Want to escape the winter weather, try out French life while house-hunting, learn the language or take a sabbatical during the winter months? Some owners of our holiday rental properties – especially in the warmer South of France – offer long winter lets by the month for a period of one to six months. Rents are lower than weekly seasonal lets and winter stays can run from November to March.
If you’re thinking of starting a new life in France, a long winter let is a really sensible way to ‘try before you buy’. Some families even enroll their children into French schools and you’re on hand should that perfect property come on to the market. And don’t forget to check our pages of properties for sale in France before you leave!
Read more: Long winter lets at our holiday properties in France
France is the world’s top ski destination, yet I love that it’s still possible to avoid crowds and noise and get amazing value by staying in a really French mountain village. Many of our gorgeous ski chalets and lodges are just a little off-piste in locations that are peaceful yet accessible to all the action – both the ski slopes and shops in the day and friendly, cosy auberges in the evening.
Read more: Ski holiday accommodation in traditional French villages
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How I love French markets – if you have been reading my blogs you may realise by now that I love to browse these wonderful cultural shopping places whenever I am in France. This time of year is no exception, in fact it is the time when we have an excuse (who needs an excuse!) to take a trip over the channel to France just to experience the Christmas markets. For centuries French housewives have spent time preparing festive foods and baking Christmas treats and this was the start of the Christmas markets, to supply all their needs. Of course nowadays the Christmas markets are even bigger and better and they draw people to the regions just for this alone.
The best Christmas market in France for crystal and Le Creuset is Amiens; at Licques market there’s a turkey parade, while Noisy le Grand, Paris offers hand crafted wooden toys and horse-drawn carriage rides. All this and more is in our comprehensive 2013 online guide to Christmas markets, a veritable treasure trove of information for lovers of these luscious shopping experience–cum-theatre events that are so special in France.
Each market reflects the character of its location, so a visit is a good chance to discover a new area of France. Mulhouse market, for instance, is typically Alsatian, with half-timbered stalls featuring exceptional fabrics - and there’s mulled wine to sip on and little biscuits to nibble.
Read more: Christmas Markets in France 2013 - Our New Updated Guide Now Available
Made plans for the festive season yet? Christmas in France is magical, more traditional and less commercialised than in Britain. Our region of the month, Northern France, includes Paris which is transformed at this time of year, with lights twinkling along the Seine, streets lined with decorated fir trees and Christmas Markets springing up around the city.
We know that regular visitors to France love to discover new regions off the main tourist routes and our region of the month for October is a real gem. The Drôme (department number 26) is named for its river and located in the Rhône-Alpes, just north of Provence. In fact, the southern Drôme Provencal enjoys a Mediterranean micro climate and is abundant with olives, apricots, aromatic herbs and lavender fields stretching right to the foot of the mountains.