If you love bric-a-brac or antiques, then you can’t go too far in France without finding a ‘brocante’, rammed with all sorts of objets and vintage items. The best place I’ve found, in terms of variety, is Le Perche in Normandy, which is included in this feature for Homes & Antiques magazine, along with Paris, Lille, Bordeaux, the Dordogne and the ‘capital’ Isle-sur-la-Sorgue in Provence (which I covered here, too).
Read the pdf here: HAM_312_p149-153_TravelBrocante.FINAL]
Or you can read it on the Homes & Antiques website: link
Each section included somewhere to stay in that particular location, but I’ve stayed in some fantastic other places (not in the article) where the owners have used ‘brocante’ and antiques to awe-inspiring effect, which you might like to try out too:
The luxury hotel:
Jardins des Secrets in Nimes – it’s a wonder anyone ever leaves this luxury hotel to look around Nimes, there’s so many curiosities and antiques to admire. Have a look at their website
The B&B:
Manoir du Moulin, Vendée – the owner Shari Swann is a big fan of the vide-greniers (’empty attic’ sales – like a car boot sale/flea market) nearby and has used some of the vintage finds and brocante to great effect. Take a look.
The self-catering place:
Chateau de Breuil, near Tours – This lovely chateau close to the village of Chédigny in the Loire Valley is full of fascinating artefacts. Owner Roxanna McDonald is an architect and has gathered some fascinating objets to decorate and tell the history of the chateau; she even has a great collection of Napoleon memorabilia. Check it out.
(Saint-Ouen, Paris, pictured).