Below are towns that also have lots to offer and get rave reviews in the press, on credible sites, and on social network groups. They are just on the cusp of making it to our “best towns” list.
Do you love a town on this list? Tell us why here.
Word of mouth: rave reviews from people who live there!
Albi
Amboise
Angers
Apt
Arles
Arudy
Aubterre
Auray
Autun
Bergerac
Chinon
Cognac
Dinan
Marseillan
Montmorillon
Quillan
Saint-Saturnin-les-Apt
Saint-Yrieix-la-Perche
Sauve
Sete
Ranked as one of the top 10 towns in a recent report in La Connexion*
*we particularly liked this list because we’ve never heard of most of these towns in our normal expat channels and sources. New places to explore!
Villard-de-Lans,
Grenoble
Gerardmer,
Vosges
Guerande,
Loire Atlantic
Thones,
Haute Savoie
Embrun,
Haute-Alpes
Saint-Pol-de-Leon,
Finistere
Baneres-de-Bigorre,
Hautes-Pyrenees
Oloron-Sainte-Marie,
Pyrenees-Atlantique
Aime-la-Plagne,
Savoy
Millau,
Savoie
Bagnere-de-Luchon,
Haute-Garonne
Ranked as one of the top 50 towns by the Journal du Dimanche in 2024
Antibes
Anglet Annecy
Asneires-sur-Seine
Aurillac
Avignon
Bayonne
Biarritz
Boulogne-Billancourt
Brest
Brive-la-Gaillarde
Caen
Cannes
Cherbourg-en-Cotenin
Cognac
Colombes
Courbevoie
Lannion
Lavallois-Perret
La Roche-sur-Yon
Laval
Le Havre
Lemans
Limoges
Lorient
Metz
Nogent-sur-Marne
Orleans
Quimper
Rueil-Malmaison
Saint-Brieuc
Saint-Etienne
Saint-Malo
Saint-Nazare
Toulon
Tours
Vannes
Versailles