The French Travel Guide is 123 pages of fascinating information about France's best destinations

The French Cottages Travel Guide

A practical, unique, experience-driven guide to travelling independently in France

For nearly 27 years, French Cottages has helped travellers experience France in a deeper, more relaxed and more authentic way. Over that time, we have accumulated an enormous amount of practical, real-world knowledge — not just about where to go, but how to travel well in France.

This guide is written for travellers who want to explore France independently, stay longer than a few days, and experience real villages rather than tourist itineraries.

The French Cottages Travel Guide exists to share that knowledge.

DOWNLOAD OUR 123-PAGE FRENCH
TRAVEL GUIDE AND BROCHURE.

The French Cottages Travel Guide Front page

Why we created this guide

Most travel information today is:
* Generic
* Algorithm-generated
* Written for hotel stays or short city breaks
* Focused on ticking boxes rather than living the experience

We created this guide because our guests were repeatedly asking the same questions — questions that generic travel guides and booking platforms simply don’t answer well.

This guide distils decades of first-hand experience travelling, living and working in France into one practical resource designed specifically for independent travellers staying in real homes.

Independent travel in France in a Citroen DCV

What makes this guide different

The French Cottages Travel Guide is:

* 123 pages of carefully written, practical content
* Professionally produced in both printed and online formats
* Written entirely from first-hand experience, not research aggregation
* Designed for travellers staying in cottages, apartments and villas, not hotels
* Focused on how to travel, not just what to see

As far as we know, no other holiday rental business in the world offers a printed travel guide of this depth and scope.

What the guide covers

The guide includes practical, experience-based guidance on:

* How to plan a relaxed, logical itinerary in France (read more, click here)
* The advantages of hub-based travel
* Understanding French regions and how they differ
* Travel timing, distances and pacing
* Markets, food, villages and everyday French life
* Common mistakes travellers make — and how to avoid them
* Making the most of longer stays in France

It is written to be read properly, not skimmed — and many guests tell us it changed the way they travel.

Who the guide is for

This guide is particularly valuable for:

* Independent travellers planning a holiday in France

* People staying for several weeks rather than just a few days

* Travellers who value authenticity over mass tourism

* Guests who want to live like locals, not tourists

* Anyone overwhelmed by conflicting or superficial travel advice

We won't be using this postman to send the brochure, though he looks typical!

How guests and enquirers receive the guide

Every enquiry to French Cottages receives access to the online version of the guide.

For enquirers who are genuinely interested in our way of travelling in France, we also post the printed edition, allowing it to be read and used away from screens — before and during the holiday.

Why experience matters

France is not difficult to visit — but it is easy to misunderstand.

Good travel in France depends on:
* Judgement
* Timing
* Local awareness
* Cultural nuance

Those things are learned over time, not scraped from the internet.
This guide exists because experience still matters.

The Main Square of our Dordogne Village, Monpazier

Explore further (click any line to visit its page)

* View our holiday homes in France

* Learn about our hub-based travel approach

* Check live availability

* Contact us to discuss your travel dates

* DOWNLOAD THE GUIDE

* ORDER A PRINTED VERSION TO BE POSTED TO YOU

Discover the Real France with French Cottages Holidays

Your resource for organising the Best French Travel
Itinerary you’ll ever experience.

WRITE TO US NOW VIEW ALL OUR PROPERTIES

Address

759 Rathdowne Street
North Carlton 3054
Victoria
Australia

Contacts

Email: stay@frenchcottages.com
Phone: +61 (3) 8658 0799