Destination: France

LONELY PLANET'S OFFICIAL ITINERARY INFORMATION

Itinerary: After Dark

France at night:



illuminated capital highlights include the Eiffel Tower, the Sacré Cœur seen from place du Parvis du Sacré Cœur, the banks of the Seine seen from a boat and the Champs Élysées, best seen from place de l’Étoile.

In Normandy Mont St-Michel is beautifully lit and Caen nightlife rocks. Harbour-side dining in Honfleur is another after-dark great. Enchanting is a candle-lit stroll around the Dordogne’s Jardins de Marqueyssac or watching Najac’s fairy-tale castle turn gold at sunset.

Lyon is spectacular during its Fête des Lumières when light shows run riot on its historic squares, churches and public buildings. In summer, images are projected onto Poitiers’ Église Notre Dame la Grande, Rouen cathedral and some Loire chateaux.

Southbound, Toulouse is a self-proclaimed ‘City of Light’. In magical-by-night Monaco take in the Hong Kong–style skyline and rub shoulders with the glitterati at Monte Carlo Casino. Or dance the night away on sand at a Cap Croisette club in Marseille or in an impossibly hip 1930s piano bar in Calvi.

Travelling to France?
Lonely Planet recommends World Nomads Travel insurance