Frankrike

Few regions sum up the attractions of France better than the Dordogne. With its rich food, heady history, château-studded countryside and picturesque villages, the Dordogne has long been a favourite getaway for French families on les grandes vacances. It’s also famous for having some of France’s finest prehistoric cave art, which fill the caverns and rock shelters of the Vézère Valley.

Named after France's most powerful natural spring, which wells up outside Fontaine-de-Vaucluse, the Vaucluse département sits on Provence's west side, sandwiched between the rumpled mountains of the Hautes-Alpes and the rocky Var coastline. Crossed by three great rivers – the Rhône, the Durance and the Sorgue – Vaucluse is renowned for its lavender fields and its vineyards, including the legendary Châteauneuf-du-Pape. The area has been occupied since ancient times, but it was the Romans who left the greatest mark in the form of Orange's ancient theatre and the remains of two Roman towns, Glanum and Vasio Vocontiorum. Centuries later, Avignon became the seat of papal power, and its crenellated ramparts and monumental Palais des Papes provide a glimpse of medieval majesty.

High up in the French Alps, it's enthralling to imagine the forces that shaped these colossal peaks. The African and Eurasian tectonic plates collided some 35 million years ago, forcing the land skyward into a 1000km chain of saw-edged mountains.

Förutom att bubbla loss på champagne finns det massor att göra i vindistriktet med samma namn i norra Frankrike. Vagabond har tagit hjälp av champagne- och vinexperten Fredrik Schelin som ger sina bästa tips från området.

Längs floden Deûle, nära gränsen mot Belgien, ligger charmiga Lille. En stad där det franska möter det flamländska – och resultatet är ett fantastiskt hopkok av gastronomi, kultur och arkitektur. Vi guidar dig till godaste maten, mysigaste caféerna och de bästa boendena!

Paris är världens mest besökta stad men trots det finns det platser kvar att upptäcka. Erika Holmberg-Dahl listar sina egna pärlor i kärlekens stad.

Explosive history slumbers underground in the Auvergne. This land-locked region was scorched by ancient volcanoes, which left behind chains of cinder cones and mirror lakes, overlooked by the razor peaks of the Massif Central mountain range.

Paris borgmästare har beslutat att satsa motsvarande nästan 2 miljarder kronor på att göra Champs-Élysées till en grönare plats. Trafiken ska halveras, träd ska planteras, och fontäner installeras. "En extraordinär trädgård" har borgmästaren utlovat.

Vagabonds reporter Helle Kikerpuu tipsar om parken Parc des Buttes-Chaumont i Paris.

Edged by the brilliant blue Bay of Biscay and the craggy foothills of the Pyrenees, the Pays Basque (Basque Country) feels one step removed from the rest of France – which is hardly surprising, since it's been an independent nation for much of its history and has more in common with the nearby Basque regions of Spain. Proud, independent and fiery, the people of the Basque Country are fiercely protective of their history and culture, whether it's their passion for pelota or their fondness for their spicy chilli pepper, le piment d'Espelette. It's a fascinating place.