On
Right
Internet
.fr
Timezone
CET (UTC+1 / UTC+2)
Script
Latin
Government
Unitary Semi-presidential Republic
Independence
843 (Treaty of Verdun)
Travel guides
Plan a trip to France
France · Alsace · 5 days
5 Days in Strasbourg
A cathedral, a canal quarter, a German-built district and a wine road on the doorstep. Five days in Alsace's capital.
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France · 5 days
5 Days in Paris
Everything in Paris is famous and half of it needs a time slot. Five days, one area a day, planned around the closing days.
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France · Normandy · 5 days
5 Days in Normandy
Gothic Rouen, white cliffs, the D-Day beaches and a tidal abbey. Five days across Normandy from two bases, honest about the car.
Updated Oct 2026Read the plan →
France · 5 days
5 Days in Marseille
France's oldest city, a working port with a national park inside it. Five days of harbor, hills, swimming coves and fish stew.
Updated Oct 2026Read the plan →
France · Provence · 5 days
5 Days in Avignon
A pope's palace, a broken bridge and a train line to half of Roman France. Five days in Provence from its most practical base.
Updated Oct 2026Read the plan →
By population
Largest cities in France
1
Paris
City of Light, home to the Eiffel Tower, the Louvre, Notre-Dame, and a cafe culture that defined the modern idea of urban living
11,000,000
2
Marseille
Mediterranean port city of bouillabaisse and diversity, France's oldest city founded by Greeks 2,600 years ago
1,800,000
3
Lyon
Gastronomic capital of France where the Rhone and Saone meet, home to bouchons and Paul Bocuse's culinary legacy
1,700,000
4
Toulouse
Pink City of terracotta buildings, home to Airbus headquarters and a vibrant student population in southwest France
1,400,000
5
Nice
Queen of the Riviera with the Promenade des Anglais, Matisse Museum, and the azure Mediterranean at its feet
1,000,000
6
Bordeaux
World wine capital on the Garonne River, a UNESCO-listed city of limestone architecture and 7,000 chateaux
800,000
People
Famous people from France
Napoleon Bonaparte
PoliticsMilitary genius who crowned himself Emperor, conquered most of Europe, reformed French law, and reshaped the modern world
Claude Monet
ArtFather of Impressionism whose Water Lilies at Giverny and Impression, Sunrise launched the most beloved art movement in history
Victor Hugo
LiteratureAuthor of Les Miserables and The Hunchback of Notre-Dame, France's greatest Romantic writer and a champion of social justice
Marie Curie
SciencePolish-born scientist who conducted her Nobel Prize-winning research on radioactivity in Paris, becoming France's most celebrated scientist
Louis Pasteur
ScienceFather of microbiology who developed pasteurization and vaccines for rabies and anthrax, saving millions of lives
Coco Chanel
ArtRevolutionized fashion by liberating women from corsets, creating the little black dress and Chanel No. 5 perfume
Albert Camus
LiteratureNobel Prize-winning author of The Stranger and The Myth of Sisyphus who defined existentialist and absurdist philosophy
Zinedine Zidane
SportOne of the greatest footballers ever, led France to the 1998 World Cup and 2000 European Championship titles
Food
Traditional cuisine of France
- Croissant
- Buttery, flaky, crescent-shaped pastry that defines the French breakfast, best eaten warm from a boulangerie
- Coq au Vin
- Chicken braised in red wine with mushrooms, lardons, and pearl onions, the quintessential French country dish
- Baguette
- Crusty bread with a soft interior, UNESCO-recognized as part of French cultural heritage, baked fresh daily at 33,000 bakeries
- Bouillabaisse
- Marseille's legendary seafood stew with at least four types of fish, saffron, fennel, and rouille on croutons
- Crepes
- Paper-thin pancakes from Brittany filled with everything from ham and cheese to Nutella and strawberries
- Ratatouille
- Provencal vegetable stew of eggplant, zucchini, peppers, and tomatoes, simple and perfect with olive oil and herbs
- Camembert
- Soft, creamy cheese from Normandy with a white rind and earthy flavor, one of France's 400+ cheese varieties
- Creme Brulee
- Rich custard base topped with a layer of caramelized sugar that cracks under a spoon, the perfect French dessert
Nature
Nature and landmarks in France
- Mont BlancMountain
- Western Europe's highest peak at 4,808 meters on the Italian border, the monarch of the Alps and a mountaineering icon
- Verdon GorgeCanyon
- Europe's Grand Canyon with turquoise waters cutting 700 meters through limestone cliffs in Provence
- Lavender Fields of ProvenceLandmark
- Endless rows of purple lavender blooming from June to August, one of France's most iconic and photographed landscapes
- Calanques National ParkCoast
- Dramatic limestone fjords plunging into the Mediterranean between Marseille and Cassis, with turquoise swimming coves
- Loire Valley ChateauxLandmark
- UNESCO World Heritage valley of over 300 Renaissance chateaux, including Chambord, Chenonceau, and Amboise
- CorsicaIsland
- Napoleon's birthplace, a mountainous Mediterranean island with the GR20 - Europe's toughest long-distance hiking trail
- Dune of PilatCoast
- Europe's tallest sand dune at 110 meters on the Atlantic coast near Arcachon, a surreal landmark surrounded by pine forest
- PyreneesMountain
- Mountain range forming the border with Spain, with the Cirque de Gavarnie amphitheater and legendary Tour de France climbs
Sport
Sports in France
- Football
- Won two FIFA World Cups (1998, 2018) and three European Championships, producing legends from Platini to Zidane to Mbappe
- Rugby Union
- Perennial Six Nations contender, three-time World Cup finalist, with a passionate rugby culture in the south
- Cycling
- Home of the Tour de France, the world's most famous cycling race, running annually since 1903 across 3,500 km
- Tennis
- Hosts the French Open (Roland-Garros), one of tennis' four Grand Slams, played on clay since 1891
Facts
Did you know?
France is the most visited country in the world with roughly 100 million tourists per year
There are over 400 varieties of cheese in France - Charles de Gaulle asked how you can govern a country with 246 cheeses
The Louvre is the most visited museum in the world with over 7 million visitors annually
France gave the United States the Statue of Liberty in 1886 as a gift celebrating Franco-American friendship
The French baguette was added to UNESCO's Intangible Cultural Heritage list in 2022
France spans 12 time zones thanks to its overseas territories, more than any other country including Russia
The Tour de France has been running since 1903 and covers roughly 3,500 kilometers over 23 days
French is an official language in 29 countries and spoken by over 300 million people worldwide
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