Top Reasons To Visit In France In 2016

France 2016 promises to be a fun and exciting year. With a stronger dollar almost at parity with the Euro, here are major developments and events that American visitors are sure to enjoy.

Norwegian non-stop flights

To Paris From 29 July, Norwegian will begin its first operations from Paris-Charles-de-Gaulle Airport with low-cost nonstop flights to New York, Los Angeles and Fort Lauderdale/Miami.

To Martinique & the Guadeloupe Islands
Starting December 3, 2015 It’s time to visit Martinique and the Guadeloupe Islands. This coming winter season, starting December 3, 2015 and through late March, the award-winning low-cost airline Norwegian is flying non-stop and very affordably to both islands from three East Coast locations: New York’s JFK, Baltimore’s BWI and Boston’s Logan airports. It is the first time in 20 years that residents of the Northeast will enjoy direct service to these French Caribbean Islands. 

Re-opening of the Unterlinden in Colmar, Alsace – December 12, 2015
Even further north and just in time for the Christmas market season, Alsace will welcome back the Unterlinden Museum in Colmar – home to the remarkable Isenheim Altarpiece. The museum will reopen December 12, 2015, after a reorganization of its extensive collections and three years of major works including a new wing dedicated to contemporary art.

Normandy’s Impressionist Festival – April 16 to September 26, 2016
As the cradle of Impressionism, Normandy will shine from April 16 to September 26, 2016, during the 3rd edition of its Impressionist Festival. It is the perfect time to experience both the works and sights that inspired masters like Monet, Pissaro, Caillebotte, Millet, Boudin, Renoir, Degas, and Cassat. They painted everyday life, depicting scenes from now-famed seaside resorts like Trouville, Deauville, Dieppe, and Honfleur. Over 25 exhibitions that will showcase portraiture – Read more (Main Impressionist exhibitions)

La Cité du Vin: Inauguration June 2, 2016 The gloriously restored wine capital of Bordeaux will include a Wine Museum and Cultural center, the Cité du Vin. Minutes away from Bordeaux’s elegant city center, the Cité will offer visitors immersive and multi-sensory technologies to explore a huge permanent exhibit about great wine cultures throughout the ages. Its opening will coincide with the lively Bordeaux Wine Festival scheduled for June 23 to 26, 2016. By day, visitors will be able to sample over 80 Bordeaux and Aquitaine wines and other culinary delights delivered on a mile-long stretch of the city’s magnificent Garonne River waterfront. By night and every night, this major biennial celebration features a music festival, followed by a spectacular sound & light show and grand fireworks display. Read More

Euro 2016 – June 10 to July 10, 2016
Sports and soccer fans have plenty more to celebrate in France, which, for the third time, is hosting the great European soccer tournament, Euro 2016, from June 10 to July 10. The month-long soccer fest will feature 24 of the top European teams. The 51 matches will unfold in 10 cities throughout France: Bordeaux – Lens – Lille – Lyon – Marseille - Nice – Paris – Saint-Denis – Saint-Étienne and Toulouse - 

Franco-American Museum of Blérancourt
Reopening & inauguration of new wing - Fall 2016
At the other end of the country, in Picardy, the Franco-American Museum of Blérancourt, will reopen in the fall of 2016 after an ambitious expansion that includes a new wing and reorganization to showcase its comprehensive collection of art and documents dedicated to the Franco-American relationship. The museum was founded by Anne Morgan, the remarkable daughter of U.S. industrialist, philanthropist and art collector J.P. Morgan. She transformed the Château de Blérancourt, her WWI and post-war headquarters in Picardy, into the Franco-American Museum. After she donated it in 1931 to the French Government, it was declared a national museum. The reopening will most likely be late September.

Lascaux IV – inauguration in Fall 2016
In the fall of 2016, the Montignac-Lascaux International Parietal Art Center, also known as Lascaux 4, is poised to become the leading tourist attraction and cultural tool associated with Lascaux's world-famous painted and engraved cave art. A new and complete replica of the Lascaux cave will be the beating heart of the Center, a sizable complex that uses new imaging and virtual technology for comprehensive interpretation purposes. Read more

2016 MAJOR ANNIVERSARIES

100th Anniversary of WWI - 1914-1918
The story of Anne Morgan’s war, the Chateau de Blérancourt and WWI all go hand in hand. There will be events to commemorate the WWI battles of 1916, most notably the battle of the Somme in Picardy and, of course, the battle of Verdun in Lorraine. Although the United States had not yet entered the war in 1916, it's never too early to experience the moving memorials honoring the American dough boys and allied soldiers who fought or lost their lives in Picardy and Lorraine during Great War. Read more

France & Loire Valley
500th Anniversary of Leonardo da Vinci's arrival in France In 2016, France will celebrate the 500th anniversary of Leonardo da Vinci’s arrival with the Mona Lisa in tow, which could explain her cryptic smile. Invited by France’s great Renaissance King Francois 1er, da Vinci crossed the Alps to reach Amboise in the Loire Valley, where he settled and spend the last 3 years of his life at the Château du Clos Lucé, now a museum in his honor. It is the perfect opportunity to pay a visit to the Mona Lisa at the Louvre and admire Leonardo’s inventions at the Château du Clos Lucé. Read more

Normandy 2016
Stretching back even deeper into history, the 1,050-year-old Mont-St-Michel Abbey in Normandy has been restored to its island status at the highest tides. A major decade-long national ecological project tackled the problem of rising sand levels, which posed a threat to the monument. The area's new and improved water flow will safeguard Mont-Saint-Michel bay as a maritime area and protect the ecosystem of this varied and precious place. To mark the occasion, the Tour de France will begin on July 2, 2016, from the Mont-St-Michel.

It will also be the perfect year to explore Normandy’s medieval heritage. In 1066, 950 years ago, William the Conqueror became the first Norman king of England after his victory at the Battle of Hastings on October 14, 1066. In the Bayeux Museum—also a storied D-Day site, resides a masterpiece: the 11th century Tapestry of Bayeux. Also known as the Queen Mathilda Tapestry, the 229-foot long and 19 inch high linen cloth, depicts through beautifully embroidered panels the Norman conquest of England.

ALWAYS NEW ACCOMMODATIONS

High on the radar of newsworthy items are new destinations to experience and new accommodations to enjoy. In Paris, there has been an impressive wave of boutique hotel openings. To name just a few, there are The Maison Souquet, the Grand Hotel Pigalle, the Bains Douches and the Champagne-themed and aptly named Bubbles of Paris Hotel. This coming winter there will also be the long-anticipated reopening of the legendary Hotel de Crillon and the Ritz.

Paris is not the only place where things are happening, of course. This fall, the Paris Region welcomed a boutique hotel of its own, La Demeure du Parc, in royal and beautiful Fontainebleau. This summer the Rhone-Alpes' classy Royal Evian Hotel reopened after extensive and innovative renovations. And Bordeaux has embraced the Grand Hôtel de Bordeaux & Spa, brought in July into the InterContinental family of hotels. It has turned to world-renowned chef, restaurateur and television personality Gordon Ramsey to oversee its gastronomic restaurant, Le Pressoir d'Argent

Normandy Impressionist Festival 2016 From April 16 To September 26

Held from 16 April to 26 September 2016, the third Normandy Impressionist Festival will continue the direction taken by the two previous editions, which attracted 1.8 million visitors.
This vast array of cultural activities, exhibitions, live shows, dance performances, operas, guinguettes, film programmes and seminars will attest the cultural vitality of Normandy to its French and international visitors.
The theme for 2016 is Impressionism in portraits: portraits in the classic sense of the term but also in more contemporary interpretations.
The goal is to place the human element at the heart of the Festival: though portraying a period in the nineteenth century with its society, recreations, women, children and artists, the Festival is also interested in contemporary versions of the portrait, like selfies. It explores the notion of representation, of oneself and others, as well as its value, message and significance 140 years on.
MAJOR EXHIBITIONS:
Gustave Caillebotte, Painter and Gardener
Musée des impressionnismes
Giverny
March 24 to July 3, 2016
Caillebotte, long considered a wealthy amateur painter, collector and the patron of his Impressionist friends, is today seen as one of the group’s major figures. A large part of his work was dedicated to gardens. Some 100 paintings, drawings and sculptures will reveal many inspirations for his art, from the Paris of Baron Haussmann to Yerres, from the Seine to Le Petit Gennevilliers and his garden, and his relationship with Monet.
Exhibition curator: Marina Ferretti
Bernard Clarisse
Musée de Dieppe
April 16 to June 5, 2016
Bernard Clarisse, a contemporary painter, has embarked upon the portraits of the great artists and thinkers of our generation and past centuries. The musée de Dieppe will present those important individuals who frequented or lived in Normandy, including those strong personalities from the Impressionist age in Dieppe. Bernard Clarisse renders manifest the creative force and influence that these individuals had on the arts by painting their portraits 120 cm in height, and superimposing the word MEGAS (Great) in gold Greek letters on the figure’s forehead.
Exhibition curator: Pierre Ickowicz
Caillebotte, an Intimate Portrait of a Norman Family
Musée d’Art et d’Histoire Baron Gérard (MAHB)
Bayeux
April 16 to September 18, 2016
Gustave Caillebotte (Paris 1848 - Gennevilliers 1894) is mainly known for his paintings of the Paris region and the Seine estuary. The exhibition focuses on a different aspect of the character: his attachment to Normandy, the setting to his family’s history. The representation of his relatives was a theme dear to the artist. The painting Portraits à la campagne, held at the Baron Gerard Museum of Art and History, is one of his more personal works and is therefore naturally the main thread of the exhibition.
Exhibition curator: Dominique Hérouard
Scenes of Impressionist Life
Musée des Beaux-Arts
Rouen
April 16 to September 26, 2016
Portraiture lies at the heart of this display of about 100 paintings by Manet, Monet, Renoir, Cézanne, Degas, Caillebotte, Fantin-Latour, Morisot, Cassat and many more. Sculptures, photographs and personal letters too will help lift the veil on the personal worlds of the great masters. Beyond a narration of the private lives of outstanding artists, this exhibition of masterworks will shed light on major developments in French society during the 19th century in terms of the status of women and children and the role of the artist.
Exhibition curator: Sylvain Amic
Jeanne Forain, Portraits of an Epoch
Musée Alfred Canel
Pont-Audemer
April 16 to September 26, 2016
Less well-known than the Impressionist painter JeanLouis Forain, her husband, Jeanne Bosc-Forain (Paris,1865–Le Chesnay, 1954) was nevertheless a painter and sculptor of talent. The exhibition to be presented at the musée Alfred Canel will be the first dedicated to her work and show some forty works from private and public collections.
Exhibition curator: Mathilde Legendre
Frits Thaulow, Landscapist by Nature
Musée des Beaux Arts
Caen
April 16 to September 26, 2016
This is the first retrospective of the work of Frits Thaulow (1847–1906), leader of the Norwegian painters in France during the Impressionist and Postimpressionist years. A cousin of Edvard Munch and the brother-in-law of Gauguin, Thaulow adopted nature as his central theme, and his body of work is characterized by "pleinairisme" and "atmospheric" painting that does not abandon the ecological and humanist vision of the countryside typical of Scandinavian culture. The exhibition also looks at Thaulow’s European and American career and the generation of artists affected by his genius, including Monet, who traveled to Norway in 1895.
Exhibition curators: Caroline Joubert, Franck Claustrat and Emmanuelle Delapierre
The Studio of Light: Portrait of Eugène Boudin
Musée d’Art Moderne André Malraux
Le Havre
April 16 to September 26, 2016
Throughout his life Eugène Boudin was a writer. His letters, notebooks, journals and even a short autobiography tell us about the man, his relationships, his profession and his artistic ambitions. This exhibit will compare approximately 100 works (watercolors, pastels, drawings, paintings) of this pioneer of Impressionism with the thoughts and aspirations contained in his writings, many of which deal with his desire to master the depiction of natural light.
Exhibition curators: Annette Haudiquet. Scientific committee: Laurent Manoeuvre and Anne-Marie Bergeret
Under the Norman sun...In the footsteps of Paul-César Helleu (1859–1927)
Musée des Beaux-Arts de Saint-Lô
Saint-Lô
Relive the atmosphere of the seaside during the Belle Epoque through the work of Paul-César Helleu! A draughtsman and painter, and friend of the Impressionists, Helleu was lionized by society for his portraits of the most elegant women of his time. Bathing huts, seaside excursions, Parisian interiors, Norman beaches, his works plunge us into the social activities around the turn of the century.
Exhibition curator: Robert Blaizeau
Félix Buhot (1847-1898), Painter of Atmospheres
Musée Thomas Henry
Cherbourg-Octeville
June 9 to September 11, 2016
Originally from Valognes, a small, charming town some 20 kilometres from Cherbourg, Félix Buhot spent his life between Paris, the Normandy coast, England and Brittany. His works, produced at the same time as those of the Impressionists, embraced a wide variety of techniques, taking in oil paintings, gouaches, watercolours and prints on a series of repeated subjects. Buhot focused his attention on capturing the atmosphere of the places around him, attempting to “see superb things that others are unaware of”
Exhibition curator: Louise Le Gall
Sickert in Dieppe
Musée de Dieppe
June 25 to September 26, 2016
Walter Sickert (Munich 1862 – Bathampton [UK] 1942), an English painter born to a German-Danish father and English mother, is by far the most renowned of the artists who visited our town in the late nineteenth and first half of the twentieth century. A close friend of Jacques-Émile Blanche and a pivot of French and British culture, Sickert was a key contributor to the evolution of British painting to modernity based on a combination of his own Whistlerian heritage and the Impressionist movement, in the wake of Camille and Lucien Pissarro. Having already known Dieppe as a child, between 1885 and 1933 he was to spend a great deal of his life in the town.
Exhibition curators: Pierre Ickowicz and Delphine Lévy
Being Young at the Time of the Impressionists (1860–1910)
Musée Eugène Boudin
Honfleur
June 25 to October 3, 2016
www.musee-eugene-boudin.html
This display of both portraits and genre scenes will round out an understanding of what it meant to be young, especially in Normandy, during the years 1860–1910, including from the time from when one was cradled in one's mother's arms to the embrace of one's future partner. The classical traditions of portraiture stemming from the 18th century - such s imagining the subject of a painting as a mythological or religious hero - will be represented, as will, at the other extreme, the aesthetic novelties of naturalism. Impressionism, the link between the two extremes, will also sit in the mix.
Exhibition curators: Anne-Marie Bergeret and Dominique Lobstein
Sorolla, a Spanish painter in Paris
Musée des Impressionnismes
Giverny
July 14 to November 6, 2016
In 1906, Spanish painter Joaquín Sorolla exhibited for the first time at the galerie Georges Petit in Paris, one of the main impressionist galleries. The exhibition was a resounding success and helped establish Sorolla’s international reputation. His masterful rendering of light effects led critics to view Sorolla as an impressionist painter. This exhibition demonstrates how he created a surprising, innovatory style in late 19th-century Paris. The musée des impressionnismes Giverny brings together around 100 paintings, including 50 oil sketches featuring landscapes, portraits and beach scenes, subjects for which he became famous.
Exhibition curators: Blanca Pons-Sorolla and Maria Lopez Fernandez

Normandy Tourist Board Website

Normandy Impressionist Festival Website

Top Reasons To Visit France In 2016

France 2016 promises to be a fun and exciting year. With a stronger dollar almost at parity with the Euro, here are major developments and events that American visitors are sure to enjoy.

Norwegian non-stop flights to Martinique & the Guadeloupe Islands
Starting December 3, 2015
It’s time to visit Martinique and the Guadeloupe Islands. This coming winter season, starting December 3, 2015 and through late March, the award-winning low-cost airline Norwegian is flying non-stop and very affordably to both islands from three East Coast locations: New York’s JFK, Baltimore’s BWI and Boston’s Logan airports. It is the first time in 20 years that residents of the Northeast will enjoy direct service to these French Caribbean Islands. 

January 2016 service update

Re-opening of the Unterlinden in Colmar, Alsace – December 12, 2015
Even further north and just in time for the Christmas market season, Alsace will welcome back the Unterlinden Museum in Colmar – home to the remarkable Isenheim Altarpiece. The museum will reopen December 12, 2015, after a reorganization of its extensive collections and three years of major works including a new wing dedicated to contemporary art.

Normandy’s Impressionist Festival – April 16 to September 26, 2016
As the cradle of Impressionism, Normandy will shine from April 16 to September 26, 2016, during the 3rd edition of its Impressionist Festival. It is the perfect time to experience both the works and sights that inspired masters like Monet, Pissaro, Caillebotte, Millet, Boudin, Renoir, Degas, and Cassat. They painted everyday life, depicting scenes from now-famed seaside resorts like Trouville, Deauville, Dieppe, and Honfleur. Over 25 exhibitions that will showcase portraiture – Read more (Main Impressionist exhibitions)

La Cité du Vin: Inauguration June 2, 2016 The gloriously restored wine capital of Bordeaux will include a Wine Museum and Cultural center, the Cité du Vin. Minutes away from Bordeaux’s elegant city center, the Cité will offer visitors immersive and multi-sensory technologies to explore a huge permanent exhibit about great wine cultures throughout the ages. Its opening will coincide with the lively Bordeaux Wine Festival scheduled for June 23 to 26, 2016. By day, visitors will be able to sample over 80 Bordeaux and Aquitaine wines and other culinary delights delivered on a mile-long stretch of the city’s magnificent Garonne River waterfront. By night and every night, this major biennial celebration features a music festival, followed by a spectacular sound & light show and grand fireworks display.Read More

Euro 2016 – June 10 to July 10, 2016
Sports and soccer fans have plenty more to celebrate in France, which, for the third time, is hosting the great European soccer tournament, Euro 2016, from June 10 to July 10. The month-long soccer fest will feature 24 of the top European teams. The 51 matches will unfold in 10 cities throughout France: Bordeaux – Lens – Lille – Lyon – Marseille - Nice – Paris – Saint-Denis – Saint-Étienne and Toulouse - 

Franco-American Museum of Blérancourt
Reopening & inauguration of new wing - Fall 2016
At the other end of the country, in Picardy, the Franco-American Museum of Blérancourt, will reopen in the fall of 2016 after an ambitious expansion that includes a new wing and reorganization to showcase its comprehensive collection of art and documents dedicated to the Franco-American relationship. The museum was founded by Anne Morgan, the remarkable daughter of U.S. industrialist, philanthropist and art collector J.P. Morgan. She transformed the Château de Blérancourt, her WWI and post-war headquarters in Picardy, into the Franco-American Museum. After she donated it in 1931 to the French Government, it was declared a national museum. The reopening will most likely be late September.

Lascaux IV – inauguration in Fall 2016
In the fall of 2016, the Montignac-Lascaux International Parietal Art Center, also known as Lascaux 4, is poised to become the leading tourist attraction and cultural tool associated with Lascaux's world-famous painted and engraved cave art. A new and complete replica of the Lascaux cave will be the beating heart of the Center, a sizable complex that uses new imaging and virtual technology for comprehensive interpretation purposes. Read more

2016 MAJOR ANNIVERSARIES

100th Anniversary of WWI - 1914-1918
The story of Anne Morgan’s war, the Chateau de Blérancourt and WWI all go hand in hand. There will be events to commemorate the WWI battles of 1916, most notably the battle of the Somme in Picardy and, of course, the battle of Verdun in Lorraine. Although the United States had not yet entered the war in 1916, it's never too early to experience the moving memorials honoring the American dough boys and allied soldiers who fought or lost their lives in Picardy and Lorraine during Great War. Read more

France & Loire Valley
500th Anniversary of Leonardo da Vinci's arrival in France In 2016, France will celebrate the 500th anniversary of Leonardo da Vinci’s arrival with the Mona Lisa in tow, which could explain her cryptic smile. Invited by France’s great Renaissance King Francois 1er, da Vinci crossed the Alps to reach Amboise in the Loire Valley, where he settled and spend the last 3 years of his life at the Château du Clos Lucé, now a museum in his honor. It is the perfect opportunity to pay a visit to the Mona Lisa at the Louvre and admire Leonardo’s inventions at the Château du Clos Lucé. Read more

Normandy 2016
Stretching back even deeper into history, the 1,050-year-old Mont-St-Michel Abbey in Normandy has been restored to its island status at the highest tides. A major decade-long national ecological project tackled the problem of rising sand levels, which posed a threat to the monument. The area's new and improved water flow will safeguard Mont-Saint-Michel bay as a maritime area and protect the ecosystem of this varied and precious place. To mark the occasion, the Tour de France will begin on July 2, 2016, from the Mont-St-Michel.

It will also be the perfect year to explore Normandy’s medieval heritage. In 1066, 950 years ago, William the Conqueror became the first Norman king of England after his victory at the Battle of Hastings on October 14, 1066. In the Bayeux Museum—also a storied D-Day site, resides a masterpiece: the 11th century Tapestry of Bayeux. Also known as the Queen Mathilda Tapestry, the 229-foot long and 19 inch high linen cloth, depicts through beautifully embroidered panels the Norman conquest of England.

ALWAYS NEW ACCOMMODATIONS

High on the radar of newsworthy items are new destinations to experience and new accommodations to enjoy. In Paris, there has been an impressive wave of boutique hotel openings. To name just a few, there are The Maison Souquet, the Grand Hotel Pigalle, the Bains Douches and the Champagne-themed and aptly named Bubbles of Paris Hotel. This coming winter there will also be the long-anticipated reopening of the legendary Hotel de Crillon and the Ritz.

Paris is not the only place where things are happening, of course. This fall, the Paris Region welcomed a boutique hotel of its own, La Demeure du Parc, in royal and beautiful Fontainebleau. This summer the Rhone-Alpes' classy Royal Evian Hotel reopened after extensive and innovative renovations. And Bordeaux has embraced the Grand Hôtel de Bordeaux & Spa, brought in July into the InterContinental family of hotels. It has turned to world-renowned chef, restaurateur and television personality Gordon Ramsey to oversee its gastronomic restaurant, Le Pressoir d'Argent,