France’s Most Loved Village Revealed

France remains the world’s top tourist destination, and Saint Antoine l’Abbaye has been crowned France’s favorite village for 2025.

sarah

Nov 15, 2025 - 21:25

France’s Most Loved Village Revealed

France has been the world's most visited country for the past few years, with a record 100 million international tourists visiting last year to enjoy its culture, food, and natural scenery. In 2022, a Belgian cycled 870 miles to taste a special croissant in Nice.

But which place in France is the most favorite among the French? Earlier this year, viewers of the TV show "Le Village Préféré des Français 2025" chose Saint-Antoine-l'Abbaye as France's favorite village for 2025.

So what makes it special? This medieval village, with cobbled streets and a magnificent monastery, is nestled among the lush hills between Grenoble and Lyon in the southeastern part of the Isère. The Vercors Regional Natural Park is on the village's doorstep, and the entire area buzzes with artists, music, shows, and stalls for the medieval festival held every year during the first week of August.

The rocky houses of Pont-en-Royans are 14 miles away, and the town of Saint-Marcellin, famous for its delicate creamy cheese, is just eight miles away.

From Comté to Camembert, France is known for its cheeses, but on Thursday, at the World Cheese Awards in Switzerland, an old Swiss Gruyère was voted the world's finest cheese.

English judge Perry Wakeman said, "Even after eating the cheese three times, we could still taste it," and described its "fruity aroma, a slight charcoal burn."

More than 5,200 cheeses from 46 countries were presented to the jury at the Festivalhall in Bern, and as the day progressed, the competition's queens became more and more intense.

Moving from cheese to bread, the iconic French baguette has been hailed by President Emmanuel Macron as "250 grams of magic and perfection," but all is not well in this world of flour and yeast. Although UNESCO has recognized the baguette as an essential cultural symbol, bread consumption in France is rapidly declining, and daily visits to the boulangerie have become an endangered lifestyle. Let's explore how the humble bread baton faces its uncertain future.

However, France isn't the only European country whose breads have earned UNESCO heritage status. German bread culture earned a place on the Intangible Cultural Heritage list in 2015, and the country boasts over 3,200 officially recognized breads. A small bread called Nussbrot was chosen as Germany's Bread of the Year for 2025.

New Life in the Old World

Debra and Eric Stillwell, both in their 60s, moved from Burbank, California, to France's Dordogne Valley five years ago. Eric explains that medieval cities, castles, and natural scenery were what attracted him.

Being retired, he finds living expenses easier to budget for. Eric says, "Everyone thinks all Americans living in France are rich, and that's not true. Our house costs 70,000 euros... We're not rich."

In Italy, the picturesque village of Radicondoli in Tuscany has a rehabilitation scheme where anyone can buy one of their vacant houses and live in it for up to $23,000, plus an additional contribution of about $7,000 for expenses like heating and transportation.

Actor Tony Shalhoub is on a mission to find the world's finest and most amazing foods for less than $10. This money allows him to enjoy seafood in the French port city of Marseille.