Frankrike

Från tyska Moseldalen till Atlantkustens stränder och Paris gator. Vagabonds chefredaktör tog med vänner och familj på en somrig tågluff genom Västeuropa.

So named because international students communicated in Latin here until the French Revolution, the Latin Quarter remains the hub of academic life in Paris. Centred on the Sorbonne’s main university campus, graced by fountains and lime trees, this lively area is also home to some outstanding museums and churches, along with Paris’ beautiful art deco mosque and botanic gardens.

Kändiskocken Paul Bocuse spred stjärnglans över franska Lyon. Ett år efter hans död åker vi dit för att se om Lyon lever upp till ryktet som en av världens bästa matstäder.

Literary buffs, antique collectors and fashionistas flock to this legendary part of Paris, where the former presence of writers such as Sartre, de Beauvoir and Hemingway still lingers in historic cafes, and exquisite window displays entice shoppers into tiny specialist stores and chic boutiques.

Ask the French what they think of Alsace and watch them grow misty-eyed with nostalgia and affection for this most idiosyncratic of regions, which borders Switzerland to the south and Germany to the east. So hard to nail in terms of its character, it proudly guards its own distinct identity, language, cuisine, history and architecture – part French, part German, 100% Alsatian. Here the candy-coloured towns and villages look as though they've popped up from a children's bedtime story, the gently rolling countryside, striped with vines, is nothing short of idyllic, and everywhere locals swear by centuries-old traditions.

Gastronomy and good living are the passions underpinning this sun-kissed corner of southwestern France.

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.

Sizzling shoreline hogs the headlines here, and the coast is undeniably magnetic, but there’s so much more to Var than super-yachts and overpriced bouillabaisse. A string of stunning islands, magnificent secluded monasteries, and uplands dotted with memorable villages make this département one of the most varied and enticing in Provence.

42 kilometer, 23 vinstopp, ost, smurfar och slott. Marathon du Médoc i södra Frankrike måste vara en av de uddaste löptävlingarna i världen.