France vacations

On our walking vacations you can find relaxed routes in the Loire Valley or Dordogne, and local-guided mountain walking hidden behind the French Riviera in the Mercantour National Park, just an hour from busy Nice. Serious walkers flock to the French Alps to train for even bigger treks in the Himalayas, and trips through France’s mountains are both challenging and really rewarding. The Tour de Mont Blanc might not involve reaching the summit of the highest mountain in the Alps, but it certainly puts you through your paces. Whether traveling on a tailor made or small group tour, our vacations are designed to leave a positive impact on the communities they visit.

Fondue or rosé? It’s a difficult choice, largely dictated by the season in which you visit. Snowbound activities abound on our winter vacations, followed by a hearty meal that’s potentially heavy on the melted cheese. In summer, a glass of pale, ice-cold rosé is the perfect reward after a day spent canyoning down a rushing river and kayaking on a mirror-flat lake. The best place to go for a winter activity vacation in France is still the Alps, but the mountains are also great off-season, when there are fewer visitors and the slopes are crowded with wildflowers. In summer, consider our sailing vacations in Corsica – the island, with its soaring mountains, looks amazing from the water. You could also combine cycling, canoeing and walking in the Dordogne.

The Mont Blanc massif is just one portion of France’s expansive Alps, the enormous mountain range which extends from Annecy and Chamonix in the North French Alps down to Mercantour National Park, just above Nice. The mountain tops see flurries of skiers in winter, but our vacations visit year-round. Once the snow melts, it’s all about paragliding, via ferrata and giant zip wires; the mountainsides are crowd-free and covered in wildflowers. Our Alps vacations aren't all high-octane, you can choose to soak up the natural beauty on a yoga or walking vacation, or even track wolves!