This 1,400-year-old abbey was once a powerhouse for music and intellectualism known across Normandy.

A place to see how French aristocrats lived in the early 1900s.

One architect's organic, human-centric design has been fully realized in this alien art house.

Despite centuries of architectural innovation, this French castle is being built like it's the 13th century.

An architectural oddity of six stories, accessed by graceful ramps.

French commune at the heart of conspiracies.

This mountain trail inspired Nietzsche to complete his magnum opus.

Remains of the artificial harbours invented for the Allied invasion of Normandy can still be seen at sea.

An ancient ossuary in Rouen.

Perfume museum and library.

The opulent home that inspired Tintin's Marlinspike Hall and the adventures within.

Jean Tinguely's bizarre monster sculpture is hidden deep in a forest.

A daring D-Day assault by U.S. Army Rangers is commemorated atop the high cliffs of this strategic point.

One man's desire to transcend art led to the construction of this outsider chapel.

Series of underground houses inhabited continuously for centuries.

An atmospheric, medieval-themed book store hides in a 13th-century underground space.

A memorial to the nearly 10,000 American soldiers laid to rest on the beaches of Normandy during WWII.

This submersible road connecting a French island to the mainland is lined with safety towers for when the tide strands travelers.

The castle was reconstructed to fit Kaiser Wilhelm II's romanticized vision of the Middle Ages.

France's high-tech, future-themed amusement park.

Green labyrinth formed by a karstic maze hidden in a preserved oak forest.

Underneath a chalk hill in France lies what Hitler hoped would be the underground launching base for a devastating new weapon.

Lyon's "Wall of the Silk Weavers" is one of the largest murals in Europe.

Bordered by forest on three sides and the ocean on the other, the Great Dune of Pilat is the highest sand dune in Europe.