Cassel, a hilltop town of 2,300 in France’s northern Flanders region has been named France’s Favorite Village for 2018, beating out 14 other contenders, including Mont-Saint-Michel.
The honor is awarded annually by a popular vote organized by the TV Show Le Village Préféré des Français. It’s the seventh village to win the honor, and the first from northern France. Previous winners have been clustered in Alsace and Provence.
The village, only seven miles from the Belgian border, not only has great views, but is also home to the Mont des Récollets gardens, names France’s outstanding garden for 2011. It’s also home to two huge (20 feet tall) papier-mache figures made in the 1800s and used annually for parades. They have UNESCO World Heritage status.
