The French know how to get around. Visit Greece, Italy, or Israel in August — when they generally vacation for the entire month — and you’re bound to hear your fair share of “bonjours” and “au revoirs.” This year, of course, was a bit different. The pandemic grounded planes and enforced complicated quarantines, so locals were encouraged to stay closer to home with the “Cet été, je visite la France” (This summer, I visit France) campaign.
Generally, the French reserve domestic travel for school breaks or les ponts, when a national holiday falls at the end or beginning of a week, allowing locals to “make a bridge” with an extended weekend. Where locals go depends on a variety of factors such as season, distance, and cost, but whether they head for the snow-capped mountains, the vineyard-dappled countryside, or the rocky coasts, one thing is for sure: It will be beautiful. France’s varied terrain is nothing short of spectacular, and I’ve had the great fortune of picking my jaw off the ground a variety of times since moving to Paris nearly six years ago. While I spent the first few years visiting some of the major cities such as Strasbourg, Bordeaux, and Lyon, I slowly started venturing further afield to the small towns rarely mentioned in guidebooks. The following destinations, vetted by a few French locals, include spots worthy of a short break or longer…