Vézelay

The tiny walled town of Vézelay, another of France’s exasperating number of heritage spots, is surrounded by some of the most beautiful countryside in Burgundy - a patchwork of vineyards, sunflower fields, brunette furrows of farmland and stacks of hay reinventing Impressionism.

Originally built on a hilltop for defence purposes, the town became an important site of pilgrimage in the 10th century and later a gathering place for crowned heads and grandees embarking on the Crusades. Vézelay’s focal point is the Basilique Sainte Madeleine, a former 9th-century abbey church.