13 Incredible New Experiences to Have in France This Year

Set on four hectares of grass-fringed marshland, the charming Les Bains Gardians is a singular stay. A 1.5 hour drive east of Marseilles in Saintes-Maries-de-la-Mer by the Mediterranean Sea, the 67-room property sits within the picturesque Camargue Regional Natural Reserve. As such, pastimes here take a slower pace: unwind in the whirlpool spa, spend time in the wellness treatment centre or spend an afternoon in horse therapy. The one unmissable activity? Watching the sun rise from your private porch.

Travelling with a healthy appetite is essential on any trip to France. Paris alone is home to over 45,000 restaurants and that number now includes buzzy OOBATZ, a pizzeria in the 11th Arrondissement that serves up sourdough beauties with toppings such as aubergine or lemon confit. Left Bank newcomer Atelier d’Andre turns out seasonally driven degustations (think marinated celery with Granny Smith apple or gingery veal tartare) in an upscale bistro setting. Breadlovers should bookmark May’s 11-day-long La Fête du Pain, hosted outside the Notre-Dame de Paris, when the city’s bakers and pastry makers congregate to sell their goods, run demonstrations and share the history of their craft.

The just-opened Maison Barrière Vendôme has much more than just an exceptional location in Place Vendôme. Each of the 26 rooms is named after an iconic woman – physicist and chemist Marie Curie, singer and dancer Josephine Baker – and decorated with maximalist flair, from the Pierre Frey fabric headboards to the bold wallpaper. You can also expect plush robes, a fridge stocked with complimentary soft drinks and courtyard or balcony views. Candle-lit bar Frida, the ground floor Latin-ish eatery, is another compelling reason to stay in, offering eggs benedict for breakfast and cheesy empanadas and crab tacos at dinner.

Dazzlingly close to the water’s edge, Les Bassans – part of the collection of properties that also includes Marseille’s Les Bords de Mer, above – will reopen in May. With 25 intimate ocean-view rooms overlooking the sparkling Sept Îles Archipelago on Brittany’s Pink Granite Coast, three-and-half-hours from Paris by train, the hotel promises laid-back comfort in effortlessly glitzy digs. Don’t forget to sign up for soothing spa treatments.

Public transport in Paris is constantly under renovation and 2025 marks the arrival of even more expansions to make travel in (and beyond) the capital easier than ever. The recently opened Villejuif-Gustave Roussy station now provides more connections to the greater Île-de-France region and a direct line to Orly Airport, plus, an entirely new line (15) that connects Pont de Sèvres to Noisy-Champs (near the neo-classical splendour of Château de Champs-sur-Marne) is due to open towards the end of the year. Val-de-Marne will soon welcome the first cable car in the Paris region, while an eight-hour daytime high-speed train now connects Paris and Berlin (the high-speed train between Paris and Milan will recommence in April).

A fire and subsequent five-year renovation could not dull the spirit – or the city’s pride – in the Notre-Dame de Paris cathedral (pictured above, before the fire), which reopened in December 2024. The repairs were no small undertaking – just one part included crafting 1,500 solid oak chairs to replace those lost. While there’s still more to do (the installation of new stained glass windows will happen in 2026) and the towers remain off-limits, the majesty of the cathedral is apparent as soon as you wander through its arched doorways. It’s free to visit but you must register and book ahead of your arrival.

Connecting Mont St Michel with Nantes via ancient fortresses, bed-and-breakfasts, countless historic villages and French backcountry, the new La Régalante cycleway is a signposted route covering 275 kilometres of terrain. Running partly along defunct railway lines, the trail offers plenty of places to pause for a breather (one of the best is the picturesque Nantes à Brest canal). If you only want to tackle part of La Régalante, it meets plenty of train stations along the way so you can pick and choose where you start and finish your adventure.

This year, the city of Aix-en-Provence will celebrate one of its most famous locals, the late painter Paul Cezanne, with a 12-month-long schedule of events, spanning cooking competitions and an immersive art installation. The Musée Granet will host the Cezanne au Jas de Bouffan exhibition from June; Les Lauves, the artist’s final studio and gardens, will throw open the doors to the spaces and places that inspired the Impressionist; and Jas de Bouffan – Cezanne’s six-hectare home of 40 years – will reopen after the first stages of its restoration. The unveiling will include the studio, the Provençal kitchen and Madame Cezanne’s bedroom, just as they were when the artist was in residence.

From March, the storied Venice Simplon-Orient-Express train will add L’Observatoire, or the Observation Suite, designed by acclaimed French street artist JR. The two-person suite encompasses an entire private carriage, including a separate tea room with domed skylight, a freestanding bathtub and even a miniature of the very train you’re travelling on. A private butler service, in-room dining and free flowing champagne is included in the rate, so you can say a warm salut! to the French countryside as you glide from Paris to Portofino.

The Côte d’Azur, known for its sparkling waters and laid back coastal culture, is the epicentre of 2025’s Year of the Sea event, running until September 2025. Intended to celebrate the ocean’s biodiversity while also educating visitors about the science behind its protection, the festival will bring a fresh buzz to the region with events including an ocean-focused science fair and two European Heritage Days dedicated to marine history. There’s also the Biennale des Arts et de l’Océan 2025 (also in Nice), which will include 11 exhibitions across seven museums in the area.

If cheese is high on your list of reasons to visit France, put the new Musée du Fromage on your itinerary. There are 56 varieties – made from cow, goat and sheep milk – crafted daily on-site and tickets include a tour through the dairy, history-focused exhibits and creamery, as well as a live cheesemaking demonstration and a tasting. You can also don an apron and sign up for hands-on cheesemaking workshops.

The Fondation Cartier has been a gallery (current building pictured above) for up-and-coming and established contemporary artists for 40 years, with over 4,000 works displayed across a variety of mediums. When its new home opens by the end of 2025 – an epic 8,500-square-metre temple to art and culture within a restored Napoleon-era building in the Palais-Royal in Paris – it promises a multi-level interior with mobile platforms that can be adjusted as exhibitions cycle through. With a staggering 150 metres of windows stretching across Rue de Rivoli and Rue Saint-Honoré, the venue will be worth a visit for the city views alone.

Tracing the original routes of salt traders from the Mediterranean coast to the French Alps, the new 159-kilometre Pagarine Route connects Nice to the Italian town of Cuneo in 10 separate stages. Keen to finish the whole thing? It takes around 10 days and stops in spots such as Aspremont, Utelle and La Madone de Fenestre in France, with each leg around 10-20 kilometres in length. Download the Outdoor Nice Cote d'Azur app for a step-by-step itinerary, including suggestions for eateries and places to pause along the way.