Things to Do in France

Versailles’ chateau gardens are vast, laid out in formal French style and famed for their geometrically aligned terraces, tree-lined paths and, notably, their ponds.

Of all the lovely fountain pools gracing the Versailles gardens, the Bassin de Neptune is the largest.

Designed by famed landscape artist Le Notre and laid out between 1661 and 1700, the fountain features three groups of statues, including Neptune and Amphitrite.

A new fountain installed by Louis XV in the 1730s was acclaimed for the force and variety of its jets water playing over the sculptural groups. In all, the fountain boasts 99 water effects and is fronted by the lovely Dragon Fountain

In summer, Bassin de Neptune is a focus for a display of choreographed fireworks, spectacularly reflected in the fountain’s expansive pool.

Known as the “Village of Painters,” Barbizon is a little town of around 1,500 people perched on the edge of the Fountainebleau Forest just outside Paris. Famous for the Barbizon art movement of French Revolution fame, Barbizon was the place where many artists headed at the time. Inspired by the rural paintings of English painter John Constable, the school of artists found the village’s fields and surrounding Fountainebleau Forest central to their work.

Nestled in the hills above Aix-en-Provence, the Atlelier Cézanne, or the Cézanne Studio, is a museum devoted to the life and works of its namesake. The studio, the upper floor of a Provençal country house, was commissioned by the artist in 1902 and remained his place of work until his death in 1906, a tranquil retreat with a blooming garden and expansive views over the surrounding countryside.

Since opening its doors in 1954, the museum has set to preserve the studio as left by Cézanne, with many of the artist’s personal effects and inspirational objects laid out around the room. Cézanne’s easel and paints lie in the spot where masterpieces like Les Grandes Baigneuses (The Large Bathers) and La Femme à la Cafétière (The Woman with the Coffee Pot) were created; elsewhere, vases, scarves and fruits are laid out into carefully construed still art creations. Fans will recognize many of the seemingly mundane objects, like the skulls from Cézanne’s iconic 1901 painting, Pyramid of Skulls, or the coffee pot that inspired La Femme à la Cafétière.

While art lovers may bemoan the lack of actual artwork on display at the studio, the museum’s allure lies in its simplicity – an evocative space that feels as though the artist himself could return at any moment. The effect is further dramatized by the use of the space for video screenings, most notably the atmospheric films shown in the garden during summer evenings.

With its mixture of gourmet markets, cutting-edge drinking holes, and historic landmarks, Paris' Bastille neighborhood allows travelers to escape the city's bustling center and discover the "Parisian's Paris." Boutique and bohemian, Bastille buzzes with creativity, most evident in the shops and artist studios that populate its streets. The heart of the area is Place de la Bastille, the former home of the Bastille fortress, where traffic whirls at a roundabout topped by the 170-foot (52-meter) Colonne de Juillet.

A gleaming retro-Byzantine confection of Roman columns and religious iconography, the Basilique Notre Dame de Fourvière is visible, by design, from almost anywhere in Lyon. Today it is the symbol of the city and Lyon's most visited attraction, well worth the climb just to enter the outrageous interior. 

Completed in 1896 as a challenge to secular forces then gaining power in France (like Sacré-Coeur Montmartre), the basilica's gleaming marble, gold gilt, fantastic stained glass, and borderline hallucinogenic ceiling are meant to impress. And they do.

In addition to the basilica and an adjacent chapel dedicated to a particularly miraculous Virgin Mary, both free to the public, this site also offers an observatory, museum, and fantastic views.

Arcachon, a popular seaside resort and bay in the Gironde department in southwest France, is fairly new, having only officially been declared the City of Arcachon by Napoleon III 150 years ago, back when it was still a minuscule fishing hamlet. Fishing still plays an important role in the town’s economy today, not only because of export but also tourism; indeed, Arcachon is said to have some of the best oysters in all of Europe, and tourists from all over the country flock to the bay in the name of gluttony and seafood.