Located in the southern tip of Burgundy and bordering the Monts du Beaujolais is one of Burgundy's least know regions - the Brionnais. That's a shame as the Brionnais has much to offer visitors.  It is a region of soft green hills dotted with farms, churches and villages.

Arcachon, (Arcaishon in Gascon), began as a small fishing village nestled within a veritable forest of pine trees, oaks and salt marshes, at the northwest tip of Gascony on the Atlantic coast of France, with fewer than 400 residents in the early 1800's.  With great foresight,  two brothers, Émile and Isaac Pereire, extended the rail line 34 miles west from Bordeaux, creating the first healthcare resort in France.  Officially christened by Napoléon III on May 2, 1852, Arcachon has thrived for a mere 160 years. The population today exceeds 11,000.

To some, Nimes is considered the gateway to Provence, to others it's a final destination. In just three hours, from the Gare de Lyon in Paris, you can be surrounded by 2,000 years of history, a lush mélange of Catalan, Roman and French influences.

Just the name, Côte d’Azur evokes images of one of the most glamorous vacation destinations on Earth. Cap d’Antibes... Nice... Cannes... And of course there is the spectacular annual Cannes Film Festival which draws celebrities and celebrated filmmakers from all corners of the world.

The Vermillion Coast is in the heart of Catalonia, where the craggy Pyrénées mountains descend into the Mediterranean Sea. The view seen from high above the coast encompasses a rich landscape of geometrically captivating vineyards and jagged shoreline.  Inextricably anchored between France and Spain, Collioure is considered the pearl of the Côte Vermeille.

A subterranean aquifer, the source of the Sorgue River, runs along the rim of a precipitously rugged outcropping high above the village of Fontaine de Vaucluse, its 7-kilometer flow enough to water this entire Provençal valley. Over centuries the rushing water had cascaded over boulders on its way to encircle an island above the marshes, creating what has become known as "the Venice of the Vaucluse."

If you've dreamed of skiing Mont Blanc or indulging in the après-ski scene, Megève has what you've dreamed of. Just a few hours by rail from Gare de Lyon in Paris or less than an hour from the Geneva airport, a fairytale resort awaits with every imaginable form of pampering in the French Alps. Margaret Kemp has the BUZZ from Domaine du Mont d'Arbois.

As you drive through the remote, southwestern French countryside, down narrow plane tree-lined allées past villages shrouded in mystery, you get the sense that the area looks much as it did during the time of d'Artagnan, one of its most renowned heroes. He was not just a fictionalized character from the Alexandre Dumas novels, but a real person named Charles Ogier de Batz-Castelmore d’Artagnan, a valiant soldier who rose to the rank of captain-lieutenant in the prestigious French Musketeers, second in command to the "Sun King" himself, Louis XIV, who was by title captain of the Musketeers.

Karen Fawcett just completed another French rail trip, where a chance encounter with another traveler reminded her that maneuvering through French transportation hubs can be a challenge. She has a few basic tips to help foreign travelers reach their assigned train car and seat after successfully navigating through French transit stations.