3. Sainte-Marine, Brittany
Best accessed by a five-minute ferry ride across the River Odet from better-known Bénodet, the little port of Sainte-Marine cradles a lovely crescent of fine sand. Perched amid neat lawns above the jetty, the century-old Villa Tri Men surveys what’s been called the prettiest river in France. It’s now a sumptuous hotel, with bright, spacious bedrooms, many with balconies, plus a superb restaurant; there are also private cottages in the grounds. Ten minutes’ walk south, by way of sheltered coves tucked into the riverbank, brings you to the mouth of the Odet, where a supremely unspoiled beach, the Plage du Teven, stretches west for four long kilometres.