NICK BOULOS slopes off with the stars to the coolest of ski resorts, Val d'Isere

An English woman's textile courses in a château near Toulouse are really on the button, as JOANNE O'BRIEN discovers

A new gallery has placed a lesser-known area of France on the map, says ANDREW EAMES

If you want to escape to the snow for February half-term, NICOLA ISEARD suggests some top destinations

A haven for good food and wine, Nîmes, in the south of France makes an ideal base to explore t he rich countryside of the Camargue region, as CLARE COLVIN discovers

If you’re one of those people who last climbed on a bike when you were 10, you don’t know what you’ve been missing says BOBBIE THURGOOD

Longing for pristine pistes and crowd-free ski lifts this winter?NICK BOULOS heads off the beaten slopes in search of blissfully overlooked resorts

There's still time to stock up on festive fizz with a short trip across the Channel, suggests WILL HIDE

With its fine wines, and picturesque landscapes, the French region is a great alternative to neighbouring Bordeaux, finds WILLIAM HARTSTON

GARY CHAPPELL has a go at the ancient art of sabrage during a visit to the Champagne area of north-eastern France