France

A queen of the vintage and titan of tradition, Bordeaux is an opulent ode to the finest of tastes. Where steepled spires rise above handsome towns of stone, an emerald carpet of plush vines leads to a sacred pantheon of château cellars of vinicultural legend. The region’s refined riverfront capital stands radiant along a placid Garonne, a golden vision of grand boulevards and 18th century civic treasures, echoing the bewitching beauty of a region that is as much a feast for the eyes as it is for the palate.

A pastoral patchwork of fanciful timber-framed villages and sleepy country farms, precious vineyard blanketed hillsides and polished aristocratic cities, Burgundy lulls its visitors with an intoxicating lore of ambrosial delights from the earth, made glorious by human hands. From the ruby allure of a Beaujolais to the crisp freshness of a Chablis, wild escargot to artisan Époisses, and Charolais beef to Bresse chicken, the region is a cornucopia of coveted French flavors where a daily appreciation for the delicious is unapologetically the epicurean way of life.

An island made for dreaming, Corsica croons a soulful melody of sundrenched mountain villages suspended in the sky and a sinuous coastline of sparkling cyan. Picturesque port towns serve as gateways to a robust interior of fertile valleys and rugged vineyards. From beneath the saw toothed spine of its imposing mountain ranges, lucent waters lap languidly against soft sand beaches and sleepy seaside villages sing a Corsican ballad of ancient island life.

A stately realm rooted in the ancient Latin and Germanic, where Gothic cathedrals rise like majestic mountains and voluminous forests abut meandering hillsides in the Ardenne and Vosges, Grand Est is a robust collage of cultural influences carried through time. Melding together the former regions of Alsace, Champagne, Ardenne and Lorraine, the Grand Est is a storybook land of Romanesque abbeys, sparkling Châteaux and medieval half-timbered villages, natural wonders to explore and epicurean delights to enjoy. Where fine wines flow from Alsace to Champagne, and rich culinary surprises abound from Pâté Lorraine and Choucroute Garnie to Quiche Lorraine and Coq au Riesling, Grand Est is a treasury of delights waiting to be discovered.

A kingdom of sylvan valleys and meandering rivers, centuries old caves and noble villages, ensconced between a captivating nexus of monumental Châteaux, the Loire Valley is a lush garden of wonders ripe for the sweetest of daydreams. A region of inspiring beauty, where a backbone of tufa steadies a fertile landscape of regal orchards and triumphant vines, and heavenly towns reflect the ages along the glasslike waters of their scenic riverfronts, the Loire Valley is an ode to nature and celebration of ingenuity preserved gracefully in memory and stone.

Envision idyllic pastoral landscapes peppered by secluded abbeys along the way of St. James, as craggy cliff sides remain timelessly studded by magnificent medieval villages, and verdant vineyards extend to the pebbled shores of quaint fishing hamlets. Sublimely nestled between Spain’s Catalonia and the Mediterranean sea, Provence, and the dramatic Pyrenees, Languedoc-Roussillon encompasses the allure of Southern France in one sumptuous region. A flourish of French culture imparted with the influences of Roussillon’s former Catalan rulers, the region is a colorful quilt of French and Catalan traditions interwoven with a rich history, heralded into the present through its many bucolic delights and inspired coastal customs. The essence of the region sings with every signature recipe and vintage celebrating the fresh bounty of the land and sea, from a bubbling pot of rustic Cassoulet and the briny beauty of freshly harvested oysters, to a velvety glass of lush Minervois wine.

The French capital and its surrounding region are a feast for the senses, pleasing to the refined palette and creative eye with signature haute cuisine, opulent architecture, and world class works of art. Like a jewel in a golden crown, Paris is the heart of a region offering a bucolic contrast to the metropolitan movement of the capital. Punctuated by former vestiges of kingdom, the Ile de France remains a pastoral hideaway inhabited by quaint country villages and medieval abbeys intersected by rivers and flourishing woodlands, which once inspired the grand palaces and sprawling chateau estates of a bygone age. From its serene environs, Paris rises like a radiant beacon of light calling home generations of visionary genius. Cultured and cosmopolitan, classic and contemporary, the city is an inspiring plein-air museum where beauty can be appreciated from the widest of boulevards to the tiniest of lanes. Authentic and animated, within each arrondissement a unique history lives, kept vital by the steady rhythm of the Parisian spirit pushing resolutely into the beyond while holding tight to its cultural inheritance.

A prism of radiant color and sensations warmed by the sun, kissed by the sea, and perfumed by the sweetest of blooms, Provence-Alps-Cote d’Azur is the scintillating soul of Southern France. Shaped by the capricious Mistral and the brilliance of the Mediterranean sun, the land is a celestial composition of glittering shores met by cerulean seas, stony hilltop villages, fragrant lavender fields, storied wine estates, and stunning French Riviera towns. With close historical ties to Italy, the region is a vibrant cultural blend of rustic French Mediterranean traditions and Italian influences, which have cultivated the warm and creative spirit that has for centuries beguiled art and history lovers, wine connoisseurs, and epicureans alike, as an utopia for the senses. Just as the region’s hues of coral, azure, green and yellow were forever captured by the dreamscapes of Renoir, Cézanne, Van Gogh, and Matisse, its exquisite farm to table cuisine is a masterpiece of the land. From silky Provencal olive oils and full bodied Chateauneuf-du Pape vintages, to earthy black truffles and an abundance of aromatic herbs and produce, Provence and the Cote d’Azur offer a warm palette of wonder to awaken the soul.