Walking Tours of France
Walking Tours of France is the largest U.S. retailer of trail , road, and specialty theme maps published in France. No one matches our selection. If you do not see a map you are looking for on our web site, please ask and we will check its availability with our wholesalers.
Please note: Publishing maps in France is more expensive compared to the United States. Therefore, the price of the maps listed on this site may seem a bit steep compared to similar products obtained in the U.S. But, as you know, a good trail or road map is invaluable to keeping you on the correct course, which far outweighs the expense of getting rescued if lost.
To order, go to our Order Form & Instructions page.
Map Publishers
IGN
Michelin
Plan Guide Blay
GrafoCarte
Didier Richard
Randonnées Pyrènées/Rando Editions
Club Vosgien
Other maps
Maps Clearance section
New Maps (all publishers)
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Prices on this and linked pages are list price and subject to change. Prices listed on your invoice may be higher or lower depending on the flucuations of the dollar to the Euro and the British pound (For more information about this, go to our What's New page.). For current rates, see our Today's Rate: Euro vs Dollar link; other rates available here, too. For deep discounts on maps and books, check out our Clearance and Special Sales page.
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IGN
The best maps covering France are from the IGN (Institut Geographie Nationale), France's version of the National Geographic Society.
IGN produces the following series:
- Series 900 are maps on various themes in France from battle sites to leisure parks to long distance hiking. These maps range in price from $8.25 - $12.95. Check out our list of these maps.
- Series Bleue (blue) maps, with a 1:25,000 scale, are the best maps available for hiking in France. An entire map covers approximately 16 - 20 kilometers (less than 12 miles) from map edge to edge. These maps, which show land contours, trails, cattle tracks, highways, rail lines, and more, have been created for every square kilometer in France, Corsica, and its outlying territories. There are over 2,000 individual maps in this series. When you choose the trails you want to hike, let us know and we will do the research for you, suggesting which Series Bleue maps you need. These maps range in price from $14.95 - $21.95. Check out our example of these maps.
Since there are over 2,000 of these maps, we only keep the most popular 300-some in stock. Therefore, some of your blue series purchases will have to be special ordered for you from France. Please allow up to 45 days (usually less than 30) to receive them. There is a cancellation fee (50% of the retail price) if you cancel your order for any reason as the IGN does not accept returns. Please read our Special Orders Policy page before ordering.
- IGN, after discountinuing it for a few years, is returning with its Series Orange (orange maps) which have a 1:50,000 scale. These maps are great for bicyclists and automobile travel, but we do not recommend them for hiking as the trails are not highlighted like they are on the blue series. Since these maps are a special order from France, there is a 50% cancellation fee if you cancel your order for any reason. Check out our example and index of these maps. These maps sell for $14.95 - $18.95.
- The popular Series Top 100 maps, with a 1:100.000 scale, are best for driving. This series divides France into 72 maps, plus 2 for Corsica. Check out our example and index of these maps.
Please note: This map series was formerly known as Series Verte. IGN is in the process of changing the exterior color of each one to a dark blue (as they are revised), not to be confused with the "blue series" maps which are a royal blue. The interior map section is still the high quality detail expected from the IGN. When you receive your order, you may receive a green or blue map depending on what we have in stock. These maps sell for $11.95 each.
- IGN has completely revamped their Series Rouge (red) maps. They are now known as Cartes de la series Régionales, a regional map series covering France's 22 regions. These 1:250,000 scale maps (some are 1:280,000) sell for $11.95. Check out our example and index of these maps.
- Cartes Departmentale are maps for each of Frances 96 departments. The 22 regions of France are subdivided into departments for a more decentralized style of government. These maps sell for $11.95. Hiking trails are not shown on these maps. Check out our example and index of these maps.
- Cartes Decouvertes Regionales are regional maps that highlight historical sights, recreation facilities, and other practical information for a specific region in France. The GR and other major hiking trails are shown on the maps, plus symbols indicating natural sites and panoramic views. These maps sell for $12.95 - $15.95. Check out our list of these maps.
- Cartes Cultures et Environnement are regional maps highlighting culturally significant museums and monuments, natural sites, locations to sample local products (from vineyards to country auberges), and places to experience outdoor recreational, including hiking trails, horse trails, and nautical acitivities for specific area in France. Symbols for Gîtes d'étapes are included on these maps. Several of these maps include some of France's regional natural parks such as Vercors near Grenoble and the Luberon in Provence (For more natural parks, see IGN's Plein Air maps.). These maps sell for $12.95 - $15.95. Check out our list of these maps.
- Cartes Plein Air maps highlight outdoor recreational activities, including hiking trails, horse trails, mountain biking routes, climbing sites, and boating acitivities on Frances rivers/canals/oceans for a specific area in France. Symbols for Gîtes d'étapes and Gîtes équestre are included on these maps. These maps include some of France's regional natural parks such as Carmargue in western Provence and Normandie-Maine in eastern Normandy. (For more natural parks, see IGN's Cartes Cultures et Environnement maps.). These maps sell for $12.95 - $15.95. The text is in French. Check out our list of these maps.
- Plans de Ville maps are for the major cities of France, including Paris, Bordeaux, Grenoble, Brest, Rennes, Lyon, Rouen, Nancy, Rodez, Lille, Cannes, Nantes, Reims, Toulon, Calais, Strasbourg, Tours, Annecy, St-Etienne, Montpellier, Marseille, Le Havre, Bethune, Roubaix-Touraing, Douai, Valenciennes, Orléans, Dijon, Mulhouse, Nice, and Toulouse. As of January 2007, there are maps for about 100 cities. Check out our sample and index of these maps. These maps range in price from $11.95 - $14.95.
- In 2003, IGN developed a bi-lingual (English/German or French/Italian) map-guide series called Alpes Sans Frontieres which shows the roads and trails in the alpine areas that border France, Italy, and Switzerland. There are 20 titles in this series running from Lac Léman to the Maritime Alpes above Nice. Check out our samples of them. They sell for $29.95 - $32.95.
- The IGN has created Cartes de Vins (wine maps) for the vineyards of Alsace, Bordeaux, Burgundy, Beaujolais, Champagne, Coôtes du Rhône, Jura, Provence, and Touraine. Each map of a 1:240,000 scale highlights where various wines in those areas are produced. These maps are $14.95 each.
When you are making plans for your next France trip, whether purely for hiking/walking excursions, an auto tour, or both, contact us and we will suggest the maps you need with a price quote.
Michelin
Although not as intensive as the IGN (They lack the contours and smaller details of the IGN Series Bleue and Green), Michelin still offers some of the best maps for driving in France.
The Michelin France map that covers the entire country is $11.95. We also sell the Michelin 500 series which features 19 regional road maps scaled at 1:275,000 ($9.95 each) and the 300 series which covers 45 areas of France at a 1:150,000 scale ($9.95 each). For the best savings, get Michelin's spiral bound road atlas that covers the entire country (1:200,000 scale) for only $25.00.
For city maps, you might want to consider Michelin's annual Red Guide which gives capsule maps of most of its cities and large towns, plus important hotel and restaurant information ($26.00). Maps are also found in its famous Green Guides which cover the major regions ($20.00 each). They also offer several different maps and atlases for Paris and the surrounding Ile de France region and a series of maps covering WW2 battlefields in France.
We sell the full line of Michelin maps and travel guides. Check out our online list of these maps.
Plan Guide Blay
For city walking tours, this publishers offers the best maps. Check out our title list which includes over 100 cities in France with a scale of 1:5,000 to 1:15,000.
Grafocarte
Grafocarte maps for cities in France are a little more detailed than Plan Guide Blay maps. Check out our title list.
Didier Richard
This French map-maker publishes excellent hiking maps and guides for the French Alps. The maps utilize French IGN 1:50,000 topographic maps as base maps, then add hiking, skiing, cycling and equestrian trails onto the maps. The trails are shown in bright red, along with the locations of huts.
We sell these maps for $20.95 each. Check out our list of maps.
Please note: After wallowing for the past several years in bancruptcy, Didier-Richard has reorganized and revamped several of its series, including the above maps. The famed Mont-Blanc map is now available again. So order today.
Randonnées Pyrènées/Rando Editions
This French map-maker specializes in maps for the Pyrènées Mountains range that spans France and Spain; 1:50,000 scale. We sell these maps for $17.95. Check out our list of maps for this region.
Club Vosgien
This hiking club in eastern France publishes 11 maps for the Vosges Mountains (similar in elevation to the Appalachian Mountains chain) and nearby locations in the Alsace and Lorraine regions. We sell these maps for $18.95-$21.75. Check out our list of maps for this region. These maps are a special order from France and can be hard to obtain at times.
Other France Maps
If you know of a France map from a publisher that we do no list, let us know and we will locate it for you.
We also sell a selection of maps for the countries bordering France (See our Maps Clearance section for some of these that are on sale.), plus we can obtain maps for any country/location in the world, including all U.S. states and cities. Just tell us what you need and we will give you a quote for it.
To order, go to our Order Form & Instructions page.
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