This is the ideal place to recharge your batteries without having to isolate yourself at the ends of the earth. These 6 criteria placed this city in France as the calmest (but not the most boring). Are we going there for vacation or for life?
In recent months, the trend has been confirmed: the French want to slow down. They are looking for calm, space, a less tense pace. The proof: the search for “quiet getaway” increased by 600% last month on Google. What’s more, social networks are getting involved, with videos on slow travel which are a hit, advocating tourism without agitation or crowds. So, in this context, the car rental company SIXT has sifted through the French cities most conducive to relaxation. Result: a ranking based on concrete criteria, far from the usual tourist favorites.
The study was based on six objective indicators to decide between cities: noise pollution, light pollution, population density, quality of green spaces, average duration of a 10 km journey and number of rush hours per year. The result is an index out of 100, to establish a list of the ten most peaceful cities in the country. Among them, some great ones forgotten by mass tourism, such as Saint-Étienne, Bayonne or Limoges. Others are more well known, but which appeal for reasons other than their animation. This is the case of Angers, where the population density remains moderate and the green spaces are excellent (91.67 out of 100). Traffic jams are rare: it takes an average resident 16 minutes to travel 10 kilometers.
Same observation in Tours, which displays an impressive score for the quality of its parks (91.67) and traffic that is among the smoothest in the ranking. Less saturated than other tourist towns in the Loire, it attracts a public seeking calm more than cultural performance. In Reims, noise pollution is particularly low, with noise peaks much lower than those observed in metropolitan areas. Le Havre, despite its port and its urban density, climbs into the top 5 thanks to very low light pollution and a good balance between living environment and economic activity.
But it’s another city that stands at the top of the ranking. She checks almost every box on the board. Less than 800 inhabitants per square kilometer, a reasonable travel time for 10 kilometers (27 minutes), traffic which remains very acceptable for a city of this size (93 peak hours per year), and above all, an atmosphere perceived as calm by a majority of visitors. Many tourist reviews associate its monuments, streets and places to walk with the words “peaceful” or “relaxed”. In short, this city owes this first place to an airy urban fabric, controlled traffic, a reduced noise environment, numerous natural spaces and tourist attendance which remains measured out of season. This city is Aix-en-Provence.
There are thermal springs, avenues lined with plane trees, a chic, lively city center, but not excessively, and places where you can hear conversations without raising your voice. As you will have understood, it perfectly matches the image that travelers have of a destination where one could spend a few days without having to fight for a table, a parking space or a quiet corner to read a book. To remember!
