France

France - To listen to some poor folk, the French are so suffused with national pride that travellers should expect either to be completely ignored, run over by reckless Renaults or to see an awful lot of Gallic nasal hair. The same frog-o-phobes try to convince you that the French take credit for the size of their Alps and think that the waves break on their beaches with French accents. Regardless of the prevalence of the myth of French arrogance, Gallic noses are justifiably held in the air when surveying châteaux of pre-Revolution munificence, the Napoleonic grandeur and latter day pizazz of Paris and other urban centres, and the museum acreage devoted to the display of the French and the fabulous. The encroachment of Le Big Mac and Duck à la Donald has induced palpable groans from cultural xenophobes, yet the French lifestyle is still supreme. From chic coastal strips to cobbled country coves, from breakfast croissant to dinner's just desserts, France does it with style and aplomb (and the odd nuclear bomb).

Environment - France is roughly hexagonal and is the largest country in Europe after Russia and the Ukraine. The English Channel is to the north-west and the Atlantic Ocean to the west. Spain broils across the Pyrenees to the south, the Mediterranean (including Corsica) is to the south-east, and over the eastern Alps and Jura ranges lie Switzerland and Italy. France's relatively flat north-eastern borders abut Germany, Luxembourg and Belgium.

Since 1790, France has been divided into administrative units of about 6100 sq km called départements. There are 96 départements in France and a further five overseas, expanses of ocean being no impediment to Frankish administrative zeal. The départements d'outre-mer (overseas departements) are the Caribbean islands of Guadeloupe and Martinique; French Guiana; Reunion, which is in the Indian Ocean east of Madagascar; and Saint Pierre et Miquelon, which is in the Atlantic Ocean just off the south coast of Newfoundland.

The French Alps include Mont Blanc which, at 4807 metres, is Europe's highest peak. The most spectacular of France's ancient ranges is the Massif Central, a huge region in the middle of France that covers one-sixth of the country. The country's longest river, the Loire, runs 1020 km from the Massif Central to the Atlantic. The Seine, Rhone, Garonne and Rhine are France's other major waterways, draining the plains and funnelling huge mountain run-offs. Over 3200 km of coastline ranges from the chalk cliffs of Normandy and the promontories of Brittany to the fine-sand beaches along the Atlantic. The south-eastern Mediterranean coast tends to have pebbly, sometimes rocky beaches, though the Languedoc and some of the Roussillon beaches have sand-castle potential.

Culture - The concept of culture is of signal importance for the French. Convinced of an enduring cultural superiority, France has bestowed magnificent examples of artistic expression in all fields, not to mention some of the ugliest wallpaper and the worst pop music in the world.

The first distinctively Gallic architecture was the Gothic style which originated in the mid-12th century in northern France and is preserved in the seminal cathedral at Chartres and its successors at Reims and Amiens. The Renaissance first had an impact on France at the tail end of the 15th century when Charles VIII began a series of invasions of Italy. In the realms of architecture and the visual arts the Renaissance was largely an imported phenomenon with few homegrown modifications. Local writers showed more verve, with Rabelais and Montaigne producing some of the great landmarks of French literature.

Food - is a subject of endless rumination. Consider just some of the country's epicurean delights - foie gras, truffles, Roquefort cheese, well-built crustaceans, succulent snails plucked off grape vines, sharp-tasting fruit tarts - and you begin to appreciate the Frankish culinary zeal. But one cannot live on escargot and vin de table alone. France's North African and Asian populations have contributed to the pot bringing spice and colour to many dishes.

Events - The French are a festive bunch with many cities hosting music, dance, theatre, cinema or art events each year. Rural villages hold fairs and fêtes honouring everything from local saints to the year's garlic crop. Saintes-Maries-de-la-Mer in Provence is the venue for a colourful gypsy festival in late May honouring Sarah, patron saint of the gypsies. Frenzied singing and dancing characterise this extravaganza. Prominent national days off are May Day (1 May), when many people buy muguet (lily of the valley) - believed to bring good luck - to give to friends; and Bastille Day (14 July), which is celebrated by people throwing fire crackers at each other. Regional events include the primping and preening prêt à porter fashion show in Paris (early February); the glittering and often canned Cannes Film Festival (mid-May); the International Music Festival in Strasbourg (first three weeks of June); the mainstream and fringe theatre of the Festival d'Avignon (mid-July to mid-August) and the Jazz Festival in Nancy (9-24 October).

Attractions:

Saint Malo - The Channel port of Saint Malo, on the north coast of Brittany, is renowned for its piratical past, walled city and nearby beaches. During the 17th and 18th centuries it was one of France's most important ports, serving both merchant ships and privateers alike. It was at this time that a system of walls and fortifications were built - largely to offset the menace of English marauders - but these defences remained weak, and the pickings rich. Flattened by the Germans in WW II, the port was faithfully reconstructed and is today one of the most popular tourist destinations in the region.

Chateau de Chambord - From the 15th to the 18th century, the Loire Valley was the playground of French nobility who expended the wealth of the nation and family fortunes to turn it into a vast neighbourhood of sumptuous châteaux. Formerly built as defensive structures, they gradually metamorphosed into whimsical pleasure palaces, and instead of being built on isolated hilltops, were placed near water or in valleys and proportioned to harmonise with their surroundings.

Biarritz - This classy coastal town, in French Basque Country, got its start as a beach resort for Europe's aristocracy in 1854 and later became popular with wealthy Britons. These day Biarritz draws an international crowd thanks to its fine beaches, casinos and surfing spots which have lent it the name la Californie de l'Europe. The town's cultural sights are not likely to keep you out of the sun too long. They include a blue-domed Russian Orthodox church, 19th-century hotels with lobbies the size of skating rinks, and the Musée de la Mer. The latter has recently been refurbished, and has a ground-floor aquarium with numerous tanks of sea life and a 1st-floor museum documenting the area's involvement in commercial fishing and whaling. Outside pools contain seals and sharks.

Sarlat-La-Caneda - Known simply as Sarlat, this lovely Renaissance town in Périgord (better known in English-speaking countries as the Dordogne) grew up around a Benedictine abbey founded in the 9th century. Caught between French and English territory, it was almost left in ruins during the Hundred Years' War and again during the Wars of Religion. Despite this, Sarlat has retained a distinctive medieval flavour with its ochre-coloured sandstone buildings and enticing streets. If you want to avoid the crowds, plan a visit outside high summer, when the town is overrun by tourists.

Chamonix - The town of Chamonix lies in a valley surrounded by the most spectacular scenery in the French Alps. Reminiscent of the Himalayas, the area is dominated by deeply crevassed glaciers and the cloud-diademed peak of Mont Blanc. In late spring and summer, the glaciers and high-altitude snow and ice serve as a backdrop for meadows and hillsides carpeted with wildflowers, shrubbery and trees. This is the best time for hiking; in winter, travellers can take advantage of over 200 km of downhill and cross-country skiing trails.

Parc National des Pyrenees - Created in 1967, the Pyrenees National Park stretches for about 100 km along the French-Spanish border and covers an area of 457 sq km that contains hundreds of high-altitude lakes and the highest point in the French Pyrenees, the 3298-metre Sommet du Vignemale.

Forested areas make up only 12% of the park, which is streaked by rivulets and brooks fed by both springs and over 2000 mm of annual precipitation, much of which falls as snow. Protected fauna includes the brown bear (only about 15 remain), lynx, chamois, marmot and endangered birds of prey such as the bearded vulture and golden eagle.

Vezelay - The tiny walled town of Vézelay, another of France's exasperating number of heritage spots, is surrounded by some of the most beautiful countryside in Burgundy - a patchwork of vineyards, sunflower fields, brunette furrows of farmland, and stacks of hay reinventing Impressionism. Originally built on a hilltop for defence purposes, it became an important site of pilgrimage in the 10th century, and later a gathering place for crowned heads and grandees embarking on the Crusades.

Grasse - For centuries Grasse, clinging to the slopes of the Pre-Alpes 17 km north of Cannes, has been one of the country's most important centres of perfume production. It is here that master perfumers - or "nez" (noses) as they're often called - combine their natural gift with years of study to identify, with no more than a whiff, 6000 scents. The town, with its distinctive orange roofs sheltering densely packed cottages, also produces some of France's finest flowers including jasmine, Centifolia rose, lavender, mimosa, orange blossom and narcotic narcissus.

Corsica - 170 km south-east of the Cote d'Azur, is the most geologically diverse of all the islands of the Mediterranean. From mountain ranges with tumbling torrents to endless km of fine-sand beaches, it offers highly photogenic scenery as well as ample opportunities for hiking. Corsica is suffused with a welcoming ambience courtesy of the islanders' distinctive language, cuisine and way of life. The committed movement for Corsican independence is the harder edge of this distinctive culture. Although nationalist groups generally restrict their violence to internal tit-for-tat killings and property damage, travellers are advised to act with caution.

Activities - France's varied geography and climate allow for a wide ride range of outdoor pursuits. The French have taken to hiking with gusto and there are walking paths through every imaginable kind of terrain. Probably the best known trails are the sentiers de grande randonnée, long-distance footpaths designated by the letters GR. The GR 5 winds through the Alps, the GR 4 is in the Massif Central, and the popular GR 10 runs along the Pyrenees from the Mediterranean to the Atlantic. Cycling is another mania in France. La Margeride in Languedoc is a particularly inviting area for mountain biking, as are the Alps, Brittany and the Pyrenees. Skiing is also popular with some of Europe's finest - and most expensive - facilities in the Alps (at Chamonix, for example), though prices tend to be much cheaper in the Pyrenees around Cauterets and the Massif Central which is good for cross-country skiing.

The best swimming spots are found along the Atlantic coast (near La Rochelle), the Channel coast of Normandy where the D-Day landings occurred, southern Brittany, the Mediterranean (including the coast of Corsica) as well as on lakes, such as Lac d'Annecy and Lake Geneva. The French are at ease with their bodies which is reflected in a number of venues for naturism (walking around bollock naked), mostly in Langedoc-Rousillon and the Côte d'Azur. Other activities include: rock climbing in the Alps and the Pyrenees; horse riding in Burgundy and the French Basque Country; surfing in Biarritz; rafting down the Gorge du Verdon in Provence; and hang-gliding in Languedoc. If your interests are more cerebral, you can take French language courses or learn the ins and outs of the soufflé at regional cooking classes.

Getting There & Away - Air France, France's national carrier, and scores of other airlines link Paris with every part of the globe. Other French cities with direct international air links include Bordeaux, Lyon, Marseille, Nice, Strasbourg and Toulouse.

Paris is the country's main bus and rail hub, with services to/from every part of Europe. Buses are slower and less comfortable than trains, but they are cheaper, especially if you qualify for the 10% discount available to people under 26 or over 60 or hunt around for discount fares. The completion of the Channel Tunnel in 1994 has meant travel between England and France - on the silent, ultra-modern Eurostar rail service - is now quick and hassle-free. The Chunnel also has high-speed shuttle trains which whisk cars, motorbikes and coaches from England to France.

By sea, the quickest passenger ferries and hovercrafts to England run between Calais and Dover, and Boulogne and Folkestone. There are numerous routes linking Brittany and Normandy with England; Saint Malo is linked by car ferry and hydrofoil with Weymouth, Poole and Portsmouth, while Roscoff has ferry links to Plymouth. Ferries also ply the waters between France and Ireland (Cherbourg-Cork), the Channel Islands, Sardinia (Marseille-Porto Torres), Italy (Corsica-Genoa) and North Africa (Marseille-Algiers, Marseille-Tunis, Sète-Tangier).

Getting Around - France's domestic airlines link most urban centres, but flights can be quite expensive. Occasionally discount tickets will work out cheaper than overland travel so it can be worth scouting around if you've got a big hop in mind. France has an excellent rail network, operated by the state-owned SCNF (Société Nationale des Chemins de Fer), which reaches almost every part of the country. Thanks to the high-speed TGV (train à grande vitesse), travel between some cities (eg Paris and Lyon) is faster and easier by rail than by air.

Inter-regional bus services are limited but buses are used extensively for short-distance travel within regions, especially in rural areas with relatively few train lines (eg Brittany and Normandy). On longer trips, buses tend to be much slower but slightly cheaper than trains; on short runs, buses are generally slower and more expensive.

Having your own vehicle can be expensive, and is sure to be inconvenient in city centres where parking and traffic are problematic. Be warned that most driving in France is done with the horn, or `French Brake Pedal', as it is often called. As a rule of thumb, don't be timid or overly respectful once on the road as this technique will often confuse the natives. Renting a car is expensive if you walk into an office and hire a car on the spot but prebooked and prepaid promotional rates are reasonable.

France is a superb country for motorcycle touring, with winding roads of good quality and lots of stunning scenery. It's also an eminently cyclable country, due largely to its extensive network of secondary and tertiary roads which are relatively lightly trafficked. Another relaxing way of seeing France is to cruise its canals and navigable rivers by houseboat. These usually accommodate four to 12 passengers, and can be rented for a weekend or several weeks.

Local transport includes the cheap and efficient Metro and RER underground networks in Paris (there are also metro lines in other cities), trams, buses, téléphériques in the French Alps, expensive taxis (especially outside the major cities), and river shuttles.