France was suffering from overtourism long before Instagram tourism was a thing. Although it has roughly the same population as the UK spread over an area almost twice the size, it’s the most popular country in the world among foreign visitors, and the French love a domestic trip too. Busloads of tourists descend on Mont Saint-Michel daily, the Eiffel Tower has a queue that could rival the Seine in length and in St Tropez there’s barely a true Tropezienne left – so is it still possible to find the quiet corners?
Since moving to France over two years ago, my work writing guidebooks and travel articles has seen me yo-yoing around the country, from paths well trodden to places the French would poetically refer to as le trou du cul du monde (the arse-end of nowhere). While I can’t deny the appeal of the popular sites that make up every “France top 10” list, I’d rather not fight for my sunlounger with half of South East England, thanks. Here’s where you should be going instead.
