Frankrike

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.

At the crossroads of central Europe and the Atlantic, the Rhineland and the Mediterranean, grand old Lyon is France's third-largest metropolis and its gastronomic capital. Savouring timeless traditional dishes in checked-tableclothed bouchons (small bistros) creates unforgettable memories – as do the majestic Roman amphitheatres of Fourvière, the cobbled Unesco-listed streets of Vieux Lyon, and the audacious modern architecture of the new Confluence neighbourhood.

The 'mouths-of-the-Rhône', where one of Europe's great rivers splits before spilling its Swiss-Alpine snowmelt into the Mediterranean, is Provence's most populous département. Its palpitating heart is Marseille, a gritty former Greek colony, France's second-largest city, and a place of real cultural energy. Centred on the bristling masts and bluff forts of the Vieux Port, it has a strong Maghrebian flavour – imported from nearby Tunisia, Algeria and Morocco – and the idiosyncratic pride of a long-established seafaring city, which runs counterpoint to the restless energy of its arts, dining and cultural scenes. Spreading out from Marseille's concrete margins are pine-swaddled coastal uplands cut by ravishingly beautiful calanques (coves), while inland is the still-thriving Roman spa town of Aix-en-Provence, reposing handsomely in the Pays d’Aix (Aix Country) so beloved of Cézanne.

The Côte d'Or département is named after one of the world's foremost winegrowing regions, which stretches from Dijon, bursting with cultural riches, south to the wine town of Beaune and beyond. West of Dijon, other worthwhile destinations include the walled, hilltop town of Semur-en-Auxois, the idyllic Cistercian monastic site Abbaye de Fontenay and the historic Alésia battlefield where Julius Caesar finally vanquished the Gauls in 52 BC. In the far northwest of the département, on the border with Champagne, Châtillon-sur-Seine displays some stunning Celtic treasures.

Grit and grandeur coexist seamlessly in Marseille, an exuberantly multicultural port city with a pedigree stretching back to classical Greece.

Spiking the skyline for 430km along the Franco-Spanish border, the snow-dusted Pyrenees offer a glimpse of France’s wilder side. This serrated chain of peaks contains some of the country's most pristine landscapes and rarest wildlife, including endangered species such as the griffon vulture, izard (a type of mountain goat) and brown bear. Since 1967, 457 sq km has been protected as the Parc National des Pyrénées, ensuring its valleys, tarns and mountain pastures are preserved for future generations.

Once upon a time, everyone called this glamorous stretch of Mediterranean coast the French Riviera; then in 1888 author Stéphen Liégeard dubbed it La Côte d'Azur, the name stuck and the rest is history.

Det finns en uppsjö fantastiska vinbarer i Paris, men var ska man börja? Vinkännaren Emily Lester har bra koll på utbudet – här är hennes 5 favoriter.

The Île-de-France région – the 12,000 sq km ‘Island of France’ shaped by five rivers that encircles the French capital – contains splendid architecture including some of the most monumental châteaux in the country, set amid magnificent gardens.