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Despite its density of storybook towns, international travelers have long relied on a circuit of tried-and-true favorites in France: Paris, Bordeaux, and the C\u00f4te d\u2019Azur.<\/p>\n
The following four regions are no secret;\u00a0the French, and some smart Brits, have long understood\u00a0their appeal. But they have largely escaped international attention beyond that, leaving them blissfully free of crowds. With new five-star hotels and train routes improving accessibility, that may not be the case for long. Book now, before your friends catch on.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Arcachon, an hour from Bordeaux, has been called the Hamptons of France\u2014wealthy, preppy, beachy. And if that\u2019s true, then\u00a0Cap Ferret<\/strong>\u00a0is the Montauk.\u00a0<\/p>\n The chicest place to stay there is\u00a0H\u00f4tel des Dunes<\/a>, which reopened in 2023. Owner Karine Tiphagne bought the 1969 hotel, situated next to Cap Ferret\u2019s famous lighthouse, and refurbished it in the effortlessly laid-back style of some of her favorite beach communities around the world: Montauk, yes, and also Southern California and Hawaii\u2019s Waimea Bay. Tiphagne calls the vibes \u201cswank-free.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI remember an American client arriving last year, excitedly telling me that we reminded her of the Surf Lodge Montauk 10 years ago when it was still a calm, cool, authentic\u00a0and laid-back place,\u201d Tiphagne says. To wit, its 11 rooms and two suites have cheery yellow-and-white tile wainscoting and are steps from breezy, swinging hammocks\u00a0and a footpath leading down to the beach.<\/p>\n It\u2019s the ideal perch from which to discover the local beaches. Cap Ferret is set on a peninsula with a windswept oceanside\u2014perfect for kitesurfing\u2014and a quieter lagoon side that\u2019s protected by dunes and the forest, ideal for sailing. The hotel\u2019s chefs can pack picnic baskets before you decamp for either one, or you can take a flat-bottomed pinnace boat to local oyster-farming villages\u2014the captains serve bivalves and wine right on board.<\/p>\n For breakfast, bypass the hotel\u2019s generous spread and head\u00a0instead to\u00a0Maison Fr\u00e9d\u00e9lian<\/a>. The iconic bakery and pastry shop is also fresh off a renovation\u2014but the incredible waffles and cannel\u00e9s are the same ones they\u2019ve been serving since 1939.<\/p>\n Some 135 miles from the purple-hued lavender fields of Alpes-de-Haute-Provence is a landscape awash in rosy tones: the UNESCO-designated saline wetlands of the\u00a0Camargue,<\/strong>\u00a0home to legions of pink flamingos and wild white horses.\u00a0<\/p>\n Until now, you\u2019d visit as a day trip from nearby locations. Montpellier and Marseilles are both an hour away, and Arles, home to the spectacular Luma foundation\u2014with a shimmering Frank Gehry-designed tower that wrapped construction in 2021\u2014is even closer. But this June brought the area\u2019s first luxury hotel:\u00a0Les Bains Gardians<\/u><\/a>, the sister property of the sexy five-star\u00a0Les Bains Paris<\/a>, courtesy of owner and former filmmaker Jean-Pierre Marois.<\/p>\n The 48 rooms are all in standalone straw-roofed cottages traditionally called\u00a0cabanes de gardians<\/em>, or cowboy cabins. They\u2019re outfitted with antique furnishings, gauzy mosquito netting and the same black-and-white checkerboard blankets used by the actual gardians that lend the hotel its name.<\/p>\n Horses figure heavily into the programming: Ten (tame!) horses live in the onsite stables. You can go riding on the area\u2019s remote beaches, or in a horse-drawn carriage through the small fishing village of Saintes-Maries-de-la-Mer. Horse therapy classes are also part of the extensive wellness program\u2014which also includes a hamman, sauna\u00a0and whirlpool baths. (A more proper spa will come next summer.) And in a nod to the other local animal, the hotel\u2019s \u201970s-style pool overlooks a flamingo-filled pond.<\/p>\n Extend the animal theme by witnessing one of the Camargue\u2019s famous bullfights, where there are no matadors and the bulls aren\u2019t killed. Instead it\u2019s a competition of agility; men dressed in white attempt to grab a ribbon or tassel from between the bull\u2019s horns in one of the many local amphitheaters, for hundreds or even thousands of onlookers.<\/p>\n Vincent Gombault, co-owner of the small but luxurious hotel group Almae Collection, grew up skiing in\u00a0Saint-Nicholas de V\u00e9roce<\/strong>, a sleepy, pastoral village in the Mont Blanc ski region, 40 minutes from Chamonix. So it was a natural setting for the collection\u2019s marquee hotel,\u00a0Armancette<\/a>, which opened for its first full year in 2022. The chalet retains tons of historic charm\u2014the adjacent bakery has remained unchanged since 1952, and locals still gather there for their morning coffee, croissants and blueberry tarts\u2014but its 17 rooms are now filled with sumptuous velvet chairs, high wood-beamed ceilings and fine linens.<\/p>\n From a chairlift that\u2019s five minutes from the property, you have access to trails that feed into the greater Meg\u00e8ve and Chamonix ski region; in the summertime, the same mountains offer a wealth of biking, paragliding\u00a0and hiking adventures. (Explore on your own two feet to see some of the area\u2019s Baroque churches; the bakery will happily send you off with a picnic lunch.) When you return, there are indoor-outdoor pools at the spa to soothe tired legs; they\u2019re open year-round.<\/p>\n Eating here is half the fun. Alpine cheeses star on the menu at Le Bistrot du Mont Joly, where the burgers are topped with Reblochon and fondue graces many tabletops on the terrace. And at La Table d\u2019Armante, chef Fabien Lapr\u00e9e\u2014formerly of the Michelin-starred Saisons in Marseille, and a Meilleur Ouvrier de France finalist in 2018\u2014serves an eight-course tasting menu filled with Alpine lake trout and locally grown produce.<\/p>\n Then again, if upscale dining appeals, you\u2019re only 90 minutes from Courchevel, where seemingly every luxury brand\u2014Aman, LVMH, Oetker Collection\u2014has a six-star resort with equally ambitious dining. Bonus: You can now get to the region in high style from Paris, thanks to the overnight\u00a0Paris-Moutiers Belmond train route<\/a>\u00a0that made its debut in December.<\/p>\n Picture an adorable, perfect French village straight out of\u00a0Chocolat<\/em>\u00a0or\u00a0Beauty and the Beast<\/em>, castles and all. That\u2019s\u00a0Dordogne<\/strong>\u00a0in a nutshell, yet the region\u2014125 miles east of Bordeaux and 100 miles north of Toulouse\u2014remains under the radar, perhaps owing to the dearth of luxury accommodations for laypeople.\u00a0<\/p>\n With two fabulous new properties that opened in 2022, the region has never been more attractive. About an hour\u2019s drive from Bergerac Derdogne P\u00e9rigord Airport is\u00a0Domaine de Rochebois<\/a>, a luxurious 40-bedroom chateau on a grand estate with a nine-hole golf course, extensive manicured gardens, a brewery\u00a0and a spa run by Parisian beauty line\u00a0Nuxe<\/a>. Nearby in the medieval town of Sarlat-le-Can\u00e9da is\u00a0Le Petit Manoir,<\/a>\u00a0a new inn in a 15th century manor house that\u2019s part of Alain Ducasse\u2019s\u00a0Teritoria<\/a>\u00a0group. It has just nine rooms and suites, all outfitted sumptuously in brocades and thick rugs, plus a stunning courtyard with a pool\u2014but strangely, considering Ducasse\u2019s involvement, no restaurant for dinner.<\/p>\n Consider that a good reason to get out and explore the neighboring villages\u2014many with similarly historic architecture and ancient-looking castles. A few regal destinations include the imposing 13th century\u00a0Ch\u00e2teau de Castelnaud<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0Ch<\/a>\u00e2<\/a>teau Jardins des Milandes<\/a>\u00a0in Castelnaud-la-Chapelle. The latter may surprise you: It\u2019s the former home of Jos\u00e9phine Baker, the iconic American-born entertainer immortalized in 1920s silent films and Parisian Art Nouveau posters that still line the castle\u2019s rooms.<\/p>\n<\/div>\nThe B Side of Provence<\/h2>\n
The Alpine Sleeper Hit<\/h2>\n
Chateau\u00a0Country<\/h2>\n
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