Recommend me a nice area / town in France - have no clue!

[TokyoBouncyBall]

DD is doing French A Level and so we are off to France this summer so that she can speak French.

We'd like to be in a town so that she can go out and about without us, but other than that have no real idea - which means we could go anywhere in France. Can you help us narrow this down? Anywhere that you'd recommend that isn't an insane drive from the ferry?

Ta!

How long for?

Personally, i wouldn't want my teenage DD wondering around a city like Angers, Tours Rennes or Nantes, theses are cities....

My favourite part of France is the S/W and a perfect town is Figeac, masses of history, lots of restaurants, country side, shops and the nearby towns are lovely too, few speak English.

BUT it is a 9hr drive from Cherbourg, so an over night stay to break up the trip?

Bayeux isn't far from Cherbourg and is an interesting town.
Wouldn't Brittany have a breton accent which might not be as good to learn as the Loire region, like Angers or Poitiers?

Another vote for Angers, with the added bonus that your sat nav will pronounce it as you would it English which makes the drive amusing.

Brantome

This is fantastic, thank you. Will be looking at all of these.

Ile de Re!

St Martin or La Flotte are lovely little towns.

St Malo and Dinan are really nice.

Agree with the posters that St Malo and Dinah are beautiful, also not too far away is Honfleur also lovely.
Britannia is stunning - we head to a small place near Guidel / Lorient and absolutely love it - beautiful beaches kayaking food markets etc and we rarely see an English menu - locals speak excellent English and are so friendly and willing for us to speak French - it's a little pocket of heaven - look at Pont Aven, Quimperle too - about 3/4 hour drive from Cherbourg

I love the Ile de Re, but realistically, with a teenager who doesn't care about being by the sea, it's a lot of money! Would love to find somewhere like that but inland...

Poitiers is a lovely little city, Futuroscope is also a good day out in the area.

i love Toulouse too and when we where there we had to use more French than we have in other areas we have visited

If using the Calais crossing, thoroughly recommend St Valery sur Somme. About 90 minutes from Calais. Small town on estuary, with historic old section. Lovely to potter round, felt very friendly and safe. Lots of cafes and little shops - good places for her to wander into and chat.
Get the steam train round to le Crotoy or a boat trip out.
Can also do a day trip from there visiting WW1 sites including Thiepval, or a visit to Montreuil.

Terrasson-Laviledieu in the Perigord region is one of the prettiest places I've ever been. Every street is like being in Beauty and The beast! And the Gardens of Imagination are stunning!

If they enjoy sports / activities - white water rafting, canyoning, mountain biking, hiking etc I would head for the Alps - totally beautiful in summer …… joining in activities is also a great opportunity to practice language.