Europe
France
About 67M people live in France, on 547,030 km² in 13 regions; the capital is Paris. The highest summit is Mont Blanc (4,806 m).
Best timeMay–Jun · Sep
Best weather in OctoberNice 77
October: highs15° – 21°
Rain this month, on average87mm
Mean of its 13 most visited places. Best: May–Jun · Sep.
France at a glance
The atlas follows 80,227 places here month by month, with 4,135 mountains and 29,529 monuments; across the most visited of them, the best months are May, June and September.
Paris now16°CCloudy · 15:31Sunrise · sunset08:22 · 18:50ParisNext holiday1 NovemberAll Saints' DayEarthquakes0in the last 7 days (M2.5+)Events4123 concerts · 18 matches in 14 daysTravel adviceUS 2UK 1Exercise increased caution
80,227places in 13 regions4,135summits, highest Mont Blanc29,529monuments2,511museums652lakes245beaches196ski areas91festivals23,703huts, viewpoints, campsites…
France's population
Every five years from 1950; from 2030 the projection.
+59%41.9M in 1950 → 66.7M in 2025 → 68.2M in 2050France · In numbers
GDP per person (PPP)$64,0002025 · 28/181 among countries · World: $25,700
Life expectancy83.02024 · 24/212 among countries · World: 73.5
Living in towns and cities79 %2025 · 65/212 among countries · World: 58 %
Using the internet89 %2024 · 65/179 among countries · World: 71 %
Children per woman1.612024 · 132/212 among countries · World: 2.19
Forest cover33 %2024 · 104/206 among countries
The latest year each series has; the line is the whole series since 1960.
When to go to France
The places with the best weather in each month, scored from their climate.
For the beach in August
Places and regions of France
The most visited places with their score this month, then every region with what the atlas follows there.
58OctoberParis
Jun–Jul · Sep
17° / 9°67 mm
69OctoberLyon
Apr · Sep–Oct
18° / 9°92 mm
53OctoberStrasbourg
Apr · Jun · Sep
16° / 7°80 mm
70OctoberBordeaux
Apr · Jun · Sep
20° / 10°85 mm
64OctoberNantes
Jun–Jul · Sep
18° / 9°99 mm
48OctoberLille
May–Jun · Sep
15° / 8°75 mm
77OctoberNice
Jun · Sep–Oct
21° / 14°125 mm
57OctoberRennes
Jun–Jul · Sep
17° / 9°81 mm
13 regions
New Aquitaine12,765 places · 83 summits · Bordeaux
Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes12,030 places · 1,335 summits · Lyon
Occitanie7,950 places · 779 summits · Montpellier
Grand Est7,377 places · 149 summits · Strasbourg
Bourgogne-Franche-Comté6,470 places · 59 summits · Dijon
Normandy6,442 places · 8 summits · Caen
Centre-Val de Loire6,027 places · Orléans
Brittany5,450 places · 14 summits · Rennes
Hauts-de-France5,265 places · 4 summits · Lille
Pays de la Loire3,836 places · 3 summits · Nantes
Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur2,910 places · 724 summits · Nice
Île-de-France2,621 places · Paris
Corsica1,084 places · 260 summits · Ajaccio
France from above
Every place scored for the month you pick: comfortable temperatures, dry days and clear skies.
OctoberMonth scores for France
Photo: Yann Caradec from Paris, France · CC BY-SA 2.0 · Wikimedia CommonsReport this photo · linked, not stored
Photo: Moody Dreiza (Moody751 at English Wikipedia) · CC BY 2.5 · Wikimedia CommonsReport this photo · linked, not stored
Photo: Édouard Hue (User:EdouardHue) · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia CommonsReport this photo · linked, not stored
Photo: Assembled by DePlusJean · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia CommonsReport this photo · linked, not stored
Photo: Philippe Gisselbrecht/ Ville de Metz · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia CommonsReport this photo · linked, not stored
Photo: Jean-Marc Rosier from http://www.rosier.pro · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia CommonsReport this photo · linked, not stored
Photo: Paris91 (compilation); for proper author attribution, see source images. · CC0 · Wikimedia CommonsReport this photo · linked, not stored
Photo: KBWEi at German Wikipedia (Original text: KBWEi 21:50, 14. Okt. 2007 (CEST)) · Public domain · Wikimedia CommonsReport this photo · linked, not stored
Photo: Jorge Franganillo from Barcelona, Spain · CC BY 2.0 · Wikimedia CommonsReport this photo · linked, not stored
Photo: Renegade at Dutch Wikipedia · Public domain · Wikimedia CommonsReport this photo · linked, not stored
Nature in France
Summit4,806 m
Mont Blanc
Summit4,677 m
rocher de la Tournette
Summit4,547 m
les Bosses
Lake
Lake Annecy
Lake
Lac de Serre-Ponçon
Lake
Lac de Grand-LieuWildlife in October
The birds and mammals seen most this month, compared with the rest of their year.
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Outdoors in France
Hiking routes, ski areas and everything to do outdoors, counted.
T1Bonfol Km 0
17.5 km280 m4 h 20 min
Sentier du Salève
6.6 km780 m2 h 40 min
Tour du Pays de Montbéliard
5.5 km365 m2 h 10 min
L'Echappée Jurassienne
3.7 km250 m1 h 30 min
T1Tourisme de Mémoire 14/18 Le front des Vosges
3.5 km86 m1 h 10 min
T1
Le Tour de Réchésy
5.5 km223 m2 h
Boucle des Trois Vallées
3.7 km109 m1 h 15 min
Camp sites12,317Viewpoints3,907Climbing3,703Mountain huts1,655Golf courses750Theme parks505Zoos356Surf spots225Hot springs & thermal baths125Water parks120
Les 3 Vallées1,306 km of pistes · 172 lifts
Paradiski799 km of pistes · 166 lifts
Les Portes du Soleil620 km of pistes · 197 lifts
Le Grand Massif382 km of pistes · 72 lifts
Tignes - Val d'Isère370 km of pistes · 85 lifts
Serre Chevalier335 km of pistes · 71 lifts
Evasion Mont Blanc317 km of pistes · 108 lifts
Domaine Skiable Espace Lumière312 km of pistes · 39 lifts
Culture in France
29,529 monuments and 2,511 museums; the best known first.
Palace of VersaillesBuilt 1661 · French Baroque
Notre-Dame de ChartresBuilt 1145 · classic gothic
Basilica of Saint-DenisBuilt 1101 · Gothic
Notre-Dame d'AmiensBuilt 1220 · Gothic
Château de ChambordBuilt 1519 · Renaissance
Bourges CathedralBuilt 1195 · classic gothic
Museum
Louvre MuseumBuilt 1793
Museum
Musée d'OrsayBuilt 1986What's on in France
Coming matches
23OctStade Brestois 29 – OGC NiceLigue 1 · Brest · 20:45
24OctToulouse FC – ES Troyes ACLigue 1 · Toulouse · 17:15
24OctRacing Club de Lens – Paris FCLigue 1 · Lens · 20:45
25OctAS Monaco FC – Lille OSCLigue 1 · 15:00
25OctOlympique de Marseille – Le Havre ACLigue 1 · Marseille · 17:15
Concerts and shows
24OctGalibotL’Aéronef · La Madeleine
25OctAbbathL’Aéronef · La Madeleine
30OctThe Honnet BrothersPalais des Congrès de Royan · Royan
5NovGrossstadtgeflüsterE‐Werk · Schœneck
8NovQuatuor ElmirePalais des Congrès de Royan · Royan
The ground and the sky in France
Earthquakes since 1950 and in the last month; eclipses, meteors and the moon as seen from the capital.
Last 30 days0magnitude 2.5 or moreSince 195013magnitude 5+, of them 0 of 6+StrongestM5.7Saint-Pierre-d'Oléron 5 km ↙ · 1972Deadliest5,000deaths · 1227The moon tonightWaxing gibbous85% · ParisNext eclipse21 Feb 2027Penumbral lunar eclipseOrionids~17 an hour21 October · ParisNorthern lightsKp 7.2is enough somewhere in the country
Getting to France
17 large airports, 3,279 railway stations, 358 ferry ports; the ones closest to the most visited places.
Paris-Orly AirportORY · Paris
14 kmLyon Saint-Exupéry AirportLYS · Lyon
19 kmStrasbourg AirportSXB · Strasbourg
10 kmBordeaux–Mérignac AirportBOD · Bordeaux
11 kmNantes Atlantique AirportNTE · Nantes
8.3 kmLille AirportLIL · Lille
8.2 kmSaint-Michel Notre-DameParis
0.2 kmLyon Jean MacéLyon
0.7 kmStrasbourgStrasbourg
0.9 kmBordeaux-Saint-JeanBordeaux
2.6 kmRezé - Pont-RousseauNantes
2.7 kmLille-FlandresLille
1.1 kmNice Ferry Terminal→ Gare Maritime Terminal Sud, Gare Maritime de L'Île-Rousse, Gare maritime d'Ajaccio
1.9 kmPonton Toulon→ Ferry toulon, P.E.M. Pôle Ecoles Méditerranée, Ponton Président
0.5 kmGare maritime d'Ajaccio→ Ferry toulon, Gare Maritime d'Arenc, Nice Ferry Terminal
0.4 kmEmbarcadère Vieux-Port→ Embarcadère N°1 (Du Chenal), Jetée Barbotin, Les Minimes
0.8 kmCruise Terminal→ Saint-Tropez
0.5 kmGare Maritime Terminal Sud→ Bastia-Savona, Ferry toulon, FerryTerminal Mole 6
0.1 kmPractical information
Plugs, money, phone numbers and the side of the road: the things to know before you land.
PlugsCE230 V
Emergency112Calling code +33
TrafficOn the rightside of the road
CurrencyEuroEUR
LanguagesFrench
Local time15:31Paris
Tipping
Service is included by law (service compris); leaving small change, or up to 5–10% for very good service, is a courtesy, not a duty.