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Platform · Guidebooks

Guidebooks to download

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Thirteen free guides — cities, mountains, food, heritage, newcomers, families, solo and social travel. Each ends where the platform begins: with people to meet.

Meet peopleDo somethingJoin an eventTravel togetherFind a CercleCreate a project
20Guides
82Chapters
29Cities covered

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Each guide has a cover, chapters, maps, places, activities, events, official sources and QR codes back to the pages where you can join in.

Visitors walking among Nuit Blanche installations in Paris Free PDF · 5 chaptersParis Weekend GuideForty-eight hours of cafés, markets, bals and people — Paris as its residents share it.For visitors and new residentsWomen in Bigouden lace headdresses at the Festival Interceltique de Lorient Free PDF · 4 chaptersLyon Cultural GuideTraboules, bouchons, lights and the two rivers — culture you can join in Lyon.For culture lovers and weekendersClimbers on the rock walls of the Verdon Gorge Free PDF · 4 chaptersMarseille Social Discovery GuideLe Panier, the calanques, Noailles and the port — Marseille with people, not just views.For social travellers and newcomersA crowd around the Mona Lisa at the Louvre Free PDF · 4 chaptersFrench Alps Outdoor GuideLakes, ridges and refuges around Annecy, Chamonix and Grenoble — safely, together.For hikers, swimmers and first-timers in the mountainsA participant in Breton costume at the Festival de Cornouaille in Quimper Free PDF · 4 chaptersProvence Experience GuideMarkets, villages, Roman stones and summer festivals from Avignon to Arles and Gordes.For slow travellers and festival-goersRunners passing kilometre 4 of the Paris Marathon Free PDF · 4 chaptersFrance Community GuideHow French community life works: associations, Cercles, fêtes de quartier, and how to join.For anyone who wants to belong somewhereRunners taking part in the Paris Marathon Free PDF · 4 chaptersLocal Food GuideMarkets, bakers, cheese caves and shared tables across France's regions.For cooks, eaters and market regularsVisitors gathered for the Journées du patrimoine Free PDF · 4 chaptersCultural Heritage GuideCathedrals, abbeys, walled cities and the people who keep them alive.For heritage lovers and volunteersVisitors meeting farmers at the Pari Fermier fair in Paris Free PDF · 4 chaptersSolo Traveller GuideTravel France alone without being alone — group journeys, hosts and places to meet.For solo travellersPeople gathered on the Pont de la Tournelle in Paris Free PDF · 4 chaptersNewcomer GuideYour first year in a French city: paperwork help, language, and the people who welcome.For people who have just movedChildren and families sailing toy boats in the Tuileries Gardens Free PDF · 4 chaptersFamily Discovery GuideBeaches, gardens, workshops and weekends where children and parents both make friends.For families with childrenCrowds at the Fête du Citron parade in Menton Free PDF · 4 chaptersWellness Retreat GuideForest walks, cold water, silence and slow weekends — wellbeing shared with others.For anyone needing a slower weekendA dancer in Breton costume at the Festival des Filets Bleus Free PDF · 4 chaptersSocial Travel GuideTrains, shared routes, festivals and hosts: how to travel France with people you meet on the way.For groups, friends and open travellersCrowds watching the 14 July fireworks at the Eiffel Tower Free PDF · 5 chaptersHow Local Participation WorksIdeas, recommendations, consultations and decisions — who can do what, and how to follow what happens next.For residents, newcomers and first-time participantsA crowd gathered at a Nuit Blanche installation in Paris Free PDF · 4 chaptersCommunity Project GuideFrom a shared problem to a team, a plan, a budget and something built — with the people who live there.For residents and associations starting something togetherFloat riders throwing flowers to the crowd in Nice Free PDF · 4 chaptersStarting a Local InitiativeA step-by-step path from "someone should do something" to a documented initiative others can join.For anyone with an idea for their street, village or neighbourhoodCostumed performers during the Battle of Flowers in Nice Free PDF · 4 chaptersParticipatory Budgeting GuideHow residents propose, cost, discuss and choose projects within a published budget — and follow their delivery.For residents, associations and public bodies considering a budget processA community radio host at the microphone Free PDF · 4 chaptersCommunity Volunteering GuideFind a role that fits your time and skills — an hour, a weekend or a season — and see what it helped achieve.For volunteers of every age, residents and visitorsFolk dancers in traditional costume at the Confolens festival Free PDF · 4 chaptersLocal Heritage GuideCollect memories, photographs and knowledge of a place with consent — and keep them for the next generation.For residents, families, schools and heritage groupsCostumed participants in the Carnaval de Dunkerque procession Free PDF · 4 chaptersEnvironmental Participation GuideClean-ups, tree planting, biodiversity counts and air-quality observations — done together, and recorded honestly.For residents, families, schools and nature groups

From a download to a table

How a guide leads somewhere.

  1. DownloadA free PDF for the place or the way you travel.
  2. DiscoverEach chapter links to places, activities and events on the platform.
  3. JoinSay you are going, book a host, or join a Cercle.
  4. BelongCome back to the same people. That is the point.

Stories to read first

A frosty-morning walker among leavesLyon · 6 min readA Morning in LyonFrom the Croix-Rousse market to the Rhône quays, one morning shared with strangers who stop being strangers.Backpackers pausing on the trailMarseille · 8 min read48 Hours in MarseilleLe Panier stairs, a calanque walk with a group, and dinner in Cours Julien with the people from the trail.Street performers and a crowd during the Festival d'AvignonAvignon · 7 min readPeople of ProvenceA composite portrait of the hosts, growers and festival volunteers who keep Provence social — drawn from the kinds of people who host on the platform.