Paris

The Icon Everyone Knows

Paris is the France you’ve seen in movies—but there’s much more to it than the Eiffel Tower.

The Seine winds through neighborhoods filled with cafés, museums, gardens, bakeries and centuries of architecture. Medieval churches sit surprisingly close to modern shops, while famous monuments seem to appear around every corner.

It’s also a city best experienced on foot. Some of the most memorable parts of Paris aren’t individual attractions at all: walking beside the Seine, exploring a neighborhood market, watching artists in Montmartre or finding a tiny bakery on a side street.

Don’t Miss

Eiffel Tower — Paris’s most famous landmark and especially spectacular after dark.

The Louvre — An enormous museum containing everything from ancient Egyptian artifacts to the Mona Lisa.

Montmartre & Sacré-Cœur — Hilly streets, artists, cafés and one of the best views across Paris.

Teen Tip: Don’t schedule every minute. Paris is one of those cities where wandering around can be as much fun as checking off attractions.

Lyon

France’s Foodie City

If Paris is France’s superstar, Lyon is one of its best-kept secrets.

Sitting where the Rhône and Saône rivers meet, Lyon combines Roman history, Renaissance streets, hillside views and one of France’s strongest food traditions.

Explore Vieux Lyon, the old city, and look for hidden passageways called traboules. Some were historically connected with Lyon’s silk industry and were also used during World War II by members of the Resistance.

Then head uphill to the Basilica of Notre-Dame de Fourvière for views across the city.

Don’t Miss

Vieux Lyon & the traboules

Fourvière Hill

Les Halles de Lyon Paul Bocuse for a look at Lyon’s famous food culture

Try This: Look for tarte à la praline, a shockingly pink Lyon specialty made with praline-coated almonds.

Marseille

France’s Mediterranean Rebel

Marseille doesn’t feel much like Paris—and that’s exactly the point.

Founded by Greek settlers more than 2,500 years ago, it’s France’s oldest major city and one of its most culturally diverse.

At the center is the Vieux-Port, where boats bob in the harbor and the city spreads outward toward hills and the Mediterranean.

Explore the colorful lanes of Le Panier, climb to Notre-Dame de la Garde for incredible views, or head toward Calanques National Park, where steep limestone cliffs drop into brilliant blue coves.

Don’t Miss

Vieux-Port

Notre-Dame de la Garde

The Calanques

Teen Pick: Take a boat to the Château d’If, the island fortress and former prison made famous by Alexandre Dumas’s The Count of Monte Cristo.

Nice

Beach Days & Old-Town Wandering

Nice combines French city life with a Mediterranean vacation.

Palm trees line the waterfront, colorful buildings fill the Old Town, and the sea really can look that blue.

Walk or bike along the famous Promenade des Anglais, wander through Vieux Nice, and head up Castle Hill for the classic view over the rooftops and coastline.

Nice’s culture also reflects its complicated history. The city belonged to the House of Savoy for centuries and became part of France in 1860, helping explain some of the Italian influence you’ll notice in its architecture and food.

Don’t Miss

Promenade des Anglais

Vieux Nice & Cours Saleya

Castle Hill

Try This: Socca, a thin, crispy chickpea pancake that’s one of Nice’s classic street foods.

Bordeaux

Grand Architecture & Riverfront Life

Bordeaux may be internationally famous for wine, but there’s plenty here for travelers who aren’t old enough to care about that.

The historic center is filled with elegant stone buildings, pedestrian streets and huge squares, while the redeveloped riverfront has become a popular place for walking, cycling and hanging out.

One of the city’s most recognizable sights is Place de la Bourse, especially when its buildings reflect in the shallow Miroir d’Eau across the street.

Don’t Miss

Place de la Bourse & Miroir d’Eau

The Garonne riverfront

Historic Bordeaux

Teen Tip: Bordeaux has an excellent tram system, making it particularly easy to explore without a car.

Toulouse

The Pink City Meets Space City

Toulouse manages to feel historic and futuristic at the same time.

Its nickname, **La Ville Rose—the Pink City—**comes from the warm-colored brick used throughout the historic center.

But Toulouse is also one of Europe’s major aerospace centers. Airbus has major operations here, giving the city a completely different identity from France’s castle-and-cathedral stereotype.

Don’t Miss

Place du Capitole — The city’s grand central square.

Basilica of Saint-Sernin — One of Europe’s great Romanesque churches.

Cité de l’Espace — A huge space-themed science center with spacecraft exhibits and hands-on experiences.

Teen Tip: Head toward the banks of the Garonne around sunset. It’s a favorite local gathering spot when the weather is good.

Strasbourg

Where France Meets Germany

Strasbourg sits close to the German border, and its location has shaped nearly everything about it.

The city has passed between French and German control during its long history, leaving behind a blend of architecture, food and traditions.

Its historic center contains canals, half-timbered houses and the enormous Strasbourg Cathedral, while the picturesque Petite France district looks almost like a storybook village.

Strasbourg is also one of Europe’s important political centers and is home to the European Parliament.

Don’t Miss

Strasbourg Cathedral

Petite France

The canals and historic center

Try This: Flammekueche, an Alsatian specialty made with a very thin crust traditionally topped with cream, onions and bacon.

Winter Bonus: Strasbourg is particularly famous for its historic Christmas market.

Avignon

The City of Popes

Behind Avignon’s medieval walls is one of the strangest chapters in European history.

During much of the 1300s, the popes lived here instead of Rome.

Their enormous Palais des Papes still dominates the city and looks more like a fortress than a typical palace.

Nearby you’ll find the remains of the famous Pont d’Avignon, while the historic center is filled with squares, cafés and narrow streets.

Don’t Miss

Palais des Papes

Pont d’Avignon

The medieval city walls

Summer Bonus: Every July, the Festival d’Avignon turns the city into a huge celebration of theater and performing arts.

Annecy

The Alpine Fairytale

Annecy is what happens when you combine a colorful old town, turquoise lake and the French Alps.

Canals wind through the historic center beneath pastel-colored buildings, while Lake Annecy sits just beyond town surrounded by mountains.

In summer, swimming, paddleboarding and cycling take over. In cooler months, the surrounding Alps completely change the atmosphere.

Don’t Miss

Lake Annecy

Annecy Old Town

Palais de l’Île, the distinctive historic building sitting in the middle of a canal

Teen Tip: Rent a bike and explore part of the path around the lake. You don’t have to ride the entire loop to get spectacular views.

Nantes

France’s Creative Side

Nantes is one of the best examples of a French city reinventing itself.

Its history is tied to the Loire River, maritime trade and shipbuilding, but today the city is known for art, design and huge creative projects.

The star attraction is Les Machines de l’Île, where artists and engineers have created giant mechanical creatures inspired partly by the imaginary worlds of Jules Verne, who was born in Nantes.

And yes, one of them is a gigantic walking elephant.

Don’t Miss

Les Machines de l’Île

Château des Ducs de Bretagne

Passage Pommeraye, an elaborate 19th-century shopping arcade

Teen Pick: If there’s one French city where you should expect the unexpected, it’s Nantes.

More French Cities & Towns Worth Knowing

France has far too many interesting places to fit onto one page.

A few more to put on your radar:

Arles — Roman ruins, a remarkably preserved amphitheater and strong connections to Vincent van Gogh.

Cannes — Riviera beaches, La Croisette and the famous Cannes Film Festival.

Dijon — Much more than mustard. This Burgundy city has medieval architecture, great food and a fun owl trail leading visitors around the historic center.

Colmar — Canals, colorful half-timbered houses and an Alsatian atmosphere that makes it especially popular around Christmas.

And then there are places like Lille, Montpellier, Aix-en-Provence, Rouen, Saint-Malo and many more—which is exactly why one trip to France rarely feels like enough.

Which French City Fits You?

If you’re trying to decide where you’d most like to go:

For the famous sights: Paris

For food: Lyon

For Mediterranean energy: Marseille

For beaches + city life: Nice

For elegant architecture: Bordeaux

For space and science: Toulouse

For storybook streets: Strasbourg

For medieval history: Avignon

For lakes and mountains: Annecy

For creativity and something completely different: Nantes

One Country, Very Different Cities

One of the biggest mistakes first-time visitors make is thinking they’ve seen France because they’ve seen Paris.

Paris is extraordinary—but it’s only one version of France.

Head south and the architecture, food and climate change. Travel toward Germany and you’ll notice Alsatian influences. Reach the Mediterranean and life feels different again. Go into the Alps and suddenly France becomes mountains, lakes and outdoor adventure.

That’s what makes exploring French cities so interesting.

You’re not just seeing different places. You’re seeing different versions of France.