Chamonix Makes Lonely Planet's Top 500

This new ultimate travel guide not only gives you the 500 most thrilling, memorable and downright interesting places on this planet, but what's more, they've ranked them in order of their brilliance. These are the places that they think you should experience; "there are sights that will humble you, amaze you and surprise you. They'll provoke thoughts, emotions or just an urgent need to tell someone about them." - Lonely Planet

Amongst those to make it into the top places to visit in France are, of course, the Palace of Versailles and the Louvre gallery in Paris, which both rank high in the top 100 alongside the Eiffel Tower and the magnificent Notre-Dame cathedral. It should also come as no surprise that the Aiguille du Midi in Chamonix with it's breathtaking views over some of the highest mountains in Europe comes in at number 123. Not far behind and within the top 200 are two of the most spectacular natural sights in France, the extraordinarily stunning Gorges du Verdon in Provence is at 179, and 'rooftop' of Europe, the mountain of Mont Blanc, Chamonix is at number 185.

France's rich history shines through as the impressive three tier Roman aquaduct, Pont du Gard, near Nimes, gets a mention at number 234, and the beautiful 16th century Chateau de Chenonceau, near Tours in the Loire is at 260. The ancient prehistoric caves of Lascaux in the Dordogne are naturally on the list as one of the best examples of ancient cave painting and sit at number 333.

Perhaps two of the best known buildings in Monaco also make the top 500 with the Belle Epoque style Casino de Monte-Carlo making it into the top 400 at number 347, and the Musee Oceanographique de Monaco just making it at number 493.