France is the number one country with most visitors in the world, and that´s a lot to say if you keep in mind that is way smaller than other countries like the US, China, Australia…and many more.

There are uncountable reasons why so many people visit France every year, they have incredible food, important events and more, but the main reason is it´s places. From their iconic monuments and cathedrals, to their beaches or natural areas, the list is huge, so don´t miss it!
Top 10 most popular destinations in France
As we said, you can find all kind of places in France, and each of them will surprise you in some way. Since t´s impossible to talk about all of them, we have decided to do a list with the 10 most famous places in France. Let´s see if you knew about them:
🗼 1) Eiffel Tower

Of course, we needed to start the list of famous sites in France with the Eiffel Tower. Absolutely everyone on earth knows about the Eiffel Tower, and it receives about 7 million visitors per year, crazy right?
Although nowadays the Eifel Tower is the symbol of France and Paris, it wasn´t like that when it was built. The structure was designed by Gustave Eiffel as a temporary exhibit for a fair in 1889, and no one liked it at that time.
Visiting the most famous landmark in France is a must. Many visitors are impressed every day by the “Iron Lady” and it´s 8000 metallic parts that give shape to its structure. You will love it!
🕍 2) Notre Dame

Another of the most popular tourist attractions in France is the Notre Dame cathedral, which is by the way one of the few places that gets more visitors than the Eiffel Tower, and actually is the landmark that receives more international visitors in the world.
Notre Dame is a Roman catholic cathedral located in the east part of Paris, it begun being built in 1163, and it wasn´t until 1345 when it was completed. The cathedral is beautiful on the outside thanks to its magnifique structure, but also on the inside where you will be able to climb 387 stairs and admire an incredible view of Paris.
Unfortunately, the 15th of April of 2019, Notre Dame cathedral suffered a tragic fire and part of the roof got seriously damaged. Nowadays, they are still working on recovering it. It is said that Notre Dame will be finished by 2024.
🏰 3) Mont Saint Michael

The Mont Saint Michael is becoming more and more popular every year, of course, it was already one of the most visited places in France, but thanks to Instagram and social media in general, everyone wants to go and take picture at this epic spot.
This famous French landmark is known for being a tidal island located in the coast of Normandy, but not just that, it also has an impressive and well preserved church on top of the island known as Norman Benedictine Abbey of St Michel.
Mont Saint Michael is such a beautiful place that it has been used as a film location for movies and tv shows (Vikings). We truly recommend you visiting it, for us is one of the most beautiful places to visit in France.
🌸 4) Lavender fields in Provence

In this case we are talking about one of the best vacations spots in France, and is not one place in concrete, but a whole area occupied with different lavender fields located in Provence.
Probably many of you have already heard already about those purple flower fields located in France, they are known for being an area that used to be the perfect place to get inspiration for artists, and now for being one of the most touristic attractions in France.
Although there is a big area where you can find these type of fields, we seriously recommend you going to Luberon, a region of France not only known for its lavender fields, but also for having very cute and charming towns that are worth visiting.
🏛️ 5) Louvre Museum

Another of the must visit places in France is the Louvre Museum. No matter if you are or you are not an art lover, you should still visit the Louvre as it´s the best museum in the world, not only for the number of visitors that receive every year (9 million per year), but also for the huge quantity of fine arts you will see in its gallery.
There are more than 35.000 artworks inside the louvre, including some of the most famous paintings like the Mona Lisa by Leonardo DaVinci or Liberty Leading the People by Eugene Delacroix. We recommend you focussing on seeing concrete paintings as seen them all it´s impossible.
Other than the incredible artworks, the louvre it´s also beautiful because of its structure on the outside and the glass pyramid located in the courtyard.
🏔️ 6) Mont Blanc

If you are a nature lover and you don´t want to visit France only for its beautiful cities, we advise you to do a hiking route through the Mont Blanc.
Although the Mont Blanc is more famous in Italy than in France, the truth is that it covers the border between both countries. In France is located in the region of Savoie and Haute-Savoie.
The meaning of Mont Blanc is white mountain, and it´s the second highest mountain in Europe. With its 4808 meters (15,774 ft) is also the 11th most prominent peak in the world. Is a perfect place to do hikes, admire its incredible landscapes and connect with nature.
It´s for sure one of those amazing places to visit in France that will give you incredible memories in the future.
🌉 7) Pont du Gard

Pont du Gard in an ancient aqueduct built by the Romans in the first century AD. The main reason of its construction was to bring water to the Roman colony of Nîmes (Nemausus). It crosses the Gardon river and passes very close to the town of Vers-Pont-du-Gard.
In 1985 Pont du Gard was considered a World Heritage by the UNESCO, thanks to its historical importance and its great preservation. Pont du Gard is the highest of all Roman aqueduct bridges.
Pont du Gard has become one of the best places to see in France, although it´s not as visited as the landmarks of Paris, it still receives many visitors every year.
🏞️ 8) Etretat Cliffs

The Etretat Cliffs are another of the places of interest in France, and probably the most beautiful natural wonder in the country.
As soon as you visit this area located in the north of Normandy, you will be impressed by the three natural rock arches and about its white cliffs. You will also be able to access to the popular white pebble beach, which is one of the whitest sand beaches in Europe.
Etretat is a popular destination in France that people normally visit as a day trip from other towns of Normandy, for that reason we recommend you going in low season as seen this paradise without many tourists is the best.
🏯 9) Château de Chambord

In Chambord, Loir-et-Cher, France, you will find one of the most famous destinations in France, the Château de Chambord or also known as the Chambord castle.
This castle has been listed as one of the most beautiful and recognisable castles in the world thanks to its distinctive French Renaissance architecture which reminds of the old medieval times. It was built by Francis I, he wanted to use it as a hunting lodge.
The Château de Chambord is part of the Loire Valley, an area full of amazing medieval castles with incredible gardens and rivers that looked like if you were in a fairy-tale movie. The whole area is on the UNESCO World Heritage Sites list.
⛲ 10) Palace of Versailles

We are going to finish our list of the top 10 places to see in France with the Palace of Versailles, which is located just 30 minutes away from Paris, and it´s a must when you are travelling to the capital of France.
The palace of Versailles was basically designed to expose the glory of the French monarchy. Before Louis XIV, it was a small hunting lodge, and then he transformed it into a huge baroque palace that was used as a royal residence until the French Revolution in 1789.
Nowadays, this palace is one of the most famous landmarks in Paris, it receives around 8 million visitors per year, which is even more than the Eiffel Tower.
Any other famous landmarks to visit in France?
That´s it, this was our list of beautiful famous places to visit in France, but we know there are many others… Which other places would you add to this list??
Hope you enjoyed reading about the popular sites to visit in France, and if you have any other question or suggestion please let us know!
