National Maps

Being more than twice the size of Britain and with nearly a quarter of its 60 million population living and working in the Paris area, it’s no wonder vast areas of the country seem deserted.

France has an amazing diversity of landscape and climate – from the snow capped Alps and Pyrénées to the scorching shoreline of the Côte d’Azur.

Verdant valleys in Normandy and Brittany contrast sharply with the arid olive groves in Provence, but whatever the countryside, it is always France.

Some of the earliest traces of human habitation in Europe have been found in l’Hexagone and while much of the country seems rural with historic architecture, there is also some of the most progressive city development anywhere on the continent.