All the towns

Special Pluses

• The attractiveness of Gaillac for retirees: The town’s picturesque setting, relaxed pace of life, affordable cost of living, and excellent healthcare facilities make it an appealing place for retirees to settle.
• Nice size….not huge, not tiny.
• The charm of this area is hard to describe but very powerful.  People who move here love it.

Special Pluses

• Beautiful lake just at the edge of townwith exstensive biking and walking paths including the “Circuit des Hortensias”
• A lovely cathedral
• A widely praised weekly market

Special Pluses

A nice size town, with the charms of Brittany but not the seaside, tourist ambiance.  Reasonable in size, cost of living and transportation

Special Pluses

Chalon seems to find an excellent middle ground between some of the polarities that one is faced with in other towns.  It’s climate is fully four seasonal, but freezes are rare and snow even rare, while summer nights do cool things down.  It’s a good sized town without the extremes of either village or city life.  It’s public transport in the form of trains is good, if not spectacular and its international population is neither skimpy nor overwhelming.

One highlight worth special mentioned:  an international street artists festival, called Chalon dans la Rue (“Chalon in the street”) Over four days, artists from across Europe and beyond come to the streets of Chalon to perform, mostly for free, in music, theatre, acrobatics, comedy, etc.  (Wikipedia)

Special Pluses

• Really lovely town with a substantial English-speaking town and a well-established social scene.
• About the St. Etienne collegiate church “Like a lighthouse in the middle of the vineyards, the collegiate church is visible from afar. Its enormous proportions intrigue the traveler… fine example of southern Gothic architecture
• From “The Good Life France” website: ” One of the best places to enjoy its full glory is in the medieval village of Capestang in the wine growing region of Saint-Chinian. Here you can stand on an ancient bridge arched over the canal, admiring a selection of sun drenched riverboats and lazy coypu and contemplating just what a marvel this Canal is.”
• From the website “That’ s Hamori”You drive up towards the town square, through little light colored row houses, along twisting and turning narrow streets towards the church steeple peeking above the rooftops. Once there, the church reveals ruin remains, with a story to discover, and stands on guard with strength in the square. Cafés with outdoor seating, people with baguettes under their arms scurry away; giving a sense of life here.”

Special Pluses

• Listed as one of the 10 most beautiful medieval villages in France. also a UNESCO listed site, ” Its main tourist attraction is meandering around the town and soaking in its beauty.”
• Center of some of the finest wine country in this whole Bordeaux region; some people will tell you this area grows the best wine in the worold
• Easy access to Bordeaux’s night life, urban shopping and train connections.  Saint-Émilion is sometimes called ‘Bordeaux’s little sister’
• “Although the wines of Saint-Émilion may be more famous, the macarons deserve special recognition as well.”

Special Pluses

• Sophisticated city with all of the advantages that come with it
• Excellent transportation and healthcare
• Stunning architecture
• Easy TGV access to Paris

Special Pluses

• The beauty,
• The sense of history, especially via the architecture
• The river
• The deep Celtic cultural ties.
• The train station

Special Pluses

• World-renown antique market
• Particularly charming river town
• Central to seeing the Vaucluse in general