France has long been one of the most popular countries to buy a second home. It boasts gorgeous beaches, verdant countryside, delicious food, wine and is home to a whole host of beautiful towns and villages. But where to start your search?
To help indecisive holiday home hunters narrow down their search, we’ve picked six places that would make great holiday home locations…
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Quimper in Autumn
Quimper (Finistere)
This delightful town is the capital of the department of Finistere in the ever-popular region of Brittany. With its imposing cathedral, pottery museum, half-timbered buildings and proximity to the sea, this is an excellent location for a holiday home. The old part of the town is wonderful for wandering around and people-watching with its boutique shops, little bistros and interesting architecture. For holiday homeowners, a visit to Quimper allows you to truly live a traditional French lifestyle – even if it is for just a few days.
There are some lovely old family houses with gardens in the countryside outside Quimper around the €300,000 mark.
The square of the bastide town of Mirepoix.
Mirepoix (Ariège)
Mirepoix is an alluring medieval town in the heart of the Ariège department in Occitanie. It is one of those towns which is just so charming, you never want to leave. Dating right back to the 10th century and before the Crusades came along, it was a relatively large village boasting a huge castle and an important trading centre.
Without dwelling too much on the ancient history of Mirepoix, Simon de Montfort laid siege to the castle and awarded Mirepoix to one of his first lieutenants, Gui de Levis. However, in 1289 the dam in nearby Puivert burst its banks flooding and virtually destroying Mirepoix. Gui de Levis then resited it to the left bank and started what became a trend for many countryside towns in France: making a central square with a galleried section of shops, the whole forming a grid. This is as it is today in Mirepoix.
There is a wide variety of property types for sale in Mirepoix and its surrounding area. You can buy a 2-3 bedroomed house on Mirepoix’s outskirts for upwards of €150,000. A larger character property closer to town will cost at least €350,000.
Aerial view of the old town of Leucate I nito / Shutterstock
Leucate (Aude)
Leucate is an ancient village on the Mediterranean coast. It boasts several cute cafes, little boutique shops, an ancient castle ruin high up in the hills and endless soft sandy beaches nearby. It is known for its water sports: there is a lagoon where you can windsurf and paddleboard, plus a fabulous pop-up beach bar during the summer at Leucate Plage. The actual beach is unspoilt and never crowded. It’s also very easy to park (you can even park a camper there for around €6 per night). Stop for a delicious seafood lunch at one of the restaurants there before you go house hunting!
You can get a studio bolthole here for less than €100,000. Expect to pay at least €200,000 for a small 1-2 bedroom beachside property but this would be an excellent rental investment for holiday home buyers.
The half-timbered houses of Beuvron-en-Auge.
Beuvron en Auge (Calvados)
This gorgeous picture postcard Norman village of Beuvron en Auge lies inland from Cabourg on the Côte Fleurie in Normandy. Full of charm, the village mainly consists of 17th and 18th-century renovated houses as well as several individual boutique shops showcasing local produce, notably calvados and cider. There is a superb covered market in the heart of the village. If antiques are your passion, you will find plenty of places specialising in all sorts of ancient wares. You may even bump into David Hockney who made his home here some years ago!
Prices are quite high here but if you look just outside the village you can still find some wonderful properties with some land at around the €300,000 mark. If your budget can stretch to over €500,000 you will be able to find some superb character renovated houses in the countryside nearby.
St Jean Pied de Port (Pyrénées Atlantiques)
St Jean Pied de Port is an important small town on the pilgrimage route of Camino de Santiago. It dates right back to the 12th century and replaces St. Jean le Vieux which was destroyed by Richard the Lionheart. As a pivotal point for traders as well as pilgrims, this gorgeous little town is a joy to wander around with its cobbled streets and colourful buildings, some seeming to almost touch each other. At around 8km from the Spanish border, St Jean Pied de Port has a real Mediterranean feel to it.
As with many towns and villages in France, by going just a few kilometres away from the centre you will get much better value for money. Prices for a typical townhouse in good condition here start at around €400,000 whereas widening your search into the hills, you can find a lovely house with some land for a little over €300,000. Again, this is an excellent place in which to invest in property as there is a very good rental market during the warmer months.
Medieval village of Auvillar I FredP / Shutterstock
Auvillar (Tarn et Garonne)
Classified as “one of the most beautiful villages in France” Auvillar has its origins during Roman times and although small, is a beautiful example of a bastide village with its central circular square and rows of houses with arcades. It sits high up overlooking the Garonne River offering staggering views of the countryside beyond. Plenty is going on here with art and sculpture exhibitions as well as a regular jazz festival each July.
Nestled in the heart of the lovely department of the Tarn et Garonne, this is an excellent place in which to buy a holiday home. Close to Montauban and Agen but surrounded by greenery, it offers a little taste of both town and country. A budget of around €200,000 would buy you a small renovated house close to the village.
