Choosing Your Favourite French Village, by Janice Chung

2013 Le Village Préferé des Francais: Eguisheim

For the past few months throughout France the residents of certain French villages have been jumping for joy. Why? They are now in the running for the next “Le Village Préferé des Francais.” And choosing the favourite village of the French in 2018 is done by millions of television viewers throughout France. Stephane Bern, a well known French journalist and television host, will announce the winner on the annual telecast June 19.

2014 Le Village Préferé des Francais: Cordes-sur-Ciel

“Le Village Préferé des Francais” – the favourite village of the French airs on the French television channel France 2. Since 2012 the television station has run the competition and in the final running there are about a dozen which make the finals. 

I’m surprised there is this competition as there is already “Les Plus Beaux Villages de France” (Most beautiful villages in France). However, in this contest, rather than a committee deciding who wins, it’s the television audience who votes. Not surprisingly, many of the villages already have the designation of “Le Plus Beau Village de France.”

Competition

In 2016, 1 village from each of the 13 regions were vying for the title. Viewers can vote by phone or SMS and as you can imagine, the night the winner was announcement the show brought in millions of viewers.

I’ve been fortunate to have visited many of the winning villages and while they are definitely beautiful, I’m sure a lot of villages were surprised by the choices. I mean, how can you pick your “favourite”? It’s like picking your favourite child, isn’t it? They’re all beautiful. Take a look at some of these beauties. ... continued here

Janice Chung has travelled to France more than 30 times. She’s had many unique experiences in France, beyond the ones typically listed in tour books and she loves to share these experiences with others. Check out her blog France Travel Trips here.

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