Just over £100K - this property with superb open views is great value. Immediate essential.
This house is situated in a quiet location with views across the vines, it is ready to move into has double glazing and a good roof.
Town: Montguyon
Department: Charente-Maritime
Region: Poitou - Charentes
Price: €127,200
There is a garage, terrace with BBQ and water feature and shed. The garden is 2250m2.
This house really needs to be seen to be appreciated the location is lovely and quiet, yet only a 10 minute drive to the nearest Town.
I would recommend early viewing as this property is priced for a quick sale.
More details and Photos: Montguyon Property
Video: Discover Charente-Martime District
In Alsace, head for Strasbourg‘s Christmas market, Christkindelsmarik, the oldest in Europe, from 26th November to 31st December, where there will be live concerts to add to the already buzzing streets.
In Auvergne, go to Clermont-Ferrand where you will find small chalets sell local arts and crafts, wines and regional foods. Alongside this is entertainment for children and even Father Christmas’s house!
In Burgundy, the market at Saint-Bris-le-Vineux brings together the best food producers in the region from 19th-24th December 2012, along with craftsmen and artists for a gastronomic event.
In Languedoc-Roussillon, there will be a Catalan market in Perpignan on 3rd December 2012 with a programme filled with family-friendly activities, as well as an ice rink.
In Midi-Pyrénées, visitors can admire the twinkly lights and its Henri IV courtyard garnished with fairy-like decorations in Toulouse from 30th November to 26th December 2012.
In Nord-Pas-de-Calais, from 21st November to 30th December 2012, the main square in Lille will be transformed with chalets, a Ferris wheel and an 18 metre-high Christmas tree.
In Provence, in the heart of Avignon, the Christmas market will host about fifty craftsmen and merchants in small chalets on the Place de l’Horloge from 24th November 2012 to 1st January 2013.
In Rhone-Alps, a magical market in Lyon will put on Christmas music and carol performances along with local food specialties, from 24th November to 30th December 2012.
Complete List: 10 places to be in France in the run-up to Christmas
Video: Xmas Markets in Provence
But do your HATE or LOVE France?
The study, carried out by INSEE, reveals that Brits are in the majority among “foreigners” in this part of the country. According to the research there are now 16,000 Britons in the Aquitaine region, and when expanded to include the neighbouring departments of Gers, Charente and Charente-Maritime the number could double.
Aquitaine is, of course, home to the perennially popular ‘Dordogneshire’, so this perhaps comes as no great surprise. In fact, according to the INSEE report, of all the Brits living in France, the majority (7,200) have made the Dordogne department their home. In certain areas, such as Eymet and Verteillac, Brits account for more than 8% of the population. In 2011, 78% of the 289,000 passengers who passed through Bergerac airport were British.
However, the study also revealed a marked change in the profile of those making the move. While traditionally the focus has been on retirees moving to France to enjoy their golden years, there is now a new breed of younger buyers leading the way.
Another area that is very popular: Lower Normandy
A separate study also revealed that Britons represent the largest “foreign” population in Lower Normandy, now home to 7,000 British residents. Between 1999 and 2009 the British contingent almost tripled as buyers were drawn to the region’s more rural areas. Yet in contrast to the new wave of younger buyers in the south-west, 45% of Britons in Lower Normandy are retired and more than half are aged 55 and over.
Complete article: Brits favour the south-west
More Help:
For a selection of property in the highlighted departments
Dordogne
Gers
Charente
Charente-Maritime
Lower Normandy
Video: River Dordogne
Six centuries ago, the Dordogne River separated warring England and France during the Hundred Year's War. Today, tourists float along the lazy Dordogne exploring riverside castles and villages.
Do you know French Vintage Home? If you are mad for all things French, like me… you will love their site… Audrey Freidman and Laura McGuire share our passion for France and have created an online source for beautiful vintage wares that Audrey sources in France… I recently asked them to tell me how they started their business and what it means for them… I thought you might like to get to know them and their gorgeous French wares… With the holidays so close, French Vintage Home is a brilliant resource for those extra special and unique gifts… Their linens are nothing short of exquisite… and their kitchen wares so adorable… perfect for the friend you want to spoil or fellow Francophiles…
Read Full Post: French Vintage Home
Massif du Sancy:
The diversity of Auvergne’s resorts and geography means there’s plenty of choice when it comes to selecting your station de ski for the week. In the Massif du Sancy the main resorts are Mont Dore and Super-Besse.
Le Mont Dore is one France’s best-kept skiing secrets. Sitting at the base of the Auvergne’s highest summit Le Puy du Sancy, it has maintained its traditional villagey feel while providing superb facilities and 85kms of trails linking it to Super Besse. Off-piste you can learn about traditional Auvergne activities such as cheesemaking, enjoy local produce in the many authentic restaurants and generally enjoy the nightime atmosphere in a safe and welcoming environment.
Super Besse, meanwhile, sits just above two lovely villages, Besse and St-Anastaise and in addition to great skiing for skiers of all abilities it has plenty of entertainment on hand too.
Also in Cantal is Le Lioran, the third of the Auvergne’s main resorts, which offers the opportunity to ski down a volcano, the imposing Puy Mary.
The resort is a great place for people who enjoy a wide range of winter sports. There are 42 pistes over 60kms for downhill skiing (spread out over 150 hectares), accessed by cable car, a detachable chair lift, 8 chairlifts and 13 ski tows. Here you can try your hand at a timed slalom course and it’s also perfect for cross-country skiing - there are 20 km of marked pistes from the Cirque de Font d’Alagnon and more than 75 km from the Col de Prat de Bouc.
Chartreix-Sancy
If you prefer a smaller resort, head to Chastreix-Sancy, Les Estables in Haute-Loire which offers good Nordic skiing as well as dog-sledding, Prabouré or La Montagne Bourbonnaise – both offer yet more off-the-beaten track tranquillity and ski opportunities.
Two of the Auvergne’s destinations, Mont Dore and Super-Besse, have received the prestigious Famille Plus label thanks to the effort they have put into the quality of the facilities devoted to children and their families. This means that they are committed to looking after children aged 3 and over, providing winter activities and events and reserving areas especially for them (baby-changing tables, games areas, etc.)
Read the full article: Skiing holidays in France: Discover the Auvergne
Video: Skiing in Auvergne
Paris is not known to be a cheap city but some of its main attractions are free – just another reason we love this city so much.
The Louvre and Musee d’Orsay
One of the main attractions of the city is its museums and while many do have a ticket price, on the first Sunday of the month and on July 14 it is free to enter. It is also always free to those under 18, the disabled and their helpers, and to teachers of art, art history and the applied arts.
Pompidou Centre
One of the most startling pieces of modern architecture in Paris (all the pipes which run around the outside are color-coded according to their function), the Pompidou is also free for those under 18, the disabled and their helpers, the unemployed and on the first Sunday of each month it is free for all. Inside there is free wifi and a huge public library you can access to sit and use your computer.
Parks
Paris is famed for its architecture and its parks and squares and of course it is free to just wander the city and be impressed. Sit by the pond in the Tuileries Garden (the chairs are free), find the lovely hidden square Palais Royale and the black and white pillars at one end where kids love to run and play, or Place des Vosges the oldest planned square in Paris. Further out Parc des Buttes is a favorite treed green space of Parisians and has great views over the city. The Jardin du Luxembourg also has a free puppet theater, Theatre des Marionnettes.
Read full article: Free Things to Do in Paris
Enjoy this free video tour of Paris!
Video Tour
France has many beautiful regions but the author's favourite has to be the Dordogne with its beautiful meandering river valley stretching from the Massif Central in the east, through the départements of the Corrèze and the Lot before entering the Dordogne département on its way to the Gironde in the west. Imposing medieval castles from which the English and French conducted the long running saga of Hundred Years War during the middle ages and fascinating prehistoric sites where there are cave paintings dating back to the beginning of life in Europe.
Within this App you will find fascinating medieval towns, fortified bastides, prehistoric sites and charming sleepy villages not to mention several cool places to eat, drink and rest.
Link to App: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.sutromedia.android.guide.dordogne
In the meantime why not enjoy this Dordogne Video while you are downloading:
France has many beautiful regions but the author's favourite has to be the Dordogne with its beautiful meandering river valley stretching from the Massif Central in the east, through the départements of the Corrèze and the Lot before entering the Dordogne département on its way to the Gironde in the west. Imposing medieval castles from which the English and French conducted the long running saga of Hundred Years War during the middle ages and fascinating prehistoric sites where there are cave paintings dating back to the beginning of life in Europe.
Within this App you will find fascinating medieval towns, fortified bastides, prehistoric sites and charming sleepy villages not to mention several cool places to eat, drink and rest.
Link to App: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.sutromedia.android.guide.dordogne
In the meantime why not enjoy this Dordogne Video while you are downloading:
Lovely video about France - over 20 minutes of history, landscapes, and French Culture
Have you heard of PInterest? After Social Media Sites Facebook, & Twitter Pinterest ranks as the most popular site - and it is growing fast.
What is Pinterest? Effectively it is a Pin-Board where you add photos and videos. In the image above you can see 5 "Boards" where there are 5 different themes: France & French Property, France Videos, etc, The social side of the site allows members to share or comment on "Pins". So you can repin a pinterest photo or video to your own "Board".
As your "Board" becomes active users will "Follow" your board; similarly you can follow other boards.
So if you are interested in France - living in France, places to visit, things to do - then check out http://pinterest.com/1st4frenchprop/
If you love nothing more than indulging in a little retail therapy, then you’re probably already aware of some of the world’s most famous shopping streets. Here, we look at 5 of the best known shopping streets around the world that are found in some of the most exciting and glamorous cities on the planet!
1. Oxford Street, London
2. Fifth Avenue, New York
3. Avenue Montaigne, Paris
For fantastic shopping in continental Europe, there is perhaps nowhere like Paris’ Avenue Montaigne.
Situated between the bank of the Seine and Champs Elysees Avenue, here you’ll find a selection of high-end stores from some of the leading names in French and international fashion.
The street is some 600 metres long and there are dozens of shops you’ll be able to visit, including branches of Prada, Dior and Chanel. You can also purchase men’s and women’s clothing at the Versace and Ralph Lauren stores, so it should come as little surprise that this is a great place to head to if you want to dress like an A-lister.
Who knows, you may even spot some celebrities browsing the aisles next to you! Katie Holmes and Victoria Beckham have both been spotted at the Giorgio Armani store here.
4. Via Monte Napoleone, Milan
5. Rodeo Drive, Beverly Hills
Those who visit any of the above shopping streets will be able to not only shop but explore the wonderful sights throughout the cities in which they are found. The only problem is whether you’ll be able to tear yourself away from the shops long enough to see what else the cities have to offer!
Complete article, videos and photos: 5 of the world’s most famous luxury shopping streets
Take a Video Tour of the Boutique shops in Avenue Montaigne
First, here are the basics. The Jura wine region stretches from just north of Arbois to some kilometres south of Lons le Saunier in the western foothills of the low Jura mountain range. Around 80km east of Burgundy, it makes an excellent stopover if you are driving from northern France to the Alps, or even en route to the Med. (view over Arbois, right)
The Jura has a broadly northern continental climate with clay-limestone soils that include outcrops of marl in particular, with plenty of fossils. There are four regional appellations: Arbois, Cotes du Jura and the smaller Etoile and Chateau-Chalon, plus two wine style appellations that cover the whole area, Cromant du Jura and Macvin (a Vin de Liqueur).
Five grape varieties are used today: for whites, Chardonnay and Savagnin (sometimes called by its old name, Nature), plus Poulsard (also called Ploussard), Trousseau and Pinot Noir for reds. Colour in the Jura is often not what it seems! Whites can vary from pale greenish through to dark amber (and that includes the famous jaune or yellow), and reds are more often than not pink, or tile-coloured at best. On labels, variety is indicated sometimes, but the style of wine rarely, unless it is the famous Vin Jaune or the sweet Vin de Paille. Any style may be made under the Arbois or Cotes du Jura appellations; Etoile is restricted to whites (including Jaune and Paille); Chateau-Chalon is exclusively Vin Jaune, but note that in this case the words "Vin Jaune" do not appear on the label. Apparently all this makes sense to a Frenchman and is part of la patrimoine.
Full article and photos: A Jurrasic mystery
Video: French Wine and Provincial Life
In French but lovely landscapes to enjoy ....
You need to view to appreciate the beauty of this property - with gite, pool and small lake and 23 hectares.
The main house has a large living area, open plan fitted kitchen, 5 bedrooms, 5 shower rooms, 5 toilets, and a small living area in the guest area.
Also stable, greenhouse and outbuildings.
Perfect Lifestyle choice with income from the Gite.
Town: NEAR CARCASSONNE
Department: Aude
Region: Languedoc - Roussillon
Price: €480,000
More details and Photos: Property with Lake
Take a Video Tour of the Aude area:
The picturesque French department of the Aude is situated in South-West France, and is named after the Aude River. The department has a very rich - and quite bloody - history. This video takes you on a tour of some of the places to be found in and around the Aude's High Valley. One of these places is the world-famous hilltop village of Rennes-le-Château (Google it!). Admittedly, my primary interest when I shot the footage contained in this video was churches and castles, so I apologise for the apparent fixation on these structures throughout the video.
How many times before choosing a bottle of French wine have you wished you had a wine encyclopaedia with you to decode the label? The terminology alone could cause a terrible headache before even opening the bottle!
Knowing the “Terroir” will definitely help you understand the wine, as well as the region and traditions of where it is produced but what is it exactly.
The Terroir is not only a geographical area in a wine region; it also comprises certain criteria that will define the origin and typical characteristic of a wine. The soil, the climate, the choice of grape and winemaking tradition of each region is all vital elements that will define a terroir.
The concept of terroir is not really new, or even dare I say, French...The Greeks were already stamping their Amphorae with the name of the region or wine, resulting in certain ones being recognised as quality wines and exported all over the ancient world.
Briefly, there are 3 types of French wines, the “vins de Table Francais”, made from wine from all over the country and often found in plastic bottle, the “vins de Pays”, coming from a specific region, and finally the “appellation d’Origine Controllee” or AOC producing the best quality wines.
Full article: The importance of Terroir in French vineyards
Video: Choosing a French Wine
French wine labels will always list the growing region of the grapes and the negociant, which could be a single winemaker or a larger company. Understand the important parts of a French wine label with advice from a certified first-level sommelier in this free video on wine.
One of the World’s most beautiful bays
The region, which was near and dear to the heart of the poet, reflects a set of reciprocal influences, for even if Cocteau found these places a constant source of inspiration, he has in turn deeply marked it with his footprint.
Indeed, the French Riviera in the first half of the 20th century had everything to attract artists and poets: the incredible light, the charm of the locals and their singing accents, the authentic and rustic seaside villages… Like Picasso or Matisse before him, Cocteau found his enchanted domain – a rich source of inspiration – and when he arrived in Villefranche-sur-Mer in the 1920s, he decided to stay.
‘When I see Villefranche, I see my youth again. Pray Heaven it may never change’…. Those were his words and his prayer has been answered.
Today, his memory is evoked throughout this 700-year-old traditional fishing village of 6,700 inhabitants. Whilst welcoming about a million tourists every year (thanks to the large cruise ships which drop anchor just at the entrance of the bay) the village itself has managed to retain its authentic and charming nature, its medieval streets and, and its ochre, pink and yellow houses topped with orange tiled roofs.
As well as being a tourist hub for one of France’s most popular destinations, Villefranche’s bay is also considered to be one of the most beautiful in the Mediterranean. The luxurious villas hidden all around the overlooking hills are known for their opulence and exclusivity, and are a testament to the region’s reputation of beauty. From the hills, those who climb, or are lucky enough to own one of the houses, have a splendid view of the Cap-Ferrat, and form dome spots even the Cap de Nice.
Full article: ‘When I see Villefranche, I see my youth again. Pray Heaven it may never change’… Jean Cocteau on Villefranche-sur-mer'
Video: Personal Tour of Villefranche-Sur-Mer
This is video that we shot in the South of France, which highlights some of what we did when we went there on holiday. It's pretty random - I eat a millefeuille in a ladylike way, watch the boats in the harbour, tell you my top 5 favorite things about France, and show you what we ate for dinner one evening.
The fabulous landscapes and remarkable characters of Provence have inspired some great movies - and so if you can't make it there this year, what better than to snuggle down and dream of the South with a classic DVD?
Here are the ten films that have best captured all the very varied essences of Provence. Some are iconic. Some are sneaky pleasures.
Swimming Pool (2003)
And God... Created Woman (1956)
Jean de Florette & Manon des Sources (1986)
The Horseman on the Roof (1995)
Let's Talk about the Rain (2007)
Marius, Fanny, César (1931-1936)
An Autumn Tale (1998)
Marius and Jeannette (1997)
Toni (1935)
Taxi (1998)
For decades Marseille and gangsters have fitted together as snugly as a gun in a holster, at least since Borsalino (1970), a period caper starring Alain Delon and Jean-Paul Belmondo, both ultra-cool in pin-stripes and fedoras, and Gene Hackman, strung out on heroin in French Connection II (1975) - see below. The hit Taxi series puts a high-octane, exuberantly comic spin on this tired old genre material, with abundant car and motorbike chases, torrential bullets, spectacular crashes and generous body count, both vehicular and human. A pizza delivery boy who fancies himself as a star driver joins forces with a failed cop in pursuit of German bank robbers. The brainchild of the French super-producer/director Luc Besson, it's one to file under guilty pleasures.
More details: Provence: The Ten Best Films
Video: Glimpses of Provence
Monet Gardens: what is perhaps the most iconic setting of in the history of art, possibly the most colorful one, and undoubtedly the most romantic.
The first part of the visit is the Monet house itself – where the painter used to live in the 1880s, and most importantly, create.
It’s really interesting to visit the workshop of one of the world’s most famous and talented painters. I like how Monet also kept his Impressionist friends close to his heart – his bedroom walls were covered by Cézanne, Renoir and Manet paintings.
The house fell into disrepair after Monet’s death, and it wasn’t until the 1980s that it was restored to its full glory, and open for the public to enjoy.
The second part is an ode to the beauty of nature and the powerful smell of various flowers.
There are more types of plants and flowers than I can recall!
The third and last part of the visit is where you’ll find one of the most famous scenes of the history of the 3rd art – the water lily pond.
Monet had this pond dug after he moved to the estate, against his neighbors advice – they were worried his weird, exotic plants would poison the water! The pond is designed after the many Japanese prints Monet collected – an influence that is very obvious with the wooden bridges, the bamboo trees and the many nympheas.
Lots of gorgeous photos and more details: Visiting the Monet Gardens in Giverny
Video Tour of Monet's Garden:
Claude Monet dedicated almost his entire life to perfecting his garden in Normandy, France. Now the Monet Foundation is celebrating its thirtieth anniversary. We visited the late impressionist's home.
Beautiful images of South West France - Pays Basque and Landes.
Nature is so beautiful that it would be a shame not to share it and especially did not preserve it. Have a good time with this "Clin d'Oeil du Sud-Ouest"
