Page 144 - (DK Eyewitness) Travel Guide - Europe

142  FR ANCE AND THE L OW C OUNTRIES

France and the Low
Countries at a Glance Groningen
France dominates the northwest of continental Europe.
To the northeast of France lie Belgium and the NETHERLANDS
Netherlands, known as the Low Countries because (see pp236–61)
they occupy flat plains and land reclaimed from the Amsterdam
sea. South of Belgium is the tiny state of Luxembourg.
France has some of Europe’s greatest attractions, Rotterdam
notably the culture and nightlife of Paris. Visitors often
choose to tour just one or two of the country’s regions:
the mountains of the Alps or the Pyrenees, one of the Paris (see pp150–71), France’s
capital, is a city of distinctive
historic wine-growing areas, or the warm south. districts. Montmartre, the Brussels
Belgium and the Netherlands have many historic cities hilltop artists’ quarter, is Liège
full of fine museums and art galleries. Visiting these dominated by the Lille
countries can be rewarding because all the major Sacré-Coeur. BELGIUM AND
sights lie within easy reach of each other. Amiens LUXEMBOURG
(see pp212–35)
Cherbourg
Luxembourg
Rouen
Reims
Metz
Paris
St. Malo
Nancy
Chartres Strasbourg
Rennes
Troyes
Orléans

The Loire Valley (see pp176–9) Nantes Dijon
is one of France’s most popular Besançon
regions for touring. It is dotted
with magnificent châteaux, built
by kings and nobles during the
Renaissance. One of the finest Poitiers
is Chenonceau. FRANCE
(see pp144–211)

Limoges Lyon
Clermont-
Ferrand
Grenoble
Bordeaux

Avignon
Southwest France (see pp188–9) has a huge variety
of attractions, from the peaks of the Pyrenees to
Atlantic seaside resorts, such as Biarritz, and the Toulouse Montpellier
world-famous vineyards of Bordeaux (see p186). Biarritz Nice
Marseille
0 km 75
0 miles 75
Perpignan
Avenue des Champs-Elysees from Arc de Triomphe at sunset, Paris

142-143_EW_Europe.indd 142 14/07/16 10:44 am