An excellent stop-over if you are travelling cross-country to the Channel ports, this delightful city boasts a wealth of Gothic churches crowded into narrow streets lined with half-timbered 16thC buildings. The mediaeval town was famous for its trade fairs (the name is derived from a ‘troy’ or weight), and for stained glass, much of which is on display in the glorious Cathédrale Saint Pierre-et-Saint-Paul, Eglise Sainte-Madeleine, and Basilique Saint-Urbain. There is also a Musée d’Art Moderne (musees-troyes.com), in the former Bishops’ Palace.