France is the most visited country in the world, encompasses medieval cities, alpine villages and Mediterranean beaches. Paris, its capital, is famed for its fashion houses, classical art museums including the Louvre and monuments like the Eiffel Tower. The country is also renowned for its wines and sophisticated cuisine. There are many regions in France worth a week of time, French Riviera, Provence, French wine regions Bordeaux, Champagne, Burgundy etc., Chateaux in Loire Valley,

Paris

Paris, France’s capital, is a major European city and a global center for art, fashion, gastronomy and culture. Its 19th-century cityscape is crisscrossed by wide boulevards and the River Seine. Beyond such landmarks as the Eiffel Tower and the 12th-century, Gothic Notre-Dame cathedral, the city is known for its cafe culture and designer boutiques along the Rue du Faubourg Saint-Honoré.

Versailles Palace

The Palace of Versailles is a former royal residence commissioned by King Louis XIV located in Versailles, about 18 kilometres west of Paris. The Palace is the largest in the world. The palace and park were designated a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1979 for its importance as the centre of power, art, and science in France during the 17th and 18th centuries. There are thousands of lushly decorated rooms including Hall of Mirrors. The line to enter Hall of Mirrors is more than 2 hours.

Monet Gardens in Giverny

Claude Monet was a French painter and founder of impressionism painting who is seen as a key precursor to modernism, especially in his attempts to paint nature as he perceived it. During his long career, he was the most consistent and prolific practitioner of impressionism’s philosophy of expressing one’s perceptions of nature, especially as applied to plein air (outdoor) landscape painting. The term “impressionism” is derived from the title of his painting Impression, soleil levant, which was first exhibited in the so-called “exhibition of rejects” of 1874–an exhibition initiated by Monet and like-minded artists as an alternative to the Salon.

Claude Monet moved to Giverny on April 29, 1883. He had endeavoured to arrange Claude Monet’s gardens at Giverny to his liking. Claude Monet’s gardens at Giverny are like his paintings — brightly colored patches that are messy but balanced. Flowers were his brushstrokes, a bit untamed and slapdash, but part of a carefully composed design. Monet spent his last (and most creative) years cultivating his garden and his art at Giverny, the Camp David of Impressionism (1883–1926).

Mont Saint Michel

Mont-Saint-Michel is a tidal island and mainland commune in Normandy, France. The island lies approximately one kilometre off France’s north-western coast, at the mouth of the Couesnon River near Avranches and is 7 hectares in area. Mont-Saint-Michel and its surrounding bay were inscribed on the UNESCO list of World Heritage Sites in 1979 for its unique aesthetic and importance as a Catholic site. It is visited by more than three million people each year, and is the most-visited tourist attraction in France outside of Paris. Over 60 buildings within the commune are protected as historical monuments.

Loire Valley

The Châteaux of the Loire Valley are part of the architectural heritage of the historic towns of Amboise, Angers, Blois, Chinon, Montsoreau, Orléans, Saumur, and Tours along the river Loire in France. They illustrate Renaissance ideals of design in France. There are tens of Chateaux owned by Royals and Nobles.

Château de Chambord is the largest in Loire Valley with a wonderful architecture.

Chateau de Villandry is best known for its garden.

Château Royal d’Amboise has a commanding view of Loire river. The Château du Clos Lucé, 400m from the Château Royal d’Amboise, is the residence of Leonardo da Vinci (1516-1519) who was invited in France by French King Francis I.

Château d’Azay-le-Rideau is partial in water of Loire river, a beautiful sight.

Château de Chenonceau is also on the water, There is interesting story here. French King Henry II offered the château as a gift to his mistress, Diane de Poitiers, who became fervently attached to the château along the river. In 1555 she commissioned Philibert de l’Orme to build the arched bridge joining the château to its opposite bank. Diane then oversaw the planting of extensive flower and vegetable gardens along with a variety of fruit trees. Set along the banks of the river, but buttressed from flooding by stone terraces, the exquisite gardens were laid out in four triangles. After King Henry II died in 1559, his strong-willed widow and regent Catherine de’ Medici forced Diane to exchange it for the Château Chaumont. Queen Catherine then made Chenonceau her own favourite residence, adding a new series of gardens.

Chateau de Langeais has some medieavl exhibits.

Chartres Cathedral

Partly built starting in 1145, and then reconstructed over a 26-year period after the fire of 1194, Chartres Cathedral marks the high point of French Gothic art. The vast nave, in pure ogival style, the porches adorned with fine sculptures from the middle of the 12th century, and the magnificent 12th- and 13th-century stained-glass windows, all in remarkable condition, combine to make it a masterpiece. It is one of top three Cathedrals in France.