Coast and Country in France

I am often asked where are the best places in France to live, or my recommendations. It is a difficult question as a home will depend on your personal preferences and dreams. However I can suggest ways that you can “look” at France and then make good plans to travel and visit.

Here is a recent mail I answered…

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Hi Tony,

My husband and I are planning to buy a house in France to live in - not to renovate and not to rent out. Just a small village house or apartment for us.

We have identified that the Languedoc is a great area for us for all the same reasons you like it. We also want a town that is not too big and not too small.We don’t wont a place that closes down in winter.

We think around population of 10,000 would be good. We think the town of Limoux would suit us with it’s coffee and restaurant culture and music and art festivals. What we want to ask you is if you know which other towns in the area might have a similar flavour to them, be of similar size and if you would recommend we look at any other towns???

Any suggestions would be most appreciated. I hope your health is good now.
Kind regards.
Desiree

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Hi Desiree,

Thank you for your very interesting mail. Languedoc is a large region and each department has different characteristics. Limoux is a charming town and I agree, you need a population of at least 10,000 or more to have year round animation.

It can only ever be a personal choice which village,town or city is perfect for you. My advice is always to travel slowly, stop in local cafes and hotels as much as you can, look at the libraries and museums to get a feel of the activities and see what the local Mairie and Information offices offer and how friendly they are (or not).

A good source of information on 36,000 towns in France is the French website

http://www.linternaute.com/ville/

This gives fairly recent information on the demographics of the town.

Using www.maps.google.com, or downloading Google Earth http://earth.google.com/ , with a reasonable Internet connection you can “hover” over the countryside and “see” towns which may be interesting. There is a good French portal at

http://www.geoportail.fr/ but this site is not as friendly as Google and you cannot save the pages, although in many places the satellite definition is better than Google.

The geography is vary varied in Languedoc and this effects the climate, the Tramontane wind to the West and the Mistral to the East are important considerations, as is the altitude and proximity to the sea. Temperatures can drop on degree for each village north from the coast - I notice when driving down from Paris that there is always a ten degree centigrade difference as the temperature rises over the last 50 kilometers as I head south. In winter I have driven from snow and ice to warm sunshine in under an hour.

Check the local weather with http://www.meteofrance.com and search through archives to see which towns have cold winters and/or frequent high winds. As I personally loathe the cold and wind only the department of Herault suits me, South of Narbonne or West of Nimes does not suit me. Also being under 20 minutes from the Mediterranean gives a climate I like. However you may like brisk walks in chilly bright winter sunshine with a stimulating wind in your face. Search keywords like “Tramontane” and “Mistrale”

All towns have completely different characters, this can be largely the result of the local Mayors and a change of regime can dramatically change the character of a community. You must get a “feel” for the local politics, the cafes will help, go to the Mairie and ask to meet the mayor or one of the deputies - ask them questions about their community - you may be a voter one day so usually they are very helpful - if they are not then this is a bad sign.

There are many towns I would advise you visit and some “virtual flying” over the satellite maps will show many others. For my personal choice I like Pezenas (34), Beziers, (34) Montpellier (34), Narbonne(11), Ceret (66), Uzes (30)

Do keep in touch and let me know how you get on and remember, I am a registered Immobilier now so will be very happy to find a property for you.

My health is fine now, the doctors says “I am perfect” - which is a big surprise to my family.

I am working with the best agency in France for real-estate, http://coast-country-france.com/ and can help you find your perfect home.

I look forward to hearing from you.

Best wishes

Tony