Christmas in France seems to capture a traditional joy, magic and goodwill that many of us aspire to, with imaginative decorations in public places and plenty of community events ensuring a Joyeux Noel.
Christmas Eve is at the heart of family and religious celebrations, with families gathering at home for the Réveillon de Noel, a late-night feast. This is also the time to celebrate midnight mass– an uplifting tradition that visitors are welcome to share at churches in towns and cities across the country.
Although the French Christmas holiday is confined to just a few days, many community seasonal events and festivals extend over several weeks –including the Christmas markets that are held all over France, each with its own character, traditions and range of goods.
Festival events often continue into the New Year, which is marked with firework displays, dinners and even balls. Again, tradition calls for a feast, le Réveillon de Saint-Sylvestre, which usually includes champagne and delicacies like foie gras, along with kisses under the mistletoe at midnight.
If you want to experience Christmas or New year in France, we still have availability for holiday lets. Although rentals normally start on a Saturday, which this year falls on Christmas Eve, many owners are willing to be flexible on dates. Some offer food shopping or catering and decorations in the house to make your stay easy and relaxing. Several have special offers, including a £100 discount plus champagne reception. Check out availability for Christmas and New year weeks at our Last Minute Availability page.
The Good Life France has chosen French Connections to feature in the new, Autumn issue of their digital magazine and in the 'Editor's Picks' on their very popular website.
In the magazine article, our general manager Donna Sloane gives her top tips for marketing holiday lets. “Successful marketing means being pro-active with a clear strategy and budget,” says Donna.
Her advice includes tips on where to advertise – she recommends choosing a listing site with great customer service like French Connections of course!
The article is opposite a full page advertisement for our fantastic special offers, unique in the world of online listing - six months free advertising or money back if no enquiries received, and all with no commission on bookings.
Donna’s article on the Good Life France website, entitled ‘Brilliant tips to help you market your French holiday let’, focuses on how to ‘show and tell’ your holiday property. “Great images and an engaging description make holidaymakers want to stay on the page – and that’s what leads to enquiries,” says Donna Sloane.
The article gives clear, concise tips on how to take and use photos and video and how to write a property description that leads to booking enquiries.
You can see The Good Life France digital magazine by signing up on the website and see our latest article here.
Want to take a winter break in France where you can relax, explore cities, walk on beaches and enjoy a couple of days’ skiing in beautiful mountains? Our tip is to head for the Pyrénées Mountains in the south west.
Many holiday properties accessible to popular destinations like Perpignan, Céret and the pretty Mediterranean port of Collioure are also within reach of the Pyrénées slopes. To find out more, browse our villas, farmhouses and gites in Pyrénées-Orientales.
One great example is El Couloumer, a year-round villa in Arboussols in Catalan Country, surrounded by vineyards and woodland. Owners Toni and Michael Howarth love winter here because they can have breakfast in sunshine on the terrace looking at snow capped mountains, then drive to one of nine different ski resorts within an hour, spend about four hours skiing and come home to a blazing log fire in time for dinner.
“The ski resorts open in November and skiing is usually great in February and March – even up to Easter. We are happy to offer our villa to holidaymakers during the winter months so they can share all that we love about the area. It’s a 30 minute drive to Perpignan on the Mediterranean coast and the beaches of Canet, Argeles and St. Cyprien are 50 minutes away. So visitors can combine skiing, beaches, lakes and even exploring Spain.”
El Couloumer is featured in our latest article in French Property News magazine, along with some tips for holiday property owners in this area. The November ski issue is on sale now in print and digital editions.
We’re excited to be offering owners a choice of fantastic offers when you list your holiday let with French Connections. Either choose 6 months free advertising or our 100% money back guarantee if no bookings are received. And there’s no commission or hidden fees, just clear and transparent pricing.
During the last twelve months we’ve helped thousands of French property owners reach hundreds of thousands of holiday makers - and received over 2 million property views.
We have over 25 years’ experience in the French property holiday rental business. Our loyal and growing database of over 100,000 holidaymakers already receive regular newsletters and promotions.
Now we have committed to substantially increasing our advertising. This means an increase in our investment in promoting your properties to holidaymakers. We are using highly targeted campaigns on social media and are placing adverts – along with quality editorial coverage – in The Good Life France, French Property News and France Today.
We will also be exhibiting at the France Show in London in January – more news about that soon.
You can re-list your property or sign-up your new property in less than 5 minutes and enjoy immediate access to our growing number of holidaymakers.
Our team is always on hand to provide help and answers to any questions you may have. Please feel free to get in touch with Izzy or Laura on +44 (0) 1580 819303. You can also use the live chat within your owners login section between 9am and 5.30pm Monday to Friday or email us on This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
More information in our Advertise with Us pages
Beaujolais Nouveau Day marks the release of this season’s fresh, new Beaujolais wine – and the big day this year is 17th November. The Beaujolais Nouveau release is always celebrated in France on the third Thursday in November and, under French law, the wine is released at 12:01 a.m. that day, only a few weeks after the grapes have been harvested.
Beaujolais Nouveau originated about a century ago as a cheap and cheerful drink produced by locals to celebrate the end of the harvest season of the Gamay grapes that go into this light, quaffing wine. The grapes are picked by hand in the Beaujolais province in the Rhone region of south western France.
In Britain, the new wine is usually on sale with some fanfare on the day of its release – and should be drunk by next May, so don’t lay down bottles for too long! Parties are also held throughout France to celebrate the first wine of the season and in true French style, they are usually accompanied by fireworks, festivals and music.
But the heart of the celebrations is Beaujolais itself, centred on the town of Beaujeu, the ancient capital. Here Les Sarmentelles is a five day event – and for wine lovers a rather tempting one. A tasting contest features all twelve kinds of Beaujolais and the winner gets their weight in Beaujolais-Villages. In the evening, the farmers that made the wine are celebrated in a torch lit parade. At midnight on 17th November, fireworks mark the release of the new wine, which is drunk until dawn. Quick! Find your accommodation in and around Beaujeu
It’s the season for magical French Christmas markets to shimmer into life all over France. So many cities and towns stage these fabulous mixtures of shopping, community and carnival – and the markets really do capture the traditional magic of Christmas as a season of light, good food and family feeling.
The markets are really worth a visit for both their atmosphere and the great shopping. We know that many Francophiles and lovers of traditional Christmas spirit go every year for a market mini-break. For seasoned visitors and first-timers alike, our guide to the Christmas markets of France is indispensable. We’ve put together detailed information on over twenty of the top markets, from north to south and from small towns to large cities.
Our guide lists the top markets and for each one paints a picture of the place, setting and character, the variety of products on sale and special events taking place. We also give dates, travel information and links to a range of self-catering accommodation and B&Bs in the area to enable you to plan your trip.
Strasbourg Christmas market is the oldest and one of the largest in France with a breath taking setting in front of the Cathedral. Mulhouse market reflects the architecture of the Alsace region with half-timbered stalls featuring exceptional fabrics.
Easily accessible by car from the UK are the towns of Northern France. Arras holds a spectacular Christmas market on the splendid Grand Place with lots of arts and crafts. The market at Béthune features Flemish-style chalets selling festive crafts, regional produce and other gifts.
Licques is famous for its traditional turkey parade and the market sells quality, traditionally-reared organic poultry. Amiens Christmas market, one of the largest in northern France, has an alpine flavour and sells kitchenware, fine crystal and hand-made glass, as well as a variety of fish.
For anyone who fancies a trip further south, the markets in Bordeaux, Toulouse, Avignon and Menton are all celebrated events with real local character – and easily accessible by the TGV train.
Most markets run from around the third week of November to either Christmas Eve or New Year’s Eve and all include events and parades that enhance the fun, spectacle and sense of community.
Browse our Guide to Christmas Markets in France
Experts at travel guide publisher and website Lonely Planet have just announced their top destinations for 2017 in a ‘Best in Travel’ guide. In the Top City category, the favourite choice of cities to visit next year is Bordeaux, France.
In terms of travel, Lonely Planet loves Bordeaux right now because the new LGV Sud-Ouest line, due for completion in mid- 2017, will connect the city with Europe’s high- speed train network and cut travel time from Paris to just two hours. In terms of attractions, LP says, ‘ The recently opened Cité du Vin continues the impressive redevelopment of the Garonne riverfront with a state-of-the-art wine-lovers’ experience, and the city’s gastronomic revolution keeps building on its own success.’
We already love this city for its great climate and rich history. As capital of the most famous wine region in the world, Bordeaux offers all the culture and shopping you'd expect to find in a large, sophisticated city plus the added benefits of its association with the centuries-old wine trade.
Bordeaux is full of elegant 18th-century buildings and wide avenues. These, along with the neoclassical architecture and well-tended parks, combine to give the city a certain grandeur. Yet the centre is easily explored on foot, has world class restaurants and wines, excellent museums and lively nightlife. When you fancy a change of pace, beaches are close by and if you want a day trip to the city, Bordeaux is very accessible from the popular Gironde and Dordogne regions.
We have a great range of places to stay around Bordeaux, so start browsing our accommodation and city guide now to plan your trip to this world class city.