The Best Villages to Visit in France

It shouldn't be a surprise to hear that France is full of stunners. The prettiest villages in France? Look no further.

Hesdin – Hauts-de-France

Hesdin in Pas-de-Calais, boasts a picturesque cobblestone square with an imposing Town Hall dating back to the sixteenth century, a former Spanish castle. Surrounded by cafés and small shops, this is the perfect place to sit and grab a coffee, relax, and people-watch. On Thursdays the square is filled with market stalls and people and you can buy everything from fruit and clothes to bread.

Quintin – Brittany

Awarded Small City of Character status, Quintin has two castles and thirteen listed monuments, watermills and mysterious megaliths. Once a centre of the weaving industry, there’s also a museum of linen.

Pino – Corsica

Pino is made up of 13 hamlets which pepper the landscape from the edge of the Mediterranean Sea to the crest of Monte Cupieta. Utterly unspoiled and uncrowded, it is like time forgot this beautiful area with its grand though largely empty buildings and glorious views.

Saint-Sulpice-de-Favières – Ile-de-France

This village in the Essonne department, metropolitan Paris, has a long heritage though most people have never heard of it, even in France. Its 13th-14th century church is as big as a cathedral. There is also a historical arboretum with some 6,500 species of tree, established in 1857.

Bergheim – Alsace, Grand Est

Close to the city of Colmar, Bergheim is a wine producing village and watched over by the castle of Haut-Koeningsbourg. It’s beautifully preserved with 16th century buildings, surrounded by ramparts and has an unusual museum dedicated to sorcery. 

Levroux –  Centre-Val-de-Loire

Medieval Levroux, in the former Provence of Berry, in Indre, Loire Valley, is picturesque and historic. It has long been a centre of leather production and still is – producing goods for the luxury industry to this day. Cobbled streets, half-timbered houses and an impressive medieval gate to the town.

Saint-Sauveur-en-Puisaye – Burgundy-Franche-Comté

It’s here in the village of Saint-Sauveur-en-Puisaye in the Yonne department, that the writer Collette was born. You can visit her former home, now a museum. This listed “City of Character” has many ancient buildings, a 12th century church and 11th century tower.

La Bouille – Normandy

La Bouille is in the Seine-Maritime department. Just 20m from the city of Rouen, it was one of the strongholds of the Impressionists. Turner, Gauguin and Sisley all captured its beauty on canvas.