A French valley with forests so lush it was nicknamed "the Small Amazonia of the Pyrenees."

For hundreds of years, automatons moving to metallic music have been marking the passage of time.

The former home of France's controversial pop maestro is almost completely covered in ever-changing tributes and graffiti.

The mental institution where Van Gogh created some of his most famous work now allows guests to walk in the artist's footsteps.

This Paris art space celebrates the creativity and ingenuity that springs from abject poverty, especially in Africa.

A 14th century bridge built as a fortress, where the devil lurks on one of its towers.

At Monet's beloved home you can still see the Japanese bridge, waterlilies, and weeping willows that were the subjects of some of his most iconic paintings.

A cave dwelling that was started by the Celts, expanded by monks, and finished by knights.

Hundreds of hidden passageways weave through the old quarters of Lyon.

An icy lake tucked among jaw-dropping alpine panoramas.

This salt marsh in Southern France is as pink as the flamingos that inhabit it.

This historic island prison holds one of the dungeons from the Count of Monte Cristo even though it is a work of fiction.

Noirish green neon marks the location of one of the oldest private detective agencies in France.

This banal Parisian entranceway is not what it seems.

Ancient paintings known as the "Sistine Chapel of Cave Art."

Stroll through retro Paris while shopping for old postcards and discarded doll heads.

One of the greatest maze designer’s greatest mazes.

Sacked by Vikings, blessed by William the Conqueror, dealt a fatal blow during the French Revolution—these ruins have seen it all.

A grotto-like lodge decorated with gilded mosaics, rocks and a noisy waterfall was the setting for the most sumptuous pleasure house of 1900s Europe.

An off-the-beaten-path boutique stuffed with an eclectic collection of upcycled goods.

The water-powered carriages are long gone, but for over a century this funicular railway has been the fastest route to the highest point in Paris.

This whimsical castle of grottoes was the labor of love of a French postman, and one of the greatest achievements of outsider architecture.

Known as the "Dodo Manège," this carousel features a herd of animals that have disappeared—or may be gone soon.

Statue of death tucked in the University of Medicine courtyard.